#hillwalker

Hugh Thomas Munro was born on October 16th in 1856.

Not a famous name- unless you it, Hugh Munro, he was the first person to create a list of all Scottish summits over 3,000ft (in 1891). These mountains are now known as Munros and there are 282 of them.

Munro was born in London, but was brought up in Scotland on the family estate of Lindertis near Kirriemuir in Angus.

While studying in Germany, he climbed in the Alps and continued his interest in climbing when he settled at the family estate in Scotland.

Sir Hugh was a founder and president of the Scottish Mountaineering Club which set him the task of listing all the country's hills of 3,000ft or more.

According to The Munro Society, external, he was the ideal choice because of his meticulous record-keeping, enthusiasm for work in the outdoors and fascination with mountain landscapes.

His table, comprising 283 separate mountains, was published in the club's journal in September 1891.

Over the years, the list has both grown and shrunk as new measurements have been taken - the most recent revision found Beinn a'Chlaidheimh in Fisherfield to be just under 3,000ft. The current total stands at 282.

Sir Hugh never managed to climb all the peaks on his original list.

Three summits are thought to have eluded him in 1919 when he died of pneumonia at the age of 63 while running a canteen for soldiers in France.

11th February 1893 saw the birth near Aberdeen of the Scottish author and poet Nan Shepherd.

Born at East Peterculter 3 miles west of Aberdeen as Anna Shepherd, spending most of her life living in the same house she grew up in, looking after her mother, she went to Aberdeen High School for Girls, and studied at Aberdeen University before joining, what is now Aberdeen College of Education, teaching English literature, Nan has been described as "an inspiring teacher, with a feminist approach in her lectures which was ahead of her time" She taught there until her retirement in 1956.

Shepherd’s first novel, The Quarry Wood, was published in 1928, with two more following in the 1930s. All three are set in the North-East with the country communities and harsh landscape as background. Her book The Living Mountain, a work of poetic prose exploring her close relationship with the hills, was written in the 1940s, though not published until 1977. Hill-walking was Shepherd’s great love; her single collection of poetry In the Cairngorms.

I must admit I haven't read much of her writings other than a few poems, but I recall my friend Steve, who lives on Skye posting about her on his, well his dogs' twitter page, just last year, saying "Nan Shepherd has the gift to describe the mountains the way I feel it, and I only wish I could do it justice in words as she can." This made me look her up and watch The Living Mountain: A Cairngorms Journey, it was on the BBC Iplayer but has gone now. I also found a bit that was on Youtube on her, take time to watch it, presented by a guy speaking in a true Aberdonian Doric accent, it will only take just over 8 minutes of your day, and features abit of her writing at the end.

Nan Shepherd was renowned for the enthusiasm with which she taught and helped students, colleagues, and other writers. Her generous attention was not confined to caring for her invalid mother and the family housekeeper; she devoted much energy to friendships with many writers. She is represented in anthologies of Scottish women poets, and books of mountain poetry. She joined those Scottish writers already honoured in Edinburgh’s Makars’ Court when a stone dedicated to her was placed there in 2000.

Anna Shepherd was born on February 11th  1893 at East Peterculter 3 miles west of Aberdeen.

Nan, as she was known, spent most of her life living in the same house she grew up in. As well as looking after her mother she went to Aberdeen High School for Girls, and studied at Aberdeen University before joining, what is now   Aberdeen College of Education, teaching English literature, Nan has been described as “an inspiring teacher, with a feminist approach in her lectures which was ahead of her time” She taught there until her retirement in 1956. 

Shepherd’s first novel, The Quarry Wood, was published in 1928, with two more following in the 1930s. All three are set in the North-East with the country communities and harsh landscape as background. Her book The Living Mountain, a work of poetic prose exploring her close relationship with the hills, was written in the 1940s, though not published until 1977. Hill-walking was Shepherd’s great love; her work mostly centred on her love of The Cairngorms.

I must admit I haven’t read much of her writings other than a few poems, but I recall s friend Steve, who lives on Skye posting about her on his, well his dogs’ twitter page, saying “Nan Shepherd has the gift to describe the mountains the way I feel it, and I only wish I could do it justice in words as she can.” This made me look her up and watch The Living Mountain: A Cairngorms Journey, it was on the BBC iPlayer but has gone now. I also found several clip on Youtube, just search for her and you will find them.

Nan Shepherd was renowned for the enthusiasm with which she taught and helped students, colleagues, and other writers. Her generous attention was not confined to caring for her invalid mother and the family housekeeper; she devoted much energy to friendships with many writers. She is represented in anthologies of Scottish women poets, and books of mountain poetry. Nan joined those Scottish writers already honoured in Edinburgh’s Makars’ Court when a stone dedicated to her was placed there in 2000.For those of you in Scotland, and have made it this far into my post about Nan, and maybe still haven’t heard of her, dig in your wallet or purse and dig out a Royal Bank of Scotland £5 note, that’s Nan you have been looking at for the last five years.

Summit of Corrie Etchachan

by Nan Shepherd

But in the climbing ecstasy of thought, Ere consummation, ere the final peak, Come hours like this. Behind, the long defile, The steep rock-path, alongside which, from under Snow-caves, sharp-corniced, tumble the ice-cold waters. And now, here, at the corrie’s summit, no peak, No vision of the blue world, far, unattainable, But this grey plateau, rock-strewn, vast, silent, The dark loch, the toiling crags, the snow; A mountain shut within itself, yet a world, Immensity. So may the mind achieve, Toiling, no vision of the infinite, But a vast, dark and inscrutable sense Of its own terror, its own glory and power.

The pics of the house are Nan’s Shanty on the edge of the Cairngorms, high on the shoulder of Morrone, with views over the village of Braemar and the Dee valley that’s her in the doorway with her friend Amelia McGregor, it is said to be the highest in Scotland.

Loads more on Oor Nan here http://www.geopoetics.org.uk/tag/nan-shepherd/

Adam Watson, the Scottish biologist, ecologist and mountaineer was born on April 14th 1930 in Turriff, Aberdeenshire. 

From an early age, Watson showed considerable academic prowess. He was Dux of Turriff Primary School and of Turriff Senior Secondary School in Latin, English, Higher Latin, English, French, Science, lower History and Mathematics.

His education continued at the University of Aberdeen in the 1950s, gaining a first class honours in zoology and also the department of natural history's MacGillivray Prize. He gained his PhD in 1956 for his thesis on the Annual Cycle of Rock Ptarmigan, and a second doctorate in 1967 for scientific papers on populations and behaviour of northern animals.

The scientist studied and wrote extensively about plants and animal life in the Cairngorms.  RSPB Scotland described Dr Watson, who research included studies of various upland birds, as "arguably the most knowledgeable Scottish naturalist and ornithologist of the last century".  

Dr  Watson  was a well-known figure in Scotland's climbing and hillwalking community.  He climbed extensively in the Cairngorms and in Scotland's other mountain ranges. He also climbed and skied abroad, including in Norway, Lapland, Canada and Alaska.

A John Muir Trust Lifetime Achievement Award was among other honours given to Dr Watson. The man  dubbed Mr Cairngorms also received the Fort William Mountain Festival's Scottish Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture.

Watson’s research centred on grouse, his magnum opus on the subject, co-written with Robert Moss called Grouse, was a runaway bestseller.

A dam, a natural communicator in speech or the written word also appeared extensively on TV and radio in Scotland, his first broadcast was back in 1948 – Dr Watson’s enthusiasm for the sciences was never less than infectious, and he described his work in simple terms without resorting either to jargon or dumbing down. What made him loved by editors was his ability to read standard situations from a different viewpoint.

Watson’s  literary output from the age of 14 runs to an astonishing 475 items including 22 books, hundreds of scientific papers and reviews and 175 unpublished technical reports.

In 1971 he was called to represent the Crown as expert witness at the fatal accident enquiry following the Cairngorm disaster in which six schoolchildren died. His quiet evidence drew not only on law, but on science backed by practical experience of the very worst of mountain weather.  He surprised the Forestry Commission when he successfully opposed a particular development not merely on the expected ecological argument, but by astute demolition of the business case.

Anna (Nan) Shepherd was born on February 11th 1893 at Westerton Cottage, Cults Aberdeenshire.

Nan Shepherd, spent most of her life living in the same house she grew up in, looking after her mother, she went to Aberdeen High School for Girls, and studied at Aberdeen University before joining, what is now Aberdeen College of Education, teaching English literature, Nan has been described as “an inspiring teacher, with a feminist approach in her lectures which was ahead of her time” She taught there until her retirement in 1956.

Shepherd’s first novel, The Quarry Wood, was published in 1928, with two more following in the 1930s. All three are set in the North-East with the country communities and harsh landscape as background. Her book The Living Mountain, a work of poetic prose exploring her close relationship with the hills, was written in the 1940s, though not published until 1977. Hill-walking was Shepherd’s great love; her single collection of poetry In the Cairngorms.

I must admit I haven’t read much of her writings other than a few poems, but I recall my friend Steve, who lives on Skye posting about her on his, well his dogs’ twitter page, just last year, saying “Nan Shepherd has the gift to describe the mountains the way I feel it, and I only wish I could do it justice in words as she can.” This made me look her up and watch The Living Mountain: A Cairngorms Journey,  the video I posted above. If you don’t have time to watch the documentary there us also a clip on Youtube on her, take time to watch it, presented by a guy speaking in a true Aberdonian Doric accent, it will only take just over 8 minutes of your day, and features a bit of her writing at the end. Watch it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26LPM3bJJ58

Nan Shepherd was renowned for the enthusiasm with which she taught and helped students, colleagues, and other writers. Her generous attention was not confined to caring for her invalid mother and the family housekeeper; she devoted much energy to friendships with many writers. She is represented in anthologies of Scottish women poets, and books of mountain poetry. She joined those Scottish writers already honoured in Edinburgh’s Makars’ Court when a stone dedicated to her was placed there in 2000. The above picture is by Greg Moodie, the cartoonist for The National.

December 29th 1914 saw the birth of a Scottish legend, Tom Weir

Tom was born in Springburn, Glasgow the son of a locomotive engineer fitter, he belonged to the first generation of working-class outdoor men and began his career tramping the hills near the city whenever he could escape from the grocers shop where he worked.

The adventurer, is credited as introducing thousands of people to Scotland’s great outdoors through his tales of climbing, walking, nature conservation and campaigning. Tom is also fondly remembered for his long-running STV series, Weir’s Way, and his Scots Magazine column, which he wrote for 50 years.

Tom Weir was a writer, broadcaster, hill-walker, rock-climber, historian, naturalist and explorer. Unmistakable in his woolly bobble-hat, he was a popular sight traipsing across the Scottish countryside in his red bobble hat and Fair Isle jumpers since the 1930s.

There’s probably not a single glen or mountain that he hadn’t visited. Tom didn’t just climb in Scotland, in 1950 he was a member of the first post-war Himalayan expedition and in 1952 was one of the first mountaineers to explore the hitherto closed ranges of Nepal, east of Katmandu.

His travels took him to the High Artic of East Greenland, the peaks of Northern Norway, the High Atlas of Morocco and the troubled frontier of the Iran, Syrian and Turkish Mountain lands known as Kurdistan.

He was the best of Scots and represented all that is good in our Nation. He spread enlightenment and joy wherever he went and will live on in our memories.

To this day the legend lives on with his statue, as seen in the last pic, at Balmaha on the shores of Loch Lomond, who hasn’t visited and not had their photo taken beside it? 

baby banana!

Harmony brings us peace. Let’s strive to always maintain good relationships at home, at work, and in the community we live in,

Perfect Liberty 2020.1.1.

Oyashikiri

photo -Hillwaker (Darren Su)