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This week's tune is "The wind and More" by RoKy Erickson - just because there was a fair bit of it going about, courtesy of Storm Otto.
I had planned to do the oft-postponed Beinn Mhic Chasgaig, along with Fraochaidh and maybe the three Balcardine Grahams. But, once again, weather got in the way of those ideas - more rainfall meant crossing the River Etive wasn't going to be easy enough to manage and the wind speed suggested camping down at Tyndrum way would be preferable to facing the fury up at Kingshouse. That was a lesson learned a fortnight ago, so there was no argument about where we'd camp on Thursday night. The storm wasn't meant to come in til about 3am, so we checked the orientation of the tent as we pitched, to avoid any middle of the night surprises. Rain began around midnight and the winds picked up earlier than forecast: fortunately the spot we'd chosen was reasonably sheltered.
Out into the wind and rain on Friday morning to drive up to Kingshouse. With Mhic Chasgaig off the menu we needed something manageable in the wind - a trip along to Stob na Cruaiche seemed a good idea - we'd be on track for miles, with the wind behind us - hopefully it would have dropped as forecast by the time we turned and came back. We'd done this route last June and remembered it well - good track to the base of the hill and something of a soggy ATV track up from there. Some new tree planting going on past Black Corries Lodge, a pair of eagles circling the high ground as we stopped for our lunch. We had bursts of sunshine, revealing quite a lot of snow on the Mamores, but thankfully none on our hill. Then the sky would darken and a new wave of grim snow clouds would form behind us, blocking out the sun but never seeming to engulf us. The wind extended a helping hand on our backs, but didn't really seem that strong. Summit reached, we set about following our outward path back down. We passed a mum and baby goat beside the Black Corries Lodge - the kid kept running towards Allison making the sweetest little "mew" noises, while she was trying to shepherd it back to its mum, wary of getting a pair of curved horns in the guts from a disgruntled parent. As we walked further back along the track we came to a stand-off between a herd of maybe 15goats on one side of the track and perhaps 100 deer on the other. Once again there was a tiny kid, running away from its mum, right at - you guessed - Allison. She clearly has some magnetic properties when it comes to goats.
Why bother getting out the car?
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
Snow on the Mamores
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Al, on Flickr
Weather on its way
0D36621E-3ED1-467B-A8E8-B4944FF8FC6F_1_201_a by
Al, on Flickr
...but not on our hill
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Al, on Flickr
Schiehallion in distant view
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Al, on Flickr
Moody Creise
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
As you walk the final couple of kilometres to the Kings House, the Buachaille takes centre stage, just such a dramatic mountain. I don't tire of seeing that aspect and of course, took a couple more pictures, though heaven knows how many there are already in my reports. We were back at the car not much after 5 and decided to pitch at the back of Kings House, which had dried off a bit since your last attempted stay here a fortnight ago, when all was under water. No other campers or even vans tonight, got a fairly good slumber despite the rain.
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
Forecast for Saturday seemed to be sunshine early and then rain and cloud after lunchtime. We were not up early enough to really benefit from this - it looked like there was an inversion in place as we packed up the tent and headed along to Duror to take on Fraochaidh. Reader, you know that I try and use different routes where I can (or when I can be bothered), so it was pleasing for our third time up Fraochaidh to be using a third route. First time it was our Corbett completion and we went in from Glen Creran. Second time, the longer but more dramatic route from Ballachulich. So today we'd use first tracks in from Duror. I'd say this is the easiest (and quickest) route, although the one from Ballachulich is prettier. When you have visibility.
We parked at the community centre - we'd used this for the Marilyn of Ardshiel Hill behind it once, back in the crazy days when we bothered to climb Marilyns. I dare say you can park a bit closer, but there's a nice enough walk along a cycle way that leads right to the forest track. Good quality forest road at first, then steeper bulldozed track through new plantings and finally through some mature trees and out onto the open hillside. Raindrops clung to the foliage, sparking like diamonds in the sunshine.
Saving some for later...
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
Jewelled tree
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Al, on Flickr
Nice views back to the Ardgour hills
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
View back towards Ballachulich
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
The next third is soggy tussock and heather, quite slow going until you reach the ridge itself. We met a woman with two dogs then a man who'd come up from Glen Duror, finding a new track somewhere to the north of the 718m height past Bealach Dearg. I had found a route on OS Maps that suggested going through the trees just after Bealach Dearg and meeting up with the (marked) forestry track there, which would take us back down by Seumas A'Ghlinne's birthplace. We asked the man if that looked feasible but he said it was all mature trees there with no obvious break through them. We continued towards the summit, encountering odd patches of snow, but nothing to justify having brought the ironmongery with us. Clag at the summit, nice memories of having ended our first round here back in late 2015. Given the conditions (clag and threatening rain) we decided that returning by our outbound route would be preferable to battling our way though forest. Back at the car before 4pm with plenty of time to get where we wanted to go before dark fell.
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
But where did we want to go? The forecast for Sunday was grim -all day rain and increasingly strong winds. Not ideal for the Balcardine Grahams, which would benefit from somewhat better conditions. We decided to go for Mam na Gualainn (which Allison needed) and Tom Mheadoin, which I needed, meaning the obvious place to camp was by the shore of Loch Leven. No other tents there, we were doing well this weekend! Lugged the kit over from the car, hoped that things would dry off a little before the rain came back on and soaked everything again. Huel, chocolate, coffee then a beer and crisps in the tent whilst we finished Jane Eyre - a book we seem to have been reading forever.
Sunday began as promised - clag down and drizzle. We packed up and drove the couple of miles to the starting point for the walk, up the old coffin road to the bealach between the Corbett and Graham. Everything was soggy, but at leat there's something of a path. Don't be tempted to strike off for Mam na Gualainn before you reach the cairn marking the highest point of the pass (as I've done previously) - there's a clear path to the summit from the cairn. The wind was steadily rising as we climbed and the rain was becoming heavier. Over the curiously named Callert Lump and along the fence line to the trig. We tried to find a sheltered spot to have an early lunch but didn't manage very well. I knew we were going to have the rain and strong wind in our faces for the next section
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
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Al, on Flickr
Summit Gualainn
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Al, on Flickr
Back down we went: I'd suggested to Allison she could bale and head back tot he car if she wanted, her not needing a third round of Grahams, but she decided to continue on. And all said, it's a pretty easy Graham - only 1.5km from the cairn and close to the minimum 150m ascent too - well worth doing if you are bagging the Corbett anyway. Soggy going until the hill itself is reached, mind. Back the way we'd come, rain still on and off and the wind cold as it propelled us along. Back at the car by just gone 2pm - an early finish today! Very windy driving across Rannoch Moor - I was glad not to be driving a high sided vehicle I can tell you
Tom Mheadhoin
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Al, on Flickr
0DA75EA1-32B4-43DD-A01A-5D26C8E59FF1_1_201_a by
Al, on Flickr.
