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Thursday 15 January 2009

Challenge Planning, whisky and chicken curry







I got invited over to Doug's in the Deerness Valley for a looking at maps of Scotland whilst drinking whisky session. So I walked over from Crook and we had a couple of house drawing lines on maps and he let me into one of his Christmas whisky bottle. Doug says he doesnt drink whisky, but he gave a bottle of red plonk a bit of a hammering.
After tea (chicken curry), I walked back again in the dark.
Becky's (adminfairy) pressy - the little Petzl is still going very strongly despite numerous after-dark walk finishes and a few hours in some leadmines.
The walk is along the ex-Crook - Durham railway line and is pretty easy as far as navigation is concerned. Its a sort of point-and-fire job, really. It does go quite steeply over the hill, on top of which there used to be an enormous hole for the digging of coal, which is just under the surface around here. Its all been filled in and planted with trees now, and is really very pleasing to walk on.
Todays walk was just 8 miles.
My next TGO Planning jobs, which I must get on with is to find out about accomodation in Glenelg (I don;t think there's a hotel there) - and do my "food plan". This is basically an analysis of the TGO walk with a plan as to how much scoff I'll need to carry from the start, whether or not I might post myself some extra supplies, and where I'll need to buy something - and how much. Its not rocket science, but if I get it wrong, it can be a right bugger. I usually carry just that little bit too much.
I've also just designed myself a little four day trundle starting at Sanquhar and bagging a couple of Marilyns and some HuMPs (correct capitalisation here!) - for the purposes of TGO Challenge training and doing some camping. I will visit the pub in Wanlockhead for a scoff, but all overnights will be wild camps. I picked Sanquhar because its got a train station. I'm quietly buzzing to get on with this one. Roll on April.
In the meantime, I'll spend some of today doing food plans

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

There is a pub in Glenelg so a phone call may find some lodgings. I camped by the memorial on the sea shore. The local village hall is open for visitors to use the WC and it has potable water. The sign off point is on the way out of the village so all the above are convenient.
Mr. G.

Mike Knipe said...

You've cheered me up there Mr G. Useful bit of information that, thanks. I'll probably camp on the shore and, maybe , have the odd sniftah or small libation, and my supper in the pub.
Cheers...

Humphrey Weightman said...

What in the world is a HuMP??

I thought I was the only one.

Yr pal HMP3

Mike Knipe said...

Humphrey - A HuMP is a either a hill with a Hundred Metres of Prominence, an eminence parked on an ancient French bell ringer or something the mother-in-law used to take whenever I appeared.
In this case, we're talking hills - but generally only of interest to sad baggers like me. They usually either have quite good views or lots of trees.