Half term, and a plan for Lynn and I to go to Snowdonia was quashed for some reason or other, so in order to gain a few days mountain experience in Scotland, I took a cheap but long coach journey of some 15 hours to Pitlochry, at the southern end of the Cairngorms National Park to spend a night in the Backpackers' Hotel - a characterful place, before venturing onto the hill to experience Scotland's mountains. A wet first day with very poor visibility although disappointing, did give some good navigation practise. A very, very, very cold night camping convinced me that one night is enough, so plans were changed to allow me to stay warm in town each night. Some excellent walking with some superb mountain scenery - once the sun showed itself.
