Weather/Conditions: Thick mist, muggy summer conditions
Distance/Ascent/Time: 14.4km / 850m / 3h 30m
Accompanying: Alone

Today has been a pretty easy day, and for once I'm not finishing late and cramming in my tea, before polishing off a bleary-eyed blog post.

I'm staying at Jac Johnson's in Kirriemuir at the moment and today I climbed the pair up at Glen Clova; Mayar and Driesh. These are two fairly non-descript hills, but now I think about it, it's probably that the conditions were non-descript. The weather has given days of high pressure, but it's all heavy cloud and drizzle of the warm and humid type. Still, I can't moan when you consider the weather I had in May. Long may it continue - I've got some big days coming up!

I stopped by the bouldering at the top of Glen Clova for a look. The rock was nice, a kind of cross between Glen Nevis burly slopers and Craigmore basalt crimps, from what I could gather. (That's terminology for the climbers!)



But the hills were awaiting, and I followed a well signposted path ("Kilbo Track") through the forests and out onto the hills above. The mist rolled in for the first time in a week or two, and I kept the compass out just to be sure of my direction.

Dreish had a trig point with an encircling wind breaker, Mayar was a simple cairn. The plateau was in mist and paths showed the way, almost all the way. Not difficult hills. I was around the pair in just over three and a half hours.



When I started the Round, even a short day like today would feel difficult because of the day-in-day-out relentless nature of the walking. Now, a short day really does feel like a rest day.

I was half-tempted to fit Mount Keen in today, too. But the weather has given low grey cloud and it seemed like a pointless exercise. I'll leave it for tomorrow, and as ever I'll fit in An Sgarsoch and Carn an Fhidhleir somewhere in the next few days.



Another nice thing has been that I've finally found a way to put the Cairngorms together that doesn't feel too committing like it could go wrong. The Grampians have so far been a relaxed range, but the Gorms have been on my mind. I just hope the weather doesn't break, and if it does, that it would be on the easier Drumochter/Laggan hills further west.

So all in all, today's been a bit of a non-day. I'll bet the hills are good, I would just have like to have seen them. I'd like to go back to Glen Clova for the climbing and bouldering, too.

As for tonight, I'm sorting my gear, doing some major washing up and having curry/pizza (either or both!). Not a bad life, this!