They're all nuts these Munro obsessives. Especially Durham ones.

Great photo by Justin Cormack. This bloke could easily be from Durham. flickr justin cormack link


I asked Graeme what he did in the week he spent at the cottage in November. I tell you the weather was foul, and Graeme was on his own. Are the wiry tyros from Durham particularly obsessed? Yes, I speak from experience.
60 years ago my sport  was rock climbing - our heroes then were names like Joe Brown, Don Whillans, about five years older than me. And who were the little beggars who were out first, out in all conditions, bad weather, what weather? Pitons, what are pitons? Overhangs, why are they a problem? Nerves? Tell me about those. They all seemed to come from Durham University. Graeme lives in Durham, so he's got to be one of them.  
Graeme, if you get any more of your pals who want to go climbing in the winter, tell them to come to us. We give you £200 off, for skiers, photographers and climbers in the winter.
Here is Graeme's initial report. He only managed 7 Munros! Only! He got stuck in the snow - where? In the flattest, most low lying country in Europe. I tell you, nuttiness surrounds these lads. 

Hi John

Everything was great, only managed 7 munros due to conditions slowing the pace and some dubious conditions underfoot but all good. I have just returned from Holland after a 2 day business trip turned into 3 with a seventeen hour delay and a drive to Manchester in blizzard conditions and a drive back today in temps. down to –11!!! 

I have a Christmas doo to organize for a few of us in a bothy in the Pennines for tomorrow night, 4 mile walk with backs of logs and supplies however at the moment the A66 (our route there) is closed with the snow, we have about 18” here.

After this I am flat out until Christmas at work as we just about have the construction site held up. So I intend to pull something together for you but at the moment it isn’t very near the top of a substantial list! To be honest it will probably be over Christmas when I get chance.

Hope this is OK

Graeme, this is more than ok. Thanks. Send another when you have the time. You deserve to be famous - a lot of people read this blog.

John

HISTORY PAGES.
The story they don't tell you about the Glencoe Massacre
History around the cottage in Appin
Did the Vikings stage a battle in Glencoe?
The Pictish broch in Lismore
West of Scotland millions of years ago
Robert the Bruce and the Ardchattan parliament
Robert the Bruce and the Knights Templar
The story of the MacDonalds of Glencoe
Ancient roads of the Highlands
Glencoe, the 4th Wonder of Scotland
Castles in the Glencoe area

GLENCOE OUTDOORS
The best walks in Glencoe
Ben Nevis, go climb it
Munros are over 3,000 feet
Some Munros are easy
Glencoe rock climbing
Skiing in Glencoe is excellent again
New cycle tracks around Glencoe
There are lovely beaches and bays around Glencoe
Accommodation Fort William
Golf on the West coast
Tour the Highlands
You can cruise the West coast

BLOGS
Travellers Tales from the highlands of Scotland
Find your ideal holiday cottage anywhere
The most beautiful photographs of Glencoe
The achingly beautiful area of Appin, Scotland
Special offers for self catering in Scotland

COTTAGE ATTRACTIONS
Lochside cottage near Glencoe in the Highlands of Scotland
Last minute, late availability Glencoe, self catering cottage
20 brilliant walks around our cottage area
Easy hill walks in Glencoe
Why not walk up Ben Nevis one day?
Easier Munroe walks in Glencoe
Skiing Glencoe and Nevis range, cottage is midway between the two
Video. Skiing on Glencoe mountain
Weather in the West of Scotland
Rock and Ice climbing in Glencoe
Cycling and fishing Glencoe
Spectacular wild life around our cottage
Golf in the Highlands, Dragons tooth golf course, Glencoe
Cruising the islands, using Glencoe as a base
Safe, beautiful beaches and bays in Glencoe area
Touring the Highlands by car from Glencoe,
Spring breaks, March April May Glencoe
Winter breaks, Jan Feb March in the cottage
Autumn breaks November December in the cottage
Our new Appin blog site

FOR LASTMINUTE BOOKINGS

Short breaks in Scotland, Last minute cottage holidays Scotland, Autumn, Winter, Spring
Weather month by month Scotland summer
Weather month by month Scotland Autumn
Weather in Scotland Winter, month by month
Misunderstandings about Scotland's weather
Scotland's rain
Advice on driving in Scotland. Several Scotland driving pages are linked to this.
Honeymoon cottages in Scotland
Scotland for Christmas and New Year
The unofficial Scottish tourist Board
Cottages in Scotland permitting smoking
Cottages in Scotland welcoming pets

FOR WEST OF SCOTLAND SITE

Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in the West of Scotland
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Oban
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Glencoe
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Fort William
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in the far West of Scotland
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Appin
Port Appin and Lismore B&Bs
Barcaldine B&Bs and hotels
Duror b&bs
Kentallen b&bs
Ballachulish b&bs
Onich b&bs
How to find cottage owners self catering websites

It looks very good for Glencoe Mountain resort. £200 off our cottage for skiers.

Isn't this a lovely pic from Flickr?  Glencoe mountain photos on Flickr

We are very lucky in Glencoe in having this brilliant and energetic revival of the Skiing area on our doorstep. It has opened up the winter holiday period for everyone. That's why we are offering £200 off our low season rates for anyone who wants to take our cottage for a week. The cottage sleeps up to 4 and has a drying room and ski store. For details Email us

With heavy snow falling all over the country the Glencoe ski resort looks like it is on track to have it’s earliest ever opening.  For details about the opening date you can go to  the Glencoe ski resort

There is now a brand new beginner's area with a dedicated tow just for the snow sports school. that will make life easier for the learners.

A new terrain park is being created. This will have features for advanced riders and also a new beginner’s area making the park accessible to all levels of skier and snowboarder. The snow sports school will offer freestyle lessons every day.

Hiring gear is not a problem, you can hire skis or a snowboards, most of them brand new. Trespass ski suits also available.

Glencoe offers some of the best off piste opportunities in Scotland, and is famous for having Scotland's steepest black run. The beginners area is kindly as well.

It is all looking really good - I'm amazed at the energy of the management team. It is a lesson to us all in how to get a business going.
John
This is the page about skiing in our website
Skiing in Glencoe is excellent again

Masses of information about the area in our Site map
This is about Fort William
Appin is beautiful
Bed and breakfast and hotels from Oban to Fort William
Walks around our cottage
Autumn short breaks in Glencoe
Ben Nevis walking is a slog, but worth it
Cottage holidays Scotland in the Autumn, Winter, Spring
The highlands of Scotland
Find holiday cottages anywhere
Gorgeous photographs of Glencoe
Hill walks in Glencoe
Munroes in Glencoe
Port Appin
Barcaldine
Accommodation in Lochaber
Kentallen
Ballachulish
Onich

Oban's 4 star Queen's hotel

In one of the loveliest harbour locations in the world, the Queen's Hotel in Oban has been awarded the town's first 4star accolade by Visit Scotland. That's really nice, it has taken a long time for this lovely seafront to upgrade its hotels.  

Raymond and Susan Hymes have put in a huge amount of work since they bought it in a very run down state three years ago. The couple paid a handsome tribute to the work done by the local tradesmen. It is good to hear the whole team praised. Congratulations to them both.

But I have a little niggle. The Oban Times reported the claim that this was the "only 4star hotel between Glasgow and Inverness". It is a pity, because there are several much superior hotels in the area, such as the Airds in Port Appin, with its VisitScotland gold award, and its Relaix and Chateaux accreditation,  the Isle of Eriska hotel with its 5 star award, Inverlochy Castle and so on.

A slip of the tongue no doubt, but I'm surprised that the Oban Times printed it. "Best hotel in Oban" sounds good enough to me. The claim may be factually accurate for the moment, but expect it to be short lasting with other hotels set to come into play such as Barcaldine House, which is awaiting an award.

VisitScotland seem to be upgrading a lot of their properties these days. I'm sure it is merited, but I'm not convinced that they are not moving the target towards the arrow in many cases. Not in the case of the Queens Hotel, though, its accreditation is fully deserved I've no doubt.  You wouldn't bother to make a fuss over three stars would you?

John

HISTORY PAGES.
The story they don't tell you about the Glencoe Massacre
History around the cottage in Appin
Did the Vikings stage a battle in Glencoe?
The Pictish broch in Lismore
West of Scotland millions of years ago
Robert the Bruce and the Ardchattan parliament
Robert the Bruce and the Knights Templar
The story of the MacDonalds of Glencoe
Ancient roads of the Highlands
Glencoe, the 4th Wonder of Scotland
Castles in the Glencoe area

GLENCOE OUTDOORS

The best walks in Glencoe
Ben Nevis, go climb it
Munros are over 3,000 feet
Some Munros are easy
Glencoe rock climbing
Skiing in Glencoe is excellent again
New cycle tracks around Glencoe
There are lovely beaches and bays around Glencoe
Accommodation Fort William
Golf on the West coast
Tour the Highlands
You can cruise the West coast

BLOGS

Find your ideal holiday cottage anywhere
The most beautiful photographs of Glencoe
The achingly beautiful area of Appin, Scotland
Special offers for self catering in Scotland

COTTAGE ATTRACTIONS
Lochside cottage near Glencoe in the Highlands of Scotland
Last minute, late availability Glencoe, self catering cottage
20 brilliant walks around our cottage area
Easy hill walks in Glencoe
Why not walk up Ben Nevis one day?
Easier Munroe walks in Glencoe
Skiing Glencoe and Nevis range, cottage is midway between the two
Video. Skiing on Glencoe mountain
Weather in the West of Scotland
Rock and Ice climbing in Glencoe
Cycling and fishing Glencoe
Spectacular wild life around our cottage
Golf in the Highlands, Dragons tooth golf course, Glencoe
Cruising the islands, using Glencoe as a base
Safe, beautiful beaches and bays in Glencoe area
Touring the Highlands by car from Glencoe,
Spring breaks, March April May Glencoe
Winter breaks, Jan Feb March in the cottage
Autumn breaks November December in the cottage
Our new Appin blog site

FOR LASTMINUTE BOOKINGS

Short breaks in Scotland, Last minute cottage holidays Scotland, Autumn, Winter, Spring
Weather month by month Scotland summer
Weather month by month Scotland Autumn
Weather in Scotland Winter, month by month
Misunderstandings about Scotland's weather
Scotland's rain
Advice on driving in Scotland. Several Scotland driving pages are linked to this.
Honeymoon cottages in Scotland
Scotland for Christmas and New Year
The unofficial Scottish tourist Board
Cottages in Scotland permitting smoking
Cottages in Scotland welcoming pets

FOR WEST OF SCOTLAND

Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in the West of Scotland
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Oban
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Glencoe
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Fort William
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in the far West of Scotland
Holiday accommodation, B&Bs, hotels in Appin
Port Appin and Lismore B&Bs
Barcaldine B&Bs and hotels
Duror b&bs
Kentallen b&bs
Ballachulish b&bs
Onich b&bs
How to find cottage owners self catering websites