Starting 8th of April, I'm planning a short walk in the Scottish Highlands. This will start at Ben Hope near the north coast. I have a detailed spreadsheet outlining a route south and then east via all the munro summits* to finish on Mount Keen and possibly even the last few miles back home to Aberdeen. I've no idea how feasible this is, but perhaps that's the value in it. With as much time as I like to enjoy it, it doesn't look impossible on paper, but if the timing extends beyond Septmeber then the route will probably be shortened. The final route may lie in the hands of the weather gods...and last weekend Ben Wyvis looked to be in remarkably good ski touring condition!

The trip will be entirely self propelled, with the exception of not swimming the offshore sections (decadent times...!). There will be occasional 'off duty' weekends for important events from june onwards, but these will be carefully managed to ensure I end up back in the same place and so don't infringe this arbitrary rule. Haven't quite worked it out yet, but perhaps some strange ritual would be appropriate, to enter an alternative spirit world where one can project onself through space in mechanical metal boxes, but can only re-enter the real world at the point one left it...

Some areas will be covered by cycling and day walks, others by backpacking, the division determined by distance and the opportunities to get someone to take my bike and leave it somewhere else. Accommodation will be camping, but using hostels wherever possible to dry out.

It will basically be a solo trip, although hoping to meet up with as many people as possible along the way, within the limits of predicting how fast I'll be going (apologies if I should have rung you by now, there's been a lot more final tasks than I thought!). Gill has been roped in for most of the required support work, with detailed instructions on which of the bags of food currently filling our spare room should be brought on which weekend. Some food parcels have already been hidden in remote locations to allow extending backpacking sections, so please don't eat them if you find them.

Not sure how often this blog will be updated, at least initially from the more remote parts, but here goes...

Graham

(* ref http://walking.visitscotland.com/munros/)