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Adventures in Scotland
05 August 2016 20:31


Tuesday and Wednesday were our adventure days.

Tuesday we went Go Ape – this was something CS3 had been looking forward to since we booked the holiday several months ago. I followed CS3 to act as the responsible adult and make sure she was clipped on correctly before each section. (The other two CS’s are old enough to look after themselves). Luckily CS3 is a responsible child and made sure that I’d checked she was clipped on correctly before each section.

There was a bit of a queue at one section, where we were being held up by a child who was having difficulty climbing the cargo net at the end of the Tarzan swing (last time we were held up at the same site – that time by a child who was summoning up the courage to jump. In the end his older brother pushed him off). This child hadn’t grasped that the key to climbing a cargo net is to move only one paw at a time – or, even more crucially, if you take all paws off the cargo net you fall and hang upside-down from the harness. Quite amusing for the spectators, but probably not much fun for the child.

Luckily he had big brother on the platform above him shouting helpful encouragement such as “if your arms hurt you’re building up muscles” and “No one can come and help you. You’ve got to do it on your own – it’s like life”. When the child eventually made it to the platform he was unsympathetically told “see, there’s no need to cry like a baby”.

Wednesday was the best weather forecast of the week (in as far as weather forecasts are reliable in this part of Scotland) so we chose that day to climb Ben Lomond. Well, the weather was beautiful at the bottom of the mountain. At the top it was, er, not. As we climbed, the cloud came down and the wind increased. It was wet, foggy and cold. We carried on regardless. There’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing. Empirically, I had the best clothing as I lasted longest without putting a jacket on. Despite CS3’s concerns (“Mum, tell Ruby to put a coat on”) I wasn’t feeling particularly cold and only decided to put my fleece on after we passed numerous people on their way down, all snugly clad in fleeces and waterproofs and I thought they might be thinking I’m a right muppet wearing so little in such conditions and must have forgotten my coat.

It was touch-and-go as to whether we continued to the top or turned back. In fact we almost did; it was only when I said “the peak is only just up this last climb … I think” that CS2 started to carry on and CS3 said “we can’t give up now – we’ve got to get there”. I was right, after a few steps feet the trig point (aka “that concrete pillar thing”) started to appear out of the gloom. We’d made it – the CS’s first mountain.

We didn’t hang around too long at the top (we were the only people there) and kept well away from the edge (I warned that it was a sharp drop on all sides) but started our slow descent. The weather continued its wet and windy aspect until we dropped below the “wind-line”. The wind suddenly stopped, as if it has been switched off. Shortly later, the view of the loch reappeared and the rest of the walk was trouble free.

All in all, it was a good day, with good (if unintentional) team-building. Once the CS’s realised that climbing a mountain wasn’t a walk in the park – especially in those conditions – they forgot their petty squabbles and sibling rivalry and worked together to help us all continue. CS2 gave CS3 his coat when she was struggling, and offered to carry CGF’s rucksack. He also offered verbal encouragement. OK “keep walking or you’ll die” may not be the most positive phrasing but, as CS3 said “it’s as close as he gets to being a caring big brother”.

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