Wild Places: October 2014

"The focus of international politics often tends to revolve around energy security within the context..."

“The focus of international politics often tends to revolve around energy security within the context of a global scramble for resources to keep individual countries’ economic growth engines humming. In view of the possibilities of the Arctic as a future abundant natural resources supply base for various pivotal countries, especially in Asia, non-Arctic states such as South Korea, Japan, and China join actual Arctic nations in taking a more active part in contemplating Arctic development and theregion’s future.”

- Why is the Arctic at the Center of World Politics?

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The other side of Cairngorm

Today I was out doing some navigation exercises on Cairngorm, Scotland, with Jonty Mills. Jonty has a huge amount of experience in the mountains and has been my chief climbing and skiing partner for about a decade now. He recently passed his ML (Mountain Leader) assessment - a rigorous exam not to be sniffed at - and I had a very enjoyable day being taught navigational techniques by him. He has always been the main navigator in the team, but nonetheless I was surprised at how good a teacher he was.

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While we were on a slightly lesser visited side of Cairngorm we took the opportunity to seek out the El Alamein Refuge, built in the 1960s to commemorate the 51st Highland Division. It’s not marked on the map and not everyone knows where it is, but we found it surprisingly quickly and easily, so I think the only barrier to finding it is actually bothering to look! It’s not in a very useful spot but it’s still a shame to see it in such a state of disrepair.

Anyway, if you’re looking for navigational instruction or just a great day out in the hills (especially if you’re looking for some esoterica!) then I can heartily recommend Jonty’s company On High Hills:

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