Corridor Corner

Those who have climbed between 400 and 600 Marilyns are making their way along a corridor of obscurity which leads ineluctably to the Hall of Fame....

Jon Metcalf

24D round-up:

Barra: Great for a visit with freakishly good weather - but I lack the spiritual fortitude needed for full-time residence. Muldoanich was hardest of access - up steep rocks and steeper grass for 30-40m to a more level area. Good stuff once you avoid the backflip into the sea. Haswell-Smith is wrong about no habitation; there's a two-room ruin which the boatman told us used to be a jail. Mild rain was seen off by welcome hot tea on the way to Sandray. Here a walk through from one bay to another was contrived. Brilliant walking in strong sun and a welcome wind shadow. Easy angle rock plates made for pleasant going, and good sunbathing, looking over a clump of four ruins not on OS31. No clumpy/straggly grass due to the normal harsh climate, but a real wealth of orchids and other flora - bit like Knoydart. The boatman picked us up from the far side of the island - but I found myself wishing I'd gone for the camp and driftwood barbie option.

Highpoint of the best day's walking I can remember for ages was Pabbay though. More of the same great platey rock to walk on, great views N and S, a shag parliament on the way into the landing bay, a confluence of eroded dykes, and above all the burial mound and rune stone in the settlement.

The second day down the chain felt more rushed and so less satisfactory - all a product of our boatman's immutable 10:30 start. Mingulay needs much more than the scant 13/4 hours available. Sandwiches shared with puffins at five feet away was magic though. Ace cliffs and stacks, ace Berneray view, but no time to poke around the village. Great place, must go back one day.

Berneray was also far from the dull lump on OS31. An easy track lands you at the ghostly deserted lighthouse buildings - fine outside but crumbling internally. The gannet's eye view down on bird city is awesome. Along the cliffs, past a small shrine to past keepers, is the summit, marked by an unusual trig point; just a beer mat size brass plate with a 1968 inscription.

Can't wait to get back to the outer isles again next year - probably Harris for Parc, the Shiants, Seaforth Island, Scarp etc. Much more fun than hoovering up Grampians.

The main Barra hills, Vatersay, Eriskay and a couple of South Uists weren't in the same league as the smaller islands to the south. There's something extra in the harder to get at places.

Best of the rest:

Ben Laga (18A): You would never guess the towers, shape and interest of the last third from the pastoral approach.

Devil's Beeftub - Hart Fell - White Coomb - Grey Mare's Tail (28B): Splendid route with exciting scenery from start to finish.

Great Gable (34B): Too good to exclude, despite being a cliché. Ace day taking in Kirk Fell and Pillar.

Blake Fell (34B): Excellent lesser known Lakeland afternoon loop.

And on the other boot:

Hill of Nigg (15B): So poor it had to move summit this year in order to snag a few extra visits.

Grange Fell (28B): Hazard country - electric fences, marauding bovines, and an overgrown proto-forest.

Dunkery Beacon (41): Eyesore cairn, up an eyesore track, on a pimple which could only matter in southern England.

Butser Hill (42): Symptomatic of the whole park-on-the-summit madness of Region 42.

Carn Mor and Bidein a'Chabair (10D)

Helen McLaren

Did 60 new Marilyns in 1999 which is more than double what I've done in any of the years since I completed the Munros. This new-found enthusiasm coincides with the decision early on in the year to tick the Grahams. Surprisingly, despite having a keen hill-walking husband, I somehow ended up doing nearly half of them as solo trips - usually the Grahams and smaller hills.

Best days? Lots of those. A trip to Carna stands out as being particularly fine, as does a celebration on Cairnkinna and a night ascent of Ben Cleuch in December. Also a week of near perfect weather on Skye in June (unbelievably, for the third time in as many years) takes some beating.

Worst day? Definitely An Sidhean (12A) in May. Had to hold on to Pete on the last bit as the wind was knocking me over. Then we were treated to a blizzard on the summit just for good measure.

Daftest day? Brown Cow Hill (8B). We saw all sorts of wildlife that day - birds, deer, vampire sheep (don't ask) - just about anything but a cow, in fact, brown or otherwise! The views were superb too. Not bad for what many regard as a boring hill.

Paul Richardson

The Hoy hills (23) were very fine; particularly Ward Hill, which is the finest 1500ft of sandstone I've seen anywhere - despite its size, it's full of character and real mountain features. Cuilags was - er - steep. I have to agree that Knap of Trowieglen has a grand name, but that is offset by the surrounding moat full of alligators (the wife insisted they were only midges until she saw my legs afterwards). Further agreed that Blotchnie Fiold was worth the trip. Another wasteland of peat, but furnished with good paths thanks to RSPB. However, the only unusual birds we saw up here were bonxies, and they attacked us. So it goes.

Ken Stewart

Plenty of good days though nothing quite as good as some other years. The Glen Galmadale round on the way to the Corpach meet was great as was my earliest Corbett - Beinn Bhreac at 6.50am. Fiascos were not getting to Jura because of April gales and being chased over Mona Gowan (21A) in July by ridiculously large swarms of flies.

Seana Bhraigh (15A) from the north-east