Matthew

UK Three Peaks (2005): Snowdon

Posted on 17 July, 200510 January, 2023 by Matthew in Wales

Sunday 17 July 14:00ish What a way to spend my wedding anniversary. Dave is thrashing the van down the M6 in a desperate battle to get to Llanberis and avoid being pulled out of the challenge. It feels strangely motivating. Dave also seems to take a proactive approach to sheep on the road and seems … Continue reading UK Three Peaks (2005): Snowdon →

UK Three Peaks (2005): Scafell Pike

Posted on 17 July, 200510 January, 2023 by Matthew in Lake District

Sunday 17 July 03:50 We arrive at Southwaite Services on the M6 for our Scafell Pike briefing. It's annoying to see people in sleeping bags, indicating that there's a fair chance they've had some sleep. I take the opportunity for a wash, a fry-up and, most importantly a cup of tea. 04:32 We set-off for … Continue reading UK Three Peaks (2005): Scafell Pike →

UK Three Peaks (2005): Ben Nevis

Posted on 16 July, 200510 January, 2023 by Matthew in Scotland

Friday 15 July 10:30 Amazingly, we set off only half an hour late, which we put down to our strategy of telling Rik an earlier time than the rest of us. We all assembled in Wembley, because there was a tube station, but also because that was where we were picking the minibus, that would … Continue reading UK Three Peaks (2005): Ben Nevis →

UK Three Peaks (2005): Start of the Adventure

Posted on 9 July, 200510 January, 2023 by Matthew in Essex, Kent, North Downs

It's March 2005, and one day at work, the IT Director's personal assistant circulated an email inviting people to sign-up to enter the 3 Peaks challenge. Now I don't usually go for things like this, as I'm not that fit and whilst I enter these things with good intentions, my actual performance tends to fall … Continue reading UK Three Peaks (2005): Start of the Adventure →

The Peak District (2005)

Posted on 20 April, 200510 January, 2023 by Matthew in Peak District

So, having signed up a couple of weeks ago to do the Three Peaks with a bunch of work colleagues, I started to really look forward to the annual university friends reunion that we do every year around this time. We're in the Peak District, the first time I've been here and I'm really liking … Continue reading The Peak District (2005) →

My first mountain

Posted on 27 August, 199210 January, 2023 by Matthew in Lake District

My first ever mountain ascent was, like many other people's, Helvellyn in the Lake District. Having just graduated, my fiancée and I were on a week's holiday in Cumbria during the summer of 1992 - a holiday consisting mainly of visiting 'attractions' rather than being an outdoors type holiday. Nevertheless, one day we had the … Continue reading My first mountain →