This was the last official trip of 2012 for the club, to the impressive wild glen east of Kingussie. Due to exams and folk departing for the Christmas holiday there were just seven signed up, and as a group it was decided to head up Carn Ban Mor, on the way to the Munro Sgor Gaoith.
Strawberry Cottage in Glen Affric was the destination for the last weekend meet of 2012. There was some snowfall and the weather was fine if cold, and the views were stunning. But not everything went quite to plan...
For our Christmas Dinner this year we once more enjoyed the hospitality of Clarks on Lindsay Street. Photos are by Paul Crawford and James Simpkins. As Paul puts it, "A good (and occasionally strange) time was had by all."
We've been providing refreshments at the Dundee Mountain Film Festival for a number of years. It's pretty busy but fun, and a big help to the Club (and hopefully the DMFF itself). Thanks to all who volunteered their time and culinary skills over the weekend.
You can view photos from DMFF 2012 here on the Festival's Flickr photostream.
The closest meeting so far, to the village of Blair Atholl. While one group of four set off for a forest walk, the rest - nine in all - headed for the nearby Munro of Carn Liath, and beyond.
This, the club's second visit to Bowderstone Cottage, was notable for snow underfoot, clear blue skies, the spectacular views, and Meets Sec Calum's birthday celebrations, which included cake and fireworks... Ascents included Helvellyn via Striding Edge and Dale Head. Thanks to Neil Tan for his stunning photos.
It was a drab, overcast and showery day. With little prospect of a view from the peaks, around half of us decided to stick to a low-level walk and opted for the Clais Fhearnaig circuit, roughly a 10-mile hike when you include an inadvertent detour to Derry Lodge. The other groups struck off for higher ground, some taking in Carn Crom, the southern top of Derry Cairngorm, with the rest heading further afield to bag some Munros.
Just a few minutes walk from the White Corries ski area, Blackrock Cottage is perfectly placed for access to the Glen Coe mountains. After a lazy lie-in on the Saturday we end up splitting into two groups, with designs on Aonach Eagach and the 'Three Sisters' route, roaming over Stob Coire nan Lochan and Bidean nam Bian before descending via the Lost Valley.
Always one of the more popular destinations, 45 of us made the journey up to Fort William this time. While most opted to head up the Ben Nevis mountain track, others took on longer and more strenuous routes: the CMD Arête, and Aonach Beag and Aonach Mor via Glen Nevis.
The weather was generally mediocre, cloudy and occasionally pretty wet, but the day was enlivened by there being a fair amount of snow high up, a foot or more on the summit of Ben Nevis itself. And we did manage the odd glimpse of blue sky.
Every year around this time we devote a meet to navigation, a training day aimed at giving members a chance to learn and develop essential skills such as map reading and taking bearings.
This year, taking over from Roger Wild, we were grateful to have the assistance of Heather Morning, Mountain Safety Advisor with the MCofS, who provided a morning lecture and then tuition during the day to one group.
Most of the other attendees grouped with an experienced member of the club and set off from Tillicoultry on various routes around the Ochil Hills.
Photos from the ever-popular Autumn Ceilidh, this year held at Chamber East, Dundee.
It was a foggy, wet and windy day around Loch Laggan, much worse than forecast, and with transport problems - frustrating but not of our making - delaying the start for some, most people decided to summit one or two of the Munros of the Creag Meagaidh circuit before retiring to the pub.
Our first weekend trip of the year was to Lagangarbh Hut, Glen Coe, and it didn't disappoint. Lucky with the weather for the second week in a row, this was a well-attended and active meet, encompassing a variety of walking and climbing routes, a swim in a loch and more.
This trip report covers just some of what we got up to that weekend: Aonach Eagach, Buachaille Etive Mor, climbing at Rannoch Wall and Glen Nevis, and a few traditional DURC mountain hut games...
The first meet of the year took us to Glen Clova, and what brilliant weather we had! Hot and sunny, but it was fairly windy on top of the hills, which helped to combat the heat.
A large group of us decided to walk up Driesh (3106 ft.) and then Mayar (3044 ft.), a fairly simple route as there was a good path for much of the way, walking back to the car park through the Glen Doll forest so we could view the beautiful waterfall situated in the corrie there.
Swimming across Loch Tay. Running across seven Munros. Kayaking seven miles, then cycling another 34 around the shores of the loch.
Yes, we were quite content to watch other people do all those things.
This summer's joint meet with DMC at Loch Tay coincided with the Artemis Great Kindrochit Quadrathlon, the "exhilarating test of stamina, strength and fitness" that requires completing the above in a single day. Our own plans turned out to be much more modest: a couple of Munros of the Ben Lawers group and a traverse of the Tarmachan Ridge.
The Glas-allt-Shiel bothy was established by DURC in 1991, and the club has been responsible for its maintenance ever since. It is dedicated to the memory of DURC member Graham Leaver, who in 1988 tragically died in a climbing accident on the Isle of Rum.
The bothy is within an outbuilding of the Royal Lodge on the Balmoral Estate, and is in regular use by hillwalkers, climbers and others who come to enjoy the area's spectacular mountains.
Typically, we make an annual trip to clean, paint and carry out repairs, acting on visitors' feedback passed to us via the DURC website, and this summer's meet was no different.
Blue skies and sunshine - we really couldn't have asked for better barbecue weather! Armed to the teeth with suncream and burgers, we headed over to West Sands where we managed to find a relatively secluded stretch of beach to occupy for the day. A few people headed straight for the sea while Charlie, Roo and Euan got the barbecues set up. We probably could have fed the whole of St. Andrews with the mountain of food we had brought!
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| Perfect weather for the beach... |
DURC's Annual Dinner Weekend is an important fixture on the calendar: not only is it the last official club meet before the summer break, it also marks the occasion when the outgoing committee hands over to the new members.
Last year the Annual Dinner Weekend saw the club take a camping trip to Arran, and this year it was decided to stay closer to home so that more people could attend the various events.
To that end the committee organised a day trip on the Saturday to Glen Clova, a meal in the evening in Dundee, then a beach day on Sunday at West Sands, St. Andrews.
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| Beautiful weather in Glen Clova |
Welcome to The Meets Book, the blog of the Dundee University Rucksack Club!
DURC, as it's often known, was founded in 1923 and is one of the oldest outdoors clubs in the country. It's also one of the largest and the most active, with a trip every week during term time along with numerous social and other events during the course of the year. DURC is an inclusive club - you don't need to be a student to join - and we offer a wide range of activities from hillwalking and Munro-bagging to climbing, scrambling and mountaineering.
