Ben More and More and More and More Mutant Black Slugs ... and Stob Binnein

Saturday 25th June

It has been the worst week...well the worst week in a long, long time for both Dotscot and myself for different but upsetting reasons. So what does one do when faced with upset and trauma? Well we climbed a mountain... or two, now that'll make you forget anything!

We'd planned to do the event for a while. There were two good events on this day and team Biffo decided that Mr.Biff and Baby Biff would take Rose & Thistle's
AYRSHIRE MEET 2011 
and Mrs.Biff would hoof it up the mountain with Dotscot for Simply Paul's 
(Ben) More? I'm Spoiling You!  .
The added bonus of course for the Ben More event is claiming
Scotland's First en route. So a busy day planned for all.

All ready for the off.

Wild Bean coffee to kick start the day.

Us girls headed off at 6am, this is truly an unGodly hour for Mrs.B, I really don't do mornings. Still we were in fine fettle and looking forward to the walk  ( I use this word lightly). The roads were clear and we reached our destination just east of Crianlarich at 8.05am. Here we met Scotsbob (Bobby) becoming slightly concerned that he was the only walker.
We shot the breeze and at 8.20 Simply Paul (our host as it were) came striding up the road from the official carpark. Paul had been partaking of a marathon of events in Scotland and Ben More was to be his last before heading down to Birmingham, his main goal was the cache rather than the event and we all agreed that we'd see how the weather held for the summit.

Mrs.Biffo, Dotscot, Scotsbob & SimplyPaul the intrepid explorers of Scotland's First Geocache!

So rucksacks on backs and myself with my new trusty poles (can't imagine how I managed walking without them) off we set. It makes me laugh to think of how gingerly I stepped over the wee seuch so as not to get my boots wet  HA! Off up the farm track we went a happy wee bunch, we discussed some Scots words and had a richt guid blether. Before long Scotsbob initiated the way up the mountain, there is no arrow to guide you and we followed his lead as he had attempted Scotland's First in the winter but had been unable to dig it out of the snow and ice. Dotscot had downloaded the waypoints into her gps from WalkHighlands but this wasn't the route to the cache only the summit and on to Stob Binnein.

Click here for WalkHighlands map of Ben More & Stob Binnein

I had read up on Ben More and had voiced concerns about the steepness of terrain, I find it tough going. After only 10mins walking Dotscot felt that her lungs were going to explode and I thought I was going to pass out or throw up or high chance of both! We knew Paul had a strict time restraint and we didn't want to hold them up so we told them to go on ahead.

The group divides on the initial steep ascent

I think they thought we would be turning back the state we were in! Off they disappeared into the mist. Dotscot and myself sat on a rock for 5mins, had some water and waited for the shock to subside! As always Dotscot gives me the medical terminology for what is happening to my body. I love this, she is very clever. But I will tell you what was happening to my body in layman's terms ...... it was buggered. Too much, too soon and it wanted to heave the contents of it's stomach because then I would have to stop, the dizziness? Well it was just trying to locate my brain for climbing up this bloody mountain. As I said Dotscot describes it 'Grey's Anatomy' style.

We were on our own now but feeling that if we just took things at our own pace we'd do okay and so that's what we did. Somehow we had managed to come off the ridge and were following the arrow to the cache, the hill fog was so thick we couldn't see much in front of us and thankfully very little behind us. If we had I doubt very much that we would have gone on!

I do not jest about the steepness. She's only got wee legs bless her.

It was STEEP baby! 45 degree angle for the majority of the way on slippy grass and moss, our boots were soaked through very early on despite waterproofing the night before. Suddenly a shriek from behind! Oh God no! Dotscot has fallen down the hill!

"Are you ok?!!!!!" I shout with alarm.

"It's the slugs!!!! The BIG, BLACK SLUGS!!!!!!" she cries fearfully "I don't want them to get me!!!!!!!!!"

 Now, I don't like them either and in truth they were fairly mutant, they probably dine on the rubber of hiking boots ... glad I didn't suggest that to Dotscot at the time! So I left her to worry about the slugs rather than alert her to the fact that we were much more at risk of falling back down the steep incline to our death. Future shrieks and cries I knew were of more slug sightings.

The Silky Black Terror that lurks in the moss......or just a slug to most folks.

At 10.30am, 2 hours into our walk, we found the cache. We had wandered far east of location but the gps had been bouncing about a bit.

Scotland's First ever Geocache and we found it!

Dotscot signing the log of Scotland's First ever cache.

We were exhilarated and had a celebratory coffee and chunk of chocolate, oh yes we are girls who know how to live it up! Bizarrely this is when my mother-in-law phoned me for a chat. I was screaming down the phone that I was half way up a mountain but she blethered on regardless. Don't think she understands my accent yet (or ever will!).

Ok perhaps a little too exuberant!

Sadly not our 800th cache as Mr.Biff back in Ayrshire failed to get the numbers needed to make Scotland's First a milestone, I think it comes in at 789.

Dotscot's log for Scotland's First.

It was at this point that we read the previous entry in the log by Simply Paul and Scotsbob stating that they were heading back down to look for us. Fortunately Dotscot had Paul's mobile number and called him. He seemed really surprised that we were at the cache and had seemingly reached it just a short time after they had headed back down. We assured them that we were feeling fit and fab we had just needed to find our mountain goat legs. We hate to think that they really went back down looking for us, this would have been like finding a needle in a haystack or perhaps an Aljo cache at Loudon Kirk. Perhaps it was their conscience that took them back down but we are inclined to think that we were an excuse for not heading to the top. Whatever reason the boys had headed back down. Scotsbob left a really nice note on my windscreen saying he'd waited till 2.15 before heading home ..... we were still 1165m high at that time.

Now we had two options.
1) Cross the burn and head to the distant ridge that we could see bodies walking up.
2) Keep going north from our current location.

We had a look at our map and figured that we would head due north as the contour lines looked packed together whatever way we headed! This, in hindsight, was perhaps the wrong choice........ oh isn't it always!

'Take great care to avoid veering into the hanging valley of Sloc Curraidh, scattered rock and grass on a high gradient make it exceptionally dangerous and in winter it is a well known avalanche blackspot.' 

http://www.walkingbritain.co.uk/walks/walks/walk_b/1406/

Guess where we were....................................

There's no going back down on Sloc Curraidh.

Singing on Ben More

I do remember singing at this point and receiving a look from Dotscot that told me in no uncertain terms that if I didn't shut up she would harpoon me with her walking sticks, Ha! Yeah! You try digging them out of the mountain bud! Coz they are the only thing holding you on to it!

We think this is the skeletal remains of a mountain bike. We hate to think what it's owner looked like...slugs probably got him.

At 12.20 we reached a final rocky wasteland and just through a gap in the rocks I let up a cry, 'a man made rock!'. I was sure it was the trig. As it disappeared from view I made a last valiant push (unaware that this totally freaked Dotscot out as I disappeared from her view) and there it was the summit. We'd made it half an hour late for the hostless event and up the hard way! Three lads were approaching the trig as our heads popped up from the Corrie route and they looked astounded at the way we had come....well no bloody wonder!

The best view of the day... sorry Mr.Biff ;)

Again, the feeling of accomplishment at reaching the summit and feeling on top of the world is immense.

Mrs.Biffo at the summit of Ben More

I'd had a really awful week and it didn't matter anymore, because I am awesome, I can climb mountains (note: I don't really feel like that once I'm back in front of the telly, my ego isn't that robust). Yet when you are up among the clouds, and I've yet to see a view from a Munro, it just makes me feel so alive and vital and special. It gives me perspective of all the crap that I allow to bog me down day to day. Actually I should just live up a mountain ... well Heidi did it and look at the Von Trapp family fleeing from Nazi persecution, still singing bloody Edelweiss as they ran through the Swiss Alps. Julie Andrews, what a woman!

I digress somewhat.........

Dotscot at the summit of Ben More

Team Dotscot & Mrs.Biffo still smiling!

Yes back to the event, or lack of it! Only to be expected that the event went a little awry, the weather was poor, folks had all headed off at different times, we had broke company and I later read logs to say that one family's seven year old was struggling (no kidding!) and they had to head back down. Ben More is no place for children in my opinion, some Munros yes, but not this evil pyramid of deadly slug habitation. Still we had made it and still felt enthusiastic to take on it's sister Stob Binnein.

A nice descent to a very exposed Bealach- eader-dha Bheinn with a huge rock to mark what would be our final descent after Stob Binnein. The wind really picked up here, we'd obviously been really sheltered before and it felt now as though we could be blown off the mountain. The great swirls of mist pushing up and over the saddle was something we could have watched for ages, it was so dramatic.

Dotscot with Bealach-eader-dha Bheinn below.

Stob Binnein has a really obvious path, which meanders its way to the top. Still steep it was easier going than our ascent to Ben More. We met the three boys from earlier as they descended Stob Binnein, they were very encouraging and I think were surprised at our resilience... in truth so was I and I think Dotscot was simply in a state of shock; she will have a full medical explanation for what her body was experiencing, but I'll just call it feckin' knackered.

Stob Binnein has a rock cluster cairn at the summit and we reached it without any trouble at 2.30pm, an hour and a half since we'd left Ben More, yet it seemed quicker, which is no bad thing. It's a pity there isn't a cache up here but c'est la vie. We didn't linger for long at the top, we found a little sheltered spot and had some more coffee and a Melton Mowbray pork pie, oh yes! Dotscot had a fully stocked Tesco Express in her rucksack.

Mrs.Biffo at the summit of Stob Binnein

Dotscot at the summit of Stob Binnein

I really thought we'd skip down the mountain in about ten minutes because the going is at a much faster pace however it took us nearly three hours to return to the car. The terrain under foot was just so so boggy, we'd had wet feet now for 7 hours YUCK!!!!!!!! Gaiters wouldn't even have kept the wet out and we questioned whether our toes would in fact be webbed once we took our boots off. Eventually we picked up the track I was singing 'Follow the Yellow Brick Road' by the Munchkins but Dotscot thought the mood more 'Long and Winding Road' by The Beatles. And after a while, she won out with this one.

Even the Garra Rufa fish would take this on...nasty!

We got back to the car a little after 5pm. Exhausted and soggy we positively stripped off at the side of the road, we really couldn't care less at this point who saw us! You have no idea the luxury of experiencing fresh socks and a fresh cosy fleece. Health spas be damned!

Trainers back on, oh the relief!

We had a fabulous day, just what we both needed. Decision made however never to climb Ben More again. Well done to Dotscot claiming her first and second Munro in one day! Okay bud where to next?



If only Dotscot had looked a little closer at the slugs she would have seen their encouragement!

Corserine and The Rhinns of Kells - 12/6/2011

The Corserine cache had been sitting on our caching map winking at us for a long time. So we decided that Sunday would be a good day to claim it as we were kid free and the weather forecast didn't look too bad. 
We planned for the circular route courtesy as always of walkhighlands. This route took in Corserine and The Rhinns of Kells, 10.25 miles and approximately 5-7 hours walk well what else is there to do on a Sunday, I don't do Sunday housework!
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/maps/map2_1dg.shtml

However all the best plans have problems...... our big mistake of the day? Not getting up early enough! Heading off about 11am we took the A714 south through Carsphairn and then looked for the signpost (and hoping there was one!) for Forrest Lodge, finding 'Forrest Estate' we hedged our bets and down it we trundled for a good 3 miles passing enroute two very interesting buildings indeed...

interesting because the roofs were grass, not perfectly mown lawn, but grass no less. This is a 'natural' energy company nestled in this lovely little nook, and sadly that's where the extent of my information lies. Grass roofs...well that's a first for me.


We reached the car park at Forrest Estate at 12.30, late due to the fact that I was exhausted after an all night Friday in Edinburgh Vaults, but that's a whole different story! 

Okay! Armed with poles and my map lets go find Corserine.

The weather was fair as we headed off, passing a big group of folks with rally cars, many of which passed us as we headed up the first stretch of our walk. We thought we were going to avoid the rally but unfortunately the high road that we were on joined the lower road and we met back up. We stood by the emergency vehicles who were able to tell us that there were three cars to pass...so sense prevailed and we waited...these guys were fast!

EAT MY DUST!

So not quite what we expected on our 'peaceful' walk! This reminds me of all the different people and their activities that share the hills and mountains. Still I was glad to leave them behind and continue the walk through the forest.





The walk was really nice, a good wide track through forest beside the Polharrow Burn which we eventually crossed. A little further and we reached a stile which took us to the Mountain track and we could clearly see the walk ahead of us eek!

UP!

AND OVER!

I found the hike up the underside of Polmaddy Gairy really hard going and had to take short breaks regularly for water and additional clothing. Still, the higher we climbed we were rewarded with sensational views of Galloway.

Still smiling through gobfuls of hair

Mrs.Biffo at the summit of Corserine, Arran in the distance.

The higher we climbed the cloudier it became and much windier! I  must concede that I do not have hair conducive to my hobby and on this walk I questioned if perhaps it's time for it to go. A good ten minute push through high winds and we reached the plateau that led us to the summit. It's a nice feeling when the mountain flattens out and you can really get your breath back and view the panoramic scenes. We had pretty good visibility at this point but I can imagine that on a brilliantly clear day the views will be out of this world. Mr.Biff was intent on the cache but I insisted on the trig first.

Mr.Biff at the trig

A last smile before the rain comes at us!

Of course we came to climb the mountain and add another Corbett to our stats but the reason for being 814 metres up is to claim another geocache. Not surprisingly it's named for the mountain.
 Corserine (Rhinns of Kells)
It's a 5 terrain well fair enough you feel like you've earned it by the time you reach it! And a 3 for difficulty which is very generous as it's not a difficult find. So we found the cache very quickly and grabbed a bite to eat, a good old cheese sandwich shared with the geohounds that as always had ran about three times the walk we had done! We were surprised to see that this cache hasn't been done often, we were only about the 7th to sign. This is a shame, more cachers should be seeking out these superb caches, it's not about finding a magnetic nano on a bench, well it's not for us. Fine for the numbers but climbing a mountain and seeing the world laid out before you is really what it's fast becoming all about for me. 

Signing the log book, with Hannah helping.

It was with much regret that we abandoned hope of walking the vast ridge of The Rhinns of Kells as we could see the grey sweep of rain coming across the mountains in the distance and we knew that we would have a very wet walk ahead of us. We turned tail and headed back the way we had came. We will most definitely climb Corserine and the Rhinns of Kells I can but hope of a clear weather day with which to enjoy the glories it will most surely present.

Losing Mr.Biff up Ben Lomond and Flashing with Friends

Friday 3rd June

The hottest day of the year so far; stunningly beautiful and topping 23 degrees. This is a rare and special occurrence in Scotland. I am on the fabulous island of Arran and it's been years since I've visited. Goatfell is cloud free and glorious. Oh to climb that ever so special Corbett! It's winking at me...come on Mrs.Biff, you know you want to! And I DO want to! Ever so much! But I am not alone on Arran, oh no, I have with me 41 children high on sugar drinks and freedom. Come on Mrs. Biff you know you want to! I'd have wanted to if it were a gale force wind and Arctic snow blizzard conditions, ah well another day..........


Saturday 4th June

The hottest day of the year so far; EH NAW! That day has gone ........ it was yesterday. If you're not fast in Scotland, CARPE DIEM! Seize the day and all that, well if you don't, you've had it. So the weather had judged us as a nation, we hadn't appreciated the sunshine the day before so we were punished with cloud. Cloud and hill fog. As we arrived at the start of the path to Ben Lomond I questioned whether 'hill fog' was merely another way of saying 'swarm of hungry midgies', oh these guys are really vicious! Perhaps they are on some kind of commission from the tourist board:

'Ok lads get them up the mountains as fast as possible and you get your own Englishman tied to a tree for supper'

Well we didn't hang around to be midge breakfast and made haste through the woodland track to escape the blood sucking armies.    Please Enjoy The Midgie Song!    
For Further Information on the Terror of Scotland

Does a Bear Cache in the Woods? No but Mr.Biff does.

The first cache on the track  Up The Ben  we left till the way back down because of the midges, yes seriously that bad! So our first cache find of the day was  Does a Bear Cache In The Woods?  we found this cache really easily and it gave us an excuse to stop and take some layers off.

So off we trotted huffing and puffing as we do on the first steep rises Dotscot has explained this in 'medical terminology' that seems very feasible when she explains it but it is far too complicated for me to try to on here...so ask her! Anyway I huff and puff because my body should (thanks for making me feel better Dotscot and not just a right unfitty!).

We thought Ben Nevis was busy, well Ben Lomond holds it's own for popularity! Lots of people and doggies. Now there are two downsides to this.

1) Drummer wants to play with them ALL...and they don't want to play with him, they are clearly professional mountain walking dogs and have no time for a girlie looking dog bouncing about them and trying to sniff...well y'know.....

2) As much as Drummer loves other dogs, Hannah hates their owners and howls like the Hound of the Baskervilles when anyone is within five feet of her. This is embarrassing, especially since people think they are beautiful dogs and exclaim so, only to have Hannah howl like a rabid wolf. It needs to stop or she's getting a muzzle... but that makes me think of Lady and the Tramp and I couldn't make my Lady sad.

Hannah - Hound of the Baskervilles

Starting to leave Loch Lomond behind

Just a bit of a climb ahead......and the rest!

The day is overcast but dry. We can see that the hill fog is obscuring the mountain peaks all around, 'obscured by clouds' mmmm wonder if Pink Floyd climbed Munros. Well apparently not: 

'The 7th album was created as a sound track to the French film La Vallee by Barbet Schroeder.' 

There you go, a little piece of trivia for the pub quiz. Don't say this blog isn't educational! Onwards and upwards we pass the little Ben Lomond sign, well with us you never can tell that we are actually on the right mountain.

"Yep we're heading in the right direction"

The going is good and we are really enjoying our walk we know that the next cache is just up ahead on an S shape bend in the path. The problem is, there are lots of muggles (non geocachers) and there is a bit of a hold up. The reason for this hold up is quite incredible. Slowly, step by painstaking step, an elderly, blind man is being guided up the mountain by three women who are describing each rocky step he is taking. I felt a real surge of warmth for this strange party of four and commend their patience and resilience. We met the party on the way back down the mountain still on their arduous journey. What an amazing challenge I thought to myself only to have Mr.Biff suggest that they should just say they've arrived as he'd 'never know the difference'. I was shocked beyond belief at this statement and Mr Biff got a slap for the suggestion. He is a practical man of solutions, what can I say.......

Ahhh ahh we fade to grey.........'Visage 1981'

It wasn't long before we lost the green and headed into the grey. Lots of grey; grey path, grey air, grey view....GREY.

Still we were very upbeat and really enjoying our walk, our clothing and doggies were getting damper by the minute but our spirits weren't. We'd been itching to get out and do a proper good hike since we climbed Ben Nevis back in April. The weather had just been so dire, and children so demanding with their activities that we'd been grounded so we were really enjoying the freedom.

After two hours we were nearing the summit and it became much wilder, windy and very cold. Cursing myself for forgetting my gloves and pitying the folks in shorts with red, skelpit legs and yes the wee teenage girls in t-shirts and dolly shoes. I have a theory that while we are bagging in the name of the great Sir Hugh T. Munro, they are tottering in the name of the late Marilyn Monroe.

Drummer got a bit of a scare at this point, there are a few bigger rocks that require a bit of clambering, with the howling wind and the scary visions of people coming out of the mist he was for none of it and decided it was time he left the mountain. So my headstrong boy turned tail and legged it back the way he'd came with Mr.Biff bolting after him. As I stood in the fog with Hannah crying by my side minutes later Mr.Biff appeared with Drummer under his arm. I really wish I had a picture of this as it was very funny....Drummer, although he thinks he is, is not a Chihuahua! Time to pop both dogs on leads and rapidly get to the top so we could get back down again....why do we do this again?

The Trig - Ben Lomond

Now the plan is always to find some caches out on our walks, but for me climbing a mountain is about climbing a mountain, it is not about seeking tupperware. The cache is just the bonus. Now, this is not the case for Mr.Biff, for him if he hasn't written his name in a log book well his day is incomplete, his mountain not truly bagged. His has to be bagged and signed and bloody gift wrapped. I swear because at this point we are being blown about, visibility is pants, the dogs are unhappy with the sound of the wind in their wee ears when Mr.Biff says 'only 300ft! Be back in five' and disappears out of view towhat appears to be a sheer drop from the mountain.

I then stand with two very upset hounds, who, as Collies, need to keep the pack together and want to herd their dad back to the pack and down the mountain. Now I'm with the dogs on this but cannot let them go, for obvious reasons. Lots of people that we'd passed on the way up walking past my now giving me funny looks.

 'Ha!' I laugh 'Oops, lost my husband' a foolish thing to say I know, an over zealous boy scout may have sent up a flare at this point and we'd have been on the next viewing of 'Highland Emergency'. It seemed like an eternity but it must have just been minutes when he appears out of the swirling mist, making me think of myself as Sigourney Weaver in Gorillas in the Mist ( well with less googily eyes). To say Mr.Biff got an ear bashing is an understatement, however to have our first argument at 3196ft is a first. Mr.Biff is happy he has found and claimed  Ideas above our station. 

Now for the descent, the plan was the Ptarmigan route, but given the visibility and having read previously that it was steeper we felt for the dog's sake that it was best to retrace our steps. Funny how you can practically skip down a mountain when you have struggled up it! We made really good time and managed to collect the cache we'd had to pass on, on the way up

  Kit Kat thanks to Paul and Yvonne (tonic & gin, strange name for kids) for the co-ordinates on this one as they were well out. The cache was soaked through and it appears no-one is maintaining it. 

I just bagged my first Munro! Woof Woof!

'This is how we dry our face, dry our face, dry our face, this is how we dry our face when we come off a mountain!

Finally we break free of the hill fog and we can see the loch and it's many little islands in the distance. The black shapes are a herd of Highland Coos with   calves, this gives Mr.Biff tremors as he has a Coo phobia.

Ben Lomond obscured by cloud in the distance.

We are practically back at the car when Mr.Biff picks up the cache at the beginning of the track  Up The Ben the midges are still in feeding frenzy so we do this one speedily and then back to the car.

Happy Doggies!

Earlier I said quite flippantly 'why do we do this?.....' Well we do it because we love it, it makes us feel vital in our bodies and more alive than we do at any other given time. It clears our head and allows us to think with clarity. Stress is removed and in its place peace reigns. That is why we do it........that and getting away from the kids for a few hours. 

So we speed back down to Ayr just in time for a quick shower and off to Wellington Square for our very first 'Flash Mob' event.....and of course it's a geocaching event. Dotscot has put this one together and we promptly ignore her as we walk into the square ( well we are incognito). In the square there are other familiar faces Rose & Thistle, The Norfolk, Fly Fisherman Bob, IMMH and McBee walk past us giggling. Other people that I don't know hover around trying to look inconspicuous and failing miserably. Then at 6pm on the Dotscot we all start walking together blowing whistles and scaring some little ladies with shopping bags. Dotscot assembled us all and made us jump in the air...how humiliating! All names went in a tub and Ayrport was pulled out first to claim First to Find. Off then to Wellingtons Bar to whet our whistles and met some old faces and get to know some new ones. 

WWFM VIII Event

A terrific end to a terrific day.