Mostly, this is random stories from my various trips as I collect them, but I've a wee backlog to get through too and those will pop up occasionally.

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Tuesday 7 January 2020

BAM 2019 Round-up


A wee round up of some of my overnighters for 2019. In some cases, I had multiple trips per month but I've just selected one from each. All were great fun (even if only in retrospect!)



January - Culbin / Loch Morlich

It's always good to get the year off to a flying start. An easy post-pub trip from Nairn along to the beach at Culbin got me a couple of VeloViewer squares too, and I found a lovely wee hollow in the dunes for my tarp. 







February - Loch Mallachie

Ticking off another local bivvy spot. Short/easy ride there and a very "fresh" pitch next to the the Loch. I awoke around 2 am with the wind whistling under the tarp but was so comfy and warm I couldn't be bothered moving. 








March - Strathconon 

We abandoned Neills orginal plan when the mental headwind made riding up the strath very difficult. Once the rain came on too I dug around in my memory banks for an alternative. It turned out to be not as sheltered as I'd have liked and I spent a couple of hours holding the tent pole up to save being blown away.








April - Uath Lochan & Loch Tarff (MM200)

Two overnighters as part of a 3-day ride on the Monadliath Military 200 route. A lack of Smidge and careless camping resulted in me pulling 24 ticks out of my body after the ride.







May - Cairngorm Summit

I'd been thinking about this one for a while and just took a flyer based on the overnight weather forecast. Had to push up through some snow to get to the summit cairn but found a great spot to relax and watch the sunset/sunrise.








June - Lismore 

Another trip I'd been planning off and on for a while. Took in part of the West Highland Way, had a long-dreamed of scoot down Glencoe and then topped off with a bivvy on an island.







July - Loch Morlich

Another post-pub jaunt and back to the shore of Loch Morlich after Neill had a bit of a mechanical and we were running behind schedule. Nice spot but a bit tight for three tents.








August - Glenlivet

A bit of a change. I wanted to try bikepacking on the full-suspension Orbea and using a small backpack. This tied in with a bucket-list trip to Glenlivet. As a rig, it worked out really well and it's a set-up I plan to make more of.









September - CL300

Will I / won't I? After an attempt at the Cairngorms Loop group start was ruined due to flooding, I set a date for a repeat attempt and this one just came off so well. I got round in under 40 hours, which surprised me not a little.






October - Bynack Stable

Dismissed as an option for our June bivvy due to weather and timing, this turned out to be a brilliant spot, fully lit up all night by a huge moon. Bloody cold in the morning though - had to scrape ice off the saddle.









November - Roseisle Forest 

A return visit to a favourite spot but man was it wet getting there (and back) along the Dava Way! 




 


December - Torr Alvie

This only really cropped up as an option after a short ride there with the Fatbike Highland mob. Great spot with extensive views and not as much traffic noise as I'd imagined. A crystal clear night sky and 3 meteors topped it off and I didn't even care that it was minus 4 or 5C.









That's another 12/12 and now 37 consecutive months. I'm not sure I'll carry on that streak through 2020. Likely I'll head out January and February and then see how enthused I am. 

(Thanks to Neill for some of the photos)