Lecture by Heavy Whalley: Reflections on 40 years of mountaineering

Glen Moray Visitor Centre, Bruceland Rd, Elgin IV30 1YE

Thursday, 21st February 2008

8.00 pm

David “Heavy” Whalley MBE BEM was born a son of the manse in Ayr. His parents gave him a love of the hills in Arran, Galloway and the Scottish highlands.

“Heavy” Whalley was in the RAF from 1972 to December 2007 and involved in Mountain Rescue for all those 35 years. He was the Team Leader of RAF Leuchars and RAF Kinloss MR and Deputy Team Leader at Valley North Wales. He was the Senior Team Leader during the Lockerbie disaster and has been involved in over 1000 Mountain and over 80 aircraft incidents in mountainous areas. He has been a member of the Executive of the Scottish Mountain Rescue Committee for over 20 years, serving for 3 years as Chairman. He is now the Accident Statistician for this national body. Heavy was awarded the Distinguished Service Award for Service to Mountain Rescue by the Scottish Mountain Rescue Committee of Scotland in 2002.

Mountaineering is Heavy’s life: He has completed the Munros 7 times, once with his dog! He has completed 4 Traverses of the Scottish Highlands, twice in winter.

Heavy has been on over 30 expeditions in the Alps, Iran, Turkey, India, Pakistan, Nepal and Tibet, where he was the Base Camp Manager of the RAF MRT 2001 everest North East Ridge expedition. He especially enjoys winter climbing and has climbed in The Falklands and Canada in winter several times and is just back from ice climbing in Canada. Scotland is his love and he enjoys the Islands, especially Skye and Rum.

Heavy is a member of the SMC, Moray Mountaineering Club, John Muir Trust and the Mountain Bothies Association and believes passionately in looking after our wilderness for the future and passing on his experience and love of the mountains and wilderness.

Heavy spent the last 4 years as a Controller in the Rescue Coordination Centre at RAF Kinloss, giving him a unique insight into rescue operation in the UK. He is planning to join the Torridon Mountain Rescue Team in Feb 2008. He is now retired and hopes to write a book on his life and lecture on his experiences. Heavy lives in Burghead in Morayshire; he plays golf, enjoys watching football and photography and climbs or walks in the mountains at least twice a week!

Graham Milton