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Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Awesome Applecross Corbetts


Postby weaselmaster » Mon Sep 21, 2015 10:20 am

Corbetts included on this walk: Beinn Bhan, Sgùrr a' Chaorachain

Date walked: 19/09/2015

Time taken: 7.75 hours

Distance: 16.6 km

Ascent: 1325m

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Forecast suggested this was going to be a cracking weekend, and I'd decided we'd put a few more miles on the car and head to Lochcarron - the Applecross Corbetts of Beinn Bhan and Sgurr a'Chaorachain were overdue a visit. As the week drew on, however, the forecast became less promising, but a thought put in motion was not going to be stopped. Leaving work behind on Friday afternoon we motored up to the Wee Campsite in Lochcarron, passing numerous vintage sportscars on some three day event. As we turned up Croft Road and into the campsite we were met by about a million motorbikes, with nearly every available pitch taken up - a bikers' rally clearly enough. It was gone 7pm and too late to consider going anywhere else, but it was with some trepidation we pitched in a small area in the parking lot. Have to say the bikers were a good natured lot (when they returned from the pub at closing time and woke us up).

A busy Wee Campsite
ImageP1100168 by Al, on Flickr

Morning was overcast with a band of thick fog covering the road as I turned up towards the bealach na ba road. Faint outlines of hills peeped out of the mist, but it was quite disorientating. We'd decided to climb up the SE shoulder of Chaorachain and link it in a grand horseshoe with Beinn Bhan - something I was surprised to see hadn't featured yet in the WH walk reports - seemed an obvious way to link these two beauties. Having read AnnieMacD's useful report we were prepared for a bit of scrambling over the terraces. As we walked over boggy ground to the foot of the hill the clag steadily cleared and we could see what we were up against. Allison led, finding deer tracks that led into a more human path - some nice short sections of scrabbling between 550-600m and we were onto the easier slopes leading up to the summit. Over to the right, was dramatic outline of Na Ciochan whilst ahead the remains of the spur that links the summit with the main body of the hill undulates over a couple of tops before reaching the monstrosity of metal that is the antenna.

Morning mist
ImageP1100175 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100176 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100178 by Al, on Flickr

Sgurr a'Chaorachain
ImageP1100179 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100182 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100185 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100188 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100190 by Al, on Flickr

Shoulder of Beinn Bhan
ImageP1100193 by Al, on Flickr

Na Ciochan
ImageP1100196 by Al, on Flickr

Chaorachain summit
ImageP1100197 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100198 by Al, on Flickr

Setting off for the antenna top
ImageP1100199 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100203 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100205 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100208 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100210 by Al, on Flickr

We followed the egde of the lip of Coire Nan Arr - Corrie of the Giant - and enjoyed the variety of geological features to be found at our feet. It's an impressive mountainscape. We paused for lunch near one of the little lochans and enjoyed the "infinity pool" appearance. The terrain is rough underfoot and made more disconcerting by the fact that over to your left runs the road - we could hear numerous motorbikes zip by and see people standing at the viewpoint on the Bealach na Ba - actually above us (and we're climbing a mountain :lol: ) We continued onto the summit of Carn Dearg (SIM bagging has a lot to answer for), enjoying views over to Raasay, with the diminutive flat topped Dun Cann clearly visible, before descending to the Bealach nan Arr and joining a clear path that led up onto beinn Bhan. We met another walker here who was doing the two hills from the Bealach na Ba. Personally I consider that a shameful way to climb these two beauties, as you miss out almost all the best features of both hills.

Coire nan Arr
ImageP1100214 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100220 by Al, on Flickr

Rough terrain
ImageP1100224 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100228 by Al, on Flickr

Torridian Cheese Rock :wink:
ImageP1100232 by Al, on Flickr

View over to Raasay
ImageP1100235 by Al, on Flickr

Na Ciochan from the other side
ImageP1100238 by Al, on Flickr

Crazed rock, crazed Sick Kid
ImageP1100240 by Al, on Flickr

Bealach nan Arr
ImageP1100241 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100247 by Al, on Flickr


Up over flattish ground to the impressive natural stone trig that marks the summit of Bhan. Views were good back to Chaorachain, although clouds prevented further horizons being visible. We wandered SE onto the broad beginnings of the downward ridge and were then gobsmacked by the appearance of Coire na Poite and A'Chioch - truely outstanding formations and I could see the attraction of scrambling/climbing up this way (if you possess more nerve than me). We followed the shoulder down to about 180m after which we turned towards the road, meeting it slightly before the bridge and walking back up the road for the mile or so to where the car was parked.

Towards summit Bhan
ImageP1100248 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100252 by Al, on Flickr

Long shoulder of Bhan to descend
ImageP1100256 by Al, on Flickr

A Cioch
ImageP1100260 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100262 by Al, on Flickr

Chaorachain
ImageP1100265 by Al, on Flickr

and again
ImageP1100268 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100269 by Al, on Flickr

View from the bridge
ImageP1100271 by Al, on Flickr

Welcome sight :D
ImageP1100273 by Al, on Flickr

ImageP1100274 by Al, on Flickr

More arrivals at the campsite
ImageP1100277 by Al, on Flickr
I was thinking, as \I drove back to the campsite, that the bikers might have packed up and gone off to their next port of call - however no, they hadn't and in fact, in our absence, even more had arrived. We cooked tea and chatted to some of the neighbouring folk who seemed decent guys - in fact it seemed rather like a WH meet, with hills replaced by Harleys :lol: - all the same banter just with a different subject. The pub was pretty mobbed so we only stayed for one. Unfortunately sleep was a little hard to come by, not least due to the polyphonic snoring coming from a sizable number of the bikers' tents. Ach well :lol:


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weaselmaster
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby Silverhill » Mon Sep 21, 2015 8:01 pm

These hills look very tasty. 8) Loved the pictures of the cheese rock and crazed rock.
Good luck with your last few Corbetts! :thumbup:
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby Scotjamie » Mon Sep 21, 2015 10:00 pm

Great report Al, and glad you followed the leader. Enjoyed it very much and will store GPX route for future ref. I passed by earlier this afternoon (writing this from the Plockton Inn)
Have also walked out to these from the bealach na ba - great views but wouldn't dare blue balloon them.
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby PeteR » Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:23 pm

These two look very interesting. Not a bad day for you both overall :D

I've always had it in mind to do something like your route, but in reverse, coming down off Sgurr a'Chaorachain rather than going up it. Just how scrambly was that one? Didn't look too bad from your photos, with plenty of grassy sections to aid descent, but if it's not too bad I'd prefer that route down than a walk back down the single track road.

I'd ascent Beinn Bhan via Coire an Fhamair probably, which I think is the baggers route. Looks not too difficult a route up to me.
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby weaselmaster » Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:51 pm

PeteR wrote:These two look very interesting. Not a bad day for you both overall :D

I've always had it in mind to do something like your route, but in reverse, coming down off Sgurr a'Chaorachain rather than going up it. Just how scrambly was that one?


I think it would be ok coming down that shoulder in dry conditions and good visibility. It would be another matter in clag and rain as there's quite a significant crag band to negotiate - harder to pick out the path/deer track coming down too.
Al
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby BlackPanther » Tue Sep 22, 2015 4:36 pm

Applecross always worth a visit! Good idea to combine the two summits for a "quickie" :wink:

I must admit we cheated on SaC and climbed it from the top of Bealach na Ba :lol: but did the scrambling justice to Beinn Bhan, going up Sron Coire an Fhamair, it is much easier than it looks :D I'm aching to get back to more serious mountaineering after almost two months off the hills!
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby dav2930 » Tue Sep 22, 2015 9:01 pm

Awesome indeed! That looked a really satisfying day the two of you had. Your photos make it abundantly clear what this fantastic area has to offer. Na Ciochan looks especially impressive (from both sides), the famous 'nose' of which provides the challenge of Tom Patey's "Diff to end all Diffs". I've had that climb on my to do list since the early 1980's and still haven't got round to doing it (too close to Skye and Torridon). Maybe next year.
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby rockhopper » Thu Sep 24, 2015 10:38 pm

Haven't got to these hills and may be a while yet but they do look well worth the visit - rather interesting geology too. Camp site looked a bit like an offshoot of "thunder in the glens" comes to Applecross - cheers :)
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby Alteknacker » Mon Oct 05, 2015 11:23 pm

Some great pics there....

...and the hills aren't that bad either. :)

Glad you posted this - I've had this area on my radar for a while as one for a combined scrambling/walking weekend (from "Scotland's Mountain Ridges"), and this has just planted the bug still deeper!
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby basscadet » Tue Oct 06, 2015 8:35 am

Looked nice :D
had my first trip over there for years recently, and I'm itching to go back - such a special place :wink:
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Re: Awesome Applecross Corbetts

Postby AnnieMacD » Thu Nov 12, 2015 8:00 pm

I'm just trying to catch up with all the reports I've missed over the last few months.

This is a cracking route and so glad you enjoyed it. I've done all parts of it but not all in one go. There are so many routes on these two hills. I tend to do Chaorachain from Coire nan Arr into Coire na Chaorachain and up the steep side to the bealach below the 'lump'. I think I've done every possible combination! I found the deer path too through the terraces but there is a little exposure - but without question it's the best way up.

Have you finished the Corbetts now?
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