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Yesterday morning we swapped the mist of Inverness for the blue sky and sunshine of Perthshire to climb Beinn a' Chuallaich. I'd read reports of toxic spraying of bracken on the east side of Beinn a' Chuallaich so our plan was to use the stalker's path to reach the summit from the west side and return down the south ridge.
We drove south from Trinafour and passed the WH recommended starting point, noting a couple of other potential parking spaces on the way to the junction with the road to Kinloch Rannoch. We saw the house we'd have to walk round to reach the stalker's path and a wide gravel area on the left side of the road beside a sign saying "Loch Rannoch Timber Transport Route Improvement". I tucked the car into the side of the space so it wouldn't obstruct any potential timber lorries and we booted up. It was 9.30 by the time we started walking and already very warm but with a pleasant breeze to keep us comfortable.
We set off along the road in the direction of Kinloch Rannoch, soon turning right on to a track with a not too visible sign behind a gate saying "Path to hill". We walked towards the house passing a fragile looking stile that had seen better days over the barbed wire fence on our left. I wondered if that was where we were meant to go but since the person who wrote the report about this approach hadn't mentioned a stile we kept going as far as the house. The track ended and there was no obvious way round the house so we went through a gate opposite, kept to the edge of the field and got round the house to the grassy hillside behind.
Gate into field
Sheep
I hadn't brought Keira as we were in an official heatwave and black dogs don't do well in the midday sun. I hate not bringing her as she loves being out in the hills but it was for her sake I didn't. However when I saw sheep dotted across most of the lower half of our hill I thought it was just as well I didn't have her as she'd have been on the lead for a good part of the day.
The sheep made off up a steep path beside the deer fence which we had no intention of following. Instead we were going through the gate.
Sheep path
Gate man at first gate through new deer fence
View back to Schiehallion and Dunalastair reservoir
Schiehallion is one of those distinctive peaks that hill walkers can't help themselves from trying to spot from almost anywhere in the land, even when it's only a tiny triangle in the far off distance. Today there was no getting away from its distinctive shape. It had a strange effect on Ian who by the end of our climb up Beinn a' Chuallaich had mapped out in his mind his next ascent up Schiehallion by its west ridge.
The Hill of the Fairies from a bit further up
Ian at second gate through deer fence
About here we saw an eagle soaring above us, I think a golden, but difficult to see clearly against the sun.
Track weaving through swathes of bracken
No idea if this bracken had been sprayed or not but it looked healthy enough. As far as I'm aware sheep don't eat bracken and if they did there wouldn't be any need to spray it.
Me going off track to get a photo of Loch Rannoch (Ian's photo)
Loch Rannoch
Loch Rannoch closer
Sweet smelling heather
Path through old dry stone dyke
Looking back down stalker's path
Our route wasn't as the crow flies but we had decided to stay on the stalker's path as far as the bealach then turn off it to the east, crossing a short area of peat hags, which were no problem as dry as bone to walk over, before a final short climb to the summit.
Loch Rannoch west from the bealach
Zoomed west across Rannoch Moor
Final steep bit before the summit
It was easy to avoid the crags by keeping to the right of them and soon the summit cairn was visible. As I walked closer I could see that one of my fleeter of foot walking buddies had shimmied up there and was now adorning its top like an out of place garden gnome. It wasn't the younger of the two either!
Summit cairn
To reassure the fiercely leave-things-as-you-find-them brigade, he climbed down carefully, not putting a stone out of place. Then it was my turn to have a moment with the grandson, as is customary beside piles of stones usually found at summits, this one a bit larger than most. There was a trig point too.
Beinn a' Chuallaich summit 892m
Ian and Finlay
Cairn still intact
The view was breath-taking, with Loch Tummel to the east, Schiehallion, Glen Lyon and the Lawers hills to the south, the unmistakeable shapes of Ben More and Stob Binnein, Ben Challum, then as far as Ben Cruachan, the Orchy hills and along the length of Loch Rannoch to Glencoe and the Mamores. Before anyone wonders, we could indeed make out the shape of Ben Nevis with a little cap of cloud shrouding its top, then round to the Grey Corries, the Ben Alder massive and the hills of Drumochter.
Looking west
Zoomed to hills around Glencoe
A faint path headed off from the summit down the broad south ridge with a "follow me" look about it. So rather than retracing our steps to the stalker's path and knowing it was the WH recommended descent we followed it.
South from the top
Easy walking on short grass
Finlay and me on descent (Ian's photo)
Into the heather again
Looking back up towards the summit
We came to a point where we could see the higher gate through the deer fence and it was tempting to make a beeline for it. But there wasn't a clear passage to it with signs of recent tree planting so we veered to the right with a short crossing of heather to reach the stalker's path and back on to familiar ground.
The dry stone wall and sheep again
East to outline of Beinn a' Ghlo and Ben Vrackie
Dunalastair reservoir and I could see my car
This time for variety we made straight for the fence rather than go round the house. There was an old wooden stile contraption standing slightly away from the fence so no help at all. The fragile stile we'd passed on the walk in was so wobbly that stepping on it would probably cause complete collapse so I took off my rucksack to squeeze through the fence wires, carefully avoiding the barbed one. Then sharp eyed Finlay noticed a place where the barbed wire had been cut and folded back making it easy to step through. So we did that and were quickly on to the track that led down to the road and back at the car where we opened all the doors to let some cooler air in.
We were soon heading north again via the Trinafour minor road on its merry roller coaster way over the wide and open spaces back to the busy A9. The fast moving traffic felt another world away from the hill we'd climbed where we'd not seen another soul all day. It had been a fabulous day in Perthshire at its best. A perfect day with the sweet smell of heather, a good stalker's path, wonderful views, just enough breeze to keep us cool and miraculously no biting insects.