You nosey bugger

“Tomorrow, we’re climbing England’s third highest mountain: Helvellyn” he stated as if it was some passing comment, right arm pointing in a westerly direction. As a young teenager, I didn’t know what to reckon. A mountain? In England? I can remember thinking that mountains are in faraway distant lands, they’re on the TV, not here. Not in my country. Not something I’d ever climb.

I’d clearly failed to register my surroundings as I leaned against the dry-stone wall of the bunkhouse garden, the hills silhouetted against the fading sunlight. My eyes traced the trail up towards Little Cove questioning what is up there. What is beyond my line of sight? An early start, sunny and warm. Bags packed and off we went. The path steep and demanding. She appeared, sheer drops all around….

This is my first memory of what they called “Outdoor Pursuits”. I was lucky enough to attend, arranged and carried out by my school. I’m so grateful for it; it certainly lit a fire within.

The name? A combination of my nick name “Tabs” and the British Army’s term for building physical endurance and mental adaptability: Tabbing or Tabs. I was going to call this blog “Tab’sTabs” but looking back at some of the questionable decisions and gruelling misadventures I’ve dragged myself – and others (sorry) – through, “Tabbing” is much more apt.

Physical endurance in my case does not mean my body is a temple, chocolate and biscuits exist, and they always manage to gravitate to that hole in my face… somehow. But it does mean that I withstand a fair bit of discomfort before tapping out.

By day I’m chained to a desk, screen-staring. I’m also a father of two wonderful, crazy, feral children and a devoted (I’m sure she’d agree…) partner, so finding the time to wander off into the hills, mountains, woodlands and forests is rare, and often fleeting.

In the spare time I do have, when I’m not out and about hiking, camping, or doing something to slowly cripple myself, I’m planning my next adventure. Or I’m daydreaming about the next escape.

This blog? It’s my way of documenting it all – the highs, the lows. The experiences and the mishaps. The stories and the tales. From wind swept nights on the hills, to the 5am wake-ups… to a fire… in a bothy.

So, that’s me. I have a number of trips planned over the coming months, and I’ll do my best to write them up – plus, I’ll revisit some past adventures, too. I might even expand an finish my little origin story…