Page 64 - LBV 2017
P. 64

 INTER-COMPANY TRAINING & VISITS
 range and a deserved sense of achievement for the fledgling mountaineers within the group. A few miles further on and the namesake of the park provided a second high point of the day, whilst the view down over Aviemore and the Cairngorm ski area prompted much discussion over the potential of a post-Brexit alternative to Sacre Bleu. With these thoughts in mind, the team descended down to camp, food and all that good stuff in the forest below.
Wednesday brought a second day of serious ascent and descent – luckily the morning provided a well needed rest, as we circled round through the forest to tackle the ridge leading
to our final Munro of Sgor Goith, exactly as planned. What might have happened had we taken the more challenging but direct route
via the treacherous Chalamain Gap and Lairig Ghru doesn’t bear thinking about. Thanking
our foresight, we made good time up the ridge and summited just in time, as our luck with the weather finally ran out. The following several hours provided a cautionary lesson in the worst that the mountains can produce, a blessing in disguise, as it helped all to appreciate just how ridiculously un-Scottish the conditions had been for the rest of the week. A pleasant conversation with a local on the extraordinary weather and the exact positions of estate boundaries rounded off the day, his kind offer of a flashflood-safe spot to camp was music to our ears.
Having miraculously escaped death by a falling
tree overnight, a half days walk brought us to Kingussie and the end of our journey. A few hours of R&R in town and a fish supper later, we retired to the local coaching inn for a celebratory drink. As luck would have it, it was the same couple, playing the same Scottish music (and telling exactly the same jokes) as recorded on the Recce. It is testament to the spirit of those present that, despite weary limbs (and in some cases the near-inability to walk), all were still keen to have a crack at Scottish dancing when it was suggested. Practising (for barely 30 minutes)
and then performing the Eightsome Reel in front of a raucous crowd of German and American pensioners, before running for the sleeper train, is a memory I will not forget in a while.
Overall Ex Dragon Cairn Blue Gorm provided
a challenging, enjoyable and memorable trip – It was my privilege to plan and a pleasure to be a part of such an excellent group of individuals. My only hope is this will spur readers and expedition members alike to seize the opportunities available to them and maintain the proud tradition of mountaineering in CUOTC.
*[Readers in search of a more detailed account of Ex DCBG are encouraged to read Alfred Lansing’s ‘Endurance’, which tells broadly the same story with only differences in minor details and setting.]
JUO Barton,
Robinson College, University of Cambridge, Advanced Wing (Mafeking)
   Back row (L-R) – OCdt Matson, OCdt Summerbell, OCdt Belton & OCdt Geraghty. Front row (L-R) JUO Treherne, JUO Fryers, JUO Barton, OCdt Wettern & JUO Logan)
62 THE LIGHT BLUE VOLUNTEER



















































































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