Carn a' Chlamain and Beinn Dearg

[clivew]

When I left Edinburgh I didn't intend to make this walk a marathon as my legs were still a little tight from my midweek late afternoon sprint up Mount Keen; but as I started the walk up Glen Tilt towards Carn a' Chlamain it was so enjoyable the thought of making a full day of it crept into my mind. It was 9.45 when I left the Bridge of Tilt car Park and headed up the Glen; followed the route alongside the firing range having checked out the Rangers website the night before to ensure the range wasn't in use. It's a great walk through the forestry and alongside the river, just the sort of walk you need to get your legs warmed up. The weather was warm with occasional sun shine but the tops of all the surrounding Munros were covered in cloud; I was hoping this would clear before I reached the summit (wrong again). I eventually turned off the track and started to climb; the views back down the Glen and across to the mighty Beinn a' Ghlo range opposite were fantastic. Enjoyed the remainder of the walk up to the summit of Carn a' Chlamain and reached it at about 13.00hrs, for a change the cloud was down on the top, couldn't see a thing. I sat and had a snack and pondered whether to carry on to Beinn Dearg or to turn around and walk back down the Glen. Fortunately I'm not the most sensible of people so decided to go for it and started planning my route towards Beinn Dearg.
Chose to walk on a compass bearing directly from the summit of Carn a' Chlamain, to the west of Braigh Sron Ghorm heading for the confluence of the two Burns just south of Loch Mhairc at map ref. 887 792. Thankfully my map reading skills hadn't deserted me and when I came out of the clouds my next destination was clearly visible a few K's ahead. The traverse towards the Loch was hard going in places but I made it in fairly good time and stopped here for a while for some grub. From here I took a westerly route to the summit of Elrig 'ic an Toisich and on towards Beinn Gharb, by now I was back up in the clouds and relying on my compass. From just below Beinn Gharb I took a southerly route towards Beinn Dearg; there was a very brief break in the cloud cover which confirmed I was spot on with my route and could see a faint path heading towards the summit which I reached at 16.00 hrs. Didn't stay long on the top just long enough to take a photo to confirm my presence and soon picked up the track heading south. The track off the summit is very easy to follow and I was soon out of the clouds and could see the long track heading back towards Glen Tilt wandering off into the distance. I'll leave out any reference to the route march back into Glen Tilt but just to say it is at times like this you wish you had a fold up bike in your back pocket. Eventually I reached the woods above the firing range and picked up my path back towards the car park in Bridge of Tilt which I reached at about 19.15, nine and a half hours after the start. My legs were a bit weary but I felt a great sense of achievement having completed the route in a not bad time. Stopped of at the Roundhouse in Blair Atholl for a well deserved pint of Strongbow before hitting the road back to Edinburgh. Phoned the better half on the way down the road and she suggested ordering a curry from Lancers in Stockbridge for my return; by the time I reached home and showered the curry arrived which was washed down with a couple of cans before I fell asleep on the settee watching Cold Play live from Glastonbury.
A great day out and surprise surprise I was still able to get up and walk the dog this morning.
NB my mileage and height gained is an estimate only; if anyone can give me a more accurate figure please let me know.