The Great Outdoors Spring 2019

Photo: Stewart Smith / Alamy

The

Munro

Shuf f le

Marking the centenary of the death of Sir Hugh Munro, a

fascinating new exhibition in Perth celebrates the history of the

Munros and of bagging culture. Alan Rowan, himself a three-time

compleater, takes a look at how we got from Sir Hugh’s original list

of 3,000ft mountains to the version most walkers work from today

WE WERE SITTING at the summit of Sgor Gaoith in the

Cairngorms silently drinking in the views when another walker

strolled up to the cairn and took his place beside us. It was

September, 1994. We got chatting and then he announced proudly:

“Well, that’s not a bad day – ive Munros ticked of.” Our irst

thought was that he was some kind of ultra-walker and had spent

the day travelling over a huge distance.

We told him that was impressive – ater all, we had only

summited the two, the Glen Feshie pair of Sgor Gaoith and Mullach

Clach a’ Bhlair. He seemed puzzled. “Did you not take in the other

three?” Now it was our turn to look puzzled. hen he rattled of his

peaks for the day and the penny dropped – three of them were no

longer Munros.

Geal-charn, Carn Ban Mor and Meall Dubhag had been re-

classiied as Munro Tops in the 1981 revision of the list, but he was

still working from a book with the 1974 listings. Needless to say, he

was somewhat crestfallen at that point.

Ah, the Munros – a constant source of inspiration and, in some

cases, frustration.

56 The Great Outdoors Spring 2019