Appendix Surgery, Colonsay and Plockton Pub Adventures

So it is now almost halfway through my summer season on Ru'a Fiola now! Summer is going by really rather fast and although we have had the odd few days of sun, it has felt like summer took a long time in getting here. Work is as brilliant as ever, great kids and loads of island enthusiasm, energy and the usual shenanigans that have us gossiping for weeks.

I have been coming and going to and from Mull quite a bit and Dad is doing brilliantly at his new hotel. Baby labrador Fin is getting bigger and bigger and happier and happier every time I see him! Dad is almost constantly full, has had the BBC come and stay and is about to take on a starring role (extra) in a new film with Damian Lewis. I couldn't be happier for him! I am open to ideas for a 60th Birthday Bonanza next summer... anyone??

A standard view out of the ferry on the way over to Mull. We ALWAYS get good weather.

One minor inconvenience this summer was a sudden pain in my tummy whilst on expedition, which resulted in having a ruptured ovarian cyst and appendicitis! Off to hospital for 2 nights and an operation for me.... I must have taken this photo right after I woke up because I have absolutely no memory of taking it. Perhaps my morphine-full mind was in more control than the rest of me. It has meant that adventures of late have been rather more tame than normal but now, three weeks later, I am mostly back to normal (with the odd ibuprofen hit once in a while!)

One AWESOME course break was spent going to Colonsay which from Ru'a Fiola seems to be right out in the wild Atlantic but actually has a thriving and very friendly population and we went girly to the max with flowers in our hair, gallery viewing, tea shops, skinny dipping at the beach and the Titanic. Matt came with us too and very gallantly put up with our girl talk.

Susie's new flower fact. This is "Bog Pimpernel"

Ailsa, the flower fairy we found in the woods.

Kiloran Bay. Here we played and ran and dug holes and watched the sunset and skinny dipped.

 Susie, Ailsa, Laura and Matt

 Can you imagine a better beach Laura?

Taking a walk in the Colonsay jungle. We do actually get quite excited seeing so much green big plants and trees after living on our tiny wild and windswept island.

The latest adventure was a trip up to a bothy owned by old Ru'a Fiola friends Magnus and Helen. We have the key on loan and the bothy is in a superb place for climbing, yomping, beaches, waterfalls and good access to Torridon, Skye, the pub in Plockton and all sorts. The bothy is rather foosty but we set to with brooms and scrubbing brushes and Ali and I have all sorts of plans to come back over the winter and help with any kind of restoration that needs doing. Over the few days we were here, the Cioch Nose of Sgurr a Chaorachainn was climbed, a team walked out to Uags bothy and I scrambled right up the Allt a Mhuillin to a loch at the top for a wee skinny dip and a yomp in the rain.

 A view through my phone from the top of the Allt a Mhuillin on a very dreich day.

 A fine situation for a skinny dip. A very quick skinny dip in the cold rain and wind...

 Laura turning housekeeper even on her days off

 Coats hanging up everywhere after a wet day out in the hills.

A little home for Ali, Ruaridh, Laura, Adrian, Adam, Matt, Susie and I for a weekend, thanks to Magnus and Helen.

Now starting the second half of our summer season and hopefully all the dramas are behind us and my tummy will heal back to normal. I am looking forward already to climbing again. Though I have rediscovered embroidery threads, wool and needles again...all good healing activities!

Sunset on Ru'a Fiola across the cottongrass. My home for the summer. Happy Hannah.

Rock Climbing Road Trip and Mum's Wedding

Ali and I had two weeks to go before going back to work on Ru'a Fiola and the logical decision was to climb aboard the Heffer (for glamorous camping at its best) and embark on a UK climbing trip. The plan was to drive from the Isle of Mull to Winchester for my Mum's wedding and back again via as much climbing as possible.

Before I even describe the climbing there, may I say hats off to the Northumbrians. The wind was strong enough to knock us over but even without it, those routes had us stumped. Bowden Doors was too exposed and Back Bowden's cliff seemed to start a metre and a half above the ground making the starts outrageously strenuous. Kyloe Out, the third crag of the day helped us regain some confidence though and we may yet return to this corner of the country. A couple of days in, we dropped in on some old uni friends of Ali's, Tom and Kate but the wind continued to blow us right off the Yorkshire crags and in the end we had to escape to the sheltered Helm Crag in the Lake District. After this the forecast was so grim that we drove straight south to Winchester for a good mum-made dinner, a much needed shower and an inside bed.

Ali on a gnarly first ascent of "Just Another E5" - a spectacularly easy bouldering "problem" at Ilkley, Yorkshire.

The wedding was perfect. Mum and Daj decided on a registry office service which could not have been nicer. I will admit there was emotion rolling down my face as they walked in with such happy smiles. My brother David and a friend Pete did two beautiful readings, the rings were exchanged and the book was signed. It all felt very special indeed. Coffee and cake was followed by a charismatic tour of Winchester Cathedral and we returned home for a luxurious cheese and biscuit lunch. Naps and flower arranging then preceded the evening's festivities - a photo shoot in the pub garden and a superb three course dinner with friends and family.

The photos are slowly being sorted and pimped up and given to Mum and Daj but here are just a couple to show the beautiful and jolly nature of the day.

 Daj's one and only wonderful wedding tie

Taken by my Mum, Ali and I actually looking very smart indeed! A very uncommon occurrence and it goes without saying that my outfit was co-ordinated and acquired by Mum...

The day after the wedding, we started the second half of the climbing road trip starting at Swanage with the newly weds and old Rua Fiola friends Justin, Sara, Molly, Rupert and Rosie. Swanage is famously adventurous climbing but it turned out only to be the beginning of our epics on sea cliffs.

Ali on "The Heat" E3 5c at The Boulder Ruckle, Swanage

Our next aim was Pembroke and we did manage a successful day at Mother Carey's Kitchen. We struggled up a loose climb to start but the rest of the climbing was glorious and in the sun. The last route of the day had my feet leaving the ground with the tide just tickling them! The next morning we had a brush with the army wanting to spend the day firing at our next crag (outrageous!) so we have unfinished business at Pembroke. Then the weather took another bad turn and we had a big chunk of day in Tescos for breakfast and MacDonalds for internet. Pembroke was sadly lacking in anywhere more appealing to sit on a rainy day... Our next reunion was with Magnus, Helen, Archie and Lizzy in Brecon. More old Rua Fiola friends who were very welcoming indeed. A long drive down to the Gower peninsula only confirmed the fact that it was raining and we drove to North Wales for more incredible sea cliffs, just perched out from under the clouds. Gogarth was surprisingly welcoming on our first day, so we stayed a second for a more notoriously "gogarth" kind of route, with damp rocks, loose rocks, treacherous top outs and wild descents. Excellent.

 Ali completing "The Strait Gate" E1 5b in Mother Carey's Kitchen

 A slightly less than promising view from the van in North Wales

 Ali following me along the harrowing final pitch of "A Dream of White Horses" in Gogarth

Just as we finished climbing. Beautiful evening!

After North Wales we drove to the Peak District to see Jago and Sarah. Jago is a professional juggler and even having heard a lot about him, I still never quite clicked on to how professional he actually is. AMAZING and easily on a par with the likes of Cirque Du Soleil. We saw his work space too, lined with row upon row of pyro-this, flame-that and fire everything. Glowing clubs, fireworks coming out of hula hoops and crazy costumes. Quite an exciting life that couple leads!

We climbed in the Peak District with Ed (our peak district tour guide), Glen, Logan, John, Sylvie, Tom and Kate, ticking off some gritstone classics and before we started running out of time on the trip, we climbed a day at Brimham Rocks (very weird rock formations but single pitch climbers paradise!)  and stayed a night with Wee Ben and Mary, more Rua Fiola people, and finished off all Ben's sloe gin! Ben is rebuilding an old ruin in Yorkshire in a beautiful little valley but at the moment is fighting with all the paperwork that comes with living in a National Park... When the place is done though he will have the most beautiful home.

Rock formations at Brimham

We now have a small tour of Scotland to do, packing the van and cleaning clothes etc to get ready for going back to work at Ru'a Fiola. We are at Ali's parents now and soon to go back to Mull and then in only a few days time, our next adventure begins back at work. Bring on the island madness!

Ardachy House Warming

Our new house on Mull is officially warmed up. The yurt is most definitely hot and we can no longer see our breath in the kitchen. So first of all, thankyou to everyone who came to visit this week, because it has made a huge difference making this place feel more homely! Also, all the enthusiasm and positive-ness has been invaluable for Dad starting his new life up here in this wild wonderful corner of Scotland!

Right before the house warming, Ali and I did have a brief visit down to see his family in Duntrune. Fin went charging into the cottage and immediately disgraced himself on the carpet.... what a way to introduce yourself to your boyfriends grandmother! She however was brilliant and didn't seem to mind a bit! Fin made some new friends in Alfie the spaniel who put him in his place and playful Tinker the Jack Russell. Sadly, Ali's family couldn't come to join the housewarming festivities but it was lovely to see them all and the coastline round Duntrune and Crinan is beautiful. We were able to see Ru'a Fiola from a whole different angle too.

Since getting back to Mull, life has been WILD! We built a yurt, we climbed at Fidden, Erraid and Scoor, we walked to the Carsaig Arches, we explored all the beaches, we flew kites, we visited Iona for exploring and for bunkbeds, we paddled round Iona and out to Staffa, we ate vast amounts of food and drank vast amounts of alcohol, we spun fire, we showed off the new puppy, we did lots of laundry, we did the art and craft thing in Tobermory and we had great fun in the pleasantly warmed yurt. There were more than 35 people in the house on saturday night and the last visitors have just left. No wonder it has been yawns all round in Ardachy House for the last few days!

There is a video of the yurt construction here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=b2brkPgLG1s

We really had such a brilliant week and I hope our guests did too! Ardachy House is now officially open for bookings and there will be a website coming very soon here:

www.ardachy.co.uk

Here are a few photos from this week that I hope will show off the splendid weather we have been having. Believe it or not, Scotland is the place to be for weather at the moment! I will put some more photos up on facebook. For those of you who know what I am talking about, "that" photo is available on request!

 Iona looking out over Scoor beach, perfect for kayaking and home of tons of awesome climbing!

 Ali with Bob's power kite. I did have a short go but when my feet started leaving the ground, I handed it quickly back...

 Hermione and James acting normally on Iona

 Isle of Iona Post Office

It IS summer.

 Poor old Fin is a bit baffled after the house warming. He left his mum two weeks ago and was presented to Dad in a sports hall with 300 people watching, he then moved to the Isle of Mull and more than 35 people descended on the house who all wanted to play with him. Now, him and Dad are all on their lonesome! Puppy School, here comes Fin!

 Taken by Mum

 Taken by Mum, Fin is not allowed proper walks until he is 9 months so we have been carrying him to the beach and letting him romp for a bit, then carrying a wet, sandy puppy back home!

 Tobermory

 Hard work climbing at Fidden Crag

Enjoying the rocks and the weather on Erraid

Ali and I are now in Glasgow staying with some friends Bob and Clare and doing some work for Taylor Made Adventures. Our road trip down south is in the planning, the kilt is packed and we are much looking forward to Mum's wedding, which I imagine you'll hear about in the next blog post!

Surprise New Puppy!

Well, that was a very emotional evening. I have just watched my Dad say goodbye to his school after 19 years of teaching there. The school organised a lovely evening of drinks and 300 people turned up to say farewell and good luck. The unforgettable moment was Dad receiving his present from the parents. After months of plotting between the parents, my mum and myself we finally got to D-day. Year 8 children were lined up with wrapped packages and one by one, Dad opened a squeaky toy, a dog whistle, a packet of treats, a dog bed, a travel cage and a collar. I think he then expected at the very most, a cheque for a getting a dog. The look on his face when he was handed a real puppy was priceless and heartbraking.

Love at first sight! Dad and Fingal "Fin". When the pair of them get up to Mull, what a life they shall have!

The other highlight of the evening was the cake made in the shape of Ru'a Fiola. An incredible work of art that must have taken hours and hours to make. I was speechless when I saw it. Look at this attention to detail! It was made by a parent at Twyford School and was made mainly from looking at photographs of the island, though her daughter was a loyal Ru'a Fiola-ite and directed exactly where everything should be on the cake.

Dad did brilliantly at the do and his next day was the last day of term and his last day at Twyford. The teachers gave him a drum kit by way of goodbye, he showed off his new puppy and the year 7 girls all burst into tears during assembly as the headmaster officially said farewell. What a way to have your departure heralded. I expect Dad is feeling rather overwhelmed.

In other news, Ali and I have done a coastal navigation and tidal planning course, which was brilliant! Anyone interested in sea kayaking should consider it. It is a BCU course and a pre-requisite for 4star leader but even as a stand alone course, it is very interesting.

We have also visited the borders and the Johnson-Ferguson family for a whirlwind tour round the farm on quad bikes. My respect for Iona went through the roof as she safely navigated us through huge deep ditches, up steep hills over rocks and branches and through streams whilst all the way keeping up with Torquil's much beefier and comfier quad.

Well, the clocks go forward next weekend, but it doesn't seem to be getting spring-like just yet. I have seen a couple of lambs, but they are just the brave pioneers. I have also just made it back up to Oban, from Winchester, through some exciting weather and the train man charging me an extra £100 because I forgot my rail card!! Ouch... Having been so emotional at dad's do, I promptly burst into tears and made the whole packed out carriage feel extremely uncomfortable. The train man didn't bat an eyelid. B*****d. The ferry is cancelled too. Just one of those days I guess.

Bring on our housewarming party week!

Warm Granite Cragging and ML Training

There has been much to-ing and fro-ing from adventure to adventure in the last few weeks. After our winter climbing week, we moved back to Mull for single pitch cragging on warm pink granite, exploring the ancient heritage of our island, resting our crippled toes and preparing for some qualifications in the Lake District.

The climbing was near Fidden Farm, as far west as you can get on Mull. Routes on Mull are seriously underrated. The crag was 10 minutes from the road, the rock was clean and the lines were quality. It is amazing that we get these places to ourselves and yet the climbs are hardly ever done. The new guidebook for Mull and the Hebrides will be out *soon* and I am hoping that Mull will have a substantially bigger section than it got in the last guidebook. It certainly deserves it!

Ali on "Happy New Year" (HVS 5a). Absolutely superb climbing. We painted shelves in the morning and flew up 5 routes in just a few hours in the afternoon.

On one of our climbing recce trips to Loch Buie, we stumbled across one of Mull's stone circles. This circle was originally nine granite stones, set in a ring about 12 metres in diameter, with the tallest stone being about 2 metres high. It is mainly composed of granite slabs which have been positioned with their flatter faces towards the inside of the circle  One of the original stones has been removed and replaced with a low boulder. The hill in the background in Ben Buie. Ali tried hard to persuade me to dance naked for a photo... just a bit too cold now, perhaps in the summer!

Our next trip was down to the Lake District, for Ali to do his Level 2 Kayak coach assessment and for me to get my ML training in finally!

The course was interesting. Our team was great fun and though we spanned a big range of ability and intentions for the qualification, we had a great laugh for a week. We stayed in Borrowdale Youth Hostel and were treated like kings. Full cooked breakfast everyday and three course dinners at night. Evening banter was set off by pints of cumberland ale and cider. It goes without saying that I was tipsy after a half and the dark side of the meringue was absurdly funny... Anyway, the food and comfy beds were good fuel for days on the hill. Our first instructor was the always-wearing-sunglasses-I-am-vastly-cooler-than-you type but the second was a bit more down to earth. I have some work to do on my night navigation but otherwise I apparently follow my compass like an arrow. So who wants to come out with me, high up in the fells on a dark dark night, so I can practice?

Yomping up Grey Knotts under an ominous sky. We actually were very lucky with the weather. The first half of the week was very cold but the sun popped out here and there and the second half of the week tried, but generally failed to produce more than a persistant drizzle. The youth hostel had a superb drying room so we started each morning crispy, dry and warm.

Ali came to pick me up and we enjoyed a beer festival in Lancaster with my uni friends and carried on down to Clitheroe for Ali's kayaking. He did brilliantly and they whizzed through the day's assessment while I slumbered in the van. Next day we expected bad weather but despite the ominous sky and occasional snow showers, we soloed four routes at Shepherd's Crag near Keswick in the sun! Finally, back to Mull to rest my feet.

Now I keep needing to remember that money is just fun tokens and that the bank probably doesn't need to know that I am (two years after graduation) still making use of my student overdraft! Still, the beginning of May and going back to work are looking closer and closer. My next plans are close under wraps for now, but in a few weeks comes our big house warming extravaganza festival! Very much looking forward to having an occasion to really warm this place through and through.

*Late addition*
Out climbing yesterday, we were numpties and allowed the tide to come in too far to get back to the car! This time climbing on Eilean a Ghearrain, we forgot the tides and had to wait several hours in the brutal cold to get back. Our half pack of chocolate digestives got us through, and under Ali's guidance, I am now a genius(ish) with star constellations  One of the most incredible night skies I have seen. It made getting stranded very much worth it.

Ice Climbing With My Gnarly Mum

I am not nearly gnarly enough to take my camera up all these epic ice climbing routes, so I'm afraid my photos are fairly limited in terms of climbing. I went totally overboard on a stunning sunset at Keppoch, near Arisaig but sadly, not much action to show.

This last week has, however, been absolutely amazing, thanks mostly to the weather. Scotland (and I believe England too?) has been under a very high pressure and Ali and I have been bouldering in the balmy february sun on the beach, ice climbing on a magnificent looking Ben Nevis, single-pitch cragging on warm granite and mussel hunting in the golden light of this last evening. My feet are complaining loudly after climbing in mountain boots with no insoles but my ML Training is next week and life probably couldn't get a whole lot better!

Ali and I are now back on Mull for a few days of shelf painting, dog-proofing fences (in the wild hope of my Dad getting a dog before too long... come ON Dad! Move up here and then you can start looking!) and general knowledge building of the Mull coastline. I am attempting to pack for my ML... Going back through my "Quality Mountain Days" is tricky too. Most of my days out have always been climbing related rather than all about navigation and gaining a peak and all that faff. Ha, how single-track minded I have become... This summer may have to be all about ML days rather than climbing! Sigh...

Oh! EVERYONE needs to go and have a look at Ali's new photography website because his photos are brilliant.

www.mountainstotheseaphotography.com

 And also, check out his latest blog, because he took some great photos of us actually winter climbing! He is far more gnarly than I am. I decided against carrying up both the heavy heavy humous pot AND the camera and decided food was vastly more important.

http://www.mountainstotheseaphotography.com/blog/

Right, now here are the few photos I have taken recently.

Wild goat under an ominous sky  on the south coast of Mull. Fortunately, the ominous sky was just trying to trick us and instead, we haven't seen a cloud for a week!

Ali, Anna and Adam in the Nun's Cave. This cave has stone carvings dating from the 6th century onwards and was thought to have been a home for nun's coming from the Isle of Iona (supposedly the first place that Christianity arrived in the UK)

Bouldering on the beach, under the sun, 10 mins walk from the house. Perfect.

How is this for a gnarly mother? This is Mum, topping out of The Wand (V,5) on Creag Meagaidh. Ali is particularly happy that he can now say he has been on an ice climbing trip with his girlfriend's Mum.

Near the summit of Ben Nevis. Could not have been better conditions for climbing. We were extremely lucky too because despite this weekend being one of the busiest of the year for the Ben and Meagaidh, we didn't have to queue for a single route and we only chose the classics to climb! For those interested we did Staghorn Gully (III) and South Pipe Direct (IV,4) on Meagaidh and Comb Gully (IV,4) and Point Five Gully (V,5) on the Ben.

Sunset from the Back of Keppoch, near Arisaig. This beach is so beautiful and well worth a visit if ever anyone gets the chance. It was a childhood holiday memory for Ali and a place I could instantly fall in love with. The big islands in the background are Eigg (the flat one) and Rum (with the mountains - The Rum Cuillin). Who is keen for a sea kayak/climbing trip to Rum??

Last but not least, an amazing little bothy on the coast, tucked away over the hills and up a fixed rope. May have to come back here for an overnight stay sometime. A little stove, a stunning view, a comfy shelf and plenty of driftwood on the beach. Idyllic!

Right, on with the ML packing. Happy adventures all!