For 25 years my hillwalking ambition has been to complete the Wainwrights and Outlying Fells and as I near the end of two ticklists my thoughts are turning towards the next collections of mountains. The Nuttalls will become the priority, but there will be an occasional foray in to the realm of the TRAIL 100.
But as the Wainwrights come to a close and the final planning has slotted into place, taking any chance to include Nuttalls in a Wainwright bagging walk has been too good to ignore.
A general guideline for me is to avoid going over old ground when bagging summits. It’s only a guideline as there are too many factors that come into play to make it an absolute rule – bad weather and fatigue cutting planned routes short are the most obvious. So if I have a chance to include a Nuttall that is not a Wainwright, it gets included.
This type of planning is indicative of what may be seen by some as an all-consuming obsession. Some see this as the dark side of hillwalking. Rest assured that when I’m in the hills I don’t aim to bag as many summits in a day as I possibly can – I’m not as fit as I was 20 years ago and I’m more than prepared to cut a route short if the weather makes chasing the next summit an unenjoyable slog.
The planning, and solving the problems it presents, is about keeping the mind active. The hillwalking keeps the body active.
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