Follow my good example out of enlightened self interest!

CUT YOUR EARTHLY CAR MILEAGE TO JOIN THE BILLIONAIRES EXPLORING SPACE - they only travel the distance from Perth to Glasgow, after all (60 miles)!

I am very concerned about the Covid, climate, ecological, nature emergency and am doing this:-

At 73 yrs, I've had a fantastic lifetime of hillwalking all the big hills in the UK and Ireland.  It is well time for me to make a concession, a small prize lost to help win the much grander prize of leaving the state of the planet in a slightly better state, perhaps.

Since 2020 I have resolved to lead by example and to cut my total car mileage by 50% on my 2019 figure of 14,000 miles when I drove to Scotland six times to climb their hills.  In 2020, I travelled only once and drove 6,000 miles.  This year, I have done two trips, car camped on nearly all the nights and, so far have driven only 5,000 miles in my attempt to climb, in my lifetime, every single summit listed in the SMC's 'Munro's Tables'.

Last week, I came back from a fantastic 14 nights, with only two of them in a hotel and visited nine summits.  With my diesel car, driving at 60 to 65 mph on the motorways and dual carriageways, I achieved 85 mpg according to the car computer.  Therefore, my deadly greenhouse gas emissions were really low!

I went on fewer occasions but stayed longer and cut my carbon footprint.  I was cycling from my car base camp to the start of the hill on each of the nine days to take in a 'Graham' hill.  I had a great time in mixed weather and showed to the new generations of walkers what can be done.

In losing car mileage and cutting greenhouse gases, I have explored local/regional countryside and found some most wonderful walks in exploring areas I had never before dreamt of going to.  Again, parking up, cycling, then walking before returning to the bike to get to the car.  All this gained, instead of bombing off into Wales from Halesowen or to some far-flung corner of England to use up our precious finite fossil fuels with their deadly greenhouse gas emissions.

Will others follow my example?  Especially, those of my age in order to leave a planet in a better shape for the youngsters?  BE A GOOD ANCESTOR!

100 'Summit' magazines

Dear Editor Pete, Alex and Sarah

Spectacular photos, great design and amazing content for #100.  THANKS SO MUCH!

At 72 years and a visitor, at least once, to over 700 SMC summits over 2,500 feet and going for a clean slate of every Graham and Donald by the time I'm 80, I finally joined the BMC in September.

The two-page epic campsite photo from Jethro Kiernan was magnificent.  Are you allowed to tell me, just me, the more exact location, please?  I just cannot figure it out!  Or, just a clue would help.

As part of our excellent Climate Project, are you able to encourage fading (past their prime) hill walkers like me to explore more local and regional but lower hills?  This year, because of Covid, I've had a great time exploring the countryside on my doorstep and on the Worcestershire/Shropshire border, nearby.  Great new, desolate open space that has been such a change from the big hills of Snowdonia, England and Scotland.

Part of the Climate Project because, I think, we all have to set our sights lower and cut back on the greenhouse enhancing travelling.  Last year, at 16 years, Greta Thunberg sailed in a spartan, cut down to the basics, racing yacht across the Atlantic to America, both ways.  Has a mountaineer ever done that for a long expedition in the high mountains of the world?

If not, who will be the first from the UK?  Can 'Summit' ask and challenge a member to try the Greta fossil-fuel-free way to travel?  Who sails round the coast to then climb instead of motoring or flying?  I'm now cutting back on my car mileage (and better mpg) and, when I use the car, parking further away to then pedal furiously to start the big walk!

All this, because there is danger ahead from serious shortages of essential resources, quite apart from changing climates to give an uncomfortable, bumpy ride ahead for humanity.

Thanks again for a great read.

Tim Weller