Hall Highs and Lows

Most of the comments included here were sent informally in letters or emails, so do not necessarily represent considered judgement on the year as a whole. Some are simply arbitrary snapshots of bagging activity. Permission to reproduce them has been obtained where possible.

Ann Bowker

Beinn Dubh Airigh (19A) was Marilyn bagging at its best, a remote and obscure hill with interesting navigation, although not too difficult with so many lochans as markers. We went over Cruach Mhic Fhionnlaidh in case it is resurveyed and gets allocated an extra couple of metres.

Islay

Although the trig point on Beinn Mhor is not so dramatically situated as those on Noss Head and Biod an Athair, this hill has a similar atmosphere and similar cliff scenery can be experienced by approaching from Mull of Oa. Dun Athad is spectacularly connected to the mainland by a 'one man pass' and should not be missed.

Jura

Dubh Bheinn looked the most inaccessible of the Jura Marilyns so we decided to do it on our first full day on the island, with a beautiful morning. The going low down is quite appalling; grassy tussocks interspersed with boggy holes giving some of the slowest progress imaginable. Eventually we joined a rough vehicle track which led high into the upper corrie, from which it was an easy climb onto the 477m top of Dubh Bheinn, an ascent enlivened by the sight of two beautifully marked adders. The most striking view was the even remoter but slightly lower hill Rainberg Mor, which displays dramatically folded rock striations from this viewpoint.

Foula

We arrived in torrential rain on Monday morning, being rather surprised that the plane went at all. For once it didn't seem crazy to climb the hills in awful weather since it would have been even crazier to be on Foula and not climb them. We went over The Noup and across to The Sneug, seeing nothing but a brief glimpse down to the sea on the col between. Next day, in slightly better weather, we went round again in the other direction, incorporating Soberlie Hill and the Kame which is only a few feet lower than the St Kilda cliffs. It's most spectacular from the side as on top all you can see is the sea far below. Not to be missed! Nebbifield is the best viewpoint - complete with puffins. We were lucky to see it as we once again had mist and rain on the summits. Also spectacular is the massive cleft called Sneck o' da Smallie, not marked on the OS map but found on the north side of the col between the two Marilyns. Next morning the weather seemed a bit better but the plane didn't come because the wind was in the wrong direction. Eventually it came in the afternoon but by then we had missed the connection to Fair Isle! If we try again we shall go by boat to Lerwick and not book a Fair Isle flight until the last minute. It seems it can easily be done as a day trip on some days (preferably Monday).

Far North

Creag nam Fiadh (16D) must really come into the category of a hill which no sane person would bother with! The bog at the western end of Loch Ascaig is ghastly. We were very surprised to see another walker on the skyline but when he turned back to his quadbike we realised that we had not encountered another mad Marilyn bagger. Came back over Borrobol Hill where three men working on an aerial looked pretty surprised to see us. We have become so used to solitary hills that we would be quite amazed to meet another walker, especially on one like Creag nam Fiadh.

A bike is a must for Maovally (16E) as the hydro road is tarmaced to within ten minutes walk of the top. Worth a bit of pushing for the gorgeous run down.

Beinn Reidh (16F) is one of those worthwhile hills likely to be overlooked by those without access to the Marilyn list. If you like tracing half forgotten tracks then you will enjoy the approach from Little Assynt.

England

We finished the English SubMarilyns on Lundy where the hill is totally featureless but the coastal scenery is very fine. Well worth a visit and a day trip gives just the right amount of time to walk round. We then spent the weekend on Dartmoor, evading the military who don't fire at the weekend. Here we had a big surprise. Now deprived of English Marilyns we are after the 500m tops listed by Michael Dewey. We never suspected that anything would prevent us from eventually completing them all but we were wrong! On Dartmoor is a summit harder than the In Pinn! Great Links Tor has a trig point which is at the height listed by Dewey but alongside it is a tor several metres higher. We walked round this twice looking for a way up. Later we found a rock climbing guide in the visitor centre and discovered that the easiest route on this tor is VS! Ah well - another list destined to remain uncompleted! I think the overall drop around Great Links Tor is about 120m so fortunately the extra height will not bring it into the Marilyn list.

Rowland and Ann Bowker on top of Meall a'Bhainne (18B), their 1500th Marilyn, 11th July 1998

Alan Dawson

Unlike other years, the main highlights were relatively well-known hills, perhaps because they were saved for good-weather days. Quinag was great, though surprisingly busy, with a bonus of three easy Corbetts. The final Munro, Beinn Tarsuinn, was memorable too, as the rain stopped and mist lifted during the ascent. From the top there was no visible sign of human activity - no buildings, no tracks, no plantations, no other walkers. Damn cold though for June. By contrast the final Murdo, Meall nan Tarmachan South Top, was a dreich disappointment.

Of the smaller stuff, both Meall an Doirein and Meall Lochan a'Chleirich (13A) were great, as was Cruach nan Cuilean (19C). the whole of the Trotternish ridge (from Bioda Buidhe to Hartaval), and Biod an Athair (17A) with its trig point on the edge of a 300m cliff. Lowlight was Dundry Down, a stinking muddy tip, while Hegdon Hill was a non-event.

Toughest was undoubtedly the benign looking Meall Dubh (15A), in the bottomless snows of Easter. Progress was almost impossible at times, and came to a complete halt every half hour or so, as spring blizzards swept through, obliterating everything. Finding the highest point on the flat top wasn't that easy either.

Daftest moment of the year was returning from a day trip to Beinn Dearg (19A) and discovering it was only a SubMarilyn. Careless. Just as well Dun Leacainn was sneaked in too, with the help of some cunning route finding through the trees in the dusk.

Mary Cox

Watching the hares playing on the way back from Beinn na Gainimh (1A) was memorable. Perhaps the best day was in early June - a fast ascent of Ben Stack from the north (great route). Arkle looked so tempting across Loch Stack that plans were changed and we carried on down the southern slopes of Ben Stack, along the track to Lone and up Arkle via a quite narrow rocky ridge. Great summit views, then a traverse of scree and grass down its steep west face. The evening light on the path back to the road was unforgettable.

I'm not going up anything else in future that's not a proper hill or involves getting told off. I'd rather go through a forest or up a sea stack.

Arkle and Loch Stack

Chris Upson

Graham bagging seems to have taken over from Corbett-bagging. Have done 77 Grahams in the last two years, but no Corbetts at all last year.

Had a busy New Year's Eve scooping four in the fading hours of 1998. Mickle Fell on New Year's Day 1999 was desperately unpleasant, but having already failed on Boxing Day, wimping out in the face of blizzard conditions and storm force winds, I was damned if I was going to fail twice.

Strained my calf dashing up Calf Top (35B) - had to cancel a four-week trip to the Cordillera Blanca in Peru.

Amazing crevasses on the south ridge of Mullach Mor on Holy Island (20C) - roped-off to stop you falling in. Access may become a problem. The Buddhists aren't that keen on people tramping over their island and were intimating that they didn't really want people walking up their hill.

Roderick Manson

Still in the land of the deranged. The total for the year, 102, was exactly the same as 1997 but took an extra 70 hours compiling it. A Graham count of 31 may have had something to do with this. Galloway in February brought high winds, low cloud, torrential rain and slippery conditions. In cloud on Shalloch on Minnoch, encountered some of the most grotty tussocky/boggy terrain outside Jura. The day was complete when I realised that the trig point was not the actual summit. Went back up five days later. This was as nothing to the agony of ten miles on tarmaced roads in heavy boots, returning from a fantastically wild Creag a'Mhadaidh and Stob an Aonaich Mhoir (5A), in early May.

Popped up a few Lammermuirs (surely the most depressingly tedious hills in Scotland) en route to the even more depressing draw between Berwick Rangers and my beloved Ross County.

Hunt Hill in December was a brilliant day out with the added bonus of not one but two bridges exactly where I needed them.

Richard Webb

Caeliber Isaf in mid Dec was bad. It's agricultural, two and a bit fields from a road, no right of way. The shortest way up is in full view of the farm, only the summit is on another farm so there is a fence/hedge with no gate shutting off the summit field. It is not possible for a person under 6' 2" to cross the boundary without damage to it, and I tore my trousers on the wire striding it with the help of a tree. Because of the open approach I went up at night, and was treated to Orion rising over England and a strange sense of the world being smaller; the horizon seemed more curved and closer. Stayed up for a while as it was one of those places you want to hang about but my car would be generating suspicion where it was parked, so thought it prudent to leave. Other than the fence it is a real quickie.

Went up the hideous Carnedd Wen that day. I dodged the farmer of evil repute at Clegyrnant only to find someone had built a new house and garden across the path I was using. They escorted me off the premises, politely but resentful, back to Clegyrnant territory. It was easy to follow a road to the summit, but I would have needed to hide quick from any vehicle. Near the top there was a Keep Out sign. I found a series of rides through waist deep heather aimed at a forest road which I saw from Esgair Ddu (where they are about to build a wind farm). Finally hacked through the trees to find that the road had been cut so deeply into the hillside that a 20-50' crag, iced, was in the way, eventually scrambled down the 20' bit - probably the most dangerous day I have had in Wales, except an ascent of the Black Ladders in full thaw. Ironically Carnedd Wen is a 'drive up'. Llanbrynmair Angling Club has the fishing rights to the two lochs up there. For a fiver you can cross the divide and be a sportsman for the day, the permit allows you to drive to the summit, with some good fishing thrown in.

On a positive note I was up the utterly wonderful Sgurr na Dubh-creige at Morar recently (10D). A rough little beast but what a view.

I was on Rum for a week of heatwave. Access to Mullach Buidhe is very liberal now but it is closed off for the boffins on about three days a week (used to be six). It is closed all June/October though.

Met the electric anti-personnel fences of Ardnamurchan. Horrendous, never seen the like anywhere. Locals are resentful too.

Colin Donnelly

Mynydd Marchywel (32B) was 'Hell on Earth, almost impossible.' Not just on hands and knees but crawling through the trees, soaking wet, covered in pine needles. Then found that a forest track goes very near the summit - if you can find it. Almost as bad as Mochrum Fell. In contrast, tree-lined Crock and Hare Cairn were both easy and enjoyable. Also found that Hill of the Wangie nearly eluded capture, while Staple Hill was a very difficult trig to find, being almost camouflaged. The Cornish hills were largely disappointing, with Watch Croft almost ringfenced by all sorts of nasty pricklies (not one to do in shorts).

Jonathan Woods

I think the 'daftest' Marilyn must have been Birnam Hill, Dunkeld, on 8/6/97 (Sunday afternoon). This was after a half day holiday on Friday to drive to Uig (Skye), ferry to Lochmaddy, and bus to Benbecula. Ran Benbecula half marathon Saturday morning; bus, ferry and car back home for midnight on Saturday. Up at 7:30 to run Dunfermline half marathon on Sunday morning, still leaving me with a hill to climb Sunday afternoon. And to think of all the fine hills between here and Benbecula that I missed!

600th Marilyn (Stob a'Choin, September 1998) was memorable for excellent home-made cake, irritating landowners, and a crushing victory for Lancashire in the NatWest final. Fine hill too, despite the mist.