Transport trouble

It seems that we may have hit a small problem in the form of a minibus, or rather the lack of one.

Not only does it now seem that we're having trouble getting hold of one, but we may not have enough people able to drive it, what with appropriate licenses and all. This leaves us, on the face of it, with some difficult options:

1. Find and maybe even pay for someone to drive us up and back, although it'd probably have to be someone who was willing to spend a whole day wandering around Fort William on their own. Not ideal, but there may be fruit in this.
2. Get the train. Massively expensive, three figures worth of pounds. Each.
3. Drive up in a convoy. Again not ideal because we'd have to do two lots of some considerable driving and climb Nevis within 60 hours. That is, unless we can find a hire car or two and some temporary insurance to share the burden. Even so, it's not the most comfortable journey.

On the other hand, I have a lead or two of my own to follow. Watch this space...

Big decision...

...Do I get a new rucksack for the trip?
The one I used last Sunday was alright, but it wasn't really put to great test. Would it still be comfortable after 6 hours of hiking and climbing?
It's quite an old rucksack now but it's holding together fairly well, and would probably have enough room for essential supplies. (Food, drink, spare pair of socks, camera and possibly a fluffy Filbert Fox toy hanging off the back, so essentials only.) But I wonder if I should be looking to get a new one, with straps that connect around the waist for added back support and potentially less rubbing?
Answers on a postcard.

Burrough Hill

After purchasing boots and socks last week, yesterday I found myself back at the outdoor exploits shop buying a coat, a pair of trousers and a second pair of socks, which I probably should have thought about last week. Thanks to Rob G for his suggestions and recommendations - the coat in particular.

It continues to alarm me just how much this serious hiking game costs and I'm wondering what else I can do with all of this new gear once I'm finished with Nevis. (Or rather when Nevis has finished with me.)

Today, I finally muddied my boots! I went to a place called Burrough Hill, on the east side of Leicestershire and just south of Melton Mowbray, although calling it a Hill might be a bit deceptive. Nonetheless, I found a couple of inclines to test my boots out on and did find some decent views up there when the sun shone. (See pictures.) I also met one nice middle-aged couple who took a photograph of me there as well for my profile. However, it turned out to be terrible so I just stuck one on of me and the parrot instead. (I'm on the left.)
Overall, it was a very pleasant walk on what snow-haters would describe as the first nice day for ages.

So, importantly, what have I learned?

- How and where I lace my boots is important.
- A mile is less than I thought it was.

- Some of your fellow hikers/walkers will talk to you quite happily and others won't even begrudgingly give you the time of day without you going out of your way to call and wave to them first.

- It is said that only two things are certain in life - Death and Taxes. I can now add Mud to that list.

- I could do with more practice on better simulations of Ben Nevis.

Making strides

Got some hiking boots today, one size larger than usual to accomodate a thick pair of socks. Got some socks as well; probably should have bought more than one pair.
I was expecting that good hiking boots wouldn't come cheap and I wasn't disappointed in that regard. The guy in the shop recommended wearing them around the house to break them in. Fair enough, I thought, although I can't imagine my family being too pleased about it. So instead I thought: How about giving them a try out tomorrow morning? In Bradgate Park? In the snow? Well let's face it - The conditions outside at the moment would be good practice for Nevis...

Anyway, I'll see how easy it is to pull myself out of bed tomorrow morning.

Comrades

I started my exercise regime today, given that I'm still full of festive cheer and need to lose a few pounds of it. That and I need to achieve some sort of fitness - It is recommended that climbers of Ben Nevis have at least average cardiovascular fitness. So I'm starting with the rowing machine, a purchase planted firmly under the heading: "It seemed like a good idea at the time." (Wonder how long it'll last this time...)

Anyway, I won't be climbing Ben Nevis alone. I will be part of a highly skilled* team of hikers, all of whom are Leicester fans, and all of whom have hearts bigger than Nevis in the first place. So, in no particular order:
Rob - The expert. He's been up Snowdon before, which makes us all completely reliant on him.
Ross - Master of quizzes, but won't know the meaning of the word 'quit': Not for himslef and not for the rest of us.
Adam - So laid back he's horizontal. Will probably glide up the mountain.
Shapey - Great spirit and will see the whole project through to success.
Tom T - A winner; fiery and a bit of a joker. He'll help to drive us all on.
Tom R - A warm bloke and a real team player. None of this will faze him.
Tom C - The original and the best; he's the reason we all met. He plays rugby, so no problems there!
Glen - If he hikes up mountains he way he plays as a centre back, Nevis will be trembling.
Ian - The secret weapon. The mystery man. And he works for Radio Leicester! Will hit the mountain with drive and purpose.
Steve - Last but by no means least, the daddy of the group (both in age and quantity of offspring). He won't let us quit. And, as if to prove himself further, he's running the London marathon the previous Sunday. This makes him brave yet borderline insane, but we love him for it anyway.
And I make eleven!
I therefore hope I can bring the kind of qualities to the journey that my comrades will. (And I wouldn't want to be going without them!)


*Okay, maybe not that highly skilled. But the will is there and that's the important thing.

In the beginning...

August: The 2009/2010 football season brough with it the 125th anniversary of Leicester City football club. As part of the celebrations, the club agreed to sponsor a local charity for a year by putting its logo on the away kits. The charity chosen was LOROS (the Leicestershire and Rutland Organisation for the Relief of Suffering).

November: During an international break, people from within Leicester City, including manager Nigel Pearson and City legend Alan Birchenall, took part in a sponsored bike ride by Hadrian's wall to raise money for LOROS. This is something we can all be very proud of, but it got me thinking if there was something that we, the fans could do for LOROS.

It was with this in mind that we, a group of Leicester City fans, came up with the idea of doing a sponsored climb of Ben Nevis just before the final home game of the season. As such, we plan to take the mountain trail to the summit on Friday 30th April this year.

Some of the group have experience of climbing Snowdon and the like, but I've never been up anything that couldn't be reasonably described as a large hill. So - Not only do I need to get the right gear (starting with a pair of good quality hiking boots) but also I need to get some serious practice in over the next few months.

In conclusion, it's time to climb a mountain for LOROS. And this is my blog on it!