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Having 'broken the ice', and now at ease with the bus services, I
decided to use them to make possible an evening walk to the Campsies.
The morning had seen low cloud and rain sweeping Scotland but it was
predicated that it would clear towards the evening. By 4pm, things were
brightening up and I decided to make moves to get a bus to Strathblane,
catching one at 5.10pm and travelling for 10 minutes to get off by the
Kirkhouse Inn.
Slackdhu, 2nd time in 5 days
By the time I arrived at the starting point at the memorial, (6.30pm)
the sky was covered in high, light overcast which seemed it itself would
break up given time. With much rain having fallen earlier, it didn't
take a lot of working out to figure out the ground would be saturated.
Though I decided to give my 'new' route to Slackdhu a shot, one which I
first climbed the preceding Saturday. I knew all to well the dangers of
climbing steep and wet grass, but why not give it a shot?
I climbed down to river and followed it up to the moorland, heading once
more for the break in the cliffs that I'd gone for before. I came to the
bottom of the ramp which I was to climb, and I adopted a rhythm like
before, punching my way up the slope. I was cautious of my actions, for
it would be far easier to slip here than on Saturday. Although I made it
up without incident, and reached the plateau of Slackdhu before walking
up to the summit shortly after (7.20pm).
The route to Slackdhu had been more hazardous this time around although
I observed that I was far more at ease on this terrain than beforehand.
Perhaps it was because I knew what I was up against, whether I'd really
become more competent somehow at scrambling or perhaps I could also blank out
the drops with greater ease?
Dumfoyn
The climb to Slackdhu had taken 50 minutes, the same as on Saturday, but
I felt fitter this time around. And when the clouds began to break and
the setting sun cast beautiful tones across the Campsies, I knew I had
to get the photographs from Dumgoyne - the prime viewpoint in the
Campsies. I wanted to climb Dumfoyn on the way to, and so I left
Slackdhu, crossed Stonen Glen below before walking across to Dumfoyn. I
slogged hard up the grassy slopes but the sun calling from around the
corner kept me trying harder. I'd never moved so quickly through this
type of terrain before and I startled myself with my progress. I pushed
incredibly hard but when I did so, my body coped.
I reached Dumfoyns summit at 7.50pm. It had been hard going but I still
needed to get to Dumgoyne. I descended quickly and make as quick
progress as I could on Dumgoyne. I ascended via. the northern screes
which had seen me before. I first visited these screes in 2004 when I
descended them with Uncle Steve. In 2007 I subsequently revisited them, but
felt unable to descend, feeling they were simply too steep to
make safe progress on. I descended them once more in June '08, feeling at
the time I had made some progress concerning dealing with exposure.
Dumgoyne Screes
This time though, I wanted to climb them. And I'm immensely happy to say
that I climbed without a hitch, even towards the top, the area that had
unnerved me so much in the past. I didn't mind the drops, because if I
looked ahead, everything was there for me to climb. This is what I
consider progress, and it pleases me to see it. On my last trip report,
I gave a Jean-Christophe Lafaille quote to express some of my own
insights, but here's one from Dean Potter in his old
video solo-ing The Nose (link to YouTube) on El Captain: "If you move step by step
and just think about the handholds you're on ... and [be in] that
moment, it's all right there in front of you; you don't have to worry
about a thing."
Dumgoyne is a million miles from El Captain, but what he talks
about, I felt. If I remained in the moment, and moved step by step, then
I realised that I didn't have to worry. I found it funny that
I'd previously found this place so unnerving because I was now in
control of myself. I knew what I could pull off, what I couldn't and
even reminding myself of the drop I'd perched myself above did not
bother me. I must be making progress!
I wound up on Dumgoyne's summit at 8.05pm, 15 minutes after I left
Dumfoyn. I reckoned I'd probably arrived a little early for sunset,
although I used the time to sit and watch the shifting views across to
Loch Lomond and the Luss Hills. I stayed as three people came and left,
watched the sun crawling past the clouds and finally as it let out it's
last beams across the Arrochar Alps and Luss Hills. I left as the sun fell behind Doune
Hill above Luss, and followed the path back to Cantywheery in twilight.
In addition to being in school in the morning, I'd also managed a 9km
walk. It had been a successful and long day.
I arrived in Strathblane at 9.35pm, three hours and five minutes after
leaving. I walked to the bus stop beside the Kirkhouse Inn, where I came
to realise that I had got the bus times all wrong. There wouldn't be bus
for fifty minutes so I phoned home in need of a solution. Later on,
Steve pulled up in the car and we drove home from there, but not before
I'd taken pictures of the bus timetable. I'd have to spare myself that
mistake again.
Panorama
360˚ view from Dumgoyne
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