The year 2012 was an average bagging one, mostly dominated by the smaller hills. The year's total comprised Corbetts (5), Grahams (34), sub 2000ft Scottish Marilyns (48), English Marilyns (21) and Welsh Marilyns (5).
The hottest walking days were on our visit to Rum to climb the five Marilyns there. The biggest number of Marilyns visited in a day was the nine achieved in Shropshire, starting on The Wrekin and finishing on Titterstone Clee Hill, on an October day on the way to the Wales versus Scotland football match in Cardiff. This proved to be an excellent bagging trip, only spoiled by the football result. This trip also provided two of the easiest walks, Ruardean Hill and Wentwood.
Titterstone Clee Hill (photo: Des Taylor)
We also managed to lose our GPS on Beinn Uamha (near Ben Lomond) back in February. It was not lost for long though, because later that month it was found and kindly returned to me by Jim Fothergill. Indeed, it shows that after all it is a small world when in September in the Argyll hills we were chatting to a fellow bagger and it was none other than Jim.
Later in 2012, however, we went ten weeks without bagging, using every excuse in the book not to put on our hillwalking boots. We were eventually awakened from our slumber when we realised five more Marilyns would get the year-end total to a nice round 750. The last week of 2012 therefore became a mad dash and this number was finally achieved on a dreich day on the Pentlands Black Hill.
Unfortunately, we did not achieve all our targets set for 2012, but nevertheless we had some fine days out on the hills. Ambitions for 2013 include completing the remaining six Corbetts; getting closer to completing the Grahams and attempting a couple of bagging expeditions to England and Wales.
