free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
A good MWIS forecast had us heading up the Ullapool road to a wee Graham called Carn Loch nan Amhaichean. We parked up just past the bridge opposite the Inchbae Lodge Hotel at around 9.30am. The forecast had promised sunshine almost all day but it was still quite grey as we set off along the track towards the farm at Strathrannoch. The track is very good and continues for around 5km so would be easily bikable...is that a word?
Anyway, we didn't have our bikes so just enjoyed a really wonderful stroll along this glen, which I had thought from the map would be in dense forest but was actually quite open, with the sounds of the lovely river cascading over rocks and little waterfalls accompanying us along the way.
We didn't see anyone all day, but we passed a van belonging to a local fencing company. I think they are putting in deer fence in advance of some tree planting on one of the slopes on the right hand side of the track.
Soon we could see the farmhouse ahead, settled under the snow topped bulk of Meall a'Ghrianain. Here bikes would need to be left at a locked gate as access is over a wooden stile....unless you are happy to lift your bike up and over of course, and then the track continues on.
Just beyond the stile, at a little shed with a red roof there is a concrete bridge over a stream, and we left the good track there and headed up pathless grassy terrain on the left side of the burn, and up towards a gap in the circle of forestry. We passed a very old small dam and some concrete workings, possibly providing power or water to the farmhouse?
We continued up through a gate and then onto open, pathless, and in some places slightly boggy moorland, but luckily the heather was short and it was an easy walk. Four hinds and a stag appeared on the hillside ahead of us, and ran off as they saw us. Far up on the hillside we could see a large erratic (glacially dumped boulder!), and beyond that the summit plateau. We headed for the erratic and by now the ground underfoot had a fairly thick layer of ice, requiring kick steps with each footstep to avoid slipping. There were the tracks of an animal in the snow just by the boulder; looks like it had been sheltering there. I wonder if it was a fox? Soon we had passed the worst of the steepness and reached the bouldery rocky plateau. The snow was a little softer and deeper here but we were soon at the summit, with its 2 cairns. We sheltered behind the larger of the cairns out of the wind and enjoyed the views along with our lunch. The promised sunshine never arrived, although we could see some sun further south and west on the hills. It was freezing at the summit so we didn't linger long and soon made our way back down. As we got to the end of the plateau we put on crampons for the slippy descent. I had hoped for a moonlit walk out but with the thick grey cloud overhead there was no chance of that so we didn't linger any longer in the cold conditions and made our way back to the car.
- Decent parking available opposite Inchbae Hotel
- Gate with good access for bikes
- Good track continues into Strath Rannoch
- Might need to leave bikes at this stile
- Up and across pathless terrain
- Large erratic
- Whose pawprints are these?
- Icy underfoot now
- Sun to the south and west
- Summit plateau
- At the top :-)
- One of the two cairns
- Nice ice on the cairn
- Crampons on the descent
- Back to the bridge and the good track out
