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With my thighs fully recovered
and deciding that for now, I'm better solo walking to save holding folk up
( as grass seems to grow faster than I walk), I headed through from Linlithgow to Invervar and parked up at the wee area beside the phone-box.
Booted and suited by 8.30 but found that the entry to the WH described path was blocked due to security railing around the "old smithy"
so had a slight detour around the back and over the fence to get to where I needed to be.
The path up through the woods and out alongside the Invervar burn was pretty soft underfoot, but there are marker posts to show directions to Carn Gorm. Crossed over the wee bridge and followed the fence line of the planted forest to you reach the corner and the open moorland and then upwards over pretty boggy conditions to the plateau of Creag Ghlas.
- Glen Lyon from Creag Ghlas
- Carn Gorm from Greag Ghlas
From here it's a steady climb up to the crest and over to the cairn of Carn Gorm. When I set away from the car park, there was still a lot of clag on the peaks but by the time I reached the first summit, was happy that it had all cleared for some more pickys of surrounding views.
- Lawers Hills - Ben Lawers, An Stuc & Meall Garbh
- Loch Rannoch from Carn Gorm
Headed off again, following the path down into the beallach and skirted the side of An Sgorr the along the fence post line up and over the boulder field towards the cairn at Meall Garbh.
- From Meall Garbh Cairn to Meall Corranaich, Beinn Ghlas & Ben Lawers
- Schiehallion From Meall Garbh
Quick cuppa coffee and then headed off again following the path down and back up to Meall a' Bharr where I took shelter from the first of the snow
. Wasn't too bad, but after half the day in relative decent weather, my face was getting a kinda freezing grit-blast
so I was happy to "honker down" and wait for the worst to pass...
Shoogled off again once the snow had abated, but I could see there was more coming so was happy to reach the cairn at Carn Mairg for some more scran and shelter.....was hoping to fire off reams of pickys of Schiehallion but with the snow and the clag all you're getting is one of me at the cairn...
- Me at Carn Mairg Cairn
Ok, I said I was solo, but actually I had Billy Joel, Crowded House, The Commitments & Fleetwood Mac for company on each of the hills respectively
Of the whole day, I found the descent from Carn Mairg over the boulder field the hardest and was glad to get back onto the soft under-footing of Gleann Pollaidh before the short climb up to Meall na' Aighean.
- Carn Mairg from Meall na' Aighean
- Carn Gorm from Meall na'Aighean
From Meall na' Aighean I followed the path on the ridge on the South side of the Allt Coire a'Chearcaill and by now the sun had re-emerged and was beating down on my "less than hairy napper"
so by the time I reached the car-park, it was, along with my bugle, the colour of the adjacent phone box
much to Mrs. Sparks amusement when I eventually got home
All in all, another fine day out, but this will be the last for a couple of months as I'm away back to work....
Slaters...
Sparky.
