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The last of Tain Subs

The last of Tain Subs


Postby BlackPanther » Thu Mar 10, 2022 6:47 pm

Sub 2000' hills included on this walk: Cnoc Corr Guinie

Date walked: 27/02/2022

Time taken: 2 hours

Distance: 7.3 km

Ascent: 213m

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The last weekend of February brought me a lot of stress, both mentally (the war so close to Polish borders!) and physically (a bad case of migraine and sore tummy). I wasn't able to do much on Saturday and on Sunday, I just about managed a local Sub. Originally, we had planned to climb Cnoc Corr Guinie from Strathrory car park, using forest tracks to do "some kinda circular" but I was in no shape to do any forest bashing today, so it was just the simple up-and-down the quickest route.

Track_CNOC CORR GUINIE 7.3KM.gpx Open full screen  NB: Walkhighlands is not responsible for the accuracy of gpx files in users posts


We parked at the entrance to the forest near Strathy junction - there's room for several cars if parked carefully. The day was sunny but quite windy and we were glad to be protected by the forest. Some snow on the ground but it was all melting quickly:
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 002.JPG

Kevin led the way, making sure we took the right way on junctions. I felt like a zombie panther today, just following him wherever he was going...
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 005.JPG

After about 3km, we reached the spot where we should leave the wide track and take a minor path to the summit...
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 006.JPG
It is here somewhere...

...but we were surprised by the number of firebreaks and rough tracks, all leading up in the same direction. Pick the best one if you can!
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 009.JPG
Is it here?

Having dismissed a few entrances as too much rough going to our taste, eventually we found the right path. It can be recognized by a large tree stump to the right hand side (see picture below):
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 010.JPG
The right path!

The path was covered in melting snow and in warmer times it might be boggy but we were glad to have an easy approach to the Sub summit, rather than practice tree bashing (see Mount Eagle!).
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 013.JPG

The path vanishes on the summit area, which was once covered by dense forest. I said "was" because Cnoc Corr Guinie is currently undergoing extensive tree-felling operations that even the very top couldn't escape :( We found a good spot for taking a few snaps just west of the large summit cairn:
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 015.JPG
Beinn Tarsuinn

2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 017.JPG
Ben Wyvis

Kevin on the summit. Our sub no. 65.
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 030.JPG

From the cairn, the only reasonable views are to the south and east...
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 021.JPG
Cromarty Firth and the wintering oil rigs - the sleeping giants...

2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 024.JPG
The neighbouring Sub, Cnoc an t-Sabhail (West) also affected by tree felling

After a short break by the cairn, we had a look at a possible circular route, descending NW to another forest track, this one along Allt na h-Iolaire. This track then could be followed around Druim nam Fiadh (the lower top with TV mast). On another occasion, we might have had a go at it but today I was feeling knackered... The fact that we'd have to cross a large area of freshly felled forest didn't help...
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 038.JPG
Ehm... No, thank you...

If you decide to be more adventurous than us, please be extremely careful when going of piste on this hill. The forestry work is still going on an on the day we visited Cnoc Corr Guinie, the newly cut trees haven't even been collected. The approach we used is safe, but any attempts of a circular might be problematic.
2022-02-27 cnoc corr guinie 035.JPG
Beinn Tarsuinn and the felled trees

Summing up, not a hill I'd be eager to return to, maybe in full winter conditions as a short walk. But winter is nearly over and I'm looking forward to more ambitious stuff now - bring on Corbetts and Munros!

My wishes were granted the following weekend. Weather was superb and we managed two fantastic higher mountains - both routes we had done before, but wanted to repeat them in winter/early spring conditions. I dropped my yaktraks and almost became snowblind, Kevin marched up snowy slopes in shorts :shock: and for a couple of days, we were living in a different world. TRs in progress.
User avatar
BlackPanther
Mountain Walker
 
Posts: 3839
Munros:268   Corbetts:182
Fionas:136   
Sub 2000:75   
Joined: Nov 2, 2010
Location: Beauly, Inverness-shire

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