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Just back from a great weekend on the Mull of Kintyre, completely new territory for me and was glad I volunteered to be 'head chauffeur'
My son who should be certified, is not content with running half marathons or marathons any more as they are too easy
So he now challenges himself by running ultra's and had entered the Kintyre Ultra which was a mere 67 miles from Tarbert to Campbeltown following the Kintyre Way. We have to bear in mind he completed the Glasgow to Edinburgh race in April (55 miles) & 2 weeks ago completed the "Highland Fling" which follows the West Highland Way from Milngavie to Tyndrum (53 miles) and as I suspected the lack of rest between runs would take it's toll. However all was going well until he met up ran with a fellow runner from Glasgow, too much talking meant they missed an important sign & carried on for 3 miles before they realised the mistake & had to return to the sign they missed, that cost them an hour and as the cut off times are fairly tough they arrived at Carradale (53 miles later). I had arranged to be at Carradale at about 3pm with a drop bag containing goodies, but as the mobile signals are either non existent or very weak it was difficult to communicate or get any update. My son arrived just after 4.30pm and after discussing the situation with the marshall's the two of them decided to retire gracefully & accepted a lift to the finish at Campbeltown. You have to bear in mind that the start time was 5.30am & runners were still finishing at 9.30pm
So if anyone fancies volunteering it is an annual event & my son being soft in the head is determined to enter next year & naturally finish
Anyway as I had a few spare hours hanging around before the RV at Carradale, I decided to pick off at least one Sub 2000'. I initially headed out to the far south west with the intention of walking up Cnoc Moy & possibly The Slate, so I headed down that way in the car. However I wasn't really expecting the hills to be so far off the beaten track
- One of the first problems, they weren't in any hurry
- The track to the hills
I was concerned about the time, so decided to check the map & pick an easier hill, so I headed back to Campbeltown and guess who I met on my return
- My furry friends, still in no hurry
On the western edge of Campbeltown lies Beinn Ghuilean, so I parked the car checked the map and then headed onwards & upwards.
- Parking area directly across the road from the track, room for about 4 cars
- The start of the track heading up the hill
- Looking back to the start
- Looking up the track
- The view back down the hill to High Glenramskill Farm which you pass by
The reason for the title is to assist any future walkers who fancy tackling this hill, initially you follow a good track up passing High Glenramskill Farm, which will be to your right, the first of the 6 gates has to be opened & closed of course
I didn't photo that gate so you will have to take my word for it that it is there.
The track meanders up the hillside & passes by an old small MOD building surrounded by barbed wire, the track then peters out a wee bit & resembles a track used by quad bikes. The track the passes by an old farm outbuilding and another couple of gates have to be negotiated, this is far easier than climbing over fences.
Following the track you then have to open 3 more gates before the track ends, it is then just a matter of heading up the grassy slopes
- The wee MOD fenced off building
- Grassy slope, fairly steep at this point
- Summit trig point, surrounded with water
- Summit view of Davaar Island
Most of the views from the summit were of moorland, forests but to the north the eastern coast, unfortunately it was a bit hazy
- Looking up the eastern coast of the peninsula towards Carradale
- The causeway out to Davaar Island & the jetty for oil tankers
To sum up, anyone who has not been to the Mull of Kintyre will be pleasantly surprised, the long drive was well worth it and I will probably return next year not to run I hasten to add
Hope you all enjoy & am waiting for a large sum of money from the Kintyre Tourist Board