After coming home from the Alps early due to the weather, I was pleased to have a few days at home to get caught up with domestic things, and generally relax. That said, I am me, so within a day or so, I have developed itchy feet and that need to stretch the legs soon becomes too strong to resist.
Accordingly, I got done what I needed to do today, quickly packed a snack and some water, and nipped over to Mill Glen in Tillicoultry, for one of my favourite local walks.
It sets off from one of the villages collectively know as the Hillfoots, where once a thriving textile industry existed, harnessing the power of the steep burns coming off the Ochil hills. Ben Cleugh is the highest, rising to 721m from sea level in around 3k. There are a selection of good paths, all steep, and one is currently sealed off due to serious rock fall a few years ago. Thankfully the local council are doing stabilisation work at the moment, so the dramatic walk down the gorge formed by the Gannel and Daiglen burns as they merge and form Mill Glen will soon be available again. For now, it means a small detour back up the gen before descending, no hardship in the glorious weather.
What I like is the wild feel of the hills almost immediately you leave the village, yet the proximity to all the industry along the Forth is a striking contrast. I particularly like night-time ascents, when the lights and flames from the refinery at Grangemouth look like a Devil's cauldron from the dark of the hill.
I intended to have a fairly quick ascent and descent, as I had no-one to pace me, and I usually go a bit sharpish. I was surprised to see a chap with his two collies hot on my heels, and fully expected to see them fall back, which they did. That said, as I chatted to a chap on the summit, he appeared again, and cheerily waved. Having finished my snack, I set off at pace, only stopping to tighten my boots and take my jacket off. When I looked up, there he was again, so this time I waited, and we walked along chatting.
Thankfully he was complimentary at my ascending pace, (as I couldn't have gone any quicker!), but his younger knees had me on the descent. Who says hill walking isn't competitive!? We shared each other's company back to the cars, and compared the changes to the path since I had last been up it. He even showed me some short cuts I hadn't taken before.
A lovely unplanned afternoon out making the most of the breezy but warm conditions, heavenly when midge-free!

​The Zugspitze was to be our next objective, the highest peak in Germany at 2962m. It has many other higher peaks around in this area, where Bavaria meets Austria, but whereas the Grauspitz was little known and even less frequented, this mountain makes Ben Nevis and Snowdon look quiet. The reason for its popularity, aside from its height in Germany, is mainly due to its accessibility, with a cog railway going through the mountain itself to access a wide ski area, and then a cable car access to the summit area. I also think it is an impressive looking mountain as it has a good level of prominence, standing more alone than many neighbouring peaks.
 
The route is up the Hollental, or 'hell valley' from Hammersbach, and has a full gamut of features along its 2200m of height gain. First you walk up a delightful path through forest to the Hollentalganghutte, which is a small refuge perched on stilts at the entrance to an simply amazing gorge. You can access the higher valley by a more circuitous route, but the gorge is spectacular. It has been worn through the limestone over the millenia by the river, and access is through many tunnels and walkways, washed by the many streams and waterfalls. Well worth the e4 entrance fee, and it deposits you at the Hollentalhutte at about 1900m.
 
From there it's another lovely path towards an unlikely looking wall of limestone called Brett that is the face of the hanging valley above. This has a steep VF on it, and unfortunately we encountered one of the scourges of the Alps, an impatient German team who insisted on queue jumping and climbing past you unclipped. Dangerous and it pressures you, and the ironic thing is that they never actually moved any quicker than us. Had me seething they did, but Paul did his best to remind me it was a beautiful day, and we were in no hurry.
 
We then contoured across a lot of moraine to reach what is left of an easy-angled glacier, where we saw all sorts of Khatoolas, micro-spikes and even just training shoes.  Sadly unsurprising I suppose, but worrying none the less. At the queue from the glacier onto the main VF, there was a faff whilst folks packed away poles and crampons, and the bloody Germans simply pushed in to the front, whilst we had to wait at least 45mins. I don't know what they said to their compatriots, but again, it made me fume.
 
The VF was achieved by a lean and grab move from the bergschrund to the wall, and despite the drop not being too bad, it still focussed the mind. The first few moves were quite technical, especially given wet boots on polished limestone, but thereafter it was mid-grade VF all the way to the top, all 600m of ascent. It went on for hours, but the ever-expanding views more than made up for the effort.
 
The heat was debilitating, the sun reflecting off the white limestone, and as I said we saw guys stripped to the waist on the glacier, no kit, trainers, and not enough water. We drank 4ltrs on the route, and still ran out. Towards the top third of the ascent I came across one young chap lying down in a pool of vomit, obviously suffering from heat stroke.  His mate was shading him, and they had sent one mate on to get help. No-one else was helping, so I dug out some rehydration salts and gave them to him, but he wasn't keen to drink, or lose his hat and too-heavy top. I asked his pal to translate, but to no avail. There was no more I could do on the cliff-face as we were, so pressed on, but was relieved to see what I believe was a MR chap quickly down climbing a few minutes later. Take heed, the sun can be harder to deal with than the cold.
Finally, after 7.5hrs we reached the summit. We would have done it faster but for the queues, and were pleased with the time. I can honestly say I have never seen so many folks crowded onto a summit, and especially one so precipitous. We squeezed a couple of piccies in, and then scrambled over to the complex (for that's what it is!) for a very welcome couple of shandies. Given the amount of folks up there, we were surprised to get onto the cable car and funicular easily, past the spectacular Eibsee lake and back down to Hammersbach in real good time too, without queuing.
 
The Zugspitze is a beautiful mountain, and the route we took spectacular without being over-challenging for a mountaineer, other than the heat. It is easy to be precious about such busy mountains, but I always try to look past that, and still revel in the beauty, the rock and the effort. I mean, it's folks you're moaning about, but you're there, aren't you!?
 
I have a feeling we may well back to this one again :)

​The next instalment of Paul's quest to complete all the highest points in all the countries in Europe was to be the highest in Liechtenstein, the little-know and little-climbed Grauspitz at 2599m. We had the route from the guidebook we have been using by McKeating and Crolla, and they gave it a time of 6-8hrs, a height gain of 1100m and a grading of 'difficult', mainly due to the lack of paths and steepness and loose nature of the terrain.
 
It starts above Jenins in Switzerland, from the top of a small cable car station, the Alpibahn, at 1801m. The only problem was that it has a very small capacity, and it was only by chance that we learned the day before that a booking is necessary, and the earliest we could get on was 09:45, not exactly an 'Alpine start'. We were still confident we could get back for the last car down, especially given the good forecast, and set off in high spirits.
 
The map to the route is called 'Heidiland', I kid you not, and it really is through idyllic picture postcard alpine terrain, with bell-clanging cows and many small farms on the way. We were a little dismayed to lose so much height between alps, but it was on an excellent track, so we were ahead of time. At one point we could see up to the cirque where our summit was, and it was frustrating to have to skirt so far away from it before commencing the ascent. There is a more technical direct ascent, but it went up to Vdiff, and with the looseness of the limestone, we opted for a safer if longer approach.
 
At one point you go through a 250m tunnel hewn in the mountainside, and emerge at Ijes farm, before turning West up steep grassy terrain to gain the S ridge of the Schroarzhorn, which we wouldn't be doing due it being 'ludicrously exposed, loose and steep'. What we did have to do was drop into the cirque before picking our way up horrible boulders and scree to gain the surprisingly loose and narrow summit ridge.  Imagine a very loose steeper version of the Tarmachan ridge, only three times the height and the times the drops.
 
Finally we were on the summit, at 2599m, with wonderful views all round. I can kind of understand why when I was in Vaduz, the capital of Liechtenstein,  a couple of years ago, no-one could point out the  Grauspitz from there, as it is only really climbable from the Swiss side, and with so many mountains, no-one seems to bother with it. Ahhh! After some pics with the only other guys we saw on the mountain, we turned about quickly for the knee-jarring descent in order to get our lift down. Unfortunately I had left my poles at the ridge low point, and had to skirt back around for them on horrible loose ground, whilst Paul took Route One straight down.
 
The heat of the afternoon really took its toll on the descent, which also included a considerable amount of re-ascent, and it would be fair to say Paul didn't find it easy going. We had already drunk 2ltr en route, and filled up and drank another 1.5ltr, and we were still desiccated by the time we got to the Alpibahn station for a wonderful and very welcome shandy. It's so hard to eat and drink properly when you are pushing it against the clock in such heat, and we were relieved to make the cable car and refuel!
 
A challenging start to our trip, but a really enjoyable one. One peak in the bag, and not one many folks have climbed, so extra  special. Here's to Germany next, and the Zugspitze

This month I was lucky enough to be leading a group on the Kamchatkan peninsula, in far eastern Russia. It is an enigmatic place, full of wonders and conundrums. I will let the pictures do the talking.......

I have had a hectic old time zooming all over the planet and walking in some wild and exotic places this month, and it's been fantastic. That said, you can't help but smile when you get home to your own bed can you? And indeed, you can't help but smile when you get back to your familiar old mountains in their purple Heilan' hue, especially if it's in the company of a great couple in Gary and Charlotte. This was their first munros, and they were treated to some reasonable Scottish summer weather which was an added pleasure. Gary is a Scot who has lived in the South for many years, and he has come home too. See you guys again, and very well done!