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- The Cruachan peaks
- Summit cairn of Beinn Eunaich
Having previously done Beinn a'Chochuill on a snowy day and missed out on its neighbour due to a member of our group needing off the hills, I returned to claim it on the basis of it being less than 2 hrs to the start point from the central belt, a single Munro to take me to 97 and a step closer to the century milestone and 1 summit all my energy levels could manage.
Parked at the lay-by just shy of Castles Farm, I set off at 9.15am on a lovely sunny warm day knowing that ahead lay the long track to the base of a'Chochuill going right past the pile of stones marking the end of the descent route coming off Eunaich.
Upon reaching the descent end point I stopped for a breather and looked ahead to the steep path up the front of a'Chochuill, with the drop to the bealach between it and it's neighbour also starting to come into view.
A decision to make: do I climb it, drop to the bealeach and make the ascent up to my target for the day? Or... do I take the ascent up the steep crumbling rocky path coming off Eunaich's ridge?
I'd seen a video in the days before of someone going this way and doing full route anticlockwise. I'd also spoken to a pal who'd come off the descent path and spoke of how slippy and slidey and knee wrecking it was.
Did I really need the ascent of a'Chochuill not to revisit it and then add the climb up to the top of Eunaich?
Decision made, off I went slowly and carefully making my way up the 300m nesr vertical path of loose stone and rocks. Conditions were very dry so many sections of it were extremely loose and care was taken going section by section up it. I eventually levelled out and reached the giant peat hag that serves as a marker for coming off the ridge.
A fairly steady and sustained pull up from here saw the path wind up first along the wide grassy ridge before navigating across and through some rockier, stepper terrain. I wouldn't have called them false summits, but this section below the summit seemed never ending and I caught myself talking out loud more than once urging the mountain to just stop this nonsense and present me with the top.
Tired legs took me up to the final push to the summit cairn, which by this time was like that last wee pull up and even this early in May pretty bug infested. Nothing of the biting kind, but plenty of wee black flies to be a nuisance and cover both arms.
A couple of quick photos and a decision to retrace my steps rather than drop off to the bealeach and either track a stream from the low point back to the track or worse climb up the flanks of a'Chochuill.
Based on knowing my footing having come up the way I was intending returning, I made it back to the peat hag and started to drop down.
Again great care and many quick breathers were taken especially through the higher rockier section of the steep path.
At one point I swore someone was behind me (I'd not seen anyone else out at all) and turned to see a rock rolling towards me dislodged by a sheep and her lamb. It tumbled harmlessly by but what an ending that could have been!
The steepness of the path took me back quickly enough to the hydro track and back to the farm and the parking spot.
A satisfying day ticking off the last of the Dalmally / Loch Awe group with stunning views up high into Glen Kinglass and over to the Cruachan peaks.