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Monday, 29th. May
After a night of some snoring in the “Eagle” hobbit hut on the Atholl Estate, Alex, Chalky and I gathered our things together, parked our car under a tree on the road to Loch Moraig and set off to walk towards Braemar over the intervening mountains. Beinn a’Ghlo was first up and, carrying big bags under a hot sun, getting up the steep south-western slopes of Carn Liath took some resolve. We were, though, only travelling to Loch Loch at the north-eastern end of the range so we could afford to spend time on the summit talking rubbish to each other, failing to pronounce Gaelic names and taking in the wide ranging views. Inevitably, though, we felt an urge to move on after an hour or two and trundled on to Bràigh Coire Chruinn-bhalgain and then, after another longish break, on to Càrn nan Gabhar.
- Chalky on Carn Liath looking north east towards the high Cairngorms (29.05.2023.)
- Me, hiding from the sun on the summit of Braigh Coire Chruinn-bhalgain (29.05.2023.)
- Chalky and me on the summit of Carn nan Gabhar (29.05.2023.)
- The summit of Carn nan Gobhar looking south west to Schiallion and Ban Lawyers (29.05.2023.)
A brief discussion about descent routes (eastern spur or northern slopes?) saw us descend into Coire Cas-eagallach and make our way down to the idyllic pale sandy beaches at southern end of Loch Loch just before the sun dipped behind Carn nan Gobhar. We got the tents up before Alex and Chalky refreshed themselves with a swim and then we cooked the usual chicken noodle soup and pasta-based stuff as the shade intensified and temperatures dropped.
- Arriving at Loch Loch with shade already moving east and the tents already going up (29.05.2023.)
- An evening swim at Loch Loch (29.05.2023.)
A final nip of whisky saw us retire to our sleeping bags content with our lot.
- The route over Beinn a'Ghlo
I had picked this camping spot – Loch Loch below Creag an Loch in Glen Loch – off the map a couple of years previously and it was decidedly gratifying to be able to enjoy being in such a beautiful location with no midges to distract from the perfect weather. I couldn’t imagine wanting to be anywhere else.
Next Report:
https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=118820.