MEET THE ARRAN MOUNTAIN FESTIVAL WALK LEADERS

The next in our series of volunteer walk leaders profiles is Alistair Hume.

Ali (on the right) co-leading last year's Mountain Festival A'Chir walk

ALISTAIR HUME

What do you do when you don’t lead walks for the Arran Mountain Festival?


For relaxation, I play the bagpipes with the Isle of Arran pipe band, I am also a keen sea kayaker and try to play golf as often as I can.

I also work part time for World Challenge, a company that specialises in taking groups of teenagers to mainly third world countries for up to five weeks at a time to experience other cultures and assist in project work such as toilet block construction.

I have also been a member of the Arran Mountain Rescue Team since 1976 and a lot of my time is spent training with them and being on call 24/7.


Why do you volunteer as an Arran Mountain Festival walk leader?

I like to try and help others experience the wonderful mountains of Arran and pass on any local knowledge and history and ensure that they have a memorable time.


Tell us about a favourite mountain moment.

There have been many favorite moments!!! But for feel good factor it must be a time in Northern Peru while descending from a high 4.500 meter pass and at -10 I came across a young local lad, his face full of snot and minus some fingers and toes from frostbite - he was wearing shorts and sandals.


I will never forget the way his face changed when I gave him my cosy warm mountain rescue buffalo jacket that I had cherished for some 20 years.


What is your favourite Arran walk?

Don't really have one, I love them all!!!


Which piece of kit would you not head into the hills without?

A whistle.


What is your favourite breakfast before a long day out in the mountains?

Anyone I can persuade my wife to make!!!


Ali is co-leading the A'Chir ridge traverse.

Sea kayak camping trip.

Had a great trip up the east coast of Arran a couple of weeks ago on a short camping break. Now this is sea kayaking at its best with bright sun and playful waves, lots of wildlife and a good breeze. We decided to head up from Brodick towards Laggan on the North East of Arran, this stretch of coast has some of the best views I know of anywhere in Scotland with the main hills and glens towering above.


The mackerel are here again and we got luck and caught our dinner. A lot of time was spent watching Mullet in the entrance of the North Glen Sannox burn, swimming in the shallows with there fins breaking the surface. There were a lot of birds with young about both on the water and the shore, the Eider chicks seemed to be doing well and the Mergansers with there young hugged the coast and found shelter amongst the rocks. Gannets circled high all day and showed us the way to the fish, tucking and falling like spears to catch their dinner.
We stopped to camp near Millstone Point with plenty of time to relax and dry our gear. Mark is a bush craft camp enthusiast and the fish where cooked without pans or plates, great, no washing up!


We had a close encounter with a badger later on at dusk, we heard it scratching about in the bracken and stood still and quiet. It didn't see us even though it was only a few yards away and we got to watch it for a long time as it foraged for food. This is one of the best things about sea kayaking, how close it gets you to the wildlife around our coast. Otters are more often seen than badgers and just the other day a group of us got to paddle up close to a basking shark, an amazing site when they are almost twice as long as our boats!


The return journey was fast and fun with a strong breeze pushing us back. The waves pick up the boat and surf you forward and we arrived home feeling happy and hungry for more.

See you on the water,

Luke.