Meall Odhar

[lomondwalkers]

After failing to find a comfortable descent route from Beinn Chuirn to Meall Odhar on my last walk, due to solid snow and inexperience with crampons, I decided I would go back and tackle Meall Odhar from Tyndrum Lower station. Having read Graham D's report on these, it looked like an interesting route due to the old lead mining works.

I parked up at the gate at the station, crossed the railway line, then followed the track to the right a short distance until I met the first of the "Keep Out" signs, where the track turned left towards Sron nan Colan. Soon I am walking on the scree slopes through the mining territory and stop for a quick snap of one of the deep shafts, before zigzaging my way through the rest of the scree and onto the grassy slope. From here it's a short easy pull onto the summit of Sron nan Colan where there are fine views to Ben Lui & Co. From here, the route to Meall Odhar was obvious. I descended West from Sron nan Colan and skirted round the forestry, from here I followed the rocky spine onto Meall Odhars summit, where there is a cracking view of Beinn Chuirns Coire na Saobhaidhe. Again, fine views of Lui and Co, but not the far flung views of my previous walk, but we can't really moan about that after the fab few weeks we've had I had thought of dropping through the forestry to Cononish for my return, but as I had walked that route previously, I just retraced my outward route back to the station.

Quite an interesting, if rather short wander if you aren't put off by the mess left behind by the mining works, and great views to the higher hills around you

Start here

Went left of this

Deep indeed!

Not the best of walking surfaces

Back over the scree to Tyndrum

Over Lochan na Bi

Back over Tyndrum to Ben Challum

Meall Odhar in foreground, with Ben Lui & Beinn Chuirn beyond, taken from summit of Sron nan Colan

Up the rocky spine of Meall Odhar

Meall Odhar summit cairn, with Beinn Chuirn behind

Ben Lui

Ben Oss

Beinn Dubhchraig

Summit photo