Liathach, a special day that won't be forgotten.
Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2015 2:57 pmThis is a follow up to Martin's lovely report, a great day in the mountains we shared with Denise and Graham.
After a rather disappointing attempt on Slioch the day before, (we turned back in the bowl due to high winds, rain and clag) Monday promised to be the opposite.
Well it was promised and it delivered.
We had arranged to meet up with Martin and Graham through the meeting up post on Walkhighlands.Martin was travelling up from Fife, Graham was staying in the Torridon youth hostel. I picked Graham up from the hostel, joined Martin in the parking spot at the finish point, left my car there and piled into his car and drove up to the starting point. All was set for a good day out with no road walking at the end.
Liathach is one of those mountains I've wanted to climb for ages but had to be in good weather to fully appreciate what it has to offer and that's what we got.
We quickly got ready for the off, the midges were very hungry and made their presence known in large hoards.
The climb up was warm and humid but we soon gained height and walked into mist,
DSC00903 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr Water feature.
DSC00904 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. View into the Glen before we ascended into the cloud.
DSC00905 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Well, we were happy enough here, hoping for better things.
we carried on in the mist not seeing much but the higher we got the thinner it became and suddenly we were out of the cloud witnessing the most wonderful cloud inversion Denise and I had ever seen on a mountain, Martin and Graham had their camera's out, many photos were taken, we just could'nt stop looking at the scene around us, we even had brocken spectres, what a treat.
DSC00906 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. The cloud got thinner
DSC00907 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. And wonderful things started to appear.
DSC00908 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr
DSC00909 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr
DSC00911 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Really starting to clear
DSC00914 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. I tried to get a spectre but not very good.
DSC00915 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Fantatic sight of what was to come.
DSC00919 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Martin watching the curtain of cloud slowly giving up it's secret.
DSC00920 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Alligin and Beinn Dearg peeping through.
DSC00924 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. That view again.
DSC00925 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Eighe.
We made the quick detour onto Stuc a' Choire Dhuibh Bhig and got the most wonderful views of Beinn Eighe, Alligin and Beinn Dearg.
DSC00930 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Eighe zoomed.
DSC00932 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Alligin and Dearg.
DSC00933 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr Beinn Eighe.
DSC00934 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr.Looking back to Stuc a'Choire Dhuibh Bhig on the way to Spidean.
DSC00935 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Spidean.
After a lot of ooo's an ah's and look at thats we set off for the first munro, Spidean a' Choire Leith, by now the ridge was clear and we could see ahead, the first summit looks good from a distance and is actually further away than it looks but we soon arrived and were treated to the most fantastic view, that of the Am Fasarinen pinnacles and the second munro, Mullach an Rathain, a real rugged sight highlighted by the mist swirling around them. We were joined by two guys from London Alistair and Alex who we had met a little earlier and they stayed with us along the mountain.
DSC00937 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Denise on Spidean.
DSC00939 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Our next Munro,Mullach an Rathain, pinnacles hidden in the mist.
DSC00940 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr
DSC00941 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Martin enjoying the scene.
DSC00944 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Lunch time.
DSC00945 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr.Pinnacles appearing, What a sight.
After a quick bite we set off for the fun bit, Martin leading the way over the boulders, Graham hopping over them like a mountain goat, slowly but surely the pinnacles were getting closer.
DSC00950 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Pinnacles, wow!.
We were all a bit apprehensive about them largly due to what we'd read, we could see two people ahead just starting their climb so we watched to see how they got on, they wizzed up, no problem, and soon were on the top of the first pinnacle, then it was our turn. We started our traverse.
DSC00951 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Graham, Alex and Alistair on a pinnacle.
In parts the traverse is a wee bit exposed but it's all on good grippy rock and makes for a wonderful airy scramble with no real difficulties and the general feeling was anybody doing Liathach should not dismiss the pinnacles for being too exposed, they are well within the capabilities of any experienced mountain walker.
DSC00952 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Airy viewpoint.
DSC00955 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Glen Torridon.
DSC00956 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Brilliant views.
We had a great time and its true to say anybody doing the traverse can make it as hard or as easy as they wish, yes, there's exposure but that's lessened by the sheer enjoyment.
All too soon the pinnacles were behind us,
DSC00958 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Looking back.
DSC00959 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Denise and Martin deep in discussion.
the next munro was much closer, the climb up to Mullach an Rathain was straight forward and enjoyable with plenty of opportunities to stop and look back.
DSC00964 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Our next target.
DSC00970 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Looking back to the pinnacles.
DSC00973 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Job done.
On the summit we just took our time savouring the views trying to forstall the descent knowing it was going to be tiring.
DSC00978 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Denise on the summit. Mullach an Rathain.
DSC00980 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Alligin.
DSC00981 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Dearg.
DSC00982 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. An Teallach.
DSC00983 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Northern Pinnacles.
DSC00986 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Eighe.
DSC00985 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Am Fasarinen.
DSC00990 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Loch Torridon.
DSC00991 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Happy bunch of people.
DSC00993 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Just stunning.
DSC00999 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Alligin and Dearg again.
DSC01000 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. One last look.
But we had to go so reluctantly we set off down over the loose scree.
DSC01001 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Awkward descent.
DSC01002 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Graham on the loose scree, very tricky.
DSC01003 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Bye Bye Liathach.
The descent wasn't too bad and after about an hour and a half we were back at the car after one of the best days Denise and I have spent in the mountains together.
I would like to give special thanks to Martin and Graham for responding to my post and joining us to help make the day as good as it was, good weather or not, the company was excellent, thanks guys.
After a rather disappointing attempt on Slioch the day before, (we turned back in the bowl due to high winds, rain and clag) Monday promised to be the opposite.
Well it was promised and it delivered.
We had arranged to meet up with Martin and Graham through the meeting up post on Walkhighlands.Martin was travelling up from Fife, Graham was staying in the Torridon youth hostel. I picked Graham up from the hostel, joined Martin in the parking spot at the finish point, left my car there and piled into his car and drove up to the starting point. All was set for a good day out with no road walking at the end.
Liathach is one of those mountains I've wanted to climb for ages but had to be in good weather to fully appreciate what it has to offer and that's what we got.
We quickly got ready for the off, the midges were very hungry and made their presence known in large hoards.
The climb up was warm and humid but we soon gained height and walked into mist,
DSC00903 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr Water feature.DSC00904 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. View into the Glen before we ascended into the cloud.DSC00905 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Well, we were happy enough here, hoping for better things.we carried on in the mist not seeing much but the higher we got the thinner it became and suddenly we were out of the cloud witnessing the most wonderful cloud inversion Denise and I had ever seen on a mountain, Martin and Graham had their camera's out, many photos were taken, we just could'nt stop looking at the scene around us, we even had brocken spectres, what a treat.
DSC00906 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. The cloud got thinnerDSC00907 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. And wonderful things started to appear.DSC00908 by Martin Hawer, on FlickrDSC00909 by Martin Hawer, on FlickrDSC00911 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Really starting to clearDSC00914 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. I tried to get a spectre but not very good.DSC00915 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Fantatic sight of what was to come.DSC00919 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Martin watching the curtain of cloud slowly giving up it's secret.DSC00920 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Alligin and Beinn Dearg peeping through.DSC00924 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. That view again.DSC00925 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Eighe.We made the quick detour onto Stuc a' Choire Dhuibh Bhig and got the most wonderful views of Beinn Eighe, Alligin and Beinn Dearg.
DSC00930 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Eighe zoomed.DSC00932 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Alligin and Dearg.DSC00933 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr Beinn Eighe.DSC00934 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr.Looking back to Stuc a'Choire Dhuibh Bhig on the way to Spidean.DSC00935 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Spidean.After a lot of ooo's an ah's and look at thats we set off for the first munro, Spidean a' Choire Leith, by now the ridge was clear and we could see ahead, the first summit looks good from a distance and is actually further away than it looks but we soon arrived and were treated to the most fantastic view, that of the Am Fasarinen pinnacles and the second munro, Mullach an Rathain, a real rugged sight highlighted by the mist swirling around them. We were joined by two guys from London Alistair and Alex who we had met a little earlier and they stayed with us along the mountain.
DSC00937 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Denise on Spidean.DSC00939 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Our next Munro,Mullach an Rathain, pinnacles hidden in the mist.DSC00940 by Martin Hawer, on FlickrDSC00941 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Martin enjoying the scene.DSC00944 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Lunch time.DSC00945 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr.Pinnacles appearing, What a sight.After a quick bite we set off for the fun bit, Martin leading the way over the boulders, Graham hopping over them like a mountain goat, slowly but surely the pinnacles were getting closer.
DSC00950 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Pinnacles, wow!.We were all a bit apprehensive about them largly due to what we'd read, we could see two people ahead just starting their climb so we watched to see how they got on, they wizzed up, no problem, and soon were on the top of the first pinnacle, then it was our turn. We started our traverse.
DSC00951 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Graham, Alex and Alistair on a pinnacle.In parts the traverse is a wee bit exposed but it's all on good grippy rock and makes for a wonderful airy scramble with no real difficulties and the general feeling was anybody doing Liathach should not dismiss the pinnacles for being too exposed, they are well within the capabilities of any experienced mountain walker.
DSC00952 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Airy viewpoint.DSC00955 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Glen Torridon.DSC00956 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Brilliant views.We had a great time and its true to say anybody doing the traverse can make it as hard or as easy as they wish, yes, there's exposure but that's lessened by the sheer enjoyment.
All too soon the pinnacles were behind us,
DSC00958 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Looking back.DSC00959 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Denise and Martin deep in discussion.the next munro was much closer, the climb up to Mullach an Rathain was straight forward and enjoyable with plenty of opportunities to stop and look back.
DSC00964 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Our next target.DSC00970 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Looking back to the pinnacles.DSC00973 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Job done.On the summit we just took our time savouring the views trying to forstall the descent knowing it was going to be tiring.
DSC00978 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Denise on the summit. Mullach an Rathain.DSC00980 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Alligin.DSC00981 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Dearg.DSC00982 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. An Teallach.DSC00983 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Northern Pinnacles.DSC00986 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Beinn Eighe.DSC00985 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Am Fasarinen.DSC00990 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Loch Torridon.DSC00991 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Happy bunch of people.DSC00993 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Just stunning.DSC00999 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Alligin and Dearg again.DSC01000 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. One last look.But we had to go so reluctantly we set off down over the loose scree.
DSC01001 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Awkward descent.DSC01002 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Graham on the loose scree, very tricky.DSC01003 by Martin Hawer, on Flickr. Bye Bye Liathach.The descent wasn't too bad and after about an hour and a half we were back at the car after one of the best days Denise and I have spent in the mountains together.
I would like to give special thanks to Martin and Graham for responding to my post and joining us to help make the day as good as it was, good weather or not, the company was excellent, thanks guys.
I can see from the pictures that you all had a great time.
