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The day was set and the invites had gone out and confirmed Louise, Stuart and Monty would be joining me for the Cairnwell 3.
I’d originally picked these as a relatively easy 3 in the haste to try and reach triple figures by the end of the year. I know these get a bad press due to the ski development, but the advantage of course being the high starting point, so I plotted the route intending to start up Cairnwell from the car park.
For anyone worried about these 3 not being the true Munro’s we all like to do, due to the aforementioned development, I can only suggest visiting in winter as hopefully the following report and pics will prove this is still a fine walk.
Having picked these, as you do from a large Munro map on my wall with straight line roads (well it isn’t a road map), I hadn’t realised actually how far away these were from Muir Of Ord ! So it was a 0430 alarm for me and out the house by 0520 to pick up Louise to arrive at the car park for 0900 ! I woke before the alarm anyway, its an age thing ! The good old satnav was used to navigate there, easier in the dark and apart from Billy Connolly telling us to bear right down a dead end road on route we arrived in good time.
As soon as I got out the car and saw the Cairnwell I had second thoughts about my idea to crack this one first….what was I thinking ! I know, its the plotting the route in the comforts of home with a few drams…idiot !
Booted up and ready to go we met up with Stuart and Monty at the café. Monty in ski attire (romper suit) as he was doing the round on skis…uphill stuff I thought,,impressive !
Monty suggested climbing Carn Aosda first and after my doubts when first seeing Cairnwell, I didn’t speak against it, just have to remember to follow my GPS in reverse order.
Its quite a surreal start with all the activity and buildings etc. but we were soon climbing at the side of the ski run up Aosda, and despite a couple of humps where it steepens, we were quickly up to the top of the ski tow, but not before a brief encounter with the ski patrol, who having apparently watched us climb all the way up, decided when we were only 20 yards from the top, to point out we should be walking in single file being it was a ski run….coming from London I had a few choice words going round in my head, but with a few nods and words from Monty we proceeded the last few yards. Leaving the skiers behind and into the wind the short ascent from here to the first summit of the day ! Some wind !
- 3 happy bunnies !
On descent I decided this was to be a balaclava, goggles and full mitts day and once changed off we went to descend in a SW direction to gain the intervening ridge between Cairnwell and Carn a’ Sac, without descending too far to avoid losing height and also running into the loch !
Snow cover was mixed, one minute hard enough and another crunch straight through, this was the story for much of the day. On the descent I thought this will be where we lose Monty as his skis kick in and he glides effortlessly down, but this was where he gave us his first demo in falling with style !
Now I’ve only been skiing once (and what a laugh it was too – never laughed so much on a weeks holiday) so I’m no expert but I do recall the hassle it is to get back up with two 6 foot planks on your feet ! Unfortunately Monty timed his falls (and yes there were a few more – sorry Monty) whenever we all had out cameras tucked away.
Gaining the ridge was where the wind kicked in, and boy some wind. I didn’t appreciate the windchill at this point as we were all suitably clad in goggles etc. and whilst walking keeping warm, you tend not to notice, and watching the spendthrift across the edge was quite a sight. As we progressed blue sky appeared above and the day was looking promising, as per the forecast I might add.
This part of the walk, as soon as you head away from Aosda, it is truly wild and your focus being ahead you can forget about the intrusions behind you, and apart from two other souls we saw as we approached Carn a’ Gheoidh, we saw no one else.
Views now opened up all around and thankfully with goggles one could face the wind and appreciate the wild beauty around us.
The final slopes of Carn a’ Gheoidh appeared before us, coming up quicker than I thought they would. The snow making distance deceptive as it had looked a good way off initially. With Monty leading the way, I hadn’t had to resort to map or GPS and just as well as map would probably be in Edinburgh by now !
Only one close encounter as Monty lost a glove but Stuart chased off after it in the direction of the corrie to our left, and managed to get it ! I recalled the contours of the corrie from the map and its pretty steep but thankfully, and I don’t know how given that wind, it couldn’t have gone far.
The final push up Carn a’ Gheoidh passed fairly easily, but the wind picked up and we huddled behind the summit cairn, as we witnessed the other two souls mentioned earlier put up just in front of us with their ‘shelter’, some sort of bivouac that flapped about considerably in the wind…god knows how you put it down without sailing off into the oblivion.
This was where the windchill was fully appreciated, despite being behind the cairn, most of the fingers on my right hand went numb in the time it took me to eat my pineapple chunks
! I tried putting on my other gloves/mittens but only managed the left and had to endure it to stuff the food down and get the mitt back on pronto. Apart from some coffee, which didn’t pour out properly as in my confusion I was pressing the wrong bloody button, I decided not to bother with anything else to eat !
So we ddn’t hang about here and although the wind was still with us, it decreased slightly once we descend from the summit, Monty giving another demo of falling with style on the descent !
The walk back along the ridge/corries was excellent, views all over and some impressive photo stops were had by all en route, target now the Cairnwell. Apart from the intense pain in my right hand as blood flow returned after its numbing on the summit Jeez it hurt !!! mittens did their job though, this section is suitably long enough to enjoy the relative wilderness before reaching ‘civilisation’ at the top of Cairnwell. Certainly sufficient to return to one day, in winter of course.
We had a short stop, on route, actually out of the wind for some grub. Incredible what a difference it makes when you find a spot out of it !
At the top of the Cairnwell ski tow, Monty departed us to make use of the run back down after removing his ‘grips’, which had enabled the uphill progress during the walk, clever stuff !
Then there were 3, so Louise, Stuart and myself continued up the short ascent to the Cairnwell, masts and all, one section of snow here suitably hard enough for crampons but being short lived they stayed in the sack.
Now I’m not one for man made objects on top of mountains, apart from the odd trig pillar, and I think nature agrees as it attempts to shroud these objects in ice possibly to hind their presence. The resulting effect is almost a thing of beauty with the ice formations and we found ourselves photographing it ! It also has its uses in it that it gave us respite from the wind again before we made our way off down the summit.
Summit photos taken, easier than those on route, couldn’t have the mitts off long enough for photos much of the way, we set about the descent.
Retracing our steps slightly off the summit and then a right turn between ski runs, with no skiers (the lift was not in use), ice axes in hand in place of poles now, I’d remembered the steepness viewed at the start. However, it wasn’t too bad and the snow still soft enough for good foot landing. God so glad we didn’t come up this way though ! Crone The Stows what was I thinking !
We took the opportunity for a bit of self arrest practice. Although it was difficult to induce a suitable slide or maybe when I practice I just can’t get it together…certainly could last March when I needed to do it for real !!
Apart from landing one leg up to my bits (you get the picture !) in the white stuff, which took some time to extricate myself much to everyone’s amusement, the descent was pleasant with cracking views across the road and we soon found ourselves at the car park. Chill factor kicked in pretty quick once down, presumably as the hard work was over, so a quick change out of boots and off for a warm drinkies in the café and chat about the day. Sometimes the civilisation is a good thing !
- Back at the car park and now for coffee !
I guess we all wonder why we put ourselves through all of this, I certainly do. The reasons are many, but not least the big grin I have on my face at the end of a day like this (and during of course), a grin which follows into the next day as I write this report.
When your up there, only the basic fundamentals matter, food, shelter, friendship. When your walking into a 40-50mph wind, together with the chill factor, you can forget about the financial crisis, euros (don’t pay much notice of these anyway) cost of Christmas, will I pass my job interview on Tuesday, and all that other stuff. Its an opportunity to chill out (literally), and enjoy a gorgeous day, in beautiful surroundings with 3 strangers (at least at the start), now friends and the urge to want to do it all again soon. By the time I've done another 20 I'll be wanting a cast of about 50 with me !!
I’ve done much of my hill walking on my own, I still enjoy that from time to time, but you cannot beat a day like this, you certainly can’t beat nature but can at least be a part of it.
The best till last
I’ll finish by thanking Louise, Stuart and Monty for a cracking day with plenty of laughs, merry banter and I really enjoyed your company and look forward to doing this again soon ! The only shame was we couldn't finish the day in a goob pub round the fire with a few sherberts and drams....maybe next time
Happy days.
And if Hill Loving Lady is reading this we did miss you ! but sometimes you just gotta do the stairs
