Beinn Liath Mhor & Sgorr Ruadh in a fresh layer of snow!!!

I think I'm on a roll now...for the 3rd week in a row I found myself Munroing, having found it nigh on impossible to get away previously! For the 3rd week in a row I also found myself heading up to Inverness as my halfway point (two weeks ago it was to Kintail, last week it was to Coulags, this week it was to Achnashellach). For the 2nd time in a month I also found myself accepting the hospitality of Gordon and Jacqui in Muir of Ord the night previous to my Munro. As with the previous occasion this involved a late night and the consumption of spicy food washed down with copious amounts of wine (though AGAIN I dispute the amount that I personally consumed!!). 

The targets on this occasion were two that had been planned for over a month ago, but were put paid to by the weather being too bad to travel. On this occasion there would be no such bad fortune. Jelly McBaby appears to have made a new friend also in Eva...though she did try to eat him at one stage (by mistake I think). I spent another enjoyable night with the McCauley's, reminiscing about good times gone, and have probably talked Gordon into coming along on one of our future trips. Young Michael picked me up in the morning and we set off for our intended destination and ETA of ten o'clock. We were meeting Justine (one of the CMB troops) there as she was hoping to get back into things after a wee spell on the sidelines, injured. She had taken her dogs along for the trip, in case she was unable to do the entire trek (which is just as well). The forecast had been for good weather today, sandwiched between turgid spells in the previous few days and days to come. I had been in the area last week to bag Maol Chean-dearg and had noticed that there was no snow whatsoever on our targets for today, so had packed accordingly and left behind some items that would only serve to weigh me down unnecessarily...hindsight is a wonderful tool to have packed in your armoury (never mind in your rucksack!!). 

As soon as we left the comfort of the car it started raining, just gently spitting at first, then steadily heavier as we walked across the railway tracks and headed up to the first crossroads in the path. Once I had figured out which branch of the crossroads to take we set off towards Glen Torridon (does every path around here lead there??) but could see nothing of the hills that awaited us through the now constant drizzle. We cut down off the main path to the left and headed towards the river Lair, following it as the path cut alongside it briefly before heading back up track again. Just as we started to head away from the river Lair the rain stopped...within five minutes the sun had come out...the skies cleared and blueness could be seen above.

As we gained a little height it became apparent that there had been a considerable plop of snow at some point in the last week (apparently in the last two days) and our first sight of Beinn Liath Mhor surprised us as we hadn't been expecting to see so much snow from down here. As soon as we cleared the lower slopes of Leth Chreag we could see a considerable amount of snow on Fuar Tholl (Corbett) and Beinn Liath Mhor.

It was at this point that Justine elected to leave us to get on with it. She had started to feel the pace on the way up and I think the sight of the snow confirmed her fears that she was not yet fit enough for this. We bade her farewell and a safe journey home, with the invitation to join us again when she felt happier with her fitness. Michael and I set off on the path as it got rougher and wilder with each passing yard, eventually pulling up to a clearing which showed us the entire day ahead. We could pick out the start of the path up the slopes of Beinn Liath Mhor ahead, and the entire range of the ridge as it stretched out around Loch Coire Lair on the right side, with Sgorr Ruadh and Fuar Tholl guarding the Loch on the left. There was a clear path heading up to the bealach between Beinn Liath Mhor and Sgorr Ruadh, which was the public right of way to Glen Torridon. Around the slopes of Beinn Liath Mhor the path split again and the right branch headed off towards Achnasheen, the left branch headed straight for the slopes of Beinn Liath Mhor.

We set off for the steep slopes, leaving the wet open moorland beneath us. There was a faint path across the wet moor, getting better as the slope is reached, improving as you follow the zig zag up the mountain side. The path continued through the gorse as it headed into the waiting snow...footprints then confirmed that we were still heading in the right direction as they cut through snowy gorse towards a rockier slope. Michael, as you would expect from someone attempting Maggie's bike and hike next weekend, has a great level of fitness and he uses this to compensate for his lack of hill strength (whereas I have a generally poor level of overall fitness but have great muscle memory when it comes to traversing hills). We made good time getting up the slopes, without much slipping either.

As we pulled onto the first plateau of Beinn Liath Mhor there is a large cairn waiting at 880m. We stopped here for a quick refuel...even athletes have to eat Michael...and took stock of the surrounding views. We could now see the ridge ahead of us, a few dips and rises but nothing too bad (even in the snow) and were both impressed at the depth of snow that had fallen in the ast two days. there was a large built up cornice to our right as we looked across at Torridon and further out to Braemore, which protected us somewhat from the building northerly breeze. Fuar Tholl, with the Mainreachan buttress looking quite impressive it must be said, takes your gaze to the left as it stands high and craggy above Loch Coire Lair. Sgorr Ruadh looks slightly less impressive from this angle, but it's craggy slopes and fine buttresses are still to be fully displayed yet. The ridge swept ahead of us and the far off summit was clearly in view even from here.

We were two and a half hours in at this point and the summit looked at least another hour away, especially as we would require careful steps at some of the narrower sections in this snow. We traversed the snowy ridge, stopping an inordinate amount of times to take pics of our surroundings, posing for various shots on the way. The views into Torridon were as clear and fine as any I had previously seen. I will never tire of seeing Liathach from this angle, her high sided slopes looking impossible to climb and her ridge between Munro summits like a cerated blade. Beinn Eighe (which I have climbed) looks slightly less regal than Liathach but none the less daunting from here. 

Down below us the Drochaid nan lochan Uaine had been frozen over and splintered into small ice flows dotted on the surface. We tried to imagine what the area square of the largest ice flow would have been but needed something we knew was six foot to give us a scale...Michael refused to run down and be that scale so we just gave up!! We approached the summit cairn on Beinn Liath Mhor at 924m after traversing a couple of col's that rose and fell between the first summit we had found and the true summit here.

It was easy to spend time on the summit, despite the increasing cold, as the views were sumptuious in every direction. Sgorr Ruadh was now showing her true character, Robertson and Raeburn's buttresses joined by Academy ridge between them. Torridon, especially the aforementioned Liathach and Beinn Eighe, never cease to take my breath away. The view of Maol Chean-dearg covered in snow this week, when last week there was none, made me recall the sunburn I got on her top. Loch Torridon flowing out to the Atlantic ocean past the inner and outer isles. Strathcarron behind us, with the Glenuig forest full of Munro's I have yet to attempt. Another refuel stop here and then we would have to be on our way down to the bealach below us, carefully descending some craggy slabs of sandstone onroute to the tiny lochan below that leads lower down to more rocky outcrops and then a 2nd lochan which crosses the outward path to Glen Torridon.

All the while we were picking our way down this snowy slope our eyes were fixed on the ascent ahead of us back up to Sgorr Ruadh. We could see the massive buttresses that would prevent our direct scaling of the slopes ahead and kept waiting to pass the sandstone crags to our right that would allow us to see the eventual slope we would use to traverse to the summit. Stuc a' Choire Ghrannda would provide us with a steep pull up to the broader shoulder of Sgorr Ruadh from this trajectory and allow us to ascend to the summit from there.

After much huffing and puffing and thigh burning ascent we eventually arrived on the summit of Sgorr Ruadh at 962m. A tiny cairn on the edge of a steep prominance but still enough shelter to sit McBaby down for a few pics. Cracking views out to Maol Chean-dearg and the Applecross peninsula.

We met and passed a couple on the way up the slopes to Sgorr Ruadh, stopping to speak to them briefly at the top. The woman had just bagged her 200th, yet made no attempt to take a picture or anything else to signify the event. It just reminds me that not everyone is a self-publicist, bragging about their achievements through their own blog, some just go quietly about their business unnoticed. Personally speaking, I am more than happy to share my experiences through this blog with anyone willing to read it, knowing that for some this will be the closest they ever get to knowing anything about a Munro, let alone setting foot on one. If I can bring them closer to the beauty of Scotland, through my pictures and words, then I deserve the self satisfied little glow I get each time I know someone outside Scotland has read this.

We looked across at Fuar Tholl and wondered if we would manage to ascend her icy slopes today...the short answer being an unoquivical NO.

Off we set down the snowy embankment, knee high at times, towards the Allt a' Bhealaich Mhoir, between Sgorr Ruadh and Fuar Tholl. Taking care not to slip down the rock strewn slope towards the bealach, we squelched through melted snow and mud, as the many rivlets headed down slope to the waiting lochans of the bealach.

Once we had negotiated our way through the numerous lochans it was a a short trudge across the bealach to find the outward path, passing below the crags of Mainreachan buttress on the way. The path back out was as good quality as the initial path up towards Beinn Liath Mhor all those hours ago...just under seven at this stage...as we cut across Meall Teanga Fiadhaich to reach the crossing of the river Lair. Our last obstacle, impossible to cross without getting wet feet if the river is in spate, was nervously crossed with a hop skip and jump on some wet boulders poking through the surface of the water (after a small amount of searching for the safest route across). Safely across there just remained the easy walk back along the outward path from the crossroads cairn we had passed on the way up earlier.  We made it back to the car park in a respectable 7 hours 40  minutes...leaving just the trip back to Muir of Ord to collect my car (and the offer of a cup of tea before leaving) then the drive back to Aberdeen...arriving back home eventually at around quarter to ten at night. I got a text from Michael the next day thanking me for a wonderful day on the hills, he felt it was the perfect last minute preparation for his Maggie's bike and hike challenge this coming weekend, as he said it was probably his favourite Munro walk yet. You just know the boy is hooked...

 

The next adventure is pencilled in for the 18th of May, when we think Gordon will be next to lose his Munro virginity...

 

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Maol Chean-dearg in the April sunshine...

Typical...you wait months for a Munro then two come along at once (well almost). It was less than a week since my 200th Munro exploits on Beinn Fhada and I had the opportunity to add to the total. A day off work and my girlfriend working late shift...what was a Munro bagger to do but go bag another one!! I have been relatively lucky when venturing into the north-west previously, indeed I can only recall Beinn Eighe being done in any inclement weather, so decided that was going to be my destination today. I knew it would be an early start and long drive so wanted to pick something that I could realistically do in 5-7 hours. Maol Chean-dearg fitted the bill perfectly. I set off from Aberdeen this morning just after six...any later and I would have hit the wall of morning traffic around the airport roundabout! I also knew that roadworks on the Kessock bridge in Inverness would slow me down considerably (I was sat in traffic almost an hour the last time I crossed it three weeks ago) so reckoned that with all that considered I should make it for a ten o'clock start at Coulags bridge.

I arrived bang on schedule after a three and a half hour drive, with one pit stop at tesco, and set off from the car park at quarter past ten. A short walk back on myself along the A890 and across the Coulags bridge brought me to the start of the walk proper. A beautiful walk in along the Scottish rights of way path to Glen Torridon would take up the first hour or so of my day. I meandered along an excellent approach path, snapping away at various Munro's and Corbetts on the way. I got some snaps of Sgorr Ruadh in particular, which I am planning for my next jaunt away in a weeks time. The path follows the route of the Fionn-abhainn as it winds it's way through the glen, and involves one bridge crossing.

Thankfully the bridge was sturdy enough to take my weight and I didn't have to resort to getting my feet wet. The weather was threatening to improve as I continued further into the glen...I had dispersed of my light jacket and hat within feet of leaving the car as it proved to be rather warmer than it originally felt...blue skies were starting to break through the high lying cloud cover. The wind at this level was minimal and, although it had clearly been raining the past few days, it remained dry. Sgorr Ruadh absolutely dominates the skyline to the right as you head into the glen, looking almost impregnable from this side, forming a wall of rock with Fuar Tholl (Corbett) to shelter you from any prevailing easterly winds. To the left is the hulk of Meall nan Ceapairean, which can be crossed in conjunction with the Corbett An Ruadh-stac on a longer day out. Further ahead in the glen I came across a memorial attached to a rock, commemorating the life of a Breton (as far as I am aware this refers to someone who lived in Cape Breton, America, and whose ancestors travelled originally from the highlands or islands of Scotland following the highland clearances) and his Son who have had their ashes scattered nearby.

Further along the glen, beyond Coire Fionnaraich (the mountain bothy) there stands a lonely stone, Clach nan Con-fionn (the stone of Fingal's dog), which legend states was used by the giant Fionn to tether his hunting dogs. It looks like a finger pointing up at the cliffs of Sgorr Ruadh from certain angles.

The weather was continuing to improve and, unbeknown to me at the time, my head was starting to burn slightly.  The path continues towards Glen Torridon, until a small cairn 400m further on signifies the detour up to the slopes of bealach a' choire ghairbh. The slope starts at 200m and climbs in a series of zig zags to a height of around 600m in just under 2k. As you approach the bealach the views just keep improving with height...the Corbett of An Ruadh-stac looms into view ahead...the slopes of Meall nan Ceapairean soar above you initially then taper away to form a fine connecting plateau with An Ruadh-stac.

An Ruadh-stac may not have the height of a Munro but it certainly has enough character to be climbed along with one...if only I had enough time today! Instead I turned my gaze towards the scree slopes heading up towards Maol Chean-dearg, with a faint path zig zagging up through the loose stones. There are a number of possible faint paths up but I stuck to the one just east of the ridge point. Once up this obstacle I found myself on a grassy plateau and followed the ever fainter path across it, towards the very obvious reason for the name Maol chean-dearg (it translates as bald red head). Ahead of me stood a slope of bright red rocks leading eventually to the summit of Maol Chean-dearg. I knew there was a faint path heading up the slopes but on occasions like this you know that any route up will suffice. I clambered up through the varying sizes of red rocks strewn across the slope for a further 150m or so until I spotted the large cairn lying in wait ahead of me.

A gentle walk across the summit plateau brought me to a large summit cairn at 933m. Maol Chean-dearg became my 201st Munro summit. The views on such a clear day were breathtaking...obviously Torridon dominates any Munro baggers eye...Beinn Eighe...Liathach...Beinn Alligin...but there was so much more to admire about the area than I had previously imagined. Views out to the inner sound and Raasay...Applecross and Skye peninsula...a host of, until now, Corbetts I had never heard of...the Munro's of the Glenuig forest and Strathcarron...Loch Torridon...snowy topped peaks too many to mention here...fabulous!!

I sat Jelly McBaby down on the summit cairn and rattled off a couple of pics of him celebrating our latest triumph...until a gust of wind blew him off (not in a good way) and I had to rescue him from a gap he got wedged in. Once out of that he settled down on a far safer rocky prominence until I finshed my lunch.

I stopped at the summit for almost half an hour, basking in the warmth of the midday sun, hoping that the group of four walkers I had passed at the bealach a' choire ghraibh would arrive and I could get my pic taken with McBaby. Unfortunately they were still some distance back and I would have to depart pictureless. I returned via the same route, making some exceptional time on the way back, passing all the same landmarks I had passed on the way out. I stopped to take a pic at the Coire Fionnaraich bothy as I realised it had a second building behind it (not sure if this was the original bothy or not).

When I saw the bridge I realised that I coudn't be more than half an hour from the car park, at the rate I was going. This was going to give me a pleasing time of four and three quarter hours from start to finish, including the half an hour I spent on the summit, clearly all my recent gym work was paying off!! As I approached the final section of the path I spotted a handy sign for those disorientated walkers not sure of which direction to take...

A few hundred meters further on and the "main road" was reached and I crossed back over the Coulags bridge and heaved a sigh of relief that my car was still where I left her (I wouldn't imagine the area is over-run with petty criminals, but one can never be sure nowadays!). I have another weekend away planned next weekend and am hoping to increase my tally by at least another two, if not four. I will keep my fingers crossed that my good spell of luck with the weather in the north-west highlands extends until then at least...until next time folks, keep bald red heads covered in sunshine or risk them getting redder!!

 

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I have hopefully resolved the access issue for the Facebook link to my pictures. If that is not the case then could someone leave a comment letting me know please and I will see what I can do about it. Thank you.  

Well worth the wait...my 200th Munro summit.

On the 27th of september 2012 I stepped off my 195th Munro, confident in reaching my target of 200 by the end of October, which would have been two months ahead of schedule. Oh how much more wrong could I have been!!! In the months and weeks between 27th September 2012 and 12th April 2013 (197 days to be exact!!) I had managed a meagre 4 new summits...4 Munro's in six and a half months...a collection of laziness, poor excuses about the weather, workload, other commitments, lack of funds...you name it I have used it as a reason not to be on the hills in those long months. Most worryingly this was not like me at all. I live to be on new hills, facing all the various challenges that mother nature can throw at me, testing my abilities in all weathers and conditions. Had I lost the bug?? It happened to a friend of mine a few years ago...it appears to be happening to another friend of mine currently...but surely not to me!! To be fair to myself, the weather has been quite poor on the weekends I find myself not working (not helped by leaving myself no Munro's within a decent drive of Aberdeen, the closest ones to me now are at least four hours away) and the days being so short during the winter months mean that it is a thought to drive there and back all in the one day. It has not always been possible to afford diesel AND accomodation on these long treks to reach remote areas. Thankfully I have an offer of free accomodation anytime I am in the north-west highlands to fall back on now (cheers Jacqui and Gordon) which should alleviate some of the financial pain. The Kintail lodge hotel has a marvellous trekkers lodge (for a mere £15.50 a night) which puts me within striking distance of quite a few more Munro's in the west of the country. I may have less midweek opportunities than in previous years, but I have an understanding girlfriend who sometimes works opposite weekends to me, which should allow me to sneak a few cheeky trips away. Which is what happened this past weekend in question. I had been to the north-west two weeks ago (Fionn Bheinn) and had immediately set about planning for my 200th. I carefully selected a Munro that would be both challenging and achievable no matter what the weather threw at me. I was hopeful that on such a milestone occasion I may well have company, so had to choose somewhere that allowed any of my friends to come join me. So it was now narrowed down to an area that would give me something achievable, something others would feel comfortable on, something memorable enough to bag for my 200th. It was with all this criteria in place that I eventually plumped for Beinn Fhada as my destination...Kintail here I come!!

I chose to reside in the aforementioned Kintail lodge hotel...in the trekkers lodge...on the Friday night preceding the walk. I was joined overnight, eventually, by Angus Macleod who elected to stay in the hotel itself (posh boy). We partook of a cheeky little shandy then decided to have a bottle of wine and meal. We ordered two steak pies and all the trimmings, a fine bottle of white wine, and waited for our order to arrive. Amazingly it arrived around four minutes after ordering it...what service we thought to ourselves as we were led to our waiting table. As we sat down and started to tuck into our meal the table next to us were informed that they would have to wait a little longer for their meal as their steak pies had been delivered to us by mistake...hahaha no wonder the service had been so quick...we had been given someone else's pies!! Clearly we felt guilty as we tucked into the pies, but that died away as quickly as we quaffed the wine down. We followed up with a shared toffee meringue banana sweet thing which barely touched the sides on the way down.

 

 

After finishing off our tea we elected to retire to watch driv on telly and polish off another bottle of wine...and some posh crisps...before heading to our respective accomodations for the night. Angus Beaton was joining us for the walk but as he stays in Skye he elected not to come down until the following morning. I had company in the trekkers lodge for breakfast the next morning, two other walkers that agreed with me that all you need on these trips is a bed and place to make breakfast (which the trekkers lodge at Kintail is perfect for). A healthy start to the day in the form of banana and porridge was all I needed to kick start my metabolism and prepare me for a day on the hills. We were due to meet Angus B at the outdoor centre car park at Morvich, a mere five minutes away, at half past eight. Bills paid and car loaded we set off to our start point and looked on in awe at the prospective hulk of Beinn Fhada that awaited us...

Angus M started up his new GPS device (which I had recommended his wife to get him for his birthday a couple of months ago) and we checked it against the maps I had brought along. A last minute check of our respective packs and off we set...on the path to my 200th Munro. There is a clear path out to the bridge at Innichro, which you have to cross, before following the path straight ahead for a further 300m then turning right. The path then narrows and faint in places as it crosses some rough ground, but is still obvious enough to follow as it heads into the glen ahead. The path follows the route of the Abhainn Chonaig, sometimes closer than others as it meanders uphill.

 All the way up the glen the hulk of Beinn Fhada is apparent ahead, dominating the view and making you wonder where the route up it is. The glen becomes increasingly wild as we head into it and to be honest you couldn't fail to be impressed with the environment surrounding you on either side. Meall a' Bheallaich is the dominant view ahead of us, whose slopes form the shoulder that we will follow the zig zag path up. But before then we have to contend with crossing the Allt a' Choire Chaoil, which can be difficult to cross in spate, though thankfully it was a hop skip and jump on boulders today. We continued on the path towards the Bealach an Sgairne, but cut off to the right at a tiny cairn on the path, heading to the huge corrie of Meall an Fhuarain Mhoir instead. Now the views ahead surpassed anything we had seen so far today...

The green slopes of the glen were now giving way to the cold whiteness that makes any hill more of a challenge. The path followed a meandering route in zig zags up the slopes and disappeared through the snow for a short spell, re-emerging higher up as the snow became more compact and wind blasted. We reached the broad top of Sgurr an Doire Leathain and the ridge broadens even further into a sweeping plateau.

Further up the snow thickened and the temperature surprisingly seemed to rise, certainly the chill that had been affecting my fingers was disipating now. Loads of snow invariably leads to loads of cornices on the edges of corries (not that I ever get too close to the edge of them). Cornices make for some dramatic shots...and some more posing shots from you know who...

 

Once Gus M had finished posing for various shots we made our way to the summit cairn...and found a snow man atop the summit trig point!! Jelly McBaby shared a pic with the snow man and then joined in posing with the rest of the team. Beinn Fhada summit lies on the edge of it's northern corrie at 1032m and provides awesome shots into Affric, along the various ridge walks of Kintail, out to Torridon, across to Knoydart and on a clearer day than today Skye.

 

 

The summit of A' Ghlas Beinn looked enticingly close but the weather looked like it was running to plan (the forecast had said increasing clouds and winds and rain as the day progressed) so we elected against doing her today. The good thing about that is it gives us another excuse to return to this area once more during the summer and enjoy such beautiful surroundings.

We would have stayed on the summit for hours taking pics and videos, were it not for the increasingly biting cold that was nipping at any exposed flesh. The lack of a signal on the summit also meant that I couldn't post any of my summit pics to FB or Instagram until I got lower down. So we headed off the summit and elected to simply follow our route of ascent back down, the pinnacled route off sounded rather dodgy in the wet and the forecast was for rain. We made our way back to the bealach and started off down the various sets of zig zags that we had followed on the way up. At least, that was, until Angus M had a wonderfully inspired idea about taking a short-cut down the slopes!! So we cut down a particularly steep section like alpine skiers, ploughing through the snow on our feet...until Angus B slipped and landed on his bum...and off he shot like a bullet down hill quickly running out of snow. Thankfully when he left the snow it was into gorse and stones, rather than any sharp rocks, but he still managed to burst his jacket and bruise certain parts that shall remain secret!

I must confess to a slight chuckle, not at Angus B's misfortune, but at Angus M's reaction...not that karma believed that, because before I knew it I too was on my bum and hurtling towards the same fate as Angus B!!! I thought thrusting my ungloved hands into the snow would have stopped my momentum, but I was wrong, all it did was serve to freeze my fingers for the next half an hour!!! Thankfully I survived this slip without damage to equipment or self...just a little bruised ego and regret at not having my ice axe handy to arrest my fall.

The remainder of the walk out was uneventful, and five and a half hours after departing the cars we found ourselves back at the bridge.

We agreed to meet up again as soon as shifts and time off would allow...there were still another 82 Munro's to be bagged after all. All in all I thoroughly enjoyed the occasion of my 200th Munro, I would have preferred if some more of my friends had been able to join me to celebrate reaching this milestone, but hopefully they will be able to join me if I ever get the other 82 done.

I would like to take a moment to remember some of the good folk that I have had the pleasure of accompanying on the first 200 Munro's in my adventures: Asima Akhtar...Louise Miller...Mike Charlton...Spot...Michael Irvine...Frank and Ruby...Paddy...Derek...Barnett and Baino...Angus M and Angus B...and not forgetting Jelly McBaby. (apologies if I have forgotten anyone)

 

Let the adventure continue...

 

 



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