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Another day off forced upon me by the European Time Directive and I was going to put it to good use. I was going to attempt something I had yet to accomplish... getting to the top of more than one munro on my own. Mishaps, ad hoc group joining and poor weather had prevented this in the past, but not today- I was determined to do this!
The weather forecast looked not too bad for the Crianlarich area, so I decided upon An Caisteal and Beinn a'Chroin. I read lots of reports on this walk and noted that bog trotting, scrambling and freaky rock growths featured heavily- great, I would definitely be looking forward to 2 out of 3 of these
Parked up the layby and opted for the strange shorts and gaiter combo as previously sported by Tomyboy73. And what a winning choice it turned out to be. The temperature was rising rapidly and it was great not to clothed head to toe in waterproofs for once.
The start of the walk takes you over a stile and into a swamp- bog just wouldn't do it justice. Oh yes 2 minutes after leaving the car I was up to my knees in mud. - great start!
Up onto the path and under the railway bridge.
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- Railway Bridge
And then over the River Falloch via a wooden bridge
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- Wooden bridge
As I looked out for the marker cairn to take me onto the path to start the ascent of Sron Gharbh, I saw this wee fella.
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- Yippee something that moves slower than me!
The path up is not fantastic but its easy enough to follow and the view back down is not too bad.
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- Back down path
Once over Sron Gharbh there are a couple of scrambly bits and then you are faced with a buttress to negotiate. Just follow the path round to the left and its easy enough to get onto the final path to the An Caisteal summit.
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- Number 43!
The wind was beginning to pick up and I ate my sandwiches in record time. I knew it was time to shift when I started to shiver and so it was on with my hat and fleece and packed up my things and headed south towards the path to Bealach Buidhe.
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- Path to bealach
Just as I thought that I would be having the walk all to myself I met two chappies who were doing the two hills but in the reverse order. They reassured me that I would have no problems on Beinn a Chroin and congratulated me on my choice of walking attire.
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- Nearly at the bealach
The final descent down to the bealach is pretty rocky, so I resorted to a fair amount of bum-shuffling to get there safely. Please note Mr D not all of us can stay er er ...upright for a hillwalk
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- Bum shuffle!
After a big boggy section the path improves and within about 20 minutes you face a bit of a scramble. It is really easy as there are plenty of foot and hand holds, with the biggest problem being your walking poles. I lobbed them as far ahead of me as possible and enjoyed getting stuck into the rocks. That's one of the good things about going on your own, you have to manage! No-one to shove your bum up for you or lend a helping hand!
Once you're passed this bit its a very easy walk to the first summit cairn. I was astonished at how easy it was. I was expecting much much worse and lo and behold I did it. I threw off my rucksack and gave the cairn a big kiss, no tongues though
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- Number 44!
My GPS said that I was 942m which meant I was on the true summit but in order to join the descent path you have to walk almost to the other cairn, so I decided to pay that a visit too. (sorry Bod!- you've made us all summit conscious!)
And so I departed a happy walker. The path down is a stinker, not difficult, just endless. But then it gets worse because for the bulk of the return it is over a pathless, knee-deep bog! Truly the worst ever! I was lucky, I was walking in beautiful sunshine with a gentle breeze, anything else would have been hellish!
Anyway I had quite a few things to distract me. Firstly a helicopter, I always have to fight the urge to wave at them in case they think I'm summoning help!
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- Au secours
Secondly , out of nowhere came a runner- he shouted 'nice bog' and carried on at speed!
And lastly the much promised rock growths...
And so I was nearly back at the start, but this time instead of crossing the swamp, I turned right after I went under the railway bridge and followed a cracking path that just adds a few minutes to your journey. Wish I did this the first time- eejit
