Adventure in Scotland

Aussie's enjoy Hadrian's Wall

2008-05-06T12:41:00.002+01:00

Miggs & Keith Coggan had this to say abouth their recent Hadrian's Wall holiday with Macs Adventure.
"Dear Neil,
Keith and I would like to say thank you for such great organisation and flair. Our Hadrian’s Wall path walk went well and to plan, with excellent accommodation, which you organised. The variety was perfect, with its mix of small B&Bs, pubs, farm stays etc. The distances each day were just right for us and didn’t stretch us overly, yet gave us time to look around and absorb the history and scenery we were passing through.
Having the bags carried on (which is a first time for us) made a big difference, especially for me as I didn’t carry anything! Keith carried a pack with our wet and cold gear and lunches, and he didn’t find that too onerous. The company who did that was spot on, with the bags at our destination each day- a very reassuring sight!
On the accommodation- our favourites were The Old Rectory at Bowness; Willowford Farm; Centurian Inn; The Corbridge diversion;Vallum Lodge; Heddon lodge at Heddon-on-the-wall. The final one at Wallsend, the Hadrian Lodge Hotel, does not serve tea on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but did allow us to get a takeaway and eat it in the bar
The weather was quite reasonable, with only a couple of days with some rain, but that was not constant nor heavy.
So- all in all, it was a very enjoyable walk, and, as it turned out, well timed. When we got back to Kelso on the Sunday, our daughter’s baby was not yet born, so we were present for that when she arrived on the Tuesday, with both mother and daughter doing well. The grandparents, of course, are fit and well and ready to be of assistance.
Thank you once again, and we would certainly recommend your organisation to friends who are planning to walk in the UK.
I am sending this from my daughter’s email, so that is why the different email address.
Kind regards, Miggs Coggan"

Thanks for choosing Macs Adventure and congratulations to the new grandparents!

Susan & Robyn Enjoy the West Highland Way

2008-05-06T10:44:00.003+01:00

Susan and Robyn enjoyed the West Highland Way in and also included a break on Mull in the middle of the trip. Here is what they had to say about their self-guided trip on the West Highland Way with Macs Adventure:

"Hi Neil,
Just to let you know Robyn and I had a great walk. What magnificent scenery you can see on a relatively easy walk.
We had good weather with very little wind, although, on the first day it was snowing when we woke up and I wondered if we were doing the right thing!!!
The transport of our bags worked brilliantly and the accommodation was great. Although I must say we were very grateful you had booked us in to the Bridge of Orchy as Tynndrum Lodge was definitely below the standard of all the others.
As it happened the day we were to walk to Bridge of Orchy it snowed again so we were grateful for the shorter walk.
We really enjoyed our rest day and had lots of fun on train, bus and ferry rides. We did get to the Isle of Mull, but grey weather didn’t show it off to its best
The weather for Ranoch Moor was grey but no wind. Just near Kingshouse we got a little sleet so we could imagine what it would be like if it was bad weather the whole time, but didn’t actually have to experience it.
Thank you for all your organization, it really was a memorable trip

Regards
Sue Ebeling"

Carl, John and Stephen clean up the Coast to Coast

2008-05-06T09:34:00.002+01:00

Carl, John and Stephen flew over from their normal stompng ground in the US for a raid on the Scottish Coast to Coast and were rewarded with an outstanding week of riding with not a drop of rain in seven days.

Check out their photo diary of the Coast to Coast here:

Winter Conditions Persist on Ben Nevis

2008-04-07T12:36:00.004+01:00

Despite the daffodils appearing winter is still very much in control on Ben Nevis. We had a great day on Saturday in periods of glorious sunshine interspered with blizzard conditions, which are fairly unusual for this late in the winter.

The snow cover was down to 300m and large areas of consolidated snow remain from 750 metres upwards. The depth of snow on the summit in currently at about 10 feet so it looks like winter conditions are going to be in firm control until the end of April.

Follow this link for photos from Saturday which will give you a good idea of what to expect on the summit plateau for the foreseeable future.

Our summer Ben Nevis weekends are filling up very quickly so if you are thinking of tackling Ben Nevis with us this summer please do book your place soon. Full details here: http://www.macsadventure.com/bennevis.htm

Macs Adventure featured in BBC Books "Unforgettable Walks to take before you die"

2008-04-07T11:50:00.007+01:00

Unforgettable Walks to Take Before You Die is the latest in a series of books by the BBC to inspire you to visit the world's most beautiful landscapes.

Macs Adventure was pleased to assist the authors Clare Jones and Steve Watkins with their research on the West Highland Way chapter of the book last year and have been featured as the recommended holiday supplier for the West Highland Way. Again underlining our position as the leading supplier of guided and self-guided walking holidays on the West Highland Way.

Clare had this to say about Macs Adventure after completing the walk "The trip lived up to everything you suggested and certainly proved that it ranked as a truly 'unforgettable' experience. Your choices of accommodation really added to the experience and special mention should go to the staff at The Bridge of Orchy Hotel and George at Tigh-na-Cheo for their memorably warm welcomes."

The book is lavishly illustrated and truly inspirational so I have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone who enjoys travel and walking. It will certainly keep you occupied and inspire your future walking plans. The book is available to buy from Amazon here..

If you are inspired to tackle the West Highland Way you can of course find full details of our west Highland Way walking holidays here: http://www.macsadventure.com/Walking_holidays/WHW/West_highland_way.htm

Enjoy

A Fantastic Achievement by Paul Bloe

2007-10-24T17:50:00.000+01:00

CMT United Kingdom - The "Ben Nevis" Challenge - Click here to read the full story>>
I am sure that many of you considering Ben Nevis as a challenge will be inspired by Paul Bloe's account of his successful ascent of Ben Nevis in August. Paul makes light of what was a huge personal challenge and in many years of working with clients in the mountains I have never seen anyone dig so deep to achieve a personal goal.

It was a great honour to help Paul and his friends achive a seemingly impossible goal. When we started the climb I thought it was highly unlikely that we would summit (I didn't share this with him at the time) and it was only through Paul's bloody mindedness and his friends unstinting support that we were successful.

I found it hugely inspiring to be involved with Paul's Ben Nevis Challenge and I hope that we can team up again soon for some further adventure. Until then!

West Highland Way Photos from Alex Elrick

2007-10-19T15:58:00.000+01:00

Photos
Alex Elrick was kind enough to share his photos from his recent West Highland Way trip with us. He walked in early October this year and as you can see from the photographs he was blessed with absolutely lovely weather.

I hope that you enjoy viewing Alex's photos as much as I did and it gets you inspired to get training for your next adventure.

For more info on our West Highland Way packages visit our website here..

Happy Viewing.

Challenging & Successful Coast to Coast

2007-10-11T12:06:00.000+01:00

A big thank you to all who made the May/June Coast to Coast such a success. With a truly multi national team and some hugely varied weather this made for a memorable trip.

A couple of good days to Laggan where followed by two spectacularly wet days - just how wet can be seen from Crispin's photos which are linked to elsewhere in the blog.
Flooded rivers, tracks that looked more like rivers and some truly character builing riding.

As always our perseverence and after changing all our brakeblocks in Tomintoul three days of glorious weather followed as we headed to Ballater, Edzell and then to the coast at Montrose.

In the end all 13 riders made the complete crossing and it's certainly a trip I won't forget in a hurry. Thanks to all of you for making an outstanding trip. I can't wait for the next one in July. We are now also running the Coast to Coast as a self-guided trip so if you and some mates would like to tackle the ultimate Scottish Off-Road Trip give us a shout. (Check out the photos here>>)

Happy peddling.

Intermediate Trail Riding in the October Sunshine

2007-10-11T11:55:00.000+01:00

What a great weekend! Two days of Intermediate Skills in the October Sunshine. Check out the pictures now and get yourself ready for your winter riding.

Here's what Paula had to say:

Neil,

We really enjoyed our skills course last weekend! Thanks.
A couple of comments for you - just so you know...

1. Keith did a great job as our guru. He pitched the skills teaching and riding spot on.

2. The website got you our booking - clear, informative and, most important, up-to-date with current availability.

I won't hesitate to recommend you!

Paula Mayland

Winter Mountaineering in the Cairngorms

2007-03-05T15:58:00.000Z

Cairngorms Weekend 4 March 07

The Cairngorms delivered its best and worst winter weather as last weekend saw Peter, Ali and I head to the Cairngorms for a weekend of Winter Mountaineering.

Saturday was one of those truly glorious days which make you happy to be alive. The sun shone all day, the condiitons were perfect and we enjoyed an awesome day of climbing in Fiacaill Couloir in Coire an t-Sneachda. The Cairngorms just doesn't get any more spectacular than this and there were plenty of walkers and climbing teams out enjoying the spectacular conditions.

Sunday showed the other side of the Scottish Highlands. After struggling against high winds on the walk in to Coire an t-Sneachda we were finally turned back at the rescue box when storm force wind made mobility impossible. Most climbing teams seemed to suffer the same fate as we had plenty of company on the walk back to the car park.

Overall the weekend was a great success and I'm looking forward to getting back into the hills again soon.

Winter is Here!

2007-01-22T11:01:00.000Z

Winter is certainly here! Just back from a successful weekend in Lochaber with a great group. Saturday was spent on Aonach Mor learning essential skills. The morning was extremely windy but we managed to find some shelter tucked in behind the Nid for those essential self arrest skills and snowpack analysis. Afterwards we popped over the top to face the full force of the wind and perfect our crampon technique.

An early start on Sunday was rewarded by low wind speed and plenty of new snow which continued to fall throughout the day. The deep snow made for hard going from about 800m upwards and the summit plateau was pretty wild with full whiteout conditions. A northerly wind brought far colder conditions on the descent. Our whole party summited in the tough conditions and this made for a very successful weekend. Thanks to all those involved. Neil

Trekking in New Zealand - The Tongariro Circuit

2007-01-03T17:45:00.000Z

November saw Ali and I head to the other side of the world for three weeks in New Zealand. A fantastic destination with world class walking and cycling. Rather than relax and lie on the beach like most honemooners we tackled a couple of adventures. First was the Tongariro Circuit - one of New Zealand's Great Walks.

We managed to hit a very Scottish couple of days of weather but despite this thoroughly enjoyed the three day hike through the Tongariro National Park and would have no hesitation in recommending it. I hope that you are able to experience this wonderful landscape soon.For more images from this walk please visit my Picasa Gallery here

Picasa Web Albums - Neil - Glentress & B...

2006-10-26T11:13:00.000+01:00

Picasa Web Albums - Neil - Glentress & B...: "

Glentress & Ben Nevis 22-24 Oct 06

"I've just had a very busy but rewarding few days. On Sunday i was down in Glentress delivering a intermediate mountain bike course and then Monday and Tuesday took me to Ben Nevis for some private guiding.
Given the fact that it is October we had absolutely fantastic weather and thanks to everyone who participated with such enthusiasm and good humour. You may be interested in viewing some of the photos from the weekend.

looking ahead the weekend is looking pretty good - pumping surf on the East Coast of Scotland on Friday and Saturday and great wind on the Wets Coast. making the decision between surfing and kitesurfing a tough one.

Whatever you choose to do this weekend I hope that you have a great one.
Cheers
Neil

Macs Adventure Walking Holiday Dates & Prices 2007

2006-10-12T11:51:00.000+01:00

Macs Adventure Walking Holiday Dates & Prices 2007

Good news! All dates and prices for Macs Adventure Walking Holidays, Weekends and Mountain Biking Adventures are now available on our website.

We have more daes than ever before and you will be pleased to hear that we have managed to keep almost all our prices at 2006 levels. Making our adventures even better value than before.

The West Highland Way is proving even more popular than ever before and dates in May 2007 are filling up already so if you are considering tackling the Scotland's finest long distance walk next year please get your booking in soon.

To all of you who travelled with us in 2006 - Thank you for a fantastic season and please bring all that lovely weather back in 2007.

Scotsman.com News - Scotland - Plan to move end of 95-mile Highland walk route wins support

2006-10-12T11:42:00.000+01:00

Scotsman.com News - Scotland - Plan to move end of 95-mile Highland walk route wins support

Those of you who are interested in the West Highland Way might be interested in the above story. In my opinion an absolutely fantastic idea - over the years I have had more comments thanI can remember concerning the dreary last two miles of the way along the busy Glen Nevis road.

I only hope that they will keep individual interests out of the decision and do what is best for the walk and walkers. In my humble opinion I would suggest keeping the route off the road and following the Cow Hill Track above Braveheart Car Park Etc and then dropping into Fort William from the side of Cow Hill. A great finish to a world class walk rather than a dispointing 2 mile trudge along a noisy road.

Please do what is best for walkers!

Kite and Wind surfing in Tiree

2006-10-12T11:01:00.000+01:00

The Isle of Tiree has long held legendary status among wind sports enthusiasts in th eUK and last weekend saw four of heading to the isle in search of wind and waves. Matthew, Dougie and Dan were looking for some epic windsurfing action while I was hoping for slightly lighter winds for some kite action.

The forecast was terrifying - gales and huge swell all weekend - and the conditions did not disappoint. We had a mixture of short periods of lighter winds combined with nuclear winds and waves from every direction. Matthew and Dan made light work of the 4m weather on Saturday and Dougie and I sneaked in a session later in the day once the winds moderated a little.

By the end of two and a half days of action all of us were totaled and had had more than enough sailing to last us until our annual fix next year.

For anyone into wind, kite or just straight surfing I can't recommend Tiree enough. Supposedly the windiest and sunniest place in the UK blessed with numerous huge sandy beaches, a thriving scene and all easily accessible. If you haven't experienced Tiree or any of the Outer Hebrides get planning! Enjoy and don't tell too many people about it.

A couple of useful hints
Kit Hire and Tuition - Wild Diamond - Will
Accommodation - Tiree Lodge
Ferry - Calmac

Surfing at Machrahanish

2006-07-30T12:33:00.000+01:00

A fantastic forecast sent us to Machrahanish this weekend in search of waves. On arrival at we were greated by huge glassy waves - closing out on the most part but still a fantastic sight on the West Coast of Scotland. A quick late evening surf followed - largely unsuccessful but still an excuse to enjoy a couple of bevvies.

An early start on Saturday - and a much reduced swell - saw us heading back to WestPort - where I floundered around in the white water for a while.

Greg, Ali and Barry later went in for a session at Tangy - hooking into a couple of nice waves as the swell dissapeared.

For more photos visit this page -

Neil Survives 10 under the Ben

2006-06-28T18:19:00.000+01:00

10 Under The Ben??? Yes you may well wonder what on earth that is!

A ten hour mountain bike race in Leachan Forest in the shadow of Ben Nevis. yes and it is as painful as it sounds. I signed up in a post new year haze on the assunption that it would motivate me to do some training and finally get rid of that winter blubber. Needless to say that the training never happened. Just one desperate week of mad riding on the Coast to Coast to teh amusement of everyone at the last minute.
The race started in pouring rain, which stopped shortly afterwards and was swiftly replaced by a swarm of midges intent on sucking my blood! And that was the good part! No in all seriousness the course was absolutely fantastic, interesting throughout with just the right mix of singletrack and blessed fireroad.
Organisation was first class so a big thank you to the organisers for a first class event and especially to the marshall at the wall who was beseiged by midges non-stop for 11 hours.

How did I do? i certainly didn't excell myself - 6 laps (60 miles) in 9:18 and 67th solo overall - but i did have a fantastic time and the atmosphere was first class. I am already in training for next years event and more specifically Relentless - the 24 hour event in October on the same course - see you there.

Outstanding conditions on Ben Nevis CMD Arete

2006-05-15T15:50:00.000+01:00

Wow! I'm just back from guiding a group on Ben Nevis over the weekend and I've never seen such good conditions on Ben Nevis.

We tackled the mountain by the CMD Arete - the best walking route by far - and enjoyed blue skies and unbelievable visibility throughout the day. From the summit of the Ben we enjoyed views as far as Skye, Jura and Schiehallion.

The CMD is a challenging route and should only be attempted by experienced walkers. It involves over 1600 metres of ascent and the ridge is very exposed in places. if you would like more information on our guiding on the CMD Arete visit our Ben Nevis pages or give us a shout.

New TCL & MBL Dates

2006-03-24T14:08:00.000Z

Our Trail Cycle leader and Mountain Bike Leader courses have been selling incredibly fast and we have added several new dates to satisfy demand. We have a MBL training course running over the weekend of 15/16 April and a combined TCL training, assessment and MBL training course running from 1-5 May. If you have considerable MTB experience and are looking to fast track your training this is an opportunity not to be missed.

Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any further queries on this.

Great Winter Conditions on Ben Nevis & more on the way

2006-03-01T08:26:00.000Z

We have just enjoyed an absolutely suberb weekend of winter climbing in Lochaber. Beautiful blue sky conditions and perfect snow conditions.

We had five clients on our winter Ben Nevis Adventure and all enjoyed a demanding day of winter skills on Aonach Mor followed by a successful ascent of Ben Nevis in almost perfect weather conditions.

We are on our way up to Aviemore for a Cairngorms winter walking adventure this weekend and the way the snow has been coming down this week there is going to be no shortage of the white stuff.

Such a big dump of snow sets us up well for the remainder of the winter, putting down a good base and ensuring good conditions well into April. (Fingers crossed).

We do still have availability on our Winter Ben Nevis Adventure departing on 10 March 2006. And are offering 25% off. So if you are interested in getting some last minute winter walking book your place now.

Successful Winter Ben Nevis Adventure

2006-01-23T10:40:00.000Z

The first winter Ben Nevis Adventure for 2006 was a great success despite seemingly poor snow conditions and a pretty awful weather report.

Alison, who was leading the group for the weekend found some superb sliding conditions at Nevis Range which were perfect for honing those ice axe arrest skills. This was followed by an ascent of Aonoch Mor and a fraught descent after Donna injured her ankle.

As Sunday dawned the five remaining adventurers were already on the trail up Ben Nevis accompanied by winter gales and a forecast for heavy rain. Thankfully the gales died and the rain didn't appear so Alison plus Clay, Eric, Michael and Michelle (guided by Alison) all acheived the summit whiteout condiitons just before 1pm.

Thanks to all for a great weekend and I am certainly looking forward to the remaining winter trips with the forecast for the next week looking fantastic.
neil

Snow in Fort William

2006-01-17T13:20:00.000Z

Fresh snow has fallen in the western highlands and more is forecast for the end of the week. Just in time as our first Winter Ben Nevis adventure kicks off on Friday. This weekend has been fully subscribed for some time but we do have places available for our February and March trips. Hope to see you there and looking forward to a great weekend.

May Bank Holidays almost full.

2006-01-17T13:15:00.000Z

Availability over both May bank holidays and specifically the half-term weekend over 27/28 May is now very limited on most of our guided and self-guided walking holidays. So if you are thinking of either the West Highland Way, Hadrian's Wall, the Coast to Coast please get your booking in as soon as possible or we may not be able to accommodate you.

Don't hesitate to contact us if you hav any queries.
Cheers
Neil

Cycle Touring in Western Cape, South Africa

2006-01-16T18:40:00.000Z

Yes, there has been an eerie silence from this blog for sometime. But there is a reason Ali (my better half) and i have just spent an awesome month cycle touring in South Africa.

There is some absolutely fantastic touring available but there are also some downsides, such as a high crime rate and a general lack of respect for cyclists on the road.

Enough of the negatives, the attached photo was taken descending the Swartberg Pass in the Little Karoo. An epic 20 kilometre descent from over 1600m to just over 500m (if the memory serves me correctly. We did a two day tour from Outshoorn, over the Swartberg Pass to Prince Albert and then returned via Meiringspoort to Outshoorn, about 190km over the two days. You will find more pictures on a very basic website here.

If we were a bit more organised and feeling fitter at the time I would recommend the following as a first class cycle tour of the region.
Start George - cycle over the old Montagu Pass to Outshoorn, overnight.
Outshoorn to Prince Albert over Swartberg Pass (80km)
Rest day in Prince Albert (Don't miss the Bush Pub - awesome food)
Prince Albert to De Rust via Meiringspoort - awesome day not sure of distance.
De Rust back to George in one final push or more sensibly break the day in Outshoorn.
Happy touring this route is awesome.

We did a couple of other routes around the garden route as well as down the Cape Peninsula so don't hesitate to get in touch for any advice on touring in the Western Cape.

More news on the Scottish winter to follow soon.

Summer days - winter nights

2005-12-04T18:40:00.000Z

Wow - Lennoxtown forest on the mountain bike today. Awesome natural singletrack, some unbelieveable northshore (not for me) and a whole heap of mud. For anyone based in the Glasgow area with a passion for natural singletrack get up to Lennoxtown as soon as you can. Hardly a rider in sight and a fantastic network of trails. Just explore and you will love it.

sitting here on a dark winter evening organising photos, which brings back magic summer memories. This shot was taken in the eastern Cairngorms during our Coast to Coast trip in the summer. Unfortgettable and Scotland at its best. I'll add some info on this magic trip soon.

Have fun and get on your bike - nothing better.
Cheers
Neil

Mobile posting

2005-12-02T18:17:00.000Z

Join the adventure lifestyle and escape from your desk by using a mobile device to upload your blog on a daily basis.

Have a good one – Friday night – pub time

The Adventure begins

2005-12-02T17:33:00.000Z

The adventure begins, the start of a blog for those with an interest in adventure in Scotland. Mountain biking, mountaineering, climbing and whatever else takes your fancy. Just testing at this stage but more coming very soon.
Cheers
Neil