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Braes o’ Fife Mountaineering Club Newsletter – January 2006 Welcome from your new leader. I can promise you that some things will change under the new regime (for a start, your president will now be called ‘Neil’ rather than ‘Dan’), but mostly they’ll stay the same: i.e. this club will remain about climbing mountains … and stuff. The year got off to a fine start at Mill Cottage where fine pieces of derring do were did on snowy mountains and icy cliffs. On Saturday two parties - Ken and Kris, then later in the day Robert and Monica - did Sneer, a seldom in condition route on Hell’s Lum Crag. Meanwhile Lorna and Tara did a hill whose name I forget up Laggan way and your bold president, after a morning attack of the lurgy, made a post meridian ascent of Carn Elrig, a prominent but not very high hill which is further in than it looks! Robert and Monica had a traditional Braes o Fife start – i.e. very late – but turned it to good effect. Struggling back across the plateau in darkness and blizzard, Robert took a strange notion to look down one of the Sneachda gullies, not normally to be recommended in such conditions. However, lo and behold, something moved, said something turning out to be the highest of three climbers well and truly cragfast in Crotched Gully. At their most heartfelt plea, Robert arranged a quick belay and dropped a rope to safeguard the by then despairing leader to the top. So well done Robert … but why didn’t you thole the cold and hang around till they all got up, then they could have plied you with lots of whisky. Lack of forward thinking amongst the younger generation, I sometimes feel. Hopefully we’ll see a good turnout at Manse Barn this weekend (If you get this newsletter in time), and hopefully Colin, who was indisposed throughout the Mill Cottage weekend, will be back in form to join the feats of mastery on ice … assuming there still is any. Social meets: Like it or not, the annual purgatory of the Mountain Mind Quiz approacheth. Because your president and secretary (That’s Neil and Andy) were rash enough to answer too many questions last year, we’ll be setting them for everyone else this year – so now’s the time to start boning up on all things mountaineering. The quiz will be in the Harbour Bar on Monday 27th February at 8.00 p.m. Various slide nights are in the planning stage (i.e.: We’ve thought about them, but not actually done anything about it yet) and will be announced in due course. Website: This, for the uninitiated, or for those who haven’t been on for ages, is still up and running at www.braesofife.org.uk and the chatroom has been cleared of all the Romanian adverts which clogged it up for a time. It’s also being updated more regularly, and a quick check will show that the news section has a pic of the rather tasty looking ice on Sneer when Ken and Kris did it. There’s also the all-important meets list for when you lose yours. All the best for 2006 and have lots of good mountaineering fun. Neil |
