Spring sunburn in Affric

[JWCW2014]

Dear walkhighlands readers (and writers), I have to confess I have had a lazy year and believe I have yet to submit a report in all of 2024. Whilst it’s been a pretty dismal year weather wise I’ve still probably got about 15-20 reports to catch up on, many of them filled with photos of the dreech grey innards of wet clouds. So look forward to that….

I’ll start here and see how many I can catch up on.

1. Sgurr na Lapaich

It was mid May, in that halycon window when early spring storms have drifted away and an early taste of summer warmth arrives. And no midge yet. I took the van and slowly rolling down Glen Affric orange light interrupted by green leaves flashing in and out of the thick arrangements of lbrsnches. Winding round by the edge of the loch I reached the car park, parked up and heated some quick dinner before lounging on picnic benches. Through the gaps in the trees my position was overlooked by the slightly snow dusted Sgúrr na Lapaich that is the termination of the long ridge that rises above the north side of Loch Affric.

After a warm night I was up and moving by 6.30. In the humid early morning dampness clung to the ground and spread over the loch as I walked back up the road. I remained hopeful it would burn off, given how warm it was, though the sun had so far refused to give an indication it would battle through the fog.

2. Foggy

I took the hydro track up Gleann named Fiadh and made quick progress, the orange glow now more determined and breaking through the damp morning. The burns started to glow, mist rising from vegetation. I passed the track that turns off to Tom a’Choinich and it petered out into shorter slightly boggy sections.

3.

The day had fully arrived now, any clag in the glen burned off. The heat kept increasing and I’d barely started the ascent, starting to think it might be very warm day for a long walk. I stopped to drink and rested for a while, in the breeze less day the only sound was of running water and the occasional buzzing of insects.

4. Improv suncream

I ascended towards Sron Garbh, making slow progress under a hot sun. Part of the way up, I realised I had left the suncream behind and so fashioned this particularly trendy alternative. In a small eroded section of the slope a large and deep gathering of snow remained which I grabbed a few handfuls of to put under my cap. The temporary burning coldness was soothing.

5

As I reached the col between Sron Garbh and An-Leath Creag, finally arriving at the lip of the thinner section between the two tops the whole of Loch Mullardoch opened up. The fog now burned up for the most part still clung to the loch. As I climbed up the stony ascent of Sron Garbh - easy steps to the top, the sight grew even more impressive.

6. Loch Mullardoch and An-Leath Creagg

7.

I walked along the ridge towards Carn Eige, taking in the minor tops and bumps on the way. There’s a few easy scrambly sections, all avoidable. I was making pretty slow time but knew I had the daylight. I was however growing increasingly concerned with how quickly I was going through water and despite my makeshift sun protection, I was feeling far too hot and bordering on woozy.

8.

I stopped in the only patch of shade I could find and rested, the view back across the glen plenty entertainment for a short stop. Deer down in the glen had found snow patches to stand in in to cool down and I watched them for some time.

9. Deer

I reached the top of Carn Eige and m bumped into someone who was kind of enough to let me use some of their factor 30 (thanks!). There was a bit of cloud coming and going which helped, short periods of shade providing some respite from the heat.

10.

11.

I had a decision to make. Beinn Fhionnlaidh didn’t look far away, but I knew that tackling it from here and the. Pulling back up to the col and then over Mam Sodhail had a reputation of being far tougher than it looked. Consulting the map and establishing no real ‘easy’ way to tackle it separately I decided to go for it.

I made good time dropping height and crossing before starting the ascent. It was only a few hundred metres but felt far more, each step I took sending some pain through my head due an exertion headache (not uncommon, for me at least, in the heat). By the time I reached the summit I’d finished my water and was feeling a bit worse for wear (excuse the photo, several hours walking seems to have made me look like I’ve been abandoned at sea for several months).

12. Top or Beinn Fhionnlaidh

I stopped for a long while at the top, eating my peanut butter rolls and had a chat with two Irish guys who’d camped out and were headed down to get thr boat down loch Mullardoch. They’d an hour to get there and I wished them well (if you’re reading this, hope you made it).

13.

The shoulder up Carn Eige to the bealach between it and Mam Sodhail didn’t look too bad but felt much further than the map suggested. With no water I detoured down towards Glean a’Choillich where the map suggested there might be water but there was nothing but damp boggy ground.

Further along the slope was a very slow trickling burn which looked not hugely drinkable. It was then I discovered the new sustainable bottles have different threads to the old PET bottles and didn’t fit my filter. At this point the risk seemed sensible, I was overheating and fairly dehydrated. About 20 mins later, after drinking half a litre, I found a much faster running burn and refilled by bottle.

After making very slow progress up to the top of Mam Sodhail, stopping every 40m of ascent, and noting the time, I headed along the ridge towards Sgurr na Lapaich. The few people now long gone and it being later in the day I had the hill to myself. A cooling breeze arrived, welcome after hours and hours of direct sunshine.

14.

I reached the top of Sgurr na Lapaich and followed the edge of its face downhill. On reaching a grassier section I sat and admired the view down to Glen Affric, the sun now threatening to sink in the near future. I sat in that stillness for a time, the world around me, far down below my perch, looked still and empty like a museum model.

15.

Sgurr nan Conbhairean was lit up by light now starting to land at longer angles, leaving one side of slopes in shade. I was making hard work of losing height, eventually dropping down to the leveller terrain. Across path less heather and big, thankfully dry due to the dry spell that preceded my visit, I eventually reached a track.

16.

I hobbled on, as the sun grew dimmer throwing more and more land into shade as it dropped below the higher hills. I arrived back at the car park and lay down, dinner heating on the stove and, once eaten, I drifted off into an incredibly deep sleep.