Meall Chuaich and Creag Ruadh

[The Rodmiester]

A9 Layby number 94 just North of the slip road to Dalwhinnie, dry, sunny and very cold, left car at 1010hrs and walked up the A9 North about 50m to a gate on the East side of the road. Walking adjacent to the aquaduct on my right the only noises came from the many black grouse being disturbed and the ice flows flowing down the aquaduct and hitting the sides of the iced channel, which gave a distinctly creepy noise. Soon I was passing by the Cuaich Power Station on my left followed by a cattle grid and concrete bridge, by this time it was fairly obvious where the path was going up the South West shoulder of Meall Chuaich. I soon passed the shelter/estate Hut which is kept locked on yout right, and after that you cross the bridge over the Allt Coire Chuaich, by this time you have already passed Loch Cuaich on your left.

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The starting point of the days walk Layby number 94 on the A9. This was to be the start of four days on the hills, hopefully two today followed by a Argyll Club Meet at Feshiebridge and then hopefully some other hills around Inverness. Nice weather to start off with, promising.

A good track runs adjacent to the aquaduct from the Cuaich Power Station

There was plenty of noise coming from the local inhabitants, the grouse and also the ice flows coming down the aquaduct

After passing the power station on your left you find a large pipeline feeding the power station, after passing over a concrete bridge

Further along the track you come to an estate hut/shelter which is on your right and seems to be always kept locked

The obvious South West shoulder is seen on your right after passing the end of Loch Cuaich, after crossing another bridge and then some which would be normally wet boggy ground but today was pretty hard and crusty because of the hard frost

After climbing up the shoulder for approx 400m you hit the snow line after a flatter section, and soon you reach the summit cairn

Frosty summit cairn

Heading back down the shoulder with Creag Ruadh in the distance

A slight path in parts runs towards the end of Loch Cuaich

A sandy section of beach on the South end of the loch. Unfortunately I was unable to cross over the fast flowing burn into the loch without getting my feet wet, and with the thought of wet boots for a further three days walking did not appeal and therefore ment a back track adjacent to the burn back to the bridge crossed earlier

After crossing the outflow dam I headed a short distance along the track on the SW corner and over a mound to find this access gate, which was falling to pieces so I used the support rail to get the leg over the fence, and headed up the Graham Creag Ruadh. The terrain was all very stubbly and tussocky where sections of the heather had been burnt off by the estate.

The summit cairn with the Munro Meall Chuaich behind.

This wee graham had a nice wee shelter for you to eat your snacks and have a cuppa. I retraced my steps heading for the same gate I by passed on the way up

[Stuart Angus]

Good timing we're going up here on Sunday so good to read a really recent report. Not as much snow as I thought there'd be...........although that might change!

[The Rodmiester]

Good timing we're going up here on Sunday so good to read a really recent report. Not as much snow as I thought there'd be...........although that might change!

Hi Stuart, glad to be of some help, fingers crossed you have the same weather as I did. Little or no ice on the track to the bottom of the hill. As long as it stays cold the groung should not be to soft when you cross the bridge at the start of the climb, good luck!

[Gordie12]

Whilst many give Ben Chonzie their vote for most boring Munro, this one gets my vote (I wish I had thought of doing Creag Ruadh when I was there last summer).

[The Rodmiester]

Whilst many give Ben Chonzie their vote for most boring Munro, this one gets my vote (I wish I had thought of doing Creag Ruadh when I was there last summer).

It was a bit of a scutter getting between them in the dry, the inlet to the loch was much wider and deeper than I thought. Creag Ruadh, not great walking, going quite tricky, all tussocky and stoney, at least it's not for long, head down and your soon up it