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Munros: Gleouraich, Spidean Mialach.
Date: 03/11/2024.
Distance: 17.5km.
Ascent: 1250m.
Time taken: 7 hours 30 minutes.
Weather: Calm and grey with low cloud, aside from the top 100m.
David said he would be up in the Highlands this weekend so we decided to get up some hills. Jackie has been suffering with some kind of trapped nerve for the last couple of months so was staying mostly away from hills, but fortunately the injury wasn't causing any issues with cycling. So we landed on a plan to go down to Loch Quoich. She would visit Kinloch Hourn on the bike and then head for Invergarry and possibly home, while David and I went up a couple of straightforward Munros.
We met David just after 8am at the foot of Gleouraich - almost on time. This felt like being early to me so I ran Jackie a bit further down the road, to the high point above Kinloch Hourn, before returning to David. I had an alternative to the regular route in mind, which David was OK with.
Loch Quoich Rather than head straight up Gleouraich, we headed west along the road for a bit until just before the bridge over the little finger of Loch Quoich. From here we followed a new track to Alltbeithe (missing from my map - presumably built as construction access for the series of hydropower schemes that are up this glen). We passed an airstrip which looked to have been done up recently, and the cottage of Alltbeithe with a windsock outside of it. Then it was along a new track to a hydro scheme weir which we used to cross the river.
Airstrip at Alltbeithe 
Rowan 
Sron na Breun-Leitire 
Crossing the Easter Glen Quoich Burn On the other side of the weir we found we had actually missed the line of the stalkers path we were aiming for, and should have crossed the river sooner. We soon picked the path up. Like its counterpart above Loch Quoich this path has a lot of zigzags in it and can be seen clearly from a distance. Unlike that path it is barely used, and less distinct close up. There are a couple of short steeper sections that feel newer than the rest of it as well - more bulldozed than placed by hand - but not new enough to stand out from further back. Although the hillside was steep the path made relatively easy work of it aside from a couple of short sections where it had slipped away. We entered the cloud at this point, unsure when we might emerge again.
Might break out of this... After passing the end of the stalker's path and reaching the summit of Sron na Breun-Leitire, there was still nothing to see and we even had to get the map out briefly to see which way to go. Once headed in the correct direction, the N ridge of Gleouraich loomed out of the mist looking very steep and rocky. I hadn't bothered to read up on this ridge (I don't think there is a great deal of information available) but it had always looked interesting to me from the surrounding hills - especially with a good path as an approach. Now I was wondering if I should have thought a bit more about it! The rock was very slabby and slippery but as we got closer we discovered that we didn't actually need to set foot on it very often, with easy rakes of grass to follow on the western side. The ridge narrowed down and then...
Fog bow 
Brocken Spectre on the N ridge of Gleouraich Suddenly things were looking very promising indeed as we broke free of the cloud, with a fog bow and Brocken Spectres galore
. The upper section of the ridge provided some lovely narrow grassy sections before we made a longer traverse to the west to avoid the final slabs. Then we were on the main route up with warm sunshine on our backs.
Slabby section of ridge 
Approaching Gleouraich It was absolutely excellent up here - warm and calm with a sea of cloud in all directions. To the west there were very few islands as the top of the cloud was above 900m, obliterating most hills. Southeast was Ben Nevis, standing way above the inversion.
Finally free of the cloud 
East to Spidean Mialach We bumped into various people, all of who had been at the foot of the hill before we had started, everyone happy with the way the day had turned out. In the end we continued to the eastern summit of the hill before stopping but we had a good long break. We had taken so long to get here that Jackie was now in Fort Augustus and contemplating the final big hill home via Loch Tarff.
Spidean Mialach was only a few meters lower but faring less well in the cloud - even in the time we had been above it, it appeared to have become more engulfed. Would it still be clear when we got there?
Ben Nevis to the south 
Another look east 
Back to Gleouraich 
Spidean Mialach still just clear We plunged back into the murk on our descent - the way is obvious and small sections of path are even slabbed, most likely remnants of an old stalker's path rather than anything more recent. We seemed to go down an awfully long way, which obviously meant lots of re-ascent too. I hadn't really looked too hard at the map and assumed that there was less than 150m of drop between these two hills, but it is more like 250m.
Back into the mist As we levelled out, we could feel the sun through the clouds but would it clear? Not really on the first bump but thankfully the highest point was just out. Knowing we would lose the sun for the rest of the day once we descended, we hung around here for a while.
Thankfully clear when we finally get there 
David on Spidean Mialach 
Back to Gleouraich Eventually it was time to go down. This is fine higher up but deteriorates into bog at round about 700m. Still it isn't that bad compared to some hills, and after we emerged from the cloud we were able to spot the end of the stalker's path that would take us back to Loch Quoich. A new hydro scheme track to the east almost tempted us away but appeared to be a slightly longer route with no real benefit. The stalker's path was way better than it looked from a distance and before too long we were back on the road. 5 minutes later we were drinking tea before heading off, me hopeful that the car battery wouldn't be dead again (thankfully it wasn't).
Loch QuoichWhen I reached the A87 and called Jackie, she had just got in the door having cycled the last 40 minutes or so back to Inverness in the gathering darkness. A great day all round!
