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When I did the Ring of Steall back in April with kevsbald and CurlyWurly, myself and Kev came down off Sgurr a' Mhaim back to the carpark in Glen Nevis while Darren opted to backtrack over the Devil's Ridge and knock off Stob Ban and Mullach nan Coirean whilst in the neighbourhood. That was a stunning day - one of the finest I have had the privilege of spending amongst the hills - and I was sorely tempted to join Darren in nailing all 6 Munros but I had time constraints whereas he had the luxury of some time to kill before meeting another friend and heading on up to Kintail.
So, with myself having been in Cornwall for the first part of July and my colleague and good walking buddy Robin having then been in Antigua (see who got the short straw when it came to Summer 2012 holiday destinations then eh!), it was getting on for the end of July and we hadn't managed to get out together this summer holiday yet. A flurry of texts and cross-consultation of Munro maps duly ensued upon his return from Antigua as we looked to find some hills that neither of us had done. After quite a bit of deliberation, we finally settled on these two and I headed over to stay at his place on Saturday evening. A curry, a few beers and not nearly enough sleep later and we were away by 6.30 on the Sunday morning heading up the A9.
A minor spanner in the works was encountered at Dalwhinnie when we pulled into the Tollhouse Catering place on the station road to find it shut. It was still early on a Sunday morning I guess! So we soldiered on, both of us beginning to feel a bit dodgy as we headed along the side of Loch Laggan - probably the result of no breakfast and insufficient caffeine intake.
This situation was remedied when we pulled into the big car park behind the Spar in Spean Bridge and our eyes were drawn to the big sign outside the Commando Hotel next door advertising sausage, bacon and egg rolls!
Sounded like just the job, so we ordered a couple up and sat at one of the wooden tables outside in a fine drizzle as we downed our rolls and hot drinks before continuing along the road to Fort Bill and onto the Glen Nevis road.
The Midge didn't take long to find us in the Lower Falls car park so we made a sharp exit along the road, over the bridge and through the gate onto the bog infested path that leads up into Coire a' Mhusgain.
Lower slopes of Coire a' MhusgainIt was yet another of those classic Summer 2012 days for walking - light shower, delay putting waterproofs on 'cos it's far too clammy, rain gets heavier, waterproofs go on, internal pressure builds to intolerable levels due to steam build-up, waterproofs get ditched, sun comes out and huge patches of blue stuff appear overhead but still water falls from the sky, rain gets heavier still and there is little option but to suffer under the waterproofs, rain stops and a big yellow thing appears in the blue stuff overhead, walking partner narrowly avoids spontaneous self-combustion by getting gear off just in time, 10 minutes later the whole cycle starts again...... blah blah blah......
Stob Ban beginning to make her presence felt to our rightBack down Glen Nevis, Ben with his hat onWe had both wanted to do the route this way to take advantage of what we understood to be a decent path up into the upper reaches of the coire. The route is also described this way in the Cameron McNeish book and I wanted to take full advantage of how he described the ascent into Coire a' Mhusgain:
"Higher up, the coire opens out and you begin to feel the presence of Stob Ban. Towering from its gradual northern ridge it begins to dominate the scene, great scree runnels splitting the steep slopes into a complete system of buttresses and crags, the topmost ones sparkling white in the sun".
In the sun Cameron???? Aye, right! What did you have in your flask and in your sandwiches the day you did it????
Shades of the Aonach Eagach or LiathachHeavy rainfall had turned the streams into serious water featuresCrossing the stream below the lochan and turning for the ridge of Stob BanBut wait, what is this we see happening before our eyes. The big yellow thing appears to be growing in strength and the blue stuff is becoming more widespread! By the time we reached the cairn at the junction of the stalkers' paths on the southern slopes of Stob Ban, it was seriously threatening to turn into a most uncharacteristically fine day!
Robin dwarfed by the majesty of Stob BanThe buttresses loom out of the cloudSgurr a' Mhaim and the Devil's RidgeRays of sunshine battling to break through over Stob BanA wall of cloud scuds in fast and low over Sgurr an Iubhair and the lochan at the head of Coire a' MhusgainSunshine on Stob Ban nowBlue skies over Sgurr a' Mhaim and the Devil's Ridge becoming more defined in the sunZooming in on the scene of my hairiest mountain moment to dateOne of the highlights for me on that day back in April had been the view from the descent off Sgurr an Iubhair across the head of Coire a' Mhusgain to the rugged buttresses of Stob Ban. That day it had seemed to be less covered in snow than most of the Ring of Steall had been, but the fine lines of white fringing its crags and buttresses had given it a magical aura. In fact, one comment posted in reply to my report on that day had said that it looked like the mountain was just poised, ready to crumble. And so I was really looking forward to this part of the day and wasn't disappointed, even if things did close in a little as we got higher.
Stob Ban in all her gloryRobin and Lucy forging aheadDown the ascent ridge and over to Sgurr a'Mhaim and Sgurr an IubhairMore cloud billowing inAround the side of Stob Ban to the Ben and the Halfway LochanLow cloud taking a firm grip againThe white stuff which gives this fine mountain its nameBy the time we summited, the rain was back on and the only colour on display was grey. We even got a severe but short lived pelting from a hail shower before I managed to settle up the stand for a self timed congratulatory summit shot.
Robin and Lucy on the final approach to the summitJust after our hailstone exfoliationIn the best traditions of the Law of Sod, things cleared again on the descent down to the broad, flat bealach above the lochan to the north west of Stob Ban as the white gave way to the oranges and reds of Mullach nan Coirean and its associated Tops.
Dropping north down off the summitOne of the vast north eastern buttressesScree sliding down to the bealachRed now becoming the dominant colour schemeAcross the wee lochan and down Coire Dheirg into Glen Nevis belowRobin at the subsidiary cairn at the start of the curving ridge around to Mullach nan CoireanOh, where did I get that hat?The weather then played ball and, bar the odd wispy cloud passing by on a fairly low trajectory, it stayed fairly settled for the remainder of the walk, or at least until the business end of the walk was over and we were descending the north east ridge of Mullach nan Coirean towards the forestry.
Skirting the crags and up towards the 917m pointMyself and Lucy investigating the rock fingerMullach nan Coirean across the corner of Choire DheirgKinlochleven through the cloudsLooking back over the corner of Choire DheirgOn the large flat area between the 917m point and the second Munro summitGlen Nevis, Sgurr a' Mhaim and the long north ridge of Stob BanFrom the summit of Mullach nan Coirean we enjoyed a stunning set of vistas back across all but the most distant of the Mamores, north over Fort William and the Ben and west across Loch Linnhe to Ardgour.
Summit of the MullachFull of Eastern Promise - the Mamores from Mullach nan CoireanWhence we cameWe stuck to the north east ridge on our descent until it joined the forestry at the new looking stile, although there was the mother of all bogs to negotiate on the lower slopes, where Robin's new Osprey pack was duly christened (if you can imagine!)
A distant Stob Ban from the start of the descent off Mullach nan CoireanLooking the Ben straight in the eyeSgurr a' Mhaim shining in the sunlightIt's as if the water courses have been drawn onto the landscape and coloured in!Stob Ban of the Grey Corries shining bright away up beyond the end of Glen NevisRainbow welcoming us back down into Glen Nevis