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James Hawkes,
of Kildoon Drive, Maybole, better known to his pals as Jimmy, has recently
completed all 284
Munros.
The completion of all the Scottish mountains over 3000 feet was done on
Saturday 29th October 2005 and the last mountain to fall under Jimmy's
boots was
Geal Charn (Monadh Liath).
A party of 24 of Jimmy's hillwalking buddies accompanied him to the
summit. To help celebrate the occasion, Jimmy, cooked up a post "walk"
dinner at a bunkhouse in Newtonmore. Jimmy's youngest daughter,
Nicola, flew up from London to join him and climbed her first Munro, a
case of first and last.
Jimmy said that if it wasn't for Ellen, his wife, he
could never have managed it ! After the meal, the assembled celebrants
were entertained by Munroist Gordon Borland, (#2218) who presented a slide
show illustrating some of the memorable occasions during Jimmy's
hillwalking career. Jimmy was presented with a wee "kilt clad puddock" as
a memento, suitably wrapped in a Laphroaig container.
Although Jimmy
has now completed all 284 Munro's, he has no intention of putting his feet
up. As a keen cyclist, Jimmy can often be seen grinding along the highways
and byways around Maybole and further a field. Jimmy Hawkes hasn't simply
climbed all the Munros once, he's climbed many of them several times.
His first hills including the Cobbler and Ben Vorlich at Loch Lomond. He
has repeated these hills and many others numerous times, and says he
always enjoys the fresh challenges and adventure a hill can offer in
different seasons. The completion of all 284 Munros is a special
achievement for Jimmy, as he is just about to celebrate his 65th birthday.
In addition to the Munros, there is another category of mountain called
the Corbetts.
These are Scottish mountains over 2000 feet but below 3000 feet, with a
500 foot drop on all sides. Jimmy has climbed many of these as well.
For
Jimmy, one of the best aspects of Munro “bashing”, as it is called, was
the sense of exploration involved in visiting parts of Scotland unknown to
him before. Exactly what the future will hold, he is unsure but he wishes
to continue to explore new hills and areas, and also feels a deep seated
obligation to assist those who have accompanied him on his walks finish
their hills also. |
