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We arrived at the main car park for this hike at the back of 9 on a Sunday morning. It was already busy, and I couldn't really see a space that wasn't likely to block someone. So I drove on and fortunately found a small lay-by a couple of hundred meters along, with only one other car in it.
We walked back along the side of the road and through the original car park to the start of the walk. People were still attempting to squeeze their cars in, and it all looked a bit chaotic.
- Alternative parking place, looking back up towards the main car park
We followed the Allt A' Gharbh-Choire burn east upstream towards the first Munro, Càrn an Tuirc. We mistakenly crossed near the start and had to cross back when we realised - not the best start!
- Allt A' Gharbh-Choire
- Following the burn upstream towards Càrn an Tuirc
We left the burn and continued on up Càrn an Tuirc. There was hardly a breath of wind, and the midges were pretty bad (by east of Scotland standards at least). We got onto a seemingly lesser used path, which we had to ourselves until it rejoined the other path further up. I assume this was because it isn't marked on the OS map, but is on the online map I used to plan the route.
The path got steeper further up, and there were any number of ways through the large rock field that stretched up to the summit.
- View north from near the top of Càrn an Tuirc
- It gets quite rocky near the top
There was a large cairn at the summit, a shelter and at least one other smaller cairn. It truth, there was so much rock there could have been a bungalow, driveway and twin garage
- The shelter on top of Càrn an Tuirc
Having done the hard climbing for the day, we continued round to the second Munro, Cairn of Claise, via the bealach between the two.
- Heading down, looking towards Cairn of Claise
- At the bealach between the two Munros
- Looking back at Càrn an Tuirc
Another rocky summit with a decent cairn and good views to the nearby Glas Maol and the more distant Mayar.
- The summit cairn on Cairn of Claise
- Monega Hill, with Mayar further out
- Glas Maol
- Càrn an Tuirc
Further round, we stopped briefly at a cairn on slightly higher ground near the southern extent of our walk, with a good view over Garbh-choire to both the day's Munros.
- View of both Munros from the south
From here it was an easy walk along the wide ridge to Sron Na Gaoithe - another fine viewpoint.
- Cairn of Claise
- Càrn an Tuirc
- Walkiing the ridge to Sron Na Gaoithe
- Looking north along the pass from Sron Na Gaoithe
- The Cairnwell and Càrn Aosda
- Looking back at Sron Na Gaoithe cairn
Back down to the car park there were even more cars squeezed in, and overflowed out onto the side of the road. It looked like it would be mighty tight for some of them to get out. I was glad we had opted for the slightly extended walk down to the lay-by!
- Back down
