Tarmachan ridge.....
The promise of a bright sunny day ahead awaited us as i lay slumbering in my bed, alarm set for seven, not expecting Mark through till just after eight. Imagine my surprise when i noticed a text he had sent at six saying he was just leaving, then the shock of a call at five past seven to say he was outside!!! If you make plans then you should stick to them...I hate rushing around, its how you forget things you need to take, though thankfully I had packed the car the night before and was actually confident for once that I had everything I needed for the day ahead. A quick shower and change and we were off into the bright blue skyed morning.....Loch Tay our destination.
We stopped for a (ahem) small breakfast roll at the Horn on the way down.....mmm bacon.....then off we went again.
Arrival at the Lawers visitor centre was a bit of a shock....its no longer there....only the car park remains.....when did this happen.....I was sent no notification on this??
We parked at the next spot further along the road and were quickly joined by more cars.....nothing will be said about Mark's observational skills at this point....but that clearly wasn't a small child!!
The path is quite a clear route to the start of the ridge...only the small cairn leading to the hill path was lacking, so we built it up for others to spot easily. There is a spot height at 924m, bigger than a number of munro's, and the path to reach it follows a winding grassy slope, plentiful views today and I managed 72 pics today...a vast improvement on my last trip.
Once you reach the spot height you drop off again downhill to a small bealach and then begin a rockier steeper climb up a good path to the summit of Meall nan Tarmachan.
Mark was doing really well today, I let him lead the pace and he seemed happy to do so, puffed a bit going uphill but then so did I.
Views across to the Lawers range were fabulous, including the route to Meall Corranaich above the Lochan na Lairige, which all made for a stunning climb as the path became even steeper nearer the top.
We summitted after an hour or so of starting (1 hr 15 mins) and were met by a family sitting at the cairn. They had a little girl with them (5 yr old) doing her first Munro...fabulous achievement, I bet she still reaches fifty Munro's before Mark!! She informed me that she had enjoyed her first Munro and that I needed to put a rock on the cairn..."ah but I have something far better than that to leave on the cairn, just promise me you wont eat him"...as I removed Jelly McBaby from my pack and positioned him on the cairn for the ritual pic.
She was so polite and cute that I had to let her help herself to some of McBaby's friends from the box...but only if she finished her sandwich first. Who says I dont have a soft side???
Mark posed for his pic at the cairn and off we toddled along the ridge...still too full from the earlier bacon roll to stop for lunch. This could have had something to do with the fact that Mark had packed bacon sandwiches that morning in his pack...nothing like a bit of variety eh Mark!!!
The path along the ridge is very clear and easy to follow, obviously taking care not to slip off at any point.
The drops are quite steep at times and a fall would prove rather sore I fear. We continued round to the summit of Meall Garbh, which sticks up quite prominantly and can be picked out quite easily from below.
Around the other side of the summit the path starts to meander downhill, then quite abruptly drops steeply to the path below. Mark negotiated this with dignity and poise......hahahaha yeah right!!!
Sliding down on his ample rear, dirtying his new trousers, he slipped and slid till he got down safely. We managed a laugh as he decided to drop his pole gently to the path below, only to watch it hit a rock and bounce well beyond the path onto the grassy slopes beneath...the poor bloke ahead of us thought we had gotten into difficulty as our cries (of laughter) could be heard echoing around the steep coire....
Once safely down, and with pole retrieved, we watched as another party of walkers attempted the descent in the same awkward manner as we had. Once we were sure that they were safely down we pushed on up the steep slopes to Beinn nan Eachan. Another high summit with splendid views across the mountains to Ben More and Crianlarich hills, on to Tyndrum hills, around to Lawers group and the Glen Lyon hills beyond.
I tried, unsuccessfully, to pick out Scheihallion but it was hidden amongst the jumble of other tops, its unique shape unnoticeable from this angle. We were making good time and you could see the confidence Mark was taking from this, he is definitely happier walking when he knows that there is only one, perhaps two at most, Munro's to climb.
We descended to the bealach and headed on up to the next spot height at 916m, overhanging the Coire Fionn Lairige. The usual route of descent is back to the bealach and down grassy steep slopes, but with Mark's knee problems we decided on a longer route across the next top and traverse down a path, which gave us a longer return route but made Mark happier to try, it also meant he didn't need the knee brace fitted for the traverse down, which was another little confidence boost for him.
At one stage I may have opened up my stride and not noticed that I had left him far behind, until I stopped to get something out of my pack. He eventually appeared around the corner and said he had thought I had forgotten he was with me and left him...as if!! He also put it down to stopping for a quick pee that took longer than intended, but thankfully he appears to possess a true sense of direction so knew which way to head to return to the path below...(that's an in joke which shall remain exactly that).
Once down the hill we made it to a small reservoir station and measured the return route as being another four kilometers...easily back to the car in an hour and under the five hour recommendation for this route, despite the longer traverse we had taken...all things that pleased Mark no end.
Halfway along this return path Mark felt the need to answer a call of nature...that's an age thing...and I headed off slowly so as not to hear/see/smell him!!
We arrived back at the car just before four, and ahead of at least three groups of walkers that had started before us and had not taken the longer path we had.
Mark had intended to sleep on the way back up the road but was so excited by his day that instead he yapped constantly...its good to see one of your closest friends so obviously pleased to have achieved something that they were starting to doubt their own ability to do...
Until the next trip, hopefully in as good conditions, onwards and upwards.......
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