Cruach Ardrain and Beinn Tulaichean

26th June 2010

A fantastic walk, up a beautiful glen and then some steep climbing and descending, all the time surrounded by magnificent mountains.

• Cruach Ardrainn (1046m) Krooerch Ardren, "High Stacked Heap"
• Beinn Tuliachean (946m) Bine Toolerchine, "Hill of the Little Green Eminence"

The contrast between today's hike and that of a couple of weeks ago up Schiehallion is vast.  Where Schiehallion was like Blackpool prom on August bank holiday, I had these hills virtually to my self.  Whilst Schiehallion has a soul destroying boulder field and a broad defined track, this route has challenging climbs and small paths that need to be sought out.  Schiehallion sits on it's own, these 2 are surrounded by impressive peaks that you'll want to visit next.

It's possible to to do this walk starting from the north near Crianlarich. However, I've been wanting to take a look at Balquhidder and Loch Voil for a while so decided to approach them from the south.  Balquhidder looks a pretty village, with a well known tea rooms (to visited with Mrs. Downs first) and the burial place of Rob Roy MacGregor.  We'll certainly be visiting again.  The drive along Loch Voil is fabulous and I was very tempted to stop off at Monachyle Mhor. I parked up at Inverlochlarig at 9am and was walking by 9:15.

The route started with a gentle stroll through Inverlochlarig farm and onto a farm track up into the glen of the same name.  The farm certainly seemed to welcome walkers with helpful signs for all the paths to the various mountains in the area.  They also have a farm door shop that sells probably the best venison I've had.

Following the track alongside the Inverlochlarig burn I noticed an area that had been fenced off around the river.  This turned out to be a conservation area where they're trying to encourage the growth of native species and keep sheep and deer out that eat them.

After 3km or so I came to the end of the track and started to make my way across country up to the head of the stream.  By this time I was completely surrounded by mountains, the two munros that I was about to climb, plus Stob Binnein on my right.  The valley floor was green and lush, with many wild flowers around, almost reminding me of an Alpine meadow.

As I approached the boulder strewn bealach I was greeted with a clear uninhibited view of the whole western face of Ben More. An incredible sight seeing the whole mountain from valley floor to summit.  Then from the summit the sweeping parabolic curve of the ridge down and then up to Stob Binnein.  This glen and bealach have to be the most fabulous that I've enjoyed to date.

After a relatively gentle walk up to the bealach the route now took a sharp turn; to the left and up.  The climb up on to Stob Garbh was really hard work.  The air was still and a bit muggy. The heart rate soon climbed and the sweat started pouring!  I climbed about 500m in 2 km at this point.  From the top of Stob Garbh the views north to Crianlarich and the hills around Tyndrum were fabulous.  The roads north to Glen Coe and Fort William and West to Oban were perfectly clear.

Stob Garbh stands at 959m (3146ft) but is not a munro.  It's considered a munro top as it's part of the ridge that leads up to Cruach Ardrain.  A Munro top is a summit over 3,000 ft which is not regarded as a separate mountain. I'm not entirely clear how the Scottish Mountaineering Club distinguish between a summit that is separate mountain.  By the time I'd walked along the ridge and down into another bealach Stob Garbh seemed very separate from Cruach Ardrain.

The north east face of Cruach Ardrain loomed in front of me.  To say it looked like a vertical climb with no obvious path would be putting it very simply!  I found the very small and narrow path and stuck to it.  This was real mountain goat territory, the sort of route that is fine going up until you look down.  I certainly wouldn't have wanted to go down this side of the mountain.  The joy of these sort of climbs is that though they're steep, they are straight up and you quickly reach your objective.  The challenge is there, hold your nerve and the rewards are fabulous.  In this case more great views north, back to Stob Garbh and beyond, east to Ben More and Stob Binnein and west to the Falloch Valley and An Caisteal.  I stopped here for a drink and sandwich and enjoyed the vista.

Walking south the path along the ridge to Beinn Tulaichean was straight forward, but gave great views of summits still to be visited; An Caisteal and Beinn a' Chroin.

Now the hard work started.  The descent off the hill side was extremely steep and hard going.  My legs felt it the next day. This was tempered with views down Loch Voil though. As I reached the valley floor I spotted an impressive upright boulder with it's own tree.

I eventually regained the farm track and headed back to the car, but first stopped to buy some venison and have a chat with the farmer.

Stat's
Distance: 15.3 km (9.5 miles)
Ascent: 1987m (6571 ft)
Time: 5 hours, 56 min

Munro count: 2
Total Munro count: 15 (of 283)

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Schiehallion

12th June 2010

Schiehallion (Scottish Gaelic: Sìdh Chailleann) The Fairy Hill of the Caledonians, 1083m


Some time last Autumn I made my first visit to Schiehallion with my nephews Hamish and George.  Although we started off in good weather by the time we got to the boulder field the cloud had come down and the wind picked up.  The boys weren't too happy so we turned back.  So I've had this one on my list for a revisit throughout the winter.  After Thursday's long walk above Loch Tay Schiehallion seemed just the job for today.

I got to the car park at about 10:45, I was expecting there to be quite few people around as it is a popular mountain.  However the car park was full!  I ended up parking on the side of the road.  Looking up to the mountain I could see the quite a number of folk making their way, ant like, up the mountain.

I'm not really sure why Schiehallion is such a popular mountain.  Sure it's got a great profile that has adorned many Scottish Tourism publications, but you don't see that when you're on the footpath.  It's quite an isolated peak with no other munros immediately neighbouring.  The path up to boulder field is excellent, thanks to the hard work of the John Muir Trust, who own half the land. After that it's really quite an unpleasant hike across an extensive boulder field.  Reminds me of Scafell Pike, only longer. Once at the top there isn't much option but to go back down the way you've just come.


Still, it does have an interesting history. The mountain was used in an 18th century experiment to determine the density of the Earth. Interesting fact for all the map geeks out there is that as part of this experiment it was first place to be mapped using contour lines.









Anyway, the hike up the path was quite enjoyable with extensive views behind to Loch Tummel.  It was pretty steep in places and the legs were still tired from last Thursday, so I broke it down into 50m climb chunks.  Every 50m elevation gained (checking on my old running GPS) I would stop and take a break.  Within an hour I had reached the top of the path and the beginning of the boulder field.  I then picked out a route across the rock strewn plateau to the first big cairn.  This was as far as we had got last time.  Looking ahead I realised that there was still quite a way to go to the summit, so the decision to turn back last year was a good one.

The trek to the summit felt like Princess Street on the last Saturday before Christmas.  Once at the top groups of people were changing into their charity t-shirts ready for the group photos, other people were sat beside the summit cairn on their mobile phones; "We're at the top of Schiehallion, did you remember to turn the iron off? blah, blah" etc.  I took a few snaps looking across Ben Lawers and it's neighbours, but didn't hang around.  The walk back across the boulder field seemed easier on the way back and I was soon back to the main path.  The down was quick and I was back in the car park within 3 hours.

Stat's
Distance: 10.62km (6.6 miles)
Ascent: 902m (2960 ft)
Time: 2 hours 59 mins

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The Ben Lawers 5

10th June 2010.

This was first big ridge walk that I've done covering 5 Munros in total and taking me into double figures on the overall count (12 out of 283):

Beinn Ghlas (Bine Glaz) 1103m
Ben Lawers 1214m
An Stuc (Un Stook) 1118m
Meall Garbh (Miaowl Garav) 1118m
Meall Greigh (Miaowl Gree) 1001m

I've had this one on my to do list for quite a while, but wanted a midweek day to do it with a hope for fewer people.  When going up Meall Corranaich a couple of weeks ago I noticed a large number of people heading up the ridges line.  I wanted to avoid the crowds, so with a week off in June I checked the weather and picked what was looking to be the best day.  Boy! it was a great day, but a hard one.

I left the Ben Lawers visitors centre (now closed, though the National Trust still ask for some parking money) at 9:30 and had an enjoyable stroll through the nature reserve.  There were many beautiful wild flowers out, I wish I knew the names of them. Leaving the nature reserve the path kicked up onto the ridge leading to Beinn Ghlas.  To the left of me Meall Corranaich was soon in clear view and Meall nan Tarmachan behind me.  Great views to Loch Tay and Ben Vorlich to the south as well.

A few people could be spotted ahead of me.  One of which was National Trust guy with a spade.  He was clearing all the cross path drainage channels - really scrapping a living from the mountains!  From the top of Beinn Ghlas the path onwards to Ben Lawers and beyond could easily be picked out, though the summit was covered in cloud. The path between Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers was very straight forward and soon the summit cairn and trig point came into view.  The cloud had lifted too!  The views north from the summit (my highest so far and 10th highest munro) were awesome. I think I could pick out Ben Nevis in the far distance.

Not hanging around too long I started down to the bealach before An Stuc.  Fabulous views of Lochan nan Cat.  I heard quick moving footsteps behind me and managed to step to one side just in time to let a crazy fell runner go speeding by in just a vest, running shorts and trainers.  Don't know how those lads do it.  An Stuc was a pretty steep, but enjoyable climb and summit made a perfect, wind free lunch stop, plus munro number 10.  The views were extensive in all directions.  Whilst exhilarating, it was also humbling; such a vast area of upland and so many mountain peaks to visit.  Munro bagging maybe just a tick list of mountain summits visited, almost like a train spotter collecting numbers, but it does give some direction on where to travel in such a large area.

The descent off An Stuc was described in the guide book as being a tricky scramble. Sure enough it was pretty unpleasant and needed both hand to be used in some difficult spots.  Not particularly enjoyable at the time.  Heading up Meall Garbh and looking back onto An Stuc it was impossible to pick out the footpath.

From the top of Meall Garbh there were some great views back to the previous 3 summits.  Looking east I could see the final summit; Meall Greigh.  Quite a different mountain with more of a rounded profile.  It also looked an awful long way away. It was!  By this time the legs were pretty tired and trek across became a real trudge.  It was worth it though as the view from the summit back to the ridge was astounding. The middle 3 summits, coire and lochan all in splendid view.

There was no defined path from Meall Greigh, just a trundle down the hillside heading for a small dam.  From there much of the route home was along a pretty boring farm track.  This again was a trudge, but views of Loch Tay made up for it.  At the point where the route left the track I met up with the chap that had been in front of me all day.  Paul had driven up from Bristol the day before and was trying to get as many peaks in before his return south the next day.  Makes me realise how lucky I am to have all this on the doorstep.  Paul and I walked the final stretch back to the visitors centre.  This was a real slog and seemed to go on forever.  Just under 8 hours later we were back at the cars, both exhausted and in need of a drink!

A truly great day out in the mountains, but knackering!

Distance: 22.77km (14.15 miles)
Total ascent: 1932m  (6340ft)
Time: 7hours 35min

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The Old Man of Storr and Samesh' came too!

7th June 2010

Sameshrie and I spent a great couple of days on the Isle of Skye.  Seeing the Cuillin Mountains has really whetted my appetite for going back and tackling those at the a later date.  This trip however was more sedate and allowed us to enjoy some great food and a tour a truly stunning island. Driving south along the East coast road of the Trotternish peninsular we spotted the Old Man of Storr.

Driving further along we found the car park, stopped and put our boots on.  Samesh' asked a chap that was just leaving how far the walk to the Old Man was.  "20minutes to the gate at which you get a good view and about 40 minutes to the rock itself" was the reply.  Sam thought that sounded OK so off we set.  The route started off through a forest plantation, with the path climbing quite steeply.  When there were gaps in the trees we were treated to fabulous views south to the Black Cuillin mountains.

As we made our way up it became clear that it was going to be more than 20 minutes to the gate.  We passed a German couple on their way down.  The girl guessed it may be another 10 minutes depending on how far we were going.  The path was certainly pretty steep in places, though was generally a well made route. Whilst stopping to enjoy the view a crazy down hill mountain biker flashed past at break neck speed.  I imagine he probably would do exactly that if he came off.

Finally we arrived at the gate and exited the forest.  Ahead of us was an amphitheatre of clifs, with the Old Man in the centre.  Samesh decided to stop there whilst I carried on to get a closer look.  The path climbed quickly and was easy going.  It was was to move quickly in my approach shoes rather than my usual mountain boots. I soon got great views of the Old Man.  What a stunning bit of geology!  Especially impressive when the clouds passed in between the cliffs and the rock itself.

I made my way back down to Sam, who by then was getting a little chilly.  We returned to the car by the same route, both with a feeling of satisfaction.  I was really pleased that Sam had hiked up as far as she did.  It was our first real hike out together and hopefully the first of many.  Once back at the car we head off to Portree for a well deserved supper.

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Meall Corranaich and Meall a' Choire Léith

30th May 2010

Two Munros today and my first foray into the Ben Lawers / Glen Lyon area. First things first, how do you pronounce the names of these 2 hills?

Meall Corranaich: Miaowl Korraneech (Hill of the Sickel) 1069m

Meall a' Choire Leith: Miaowl uh Horrer Leer (Hill of the Grey Corrie) 926m

I left Stirling at about 9:30 and had a great drive up over Glen Ogle and down to Loch Tay, then up the narrow road to the Ben Lawers nature reserve. Unfortunately the Ben Lawers Visitors Centre is now closed, so there's no facilities available there. The car park was full and plenty of people were heading off up towards Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers beyond. That's a ridge walk that I'm saving for next month. I carried on up the road and parked at the top of Lochan na Lairige. There were already a few cars there and the other parking spaces further up the road were full too. So it looked like I wouldn't have the hills to myself. To be expected given it's a holiday weekend and a popular area.

Checking the GPS I noted that the starting altitude was 540m, this seemed like cheating given the first peak was at 1069m. The initial hike was pretty heavy going crossing heather & peat moor with lots of tussocky grass and sphagnum moss. Fortunately I'd put my gaiters on from the outset, something I don't usually remember to do. Crossing this sort of ground is as hard going as it is up hill. I eventually reached the path up the shoulder of Meall Corranaich and slowly eased my way to the top. Great views to the west of Meall nan Tarmachan, with a cloudless top, though looking north dark clouds were gathering. The summit where I was heading was clear. Further up the shoulder good views to the south of Loch Tay and Ben Vorlich beyond. All those folk heading up the Ben Lawers ridge had cloudy summits.

The top of Meall Corranaich was pretty uninteresting, with no real cairn to speak of. The wind had really picked up and was pretty cold, especially turning north to head for Meall a' Choire Leith. The route was clearly laid out in front of me, with the impressive Coire Liath forming the bridge between the two mountains. After stopping was a bite and a drink I was soon on summit number 2. Meall a' Choire Leith is a broad rounded top mountain. The cairn was better than the previous hill, but again not that inspiring so I quicky turned and headed south west down a very steep slope.

On the descent I started getting the MC Hammer pants effect again. I don't know what it is with my hiking trousers; no matter how well I tighten the belt they seem to slip down to a Hammer-Time look. I have a second pair of the same trousers, same size, just a different colour and don't have the same problem. Weird eh?

Once down off the steep slopes it was another slog across the peat, heather and sphagnum moss. I passed a couple of large groups of folk at this stage, all heading back to the same car parks. I'm not sure that I could enjoy the hills walking in such large groups.

Fortunately the rain kept off. A good day in the hills, although the summits were a tad dull, the surrounding mountains were stunning and I'll be looking forward to getting up on the Ben Lawers ridge, hopefully on a clear day.

Distance: 10.8km

Time: 3:20

Ascent: 882m

Munros: 2 (total 7/283)

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Ben Ledi 25th May 2010 - An office trip out

For a while now there has been discussion around the office about getting out for a walk in the hills straight after work. Ross took the initiative and suggested a date, time and hill to walk. Ben Ledi was chosen. Ross had only been up it in the winter, Crispin hadn't been up it all and I went up last Autumn.

So a 5pm dart from the office was decided with no faffing. We got away by about 5:15! But, following a short stop off in Doune to pick up Crispin's boots we were kitted up and ready to walk by 6:05, so not too bad.

The initial part of the walk is up a steep path through the forest. Having done this last Autumn I knew what was coming and sure enough I was soon breathing hard and wishing Crispin would slow down a little. Once out of the forest and onto the shoulder of Ben Ledi we were fortunate to have a fabulous clear evening. We soon got good views north to Loch Lubnaig, Glen Ample and Beinn Each.

Progressing along the shoulder the walking became easier and the views better. At the point where the route turns from heading south to north west we were greeted with fabulous vistas to the south and across to the west. The guys pointed out various peaks, including those on Arran in the distance.

Ross was tracking the walk using the GPS on the blackberry. I had my old Garmin tracking the route and giving us the altitude. Comparing the altitudes given on both there was about a 40m difference between the two. Once at the top the Garmin was about 1m off the spot height for the trig point.

We reached the summit after about 1hour 40mins. More stunning views at the top in all directions. Ben More was exceptionally clear and the views beyond into the far distance gave some debate as to which ranges we could see. Waiting to see some of the arty shots that Ross will have taken, the light was pretty good so I'm sure there'll be some good un's.

We headed down from the summit following the path to the north, heading for Stank Glen. The descent was extremely steep, certainly preferable heading down it rather than going the other way. Ross was pointing out various birds he spotted en route. On the forestry path a small bird with pink feathers was spotted. Not sure what is was at the time, but I think it may have been a Whinchat.

The return route wound it's way down the hillside, through the forest again until we reached the end of Loch Lubnaig, with the final stretch along a tarmac road back to the carpark, just before 9:30. All in all this was a top notch way to spend an evening after work - a good straight forward walk, with excellent clear conditions, fabulous views and good company along the way. Will certainly plan to do another after work trip out. Maybe the Ochills next?

Walk time (including photo & food stops): 3:19

Walk distance: 8.44km

Total Ascent (if you believe the Garmin): 1168m

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Ben Lomond 9th May 2010

I’ve been looking at Ben Lomond on my walk to work for months now, thinking I’ll have to walk that one, but have always been put off by the guide books stating how over crowded it is. The over crowding is due to it being the most southerly Munro and being in easy day-tripper proximity to Glasgow. So, checking the weather for Sunday and needing a relatively straight forward and near-by hike I decided to give Ben Lomond a crack but make an early start to avoid the crowds and make sure I got a parking space at Rowardennan Pier. I also decided to take the “round the back” route up the Ptarmigan Ridge rather than up the easier tourist high way on the Southern slopes.

Sunday morning, looking out to Ben Ledi from our bathroom window the day appeared as forecast; dry but over cast with high cloud – good conditions. I left Stirling just before 8am, had a great traffic-free drive West to Loch Lomond and was parked and kitted up by 8:50. Lots of campers were just getting going for the day; cooking breakies and brewing up on camp stoves. Looking North West from the loch side there were great views of Ptarmigan and Ben Lomond, clearly showing where I was about to head.

Walking North along the “Bonnie Bonnie Banks” of Loch Lomond I first passed the impressive granite ring war memorial . After passing the Youth Hostel and following the West Highland Way briefly I soon left the main track and started the steep ascent upto Ptarmigan. You quickly find yourself onto open hillside with great views South across Loch Lomond , but you’re always very much aware of civilisation near by, with the A82 providing a sound track from the opposite bank of the loch. Quite a contrast to my previous outing on Ben Vorlich and Stuc á Chroin.

The climb up to Ptarmiagn was initially pretty hard work, but isn’t the first hour always the worst, especially when the going is up? Up infront of me a saw a group of 10 or so people straggled out along the route. The path was extremely straight forward and clear, with no real need to refer to map or guide book. This was the case for the whole walk. The rapid climbing soon provides clear and expansive views West to the Arrochar Alps, with the distinctive shape of The Cobbler (Ben Arthur) taking prominence .

Whilst ambling up these slopes (well, taking it step by step, breathing hard and sweating buckets) I noticed a walker approaching, following the same route as myself. Within 20 minutes he’d caught me up, commented on what a splendid day it was and zoomed passed me, out of sight in no time. He was probably in his late 60’s! Got to start running again.

As the path started zigzagging like a replica Alp d’Huez I caught the group of people walking ahead of me. They were a bunch of French students, mostly dressed in jeans and trainers. I wondered if they knew where they were being taken and if the weather changed how they’d get on. Further along I passed their teacher who asked if this was almost the top. I responded by saying that that depended on where they were heading. “Lomond” replied. As I pointed East to the summit she looked more than a little deflated. I was thinking to myself that it looked pretty challenging too!

The Ptarmigan was reached and the views were stunning across the Alps to the West, Loch Sloy to the North West and North to Ben Lui and Ben More. The path levelled out at this stage as it arced round to the East before starting the climb up the ridge to the summit. The path up was pretty steep with quite a few points requiring grabbing the rock in front of you. Having said that it was nothing compared to Stuc á Chroin a couple of weeks earlier. The local schists were quite stunning, really lustrous in the sunshine, with some fabulous folding on display.

I’d spotted a group of walkers on the way and stopped to say hello as they passed. They were all kitted up with swathes of Gore-tex, trekking poles, hats and gloves. They were clearly a happy bunch. The last guy told me that they were from Ayrshire and that this was their first Munro. He also told me that there wasn’t anyone else on the top. 5 minutes later I saw the trig point. This took me by surprise as I felt that there was still more climbing to be done. Sure enough I had the top to myself for 10minutes or so – absolutely fantastic. I had great views in all directions. As has often been the case on recent walks I could spot the Wallace Monument and Dumyat near Stirling and the distinctive Dumgoyne just north of Glasgow. Loch Katrine, Ben Vorlich, Ben Ledi and Ben Venue were all clear.

A couple of the quicker French students arrived on top and started inspecting the trig point. Trying to explain the purpose took some effort. I then headed off South down the highway. The view of Coire a' Bháthich was fantastic. The return to the loch side was quite a contrast to the climb to the top - decidedly dull! The sun came out and so did the crowds, though I don't think it was as busy as it could be. The National Trust were out repairing some of the path. They had an impressive little machine with caterpillar tracks for for moving rocks and boulders around.

Sure enough there were heaps of folk out on the hill and saying hello to everyone got a tad weary (I'm with Wainwright on that score), but it's great to see so many people out enjoying the countryside. Not sure if the guys I passed towards the bottom eating their picnic and getting stuck into the Buckfast made it to the top though. I completed the route in 4 hours 20 min, just about what the guide book suggested.

So that's my 5th Munro ticked off, not that I'm counting! Yes, of course I am. I really enjoyed the climb to the top via Ptarmigan. The route down is worth bearing in mind for a future walk with my nephews.

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