The annual J. Alister Sword photography competition will take place after the Annual General Meeting on 20 March 2018. The competition rules are: 1. Competition is open to current members of the Moray Mountaineering Club only. 2. Two categories: “Scottish” and “Non-Scottish”. 3. Any subject with a mountaineering theme (landscapes, people, macros, wildlife, etc.). 4. Entries must have been taken in the last 12 months. 5. Submit up to a maximum of two photographs per category. 6. Entries must be made as hard-copy on the night (please write your name and photo details on the reverse). 2019 Calendar. All entries for the Scottish category will be considered for The Moray…
Feb 2018, Weekend Meet Report, Glen Etive
Inbhirfhaolin, or Ibuprofen to give it its true Gaelic pronunciation, is renowned for many things. Its staggering beauty, the ferocity and grandeur of its majestic peaks which rise from the sea with such relentless pitch and, in most visits by the MMC, for its phenomenal rainfall. It was with much anticipation then that a bunch of adventurers met on Friday evening and, emboldened by a far from awful weather forecast held their collective breath – it might be a weekend of hills rather than table -traverses and ice-axe games in the kitchen. So, apologies to all that is missed out, but some endeavours went unrecorded. As with the impending promise…
Feb 2018, Bus Meet Report, Cairngorm
The first bus meet of the year set off on a fine February morning to a familiar destination. The Cairngorm ski car park may not be exotic but it is handy when daylight is still in relatively short supply and it does boast almost guaranteed conditions for the all-important winter skills. Luckily, the club was blessed with decent snow cover, good weather and a very skilful and knowledgeable club member in the shape of Ray Harron who kindly offered to take the winter skills session for fellow members. First off the bus was John Henderson and his group from the Long Distance Walking Association. This symbiotic bus meet relationship works…
Gerry’s Hostel Weekend Meet 2-4 March
The next meet is to Gerry’s at Achnashellach. Well known to generations of walkers this is the longest established independent bunkhouse in the country. Gerry died recently and the hostel is now run by his son Simon. Full details on the link below. https://gerryshostel.com/ There is still one bunk available (we’ve booked 13) but it may be possible to take addtional bunks. Please let me know as soon as possible if you want to come. Well located for a number of Munros as well as cycling and possibly even some skiing. Cost from £17 pp.pn.
MMC Ceilidh, 16 February 2018
Date: Friday 16 February 2018 Time: 7.30pm to midnight Venue: Elgin Town Hall Band: Buskoe Sike Tickets: £10 (includes stovies). Can be purchased in advance from committee members or on the night at the door. B.Y.O.B. Raffle: (prize donations most welcome). All proceeds from the Raffle will be donated to charity (Mountain Rescue). Tell all your friends and bring everyone along for a great evening of dancing and craic. Prospective members most welcome.
Bus meet – Cairngorms – 18th February 2018
The bus will be leaving Elgin at 7:00, with the normal en-route stops at Forres (7:20), Nairn (7:40) and Inverness (8:00) and should arrive at the Cairngorm car park by 9:30. Hopefully there will be plenty of snow about, and this will be an opportunity to practice your winter skills in the company of some of the more experienced members (Ray and Heavy) of the Club. A number of topics will be covered including the use of ice axe and crampons, and you will need to bring all your winter gear. If you would like to take advantage of this sharing of knowledge and experience, then please mention this when…
Bus (Car) Meet, Ben Wyvis, Jan 2018
Date: 21 January 2018 Destination: Ben Wyvis Meeting Point: Car park on the A835 at 09:45 Transport: Private cars (no bus) This is a car-meet to one of our closest munros. The “normal” route to the summit is not too long, which makes this ideal for a short winter’s day. Don’t forget that this is winter, so ice axe/crampons etc likely to be required. Contact Gordon Eccleston if you are interested.
Jan 2018, Bus (Cars) Meet Report, Ben Wyvis
First of all, a warm welcome to Gillian (a new member to the club) and Fiona ( a “new” member to me). 9 members (Gordon, Sean, Rob, Alistair, Fiona, Ray and Gillian) plus 1 guest and 1 dog set off with great plans to tackle Ben Wyvis on Sunday 21st January. There were another 2 members on this adventure – but they had to call off due to work commitments. So, at the later start time of 8:00 at Elgin car park some of us met up to arrange some car sharing. Unfortunately, with the temperature at -5C one of the car keys started playing up. We eventually abandoned the…
Jan 2018, Weekend Meet Report, Plan B Hogmanay Ballater
The advertised Hogmanay meet to Feshie Bridge was cancelled at the last-minute owing to a cock-up with the booking. The official story identifies the culprit as the hut custodian …but on the other hand, and just in case evidence emerges to the contrary, the 2018 awards committee is seeking information regarding the shoe size of a certain grey-haired gentlemen. Shortly after the cancellation was announced, there was a flurry of emails and Facebook chatter, out of which arose Plan B… let’s go to the Ballater Hostel. Places were limited and so there was insufficient space for all those on the original list – the Book of Climbs records the attendees…
Weekend Meet, Glen Etive, Feb 2018
Date: nights of 2nd & 3rd February 2018 Venue: Grampian Club hut, Inbhirfhaolain, Glen Etive Location: The hut is situated 7 miles from junction of Glen Etive Road with Tyndrum/Glencoe Road (A82) and 5 miles from Loch Etive Pier. Google Streetview, Grid Ref NN 159 507 Facilities: A basic but comfortable climbing hut, sleeping 13. Double sleeping platform supplied with mattresses, but bring sleeping bags. Electric lighting, heating, cooking and refrigeration; utensils provided; multifuel stove; water from burn (100 yards); Clivus composting toilet. No shower. ***Remove all rubbish on departure*** Cost: £15 pp . (plus coins for electricity meter) Nearby Hills: Munros: Buachaille Etive Mor, Buachaille Etive Beag, Creise, Meall a’Bhuiridh, Ben Starav, Beinn nan Aighenan, Glas…