In the dead of night, as Lazza surfed the internet, a bat swooped through the open window. Despite reeling from Spurs' defeat to Man Utd, he corralled the poor creature through the fire exit with the aid of a few members of the group. Thus began the morning of the third day on Arran.
Following breakfast, we had a few short presentations on aspects of our John Muir Award and stay on the island. Highlights of these events include Rowan's Storytime (Patent Pending) and a National Parks Quiz led by Simon and James. The day began in earnest with the bus to Corrie, the starting point for our day trip up Goatfell, Arran's highest summit at 874 metres above sea level.
The hike began on a narrow, twisting trail through dense forest and undergrowth, surrounded by the commercial logging industry and deer fencing. A few souvenirs were picked up along this first leg, mostly by Lewis' adornment of midge-repelling foliage upon his newly constructed hair bobble. Moving upwards, we passed the tree line and ascended into the mist along a stream, albeit the summit ridge still masked by cloud. Breaking for lunch at a ford, we consumed sandwiches and cereal bars while deftly avoiding a swarm of midges forming in proximity to the water body. Sighting a raven, we revelled in its display of inverted flight before descending to scavenge the crumbs we had left behind.
Moving onwards, the climb became increasingly steep as we prudently stuck to the path (some of us) in order to avoid contributing to erosion scars. Meandering onto the ridge, we reached a crossroads with the path from Brodick prior to embarking upon our final ascent of the Fell. By this point, the fog had enveloped us, soaking our clothes but not our spirits as we marched ever upward to the cloaked peak.
Reaching the summit, we partook in a photography session amidst "spectacular scenery" of mist, mist and yet more mist. The wind was strong and unfortunately dismantled Lewis' hair paraphernalia at some instance along the ridge. After a short break, we began our descent, a relatively uneventful procedure apart from a minor injury on the part of one of the mountaineers. Close to our home for the week, we witnessed tomorrows' enemy: Rhododenron Ponticum, an invasive and toxic plant species threatening the integrity of the endemic ecological environment.
The curtain closed on our mountain day with an evening of TV and #banter.
Tonight's Blogging Buddies: Annabel (@annie0398), Rahul and Rowan (@RowanVita).
xoxoxo
No comments:
Post a Comment