Munros and Other Walks

When I first started hill walking and getting more involved in the outdoors I never bothered to take a camera with me. Now, this was partly due to  a young foolish belief that I didn't need to take pictures as I would easily remember all of my walks. Guess what, I didn't. Another thing was I was too lazy to get the film developed, even if I did take a camera. This changed a few years back after walking the West Highland Way. I would get asked to show my pictures so they could get an idea of what it was like. Obviously, I ended up looking stupid when I mentioned that I didn't bother taking pictures. I got lucky, a friendly Australian named Mick, who I met on the Way, shared his pictures with me. I took a camera on the Ulster Way in 2005, only to leave it behind on the Giant's Causeway (I think) and since that event I have made sure I have taken plenty of images of each trip. I can now account for an extra hour of my walk being attributed to standing taking pictures. I...

Mountain Review  With lockdown still currently in progress I've found it just as busy at home with work. I'm lucky not to have lost my job or to have been furloughed, so I'm not complaining. As a teacher I can still run classes online. I've been especially busy making instructional videos to go along with more complex theory work.  I've been meaning to catch up on some outdoor related movies and documentaries. One of which, Mountain, released in 2017 resides in my Netflix cue. The movie run time is just less than 1 hour 20 mins. I grabbed a chance between home schooling tasks to check it out.  Lens Flare The movie is certainly one of the best shot documentary's on the outdoor world, one now pretty much shut off from all of us. The movie covers the early days of mountain exploration, the need for city dwellers to escape the concrete metropolis for wild adventure. The film covers the conquest of Everest, and indeed the worlds highest mountain features a few times...

Lockdown Life There are always some things that you just fancy trying, but can't find the time. I made a conscious effort when the lockdown started to try and pick up a new skill or two. One of these was candle making.  I had tried this over 20 years ago using a kit that I bought for my mums Christmas. Needless to say it didn't go very well and I made a mess of a pot. I had forgot about this experience until I helped one of my daughters with her lip balm making kit. The process was very similar to candle making, although she used a very small amount of soy wax. Her lip balm turned out very well and she handed some out to her sisters. That got me thinking, making candles for relatives. A quick check online of what I needed with regards to ingredients, so to speak, and I was off and running. I also bought some wicks, and a thermometer. I used an old large mug, one that could hold about a litre of coffee in it, and used that as a double boiler. The plan was to use an old IKEA glas...