walkhighlands

This forum is for general discussion about walking and scrambling... If writing a report or sharing your experiences from a route, please use the other boards.

5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022


Postby LtDan » Fri Jan 14, 2022 1:56 am

Hello people,

we have some plan - pretty bold plan I suppose, we'd like to make a trail (see attached GPX) and I'd like to ask if you could be so kind and share your opinion on it .. If it's do-able, if there are not some constraints that we're missing ..

Our expectation is 6 days of hike. We have of course prepared a several variants and escape routes in case that we'll run into some serious problems.

We're photographers but this will be more hike than photography trip.

Actually we were putting together the route very thoroughly but still there some sections that seem to very challenging at least ..

thank you in forward for any your input ..

cheers, ~dan
Attachments
Trek-Skotsko-v1.jpg

1-main.gpx Open full screen  NB: Walkhighlands is not responsible for the accuracy of gpx files in users posts

LtDan
Backpacker
 
Posts: 10
Joined: Jan 14, 2022

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby Scraggygoat » Fri Jan 14, 2022 12:47 pm

Personally I’d cut out all the road walking in Strathfarrar and Affric, and trying to link the two. By starting at the Mullardoch dam and finishing at the Monar Dam.

Strathfarrar does not allow cars to be left overnight in the Glen, or at the Monar dam. So drive in and hide bikes, then go to Mullardoch and start. If you have two cars try and leave one at Cannich to shorten the cycle back. I know this is a faff but it will save a huge amount of trudge at the start/end .

If the weather is bad you can explore Strathfarrar and Affric as day trips indulging in moody photography, free of the pressure to cover ground to get on the hill, or the grind of having to walk back to your car.
Scraggygoat
 
Posts: 307
Joined: Mar 7, 2014

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby jmarkb » Fri Jan 14, 2022 1:15 pm

I'd agree about trying to cut down the road walking. You could leave a car in Glen Cannich and go over Sgurr na Diollaid (or through the col to the west) into Strathfarrar. In good weather that might allow you to do some more hills - maybe a day on the Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan group without your backpacking gear - or else have a rest day along the way.

If you have any Munro-bagging aspirations, leaving out Lurg Mhor and Beinn Fhionnlaidh may be a source of future regret!
User avatar
jmarkb
Mountaineer
 
Posts: 5857
Munros:246   Corbetts:105
Fionas:91   Donalds:32
Sub 2000:46   
Joined: Oct 28, 2011
Location: Edinburgh

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby LtDan » Fri Jan 14, 2022 3:32 pm

Hello guys,

thank you very much for your input ... I have few comments on to what you have suggested ..

1) we're not going to rent a car .. We will fly to the Inverness, will stay there overnight (+ we'll fine-tune and complement our equipment) and will go for the hike so we need to have starting point in reasonable reachability from Inverness. Our current starting point (Struy) seems to be within reasonable distance from "Beauly" (on railroad) so we'll either hire a taxi or something alike or just go there. Our other option is to start from somewhere on the railway between Inverness and Strathcarron (which is one of our escape points jointing in day 3) .. But still we're developing our route so we're considering everything and we're completely open to any change and suggestion

2) ad to ``Personally I’d cut out all the road walking in Strathfarrar and Affric'' - This was also huge topic in our discussions but we've finally decided to start day #1 with easy walk just get "acclimatized" .. I don't think that starting in day #1 straight away in mountains is good idea .. However I agree that to cut out the last day would be nice ..

3) Please look on the jpg image with overview (link above). For us is the most attractive part A-F (we'll eventually hike from F to Fall of Glomach) so if we'll change the route we'd like that the part A-F (or F-A, eventually F-B) will remain ..

for me the problematic part is if this hike is do-able in 5-6 days and also if we'll be able to ascent from Bealach an Sgoltaidh to Bidein a'Choire Sheasgaich, if I look on following two posts

edit: I had to remove links to the scottishhills forum

it seems do-able but the photos especially in latter indicate that perhaps there will be needed some climbing equipment ..

Okay, you're right that it would probably make a more sense to go with other direction, so would you recommend to rather go from K to A ?

cheers, ~dan

ps. sorry for my English, it is not my born language
LtDan
Backpacker
 
Posts: 10
Joined: Jan 14, 2022

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby prog99 » Fri Jan 14, 2022 3:38 pm

You certainly wouldn’t want to walk Beauly to Struy.
User avatar
prog99
Munro compleatist
 
Posts: 2023
Fionas:130   
Joined: Aug 14, 2013
Location: Highlands

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby Skyelines » Fri Jan 14, 2022 4:09 pm

Just a comment on the road sections, Glens Cannich and Strathfarrar have quite pleasant scenery.
An alternative road walk in Strathglass between Cannich and Struy can be had by taking the minor road on the other side of the river instead of the A831 - less traffic.
Skyelines
Wanderer
 
Posts: 599
Joined: Jun 10, 2016

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby HalfManHalfTitanium » Fri Jan 14, 2022 4:20 pm

LtDan wrote:Our other option is to start from somewhere on the railway between Inverness and Strathcarron (which is one of our escape points jointing in day 3) .. But still we're developing our route so we're considering everything and we're completely open to any change and suggestion


I'm in no way an expert on this area. Others will know far more.

But, I looked at your plan out of interest, and my first thought was "why not start at Attadale?" (which is on the Inverness-Strathcarron train line).

That would cut out the road walking at the eastern end.

The walk-in from Attadale to Bendronaig bothy (which is near Loch Calavie, which is on your planned route) would be a good first day to get used to the walking - as you say "we've finally decided to start day #1 with easy walk just get 'acclimatized'".

There is a description of this walk-in at https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/torridon/beinn-dronaig.shtml.

Attadale Gardens is also very nice, especially in May!

Tim
User avatar
HalfManHalfTitanium
Mountain Walker
 
Posts: 2992
Munros:119   Corbetts:28
Fionas:6   Donalds:6
Hewitts:152
Wainwrights:103   
Joined: Mar 11, 2015

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby LtDan » Fri Jan 14, 2022 4:36 pm

prog99 wrote:You certainly wouldn’t want to walk Beauly to Struy.


that's really backup plan if we won't manage some other transport .. in the worst case, 3 hours of walk == 15 km, but yeah, we wouldn't want it and if it will happen we certainly won't like it :D

Skyelines wrote:Just a comment on the road sections, Glens Cannich and Strathfarrar have quite pleasant scenery.
...


HalfManHalfTitanium wrote:why not start at Attadale? ..


thank you both very much for suggestion ... we'll continue in developing the route and we'll review and discuss about your suggestions .. I will update our routhe in this thread accordingly ...

Perhaps I have one last question - aren't there some restrictions (or do we need some special permit) to do a wild camping in that area ? I've seen in some videos on youtube that certain areas in Scottish highlands (for example around Ben Nevis or The Three Sisters) require a special permit .. We're ofc (semi-)seasoned backpackers so it's the matter of our honour and our karma to leave the place so nobody can find any trace behind us (except of sniffing animals with sensitive noses who can sniff a poo thing dug 15-20cm underneath, haha) but still we don't want to break any rules or something like that ...

cheers, ~dan
LtDan
Backpacker
 
Posts: 10
Joined: Jan 14, 2022

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby HalfManHalfTitanium » Fri Jan 14, 2022 4:43 pm

Jsut to follow up what I was saying, years ago (when I was more into backpacking - I prefer a roof over my head these days and preferably a decent pint of bitter at the end of the day) I planned this route.

It started at Attadale so I could do it without the car, and I designed it to see the best scenery of the area.

It included Glen Affric, which your plan doesn't, but is quite similar in many other ways.

It included Cannich half-way around. I planned to avoid carrying too much by buying the food for the second stage there.

It also included Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan which looked to me like the finest mountain of the area, and its ascent combines well with Falls of Glomach.

done from memory but this is pretty much it
tim route.jpg
User avatar
HalfManHalfTitanium
Mountain Walker
 
Posts: 2992
Munros:119   Corbetts:28
Fionas:6   Donalds:6
Hewitts:152
Wainwrights:103   
Joined: Mar 11, 2015

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby LtDan » Fri Jan 14, 2022 4:58 pm

thank you !!! looks similar to ours ...

my biggest concern is (if you look on our route) the crest trail from Loch a' Chlaidheimh -> Maoile Lunndaidh -> Lochan Gaineamhach -> Sgurr a' Chaorachain -> Beinn Tharsuinn and finally the hardest ascent to Biden a' Choire Sheasgaich

if we'll do this, the rest will be easy ... I cannot paste links but the nice overview could be found here

infophagia dot co m slash ntz slash paste slash Trek-Skotsko-v1 dot jpg
LtDan
Backpacker
 
Posts: 10
Joined: Jan 14, 2022

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby Scraggygoat » Fri Jan 14, 2022 5:28 pm

All the high ridges on your walk are regularly walked, however there is no way-marking in Scotland, as there is along mountain paths on the continent. So no sign posts or painted flashes on rocks.

If it rains heavily (unusual for May), several of the river crossing might become impassible. Note that you have a lot of height gain and descent so will need to be fit and have reasonably light packs.

If wanting to use Taxis out with of Inverness you will need to book in advance.
Scraggygoat
 
Posts: 307
Joined: Mar 7, 2014

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby jmarkb » Fri Jan 14, 2022 5:51 pm

LtDan wrote:f we'll be able to ascent from Bealach an Sgoltaidh to Bidein a'Choire Sheasgaich


It's quite steep and you might need to use your hands briefly but it is certainly not climbing terrain and no equipment needed. A bit easier to do in ascent than descent, though. As said above, there is no waymarking, and parts of your route have no trail, so you need to be prepared to do your own rouefinding, especially in poor visibility, which is very common on the high ground in Scotland.

LtDan wrote:Perhaps I have one last question - aren't there some restrictions (or do we need some special permit) to do a wild camping in that area ?


No permits required for wild camping anywhere in that area.

Since you are on public transport, Attadale or Achnashellach stations would be convenient start/end points. There are also buses from Inverness to Struy and Cannich.
User avatar
jmarkb
Mountaineer
 
Posts: 5857
Munros:246   Corbetts:105
Fionas:91   Donalds:32
Sub 2000:46   
Joined: Oct 28, 2011
Location: Edinburgh

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby al78 » Fri Jan 14, 2022 11:10 pm

LtDan wrote:thank you !!! looks similar to ours ...

my biggest concern is (if you look on our route) the crest trail from Loch a' Chlaidheimh -> Maoile Lunndaidh -> Lochan Gaineamhach -> Sgurr a' Chaorachain -> Beinn Tharsuinn and finally the hardest ascent to Biden a' Choire Sheasgaich

if we'll do this, the rest will be easy ... I cannot paste links but the nice overview could be found here

infophagia dot co m slash ntz slash paste slash Trek-Skotsko-v1 dot jpg


I have just looked at that route on the OS map and with a loaded backpack, doing that in one day will be tough. Several Munro summits with big drops between. I would suggest either planning your itinery so that you have an overnight camp somewhere along that stage (e.g. but not necessarily, near Lochan Gaineamhach), or train in advance to do multiple 300-400m sustained ascents with weight on your back. Poor weather will make the going harder.
User avatar
al78
Walker
 
Posts: 1410
Munros:32   Corbetts:9
Donalds:1
Joined: Feb 1, 2018

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby LtDan » Fri Jan 14, 2022 11:23 pm

al78 wrote:
LtDan wrote:I have just looked at that route on the OS map and with a loaded backpack, doing that in one day will be tough. Several Munro summits with big drops between. I would suggest either planning your itinery so that you have an overnight camp somewhere along that stage (e.g. but not necessarily, near Lochan Gaineamhach) ..


hello,

thank you for your input .. if you looked on the jpg overview of our trek you'll see a camps marked with *** C1-x .. We will of course split this part into the two days .. our plan is to stay in C1 and then go to C3 in one day .. We specifically want to stay in C3 because there will be great opportunity to shoot Loch Monar in sunrise light from SEE ridge approximately 1km from C3 (waypoint D on our map)
LtDan
Backpacker
 
Posts: 10
Joined: Jan 14, 2022

Re: 5-6 days hike around Loch Monar in May 2022

Postby HalfManHalfTitanium » Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:10 am

LtDan wrote:
al78 wrote:
LtDan wrote:I have just looked at that route on the OS map and with a loaded backpack, doing that in one day will be tough. Several Munro summits with big drops between. I would suggest either planning your itinery so that you have an overnight camp somewhere along that stage (e.g. but not necessarily, near Lochan Gaineamhach) ..


hello,

thank you for your input .. if you looked on the jpg overview of our trek you'll see a camps marked with *** C1-x .. We will of course split this part into the two days .. our plan is to stay in C1 and then go to C3 in one day .. We specifically want to stay in C3 because there will be great opportunity to shoot Loch Monar in sunrise light from SEE ridge approximately 1km from C3 (waypoint D on our map)


If the weather is bad or you don’t feel up to climbing Bidean CS with big packs, an alternative is the glen with Loch an Laoigh in it; you can get to this from either Bealach Bearnais or the bealach between Beinn Tarsuinn and Bidean CS. When did my plan, this was one of the bad weather alternatives I had. This also gives you the option of leaving your gear at the camp after taking your morning photos, climbing Bidean CS and Lurg Mhor without packs, then return to your camp, then walk out via Loch an Laoigh and Bendronaig the next day.

It is worth planning for bad weather alternatives to all the higher sections of your route.

Finally, if you do use the western approach, be aware that there is a bus from Kyle of Lochalsh to Shiel Bridge. This gives you other options, for example a bad weather alternative of approaching the hills via the Kintail Affric Way route (see long distance paths on this website) from Morvich.

You’ll have a fantastic time - enjoy!

Tim
User avatar
HalfManHalfTitanium
Mountain Walker
 
Posts: 2992
Munros:119   Corbetts:28
Fionas:6   Donalds:6
Hewitts:152
Wainwrights:103   
Joined: Mar 11, 2015

Next



Can you help support Walkhighlands?


Our forum is free from adverts - your generosity keeps it running.
Can you help support Walkhighlands and this community by donating by direct debit?



Return to General discussion

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: abs70 and 17 guests