PLanning for the 30th TGO Challenge

In the autumn of 1979 a small piece in TGO magazine advertised the first TGO Challenge (then called the Ultimate Challenge after the gear company who were the sponsors). I applied and in May 1980 set out on my first coast-to-coast crossing of the Scottish Highlands. Twenty-nine years later, to my great surprise, I have just sent in my route for the 30th TGO Challenge. This will be my 14th crossing and I still look forward to it with excitement and pleasure as well as astonishment that the Challenge is still going and has grown to be a major event in the outdoor year. Planning the route is still enjoyable too and the big problem is still the same. There are too many possibilities! I can spend hours studying maps and working out variations. As those planning a high level route, as I’ve always done, are required to submit a low level bad weather one as well I effectively plan two routes anyway. One change is that where I used to spread paper maps out on the floor and trace routes on them in pencil now I sit at the computer and draw lines on maps on the screen. The software gives the distance and ascent too so I no longer have to count grid squares and contour lines. Computer mapping has made planning much easier.

All those years ago my route started at Lochailort and finished at Montrose. This year I’m starting at Glenelg and finishing at Stonehaven. On the way I hope to climb 37 Munros stretching from Beinn Sgritheal to Mount Keen plus 5 Corbetts. Back in 1980 I climbed 55 Munros but for that year only the Challenge was three weeks long rather than two. Surprisingly when I looked at my 1980 notes I discovered that 21 Munros I climbed then are on this year’s route.

I haven’t really thought much about the gear I’ll take on this year’s Challenge but I think maybe I’ll be a little adventurous and avoid the safe choices from previous years that I know will perform well such as the Hillberg Akto tent and Primus Micron gas stove. To get my pack weight even lower I’m considering a single skin tent such as the GoLite Shangri-La 3 and for interest rather than weight saving a burner in which I can use meths or wood. In 1980 I used an Ultimate Tramp ridge tent, which weighed some 500 grams more than the Akto, and an MSR XGK liquid fuel stove that weighed as much as five mini gas stoves. Most shocking to me now though are the boots I wore – hulking great lumps of leather weighing 5lbs called Scarpa Bronzo. I haven’t walked in boots like that for over 20 years. The last two Challenges have been done in Inov8 Terroc shoes and I’ll probably wear those again this year. Where I did cut weight in 1980 was with my sleeping mat, which was just a piece of 3mm closed cell foam. I won’t be going that Spartan again. A thicker foam pad provides so much more comfort and warmth.

Photo info: Camp on the 2008 TGO Challenge looking towards the Grey Corries. Canon EOS 450D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS@28mm, f8@1/50, ISO 100, raw file converted to JPEG in Lightroom 2.