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Saturday 2nd May.
Weather: classic spring day - sun, wind and showers (a mixture of snow, hail and rain but only for very short periods).
These hills would be a good introduction to the Cairgorms. Route finding is easy due to Landrover tracks and paths throughout.
The carpark near Auchlean was full when I arrived about 10:30am. I was intending to do both these munros unless conditions up top were really bad - they weren't. The tarmac ends at Auchlean and the path heads pretty much straight up Sgor Gaoith, initially through pine woods then over heathery hillsides. The mixture of sun, cloud and wind was playing havoc with my layering and resulted in frequent stops to adjust clothing. However, the gradient was that almost perfect angle where height and distance are gained very easily.
90minutes brisk walking brought me onto the plateau just below the summit of Carn Ban Mor. From here it was an easy walk to the summit of SG perched spectacularly above Loch Einich and with great views over to Braeriach. I sat here and had some lunch overlooking Coire Odhar.
By the time I got going again, I had cooled down and the wind and a hail shower prompted me to don my balaclava, both fleeces and waterproof trousers. Ahead of me now was the 7.5km walk across Moine Mhor to Mullach Clach a' Bhlair. Fortunately I could see the whole route - I imagine this would be a pretty dull trudge in a pea soup. I was happy to have left the crowds behind - of the many people on SG only a few were making the walk to MCaB. The views to the "backside" of Braeriach were impressive and I made a decision to do it from the Loch Einich approach in the summer.
Luck seemed to be on my side as several hail showers passed by on either side of me. About 2 hours walking (with the occasional break) from SG brought me to the unassuming top of MCaB, which I had to myself. There were views south to Beinn Dearg in Atholl and I could trace the bizarre course of the River Feshie to its' source.
Now I had the longish walk back to the car. I descended along the Landrover track on the western side of MCaB cutting off to the north just before the forest is reached. This path is not marked on the Landranger map but it is a slight shortcut compared to following the track right down to the river. I passed through some lovely old pine woods before entering the newer plantations below Meall nan Sleac. A couple of the forest tracks required a little blind faith but I knew I was going in pretty much the right direction. By the time I emerged at the Allt Garbhlach the sun was shining and it was a lovely evening. I stripped off several layers and converted my trousers into shorts for the final 2km by the River Feshie to the carpark.
Distance covered: 23-24km. Height gain: approx 980m. Time: approx 8 hours.
