Sonder Bikes
A Season of Adventure
Scottish mountaineer Anna Wells on her winter round of all 282 Munros, becoming a mother, and finding joy in winter as the seasons of life change.
Winter has an extraordinary ability to transform familiar hills into unrecognisable mountains. Paths disappear beneath snow, rocks glitter with ice, daylight dwindles, and the weather can deliver storms, blizzards and freezing temperatures. It can be harder, slower, and more committing.
But that is also what I love about winter: the greater challenge reaps a greater reward. A cup of tea never tastes as good as when you are cosy in your pyjamas at home after a gnarly winter day.
The winter mountains feel alive, constantly evolving
When I climbed all 282 Munros in a single winter, I was in awe of the way they morphed throughout the season. I quickly learned that the most important skill was adaption. It wasn't about "conquering" mountains but shaping my plans around the conditions and seeking to understand them with respect.
I found joy in all the small moments, like watching snowflakes dance in the beam of my headtorch, allowing myself to feel intensely present, engulfed in a little bubble of light within the darkness.
And of course, there were spectacular moments too, like skipping along snowy ridge lines beneath epic sunrises or sunsets. The beauty was often mind-blowing.
"Get outside and find your own version of adventure. Whether it's a cup of tea beside a frozen loch or summiting a mountain, go and find your own piece of winter joy."
Changing seasons
Changing seasons offer us the opportunity to constantly adapt and experience a rich variety in life. Last winter I became a mother and life looked wonderfully different with a newborn baby. I was lucky with recovery from birth, and fortunate to be cross-country skiing with a four-day-old Fergus strapped to my chest. Those little snowy missions amidst the sleep deprivation, cluster feeding and nappies felt like glorious summits.
When bad weather came, it no longer drew me outside for a challenge, it invited me to stay indoors snuggled up with my baby. Those days mattered just as much.
Some seasons are exhilarating and energising, whilst others are draining and demanding. For me, becoming a single mum when Fergus was only two months old was the hardest season I've ever faced. But I know there will be happy seasons ahead, perhaps made all the more joyful by the contrast.
Adventure looks different throughout our seasons of life. The mountains will always be there, like a reassuring constant, but what we need from them, and are capable of giving them, changes over time.
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