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Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3h

Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3h


Postby Mountainlove » Wed Nov 13, 2013 10:30 am

Corbetts included on this walk: Beinn Odhar

Date walked: 09/11/2013

Time taken: 2.5 hours

Distance: 4.77 km

Ascent: 619m

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To do a Corbett when there are lots of Munros around felt like abandoning a child or being unfaithful to a lover...not possible. After all..there are so many Munros to climb! :D
But what to do in short winter hours with most Munros climbed in close by areas? :problem:
The answer was to finally climb a Corbett :thumbup: . Looking for the first time at the Corbett map felt like Christmas...Ohhhh so many unclimbed hills to choose from! But the one I choose had to be Beinn Odhar. I had walked along side it while doing the WHW and driven past it God knows how many times...it was finally time to climb it.

I had checked the weather forecast and had seen a dry window around lunchtime. Being able to take your time in winter is magic and when I arrived at the foot of the hill at 11:30am :shock: , it felt nearly impossible to climb a winter hill that late. I parked at the little car park across from the railway bridge, climbed the fence across the road, walked down the grassy slope and reached the WHW. (A short bit further along the road is actually a proper crossing, but I only saw this on my return way. :roll: )

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The crossing over the railway bridge, if you have walked the WHW you might remember this bit


I followed the WHW for a little while, crossed the railway bridge and shortly after saw a faint path towards my right. The path followed the burn and was boggy in places and soon I opted to climb up the shoulder.
I have no clue if there are any paths, as everything was covered in virgin snow without any footprint :thumbup: , but I am guessing with or without one its pretty clear were you have to go- up 8) :lol:

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Boggy , but not for long

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Looking across over the burn

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Sheep in the snow

I gained height quickly and snow clouds were racing across the sky. Dramatic views could be seen all the way down to Tyndrum and luck had it that it stayed dry. :clap:
About an hour after setting off I reached a cave and after doing some research online (afterwards), it seems to be the old discontinued adit of the lead mine (I think). Icicles were hanging from the entrance and I spend some time to take some silly pictures (you have to keep amusing yourself when you walk alone)

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Simply stunning

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The view back down towards Tyndrum

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The views across when the clouds allowed short climpses

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The adit (I think anyway)

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You have to amuse yourself

Climbing higher the snow turn deep and I was walking in the strange surroundings, only to be experienced in winter, with thick cloud cover and snow. At 901m this Corbett is just as good as a Munro and even classes as a Marilyn (if you believe the web)

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The walk into the white

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One of the wee lochs
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The snow was getting deep
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Aiming to get some views...by the time I grabbed my camera the views were gone

By the time I had reached the top a cold the wind had picked up and trying to take pictures from the disappearing mountains behind the clouds. Soon my hair , eye lashes, face and clothes were covered in a layer of ice. It did not rain, but the moisture in the air had iced me up in minutes. Bizarre! :shock:
It was bitterly cold and my fingers exposed to the icy air (thanks to taking too many photos) were close to frostbite (at least thats how they felt like) :? Jumping up and down while trying to blow some life back into my fingers I tried to get warm and looking around I suddenly saw a snow rainbow. :-D :-D :-D I later learned that it was called a fog bow, but the sight was impressive and for a while I stared at it, while it appeared and disappeared with the clouds...brilliant!! :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

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A fog bow, or white rainbow

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Looking towards the west

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and towards the north from the summit

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Towards Tyndrum-can you spot the hills in the clouds?

But the cold finally drove me off he top :(

On my way back down it luckily warmed up again, but the cloud had thickened and I was glad that I was able to follow my footsteps down the hill. Too soon I was back at my car still confused how quick I had managed that hill (I guess it could be done in less than 2h in summer time)
Looking back up at the hill I decided that Corbetts are well worth the effort....well at least in winter time, or at least until I have a long weekend to head further up north again. :D

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On the walk down




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Last edited by Mountainlove on Wed Nov 13, 2013 11:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Mountainlove
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby litljortindan » Wed Nov 13, 2013 10:51 am

Some superb photographs there. Looks like a hill that fits my winter criteria too.
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby mrssanta » Wed Nov 13, 2013 11:06 am

Wow those pictures are amazing and gorgeous
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby jmarkb » Wed Nov 13, 2013 11:51 am

Nice one: great photos!

Geeky science bit: the optical phenomenon is indeed a fogbow. It forms in the same way as a rainbow, but because the water droplets in the fog are much smaller than in rain, the colour bands are all smeared out and overlap each other, so the overall effect looks pretty much white. It's not dependent on sub-zero temperatures, or the presence of snow. More technical details here: http://www.atoptics.co.uk/droplets/fogform.htm - your photo has a couple of dark interference bands around a supernumerary arc inside the main bow.
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby tweedledog » Wed Nov 13, 2013 12:52 pm

Lovely pictures. Must give this one a go, though the snow looks a bit too deep for the dog at the moment...
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby The Rodmiester » Wed Nov 13, 2013 1:38 pm

That's some amount of snow so early on. Looks a fine hill for this winter, I must add to my to do list :) wonderful photographs as usual, looks like you had a fun day out anyway, which is the main thing. More Corbetts on the horizon? :D
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby heatheronthehills » Wed Nov 13, 2013 2:21 pm

Beautiful photos...I love the snow rainbow, stunning! Looks like you always have fun on the hills, even when you go on your own. Thank you for sharing your adventures :-)
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby PeteR » Wed Nov 13, 2013 2:22 pm

Superb :clap: :clap: One of the first hills I did, this one.

Love the fogbow shot :D

If you want to experience a nice challenging Corbett round it is possible to include this hill as part of a circuit of 5 in a day. Steep and pathless for the most part and boggy in places too. Good day out though, all the same :D
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Re: Snow rainbows on a perfect hill you can climb in under 3

Postby Mountainlove » Wed Nov 13, 2013 4:05 pm

litljortindan wrote:Some superb photographs there. Looks like a hill that fits my winter criteria too.

Thank you and yes this is perfect for winter I can only recommend it.

mrssanta wrote:Wow those pictures are amazing and gorgeous

Thank you very much :D :D

jmarkb wrote:Nice one: great photos!

Geeky science bit: the optical phenomenon is indeed a fogbow. It forms in the same way as a rainbow, but because the water droplets in the fog are much smaller than in rain, the colour bands are all smeared out and overlap each other, so the overall effect looks pretty much white. It's not dependent on sub-zero temperatures, or the presence of snow. More technical details here: http://www.atoptics.co.uk/droplets/fogform.htm - your photo has a couple of dark interference bands around a supernumerary arc inside the main bow.

Oh thats great. Thank you for the scientific information - really appreciated! :clap:

tweedledog wrote:Lovely pictures. Must give this one a go, though the snow looks a bit too deep for the dog at the moment...

For a wee dog it would be a struggle, but otherwise a great hill.

The Rodmiester wrote:That's some amount of snow so early on. Looks a fine hill for this winter, I must add to my to do list :) wonderful photographs as usual, looks like you had a fun day out anyway, which is the main thing. More Corbetts on the horizon? :D

I was surprised myself when I drove up...had not expected it either. Oh yes Corbetts are on the horizon...check my latest report 30 reasons to climb a Corbett , for more stunning Glen Coe photos and another great hill. :D

heatheronthehills wrote:Beautiful photos...I love the snow rainbow, stunning! Looks like you always have fun on the hills, even when you go on your own. Thank you for sharing your adventures :-)

Thank you ...that day was really great - maybe because it was so nice and easy (and quick) lol :lol:

PeteR wrote:Superb :clap: :clap: One of the first hills I did, this one.
Love the fogbow shot :D
If you want to experience a nice challenging Corbett round it is possible to include this hill as part of a circuit of 5 in a day. Steep and pathless for the most part and boggy in places too. Good day out though, all the same :D


Oh thats a great hill for a first. I have read about the Corbett round as well, but did not wanted to wait for summer time...but it looks like a long and hard day if you do all 5.
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