For Christmas my sister got me a “Scratch and collect” Munro bagging poster. It’s a thing of beauty really, the graphic design is on point and I love it. It’s framed and currently in our spare room because I put it in a frame from IKEA that I’m not totally sure can support its own weight on a wall. But me having it and starting to scratch of my Munro’s is what changed this officially from “Hey I went up a hill that’s a Munro” to “I’m going to go up Munro’s” and that’s two very different things. I now have the satisfaction of getting every little bit of gold foil off a mountains name to help me get off my bum and drag me up a hill, which is helpful.

Ben Lawers and Beinn Ghlas were spontaneous and unplanned on the 15th of July 2019. It was a big gap because I had lost my way in my fitness progress after I had started back at work last August and gotten stressed again. I could have restarted at any point but I began to get scared and anxious that I wasn’t good enough or fit enough to climb a hill, so I didnt. But I had bought some new lightweight boots- actually more like high ankled trail runners- for the West Highland Way because my normal boots are very heavy and warm in summer. I adore them and they are completely trust inducing but warm. So new boots were ordered, received and needed testing. The new ones were a bit snug so I also picked up some ultralight bridgedales because they are my sock brand of choice and these weren’t as bulky as my usual medium weights. Expensive but gave a little bit of give in the upper of my new boots. I elected to go this route rather than go up a size in the boots because the length was bang on, just the width that was a tad snug.

My sister was on holiday from her work and she was just as bored as I was so when I saw the weather was good I asked if she wanted to go up Ben Lawers and Beinn Ghlas and since she was the only one in the family who hadn’t been up a Munro yet she enthusiastically agreed and we drove up to Killin the next day.

She was so psyched and excited and was marvelling at the high hills around as as we left Callendar, it was really special to be seeing her reaction to the Highlands for the first time. I also got to see her have the same pre hill anxiety as I get. As we drove through Killin she was taking photos of the rocky riverside and the bridge and I pointed out the hill ahead of us and she swore and said “we can’t do that, let’s go back” and hilariously “I’ve not put it on Snapchat yet, we can go back.” She was joking of course, she was more determined to go up the hill than I was, but it was reassuring as my own stomach seethed that my reactions to seeing high high hills maybe wasn’t that unusual.

Ben Lawers car park being so high up is very helpful as it cuts off so much of the ascent which is why I chose it for her first attempt. Walkhighlands website naturally pairs it with Beinn Ghlas and has a GPX of the suggested route taking in Beinn Ghlas first. Why on earth is this the recommended route? The recommended route is steep all the way up to Beinn Ghlas, then a nice smooth descent to the Bealach between the two hills then steep up to Ben Lawers, steep back down to the Bealach and a nice smooth descent down to the car park. We chose instead to go “backwards” coming up the much more gradual descent path to the Bealach, walking up to Ben Lawers first to get it out the way then the gradual slope up to Beinn Ghlas. So much more logical. And we both agreed it was the better way psychology wise. For one thing it for the big one out the way and Beinn Ghlas was so easy by comparison I’m still a bit sceptical it even deserves designation as a Munro (except I want to keep that shiny gold foil being removed so I’m not questioning loudly) but for another massive advantage you stand in Beinn Ghlas looking at Ben Lawers which is so much higher and raises to a thoroughly impressive point high above you. Having already done it we looked at it proud, satisfied and in awe of ourselves. If we were doing it the other way around I could easily imagine us looking up and going “ummmm, can we do this?” So I say there is no shame in going up descent paths at all.

Another advantage to the route we took was that we caught the valley at the north of the Lawers range in possibly the best light during the day. The weather had been godamn stunning but it was partly cloudy as we walked up and the constantly shifting light and shadow was mesmerising at times because the hills at the back appear relatively smooth and uniform but they aren’t. They’re complex and layered and interesting in a way my camera couldn’t quite capture and with every few steps along the path you could look up after that 20 seconds and the light would have changed and exposed new colours and shapes on the landscape. It was extraordinarily peaceful and satisfying.

The descent back down after we had finished on Beinn Ghlas was tough on me with my new boots. My feet slipped forward and smushed my toes up in the toe box and it was frustrating. I’ve since looked up lacing techniques and fixed that with some surgeons knots to keep my heel locked in place. At first I barely trusted my boots. I am clumsy and I trust my Meindls -my other boots- with every step knowing that if I stumbled it was because of me, not my kit. At first I did not have that trust in the new Inov8s but it gradually built. I’m still not 100% but they are light and comfy in the heat so I’m still very glad I have them.

I was also very pleased that my sister had been so supportive. Like I said I was worried about my fitness levels- and I’m still not proud of them- I was very slow. My sister walked at her own pace and has no navigation experience but we agreed places she would be able to identify and stop and wait for me. The system went well and I didn’t feel pressured or left behind and isolated and as far as I’m aware she did not feel frustrated or bored.

In the course of one day I doubled my Munro total. I kept thinking of the bit in the office when Andy mocks Pam for saying she doubled her sales “oh what from 2 to 4” and in a talking head smash cut she just owns it.

“yup”

Well yeah, I did that too. Two more gold foils names scratched off my dumb brilliant poster.