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The start of this didn't bode well. Having done Lurg Mhor and Cheesecake yesterday, I was down to two bars of charge on the E-bike. We had parked overnight at the Strathcarron Hotel enjoying their facilities for £5 a head. Thought I'd just take the battery out and charge it over dinner (offering to pay of course) but damn it, the key had been forgotten and there was no-where to plug it directly in.
I'd cycled the same route last year to do the other two Munros in here so knew there were some nasty slopes to get up. I managed it before on my normal bike with a bit of pushing but the e-bike is much heavier so was feeling a tad anxious.
With the e-assist switch in the off position, we set off. Hubby on his gravel bike. Hit the first hill and flicked the switch to eco, then tour mode just to save getting off. The hills went on for longer than I remembered and of course we were cycling further in. I was soon down to one bar and switched off again to freewheel down to where we dumped the bikes. Got here in an hour which was pretty good going.
This was where the pleasantness ended. Path!!!! What path!!! there then ensued a boggy, peat hag, boring, seemingly endless existence up the shoulder which got steeper and steeper to the extent that my poles were looped over my wrists and I was dragging them as I clung on to tussocks to get to the top of Carn nam Fiaclan.
- I'm not happy
At last the gradient eased off and it was and easy walk round the plateau on thankfully a fine day so the views were nice. After reaching the summit, it was a similar trudge back down, with about three feet of path every kilometre or so. I didn't even have a coming off the hill ear worm in my head as this was total concentration of navigating constantly and watching where to put my feet.
- Faking happiness
Last year my pal had been keen to do this along with the other two but I was particularly knackered that day after a crap night with midges in a tent at Kinlochewe and baking, muggy heat. But seeing and experiencing it on a day like today, which was pretty perfect, I think she would have had to carry me back out kicking and screaming that I'd never climb another hill in my life.
- Pathfinding - there ain't one!
At last we reached the slow moving burn and I found an antler. Crossed, got back on bikes and took us 30 minutes back to the van. The one bar of charge got me up a wee slop then it was freewheeling most of the way.
- Last one home is a big jessie
- Think they might want their antler back!
Beastie count - 3 midge bites though I wasn't aware of them at the time, only in the heat of a shower at the end of the day. 1 tick bite, also noticed in shower and it got me on the fleshy part of my back, which was covered all the time - just goes to show how they linger on your clothes and home in later.