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Two weeks ago when we strolled casually along Gleann Meinich, we discussed a possible traverse of Meall na Faochaig using this glen as a descent route. We had climbed the Graham before as well as some of its outlying tops, but we always dropped down to the south, to Loch Beannacharain. The new idea was to climb the main summit first then traverse to Cnap na Feola, then descend NW into the upper Gleann Meinich. Initially, we considered climbing up via Creag na Saile, but practicality prevailed and in the end we reached the top using the easy route up the old stalkers track from Inverchoran.
We parked in a large layby just past Glenmeanie and walked along the road for 3.5km to reach the start of the stalkers track:
The day was rather cold and cloudy, little wind in the glen but we expected it might get blowy on higher ground so packed up extra layers and ski gloves.They proved useful later.
Looking back to Inverchoran from the start of the hill track:
A glimpse of hope for better weather - bright spells to the west:
The track turns sharply at 300m, leading to a small mast on Creag Iucharaidh. We had detoured to this little top (a good viewpoint) on one of our previous visits to Meall na Faochaig, so today we didn't bother, we left the track and aimed straight up the slope. The ground was still frozen after the cold night, so at least we didn't drown in bog:
The summit of Bac na Eich across the glen:
Not much to say about the climb itself, just a straightforward slope, mostly grassy, a few rocks here and there. Views got better as we gained height, sadly no sunny spells for us today
On a good day, the peaks of Strathfarrar are very prominent to the south, but today it was all grey and gloomy:
Higher up we encountered some snow, it was frozen solid, good support for crampons if you ventured to Munro height:
A short walk east along the ridge brought us to the summit. Meall na Faochaig is a hill we know well, but always a pleasure to revisit, even if the more distant views are a bit dodgy:
Looking west to upper Strathconon:
The bulky shape of Meallan nan Uan and Sgurr a Mhuillin group including the infamous Salamander wall, a bit murky today but still tempting ;P
The ridge we were planning to traverse. On a good day, Cnap na Feola is framed by more distant shapes of the Fannichs, Fionn Bheinn and Slioch (see my
old report for better pictures). We had been to Cnap na Feola before and we remembered that the connection between the two is very wet and peat-haggy, but a line of old fenceposts serves a s a good navigational guide.
Looking down to Inverchoran from the summit ridge:
Meall na Faochaig is less than 700m but it was windy enough now to make us feel frrrrezing! Extra layers of clothing came out, bodywarmers and ski gloves. Winter on the hills is not over just yet!
Once well wrapped up, we set of on our boggy traverse. And discovered, to our delight, that most of the bog was just as frozen as we felt
We could walk across peat hags without hesitation, occasionally admiring "peat sculptures":
Today I prefer icicles to a mudbath
We kept close to the edge of the impressive cliffs falling down to Gleann Meinich, stopping from time to time for photos:
The Salamander seen from across the glen:
The actual top is called Creag Ghlas, here seen from a viewpoint above a small waterfall:
Lower Gleann Meinich and Meallan nan Uan:
At some point we scared away a small herd of deer:
The ridge drops to 500m just before Cnap na Feola, this is the most peat-haggy part of the traverse:
Weather deteriorated as we neared the top of Cnap na Feola, even a quick snow shower passed over us. Nothing unusual for early March:
View back east from the top, looking back to the western ridge of Meall na Faochaig:
Cnap na Feola is a TUMP but not much more... Even the cairn is tiny:
Upper Strathconon from Cnap na Feola:
During our previous visit to this top, we dropped south to Strathconon, over Meal Dubh and back to the road just up from Carnoch, but this time we had different plans. After a short snack and tea break, it was time to aim NW towards a small top (524m) and then down into the upper end of Glean Meinich. Apart from a few snow patches and some wet ground on lower slopes, we encountered no problems:
Creag Ghlas and Sgurr a'Ghlas Leathaid from the upper Gleann Meinich:
Water levels in local streams have dropped significantly since our previous visit here two weeks ago, but the glen is still an amazing place:
So our Strathconon adventure ended with a lovely walk back down Gleann Meinich. Even the crossing of Allt a'Droighinn proved little more than a single hop:
Looking back into the glen, weather didn't improve much throughout the day:
Summing up, not a huge walk but considering the cold, windy weather, this was as much was we could do. Hopefully, next time we'll venture a bit higher, maybe onto the wild Munros of Glen Affric?