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After a relatively long day on Slioch on Saturday, we opted for something easier and shorter on Sunday. Surely, nothing could be better than an Assynt hill for dessert! The day was a bit cloudy but it was all very high cloud and all summits stayed clear
Kevin has done Cul Beag before, many years back - and he didn't remember anything particularly difficult about the ascent. As for me, having just gained some fresh confidence on snowy eastern ridge of Slioch, I was ready for another challenge
Assynt is a weird place. Every time I visit this area, I think about landing on the Moon or on Mars. Space Panther? Ha ha, something like that. During my first visit in 2008, I spent some time lurking around Bone Caves, looking for Clangers
On a serious note, Cul Beag may only be a wee walk when seen on the map (just over 8 km if one does a circular route) but it shouldn't under any circumstances be underestimated. The hill is painfully steep and you climb it basically in one long, tiring push up the wet, slippery slope. Good for building up your muscle power. And the views make up for all the pain!
On a busy day it may be tricky to find a good spot to park the car. There are a few off-road spaces just beside passing places and we were lucky to squeeze our little girl into one of them
A great advantage of having a small car.
If there's no space along the road, cars can be left on the large car park below Stac Pollaidh, only about a mile away from the starting point for this circuit.
From the very beginning, we were surrounded by the magical shapes of Assynt hills, like above mentioned Stac Pollaidh:
Across Loch Lurgainn, Graham Beinn an Eoin:
Our target hill, Cul Beag, looked "unclimbable" from this angle:
We walked a short distance west along the road and soon we spotted the start of a stalker's path, heading north. The path is narrow but well-maintained and it goes through a small forest right onto the vast wilderness:
Warming up for the big push:
In a very short time we met the black prince of Assynt
Stac Pollaidh seen from less interesting angle:
The route leaves the main path by a little lochan (called Lochan Fionnlaidh on 25k map), heading directly for the steep wall of Cul Beag. Before I tackled the steep climb, I stood on the path for a couple of minutes, admiring the bigger neighbour, Cul Mor:
The "push" can be conveniently divided into two stages. Here is the first (and longer) one. A faint path can be followed all the way to the bealach, but the ground is wet and slippery, not to mention the steepness. In places I had to grab heather branches to pull myself up. Really, a workout your muscles won't quickly forget!
And views are unforgettable, too...
The first stage of ascent made me sweat, but I found it a great fun at the same time. Weird, I always wonder what kind of madness forces me to punish my body up all these steep Scottish slopes
Maybe it's the spirit of Assynt, whispering something into my ear
Certainly, panoramas are second to none.
Five minutes to make a movie! The almost vertical wall behind me is the way to the summit, believe me!
Oh, the world of water!
Huffing and puffing, we reached the col. More steep slopes came into view:
Looking north-east across the Assynt wilderness, I recognized the snowy ridge of Conival & Ben More Assynt:
Cul Mor in full glory:
We decided we had enough time to take it steady and had a short break on the outlying top of Cioch a Chuil Bhig. It was a perfect spot to gaze down the cliffs:
Happy Kevin with Cul Mor in the background:
10 minutes and one apple later, we marched across the col towards the final ascent. Again, it looked painful:
Soon it turned out that apart from steepness, there was nothing to worry about. The path to the summit is rocky but it can easily be climbed all the way to the very top of the Corbett. Looking down may make you feel dizzy though, if you suffer from vertigo:
Close-up to Suilven:
More water, water, water...
The steep path ended abruptly on a small summit plateau. It was a quiet day, not much wind, and even though high cloud made all the views grey-ish, it was still a superb moment to enjoy! It almost fell like Moon landing
I couldn't stop uttering a meow!
"Space Panther" on the summit of Cul Beag:
Ben More Coigach, my next Assynt target:
Mighty An Teallach:
I was overwhelmed and definitely wanted to stay on the top for as long as possible:
Posing with Cul Mor:
Kevin had his lunch box, of course, sandwiches and buns, cookies and tea... We had another Assynt picnic
Unfortunately, we didn't attract any Clangers, if there were any, I must have scared them off with my meowing...
After about half an hour another group of walkers arrived and they kindly agreed to take a photo for us:
Instead of returning down the very same steep slope, we finished our trip by descending south-east. It's still steep but much easier going on mostly grassy terrain:
Looking back at Cul Beag from south-eastern side:
This option of the descent could be also used as an ascent route if one wants to avoid the painful muscle workout. It involves crossing a few small peat hags but generally the ground is not too bad:
Definitely, Ben More Coigach is next on my to-do list! What a magnificent hill!
At the moment, just a photo with BMC in the background.
The final walk down was wet but I was too happy to let a few squashy steps spoil my day! It was also great to see the nature fully awake now, after the long spell of cold in April and the beginning of May. Orchids were flowering all over the wet ground. I counted half a dozen of froggies and two lizards, not to mention herds of different bugs and spiders (no midges though - thankfully!). And furry friends sunbathed on the rocks:
We reached the road eventually, a couple of km east from the place where we left our car. As we walked back, we noticed a rescue helicopter coming towards us along the glen. It was flying low so Kevin managed to get a good photo as it passed above us:
I gazed up to the vertical walls of Cul Beag, from this direction it seemed unbelievable that the hill can be conquered without rock-climbing equipment:
To sum up, another Assynt cracker, just a tiny, tiny shame about the grey cloud above. Pictures would be so much better with blue sky in contrast to the brown-yellowish colours of the rocks. But at the end of the day, I would be a fool to complain about such a small detail. Meow!
The weather has improved significantly over the last few days and next weekend looks fantastic, sunny and warm. Unless an earthquake or another world-wide disaster happens, you will hear me meowing on Scottish hills again! Most likely Glen Shiel area
