I am a Detective within Police Scotland and I am currently attached to the Specialist Crime Division. I have been a police officer for 23 years and there is not much I haven’t seen or dealt with. During this pandemic I have continued to work as a ‘key worker’.
To de-compress I like to get to the mountains and switch off from work. It’s where I get my headspace back. No emails. No phone calls. Just me and the mountains.
Recently (after lockdown restrictions were lifted) I headed to Glencoe, which is about an hours drive from home.
Driving into the Glen again, after being away for nearly 6 months was an amazing feeling.
The Timeless mountains still standing, oblivious to worldwide pandemic. Suddenly things began to feel normal again.
I always head out with my family. It’s a ‘bonding thing’. On this occasion I headed out with my brother Russell.
We made our way half way through Glencoe and reached our destination mountain. Buchaille etive Beag.
There are two Munro’s on top of Beag.
Stob Coire Raineach and Stob Dubh. Both very different peaks. One is a scree slippery scramble and the other has an amazing ridge with slight exposure.
We began our climb and ascended to the saddle between both mountains. We were lucky with the weather. Constantly stopping to breathe in the views. Looking across the Glen we could see the mighty Ben Nevis, the UK’s largest peak. A mountain I have scaled on more than one occasion and by various routes.
After a rest. We made our way to the summit of Raineach. This ascent was steep and we had to be mindful of the the loose scree. About and hour later we were on the summit. Amazing views of the A82 below and the mountain next door. Buchaille Etive Mor. Probably the most iconic looking mountain in Scotland. We met fellow climbers and chatted. All of us delighted to be back in the hills.
After some lunch Russell and I descended back to the saddle( point in between both peaks) and then made our way to the summit of Stob Dubh. Our second Munro for the day. Dubh, for me, is my favourite mountain. I have climbed all over the world but to me I have a spiritual connection to this mountain. I love the climb, the ridge and especially the views down into Glen Etive, where Harry Potter and Skyfall, but to name a few, were filmed.
After about an hour and a half of climbing we reached the summit. We had the summit to ourselves. My bother captured some amazing drone footage and we both sat back and drank in the views. Chatting and laughing about things we got up to when we both lived in our family home.
After about an hour on the summit it was time to head down. When you you reach the summit of a mountain you are only halfway there!!!
We descended quickly, but continued to chat all the way down.
Some time later we reached the car. Both pleasantly tired. Our ‘mini adventure’ on the mountain was over for the day, but we still had the awesome drive home through the Glen.
To me, getting outdoors is key to my physical and mental health. Especially with the job I do. I believe we, as humans have forgotten that we are part of nature and not above it. You don’t have to climb a mountain to be part of it. A walk in the woods, or along a beautiful river is just as good. It gives you an amazing feeling of contentment and self satisfaction, of which I have found nowhere else.
Get out there, be part of nature, you’ll never regret it.
Marty Davies.