6 in a row!

After a tiring weekend of running last week I was shattered.  But had a run on Monday that left me completely knackered for my fitness test on Tuesday.  Before I went off to sleep I wasn't sure I'd be able to run on Tuesday never mind push the pace for 20 minutes - I smashed it and the results were encouraging.  Then off to the pool for a workout - good double session which made my swim on Friday the best yet.  The chiropractor diagnosed my shoulder problem and gave me some exercises to stablise it so here's hoping.
On Saturday a couple of laps of Chatelherault set me up for my first Munro of 2018 - Ben Lomond.  You may remember that last year I climbed Ben Lomond five time and never once saw a clear summit.  Today the forecast was good so when I picked up my pals we were all looking forward to a good day.  This was Staurt's first Munro but Graham is an experienced mountaineer and it's just as well.  The blue skies clouded over and the summit was above the snow line.  At one stage we had to reverse back along a narrowing ridge as without crampons or ice axes, we couldn't continue in that direction.  Graham's kept us safe but at one stage near the summit we got close to a shear drop which could easily have been missed.
At the top we were met with snow and hail and the temperature had plummeted with the visibility was getting worse.  That's 6 in a row!  We wasted no time and ran down the mountain.  Difficult conditions but Stuart flew down the hill - it was a joy to see the smile on his face and he'll definitely be doing more of this training as he prepares for his 1st ultra.
Today was a good lesson on how quickly conditions can change and fortunately we were carrying the right gear with us.  However, having an experienced climber with us meant the risk was reduced.  It he hadn't have been there we'd have turned back at the snow line.  By the time we got to the bottom and found a coffee stop, people we having coffee outside and the sun was shining!  There's going to be a lot more of this type of training in the coming months.  I just hope o have a view from the summits!