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Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire


Postby Cairngorm creeper » Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:53 am

Munros included on this walk: A' Chralaig, Mullach Fraoch-choire

Date walked: 26/05/2016

Time taken: 11.5 hours

Distance: 17.8 km

Ascent: 1150m

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A superb spell of summer weather in the northwest and the forecasts promising still clear summits it seemed an ideal time to try the pinnacles on Mullach Fraoch-Choire. What we hadn't anticipated was the cloud inversion that made the day so magical.
The time given includes about 90 minutes of stopping to brew up and enjoy the situation as well as plenty of time spent dawdling and photo taking.
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The route
We left the car in the layby near the felled forestry at 9am and planned to ascend Coire Odhair, making Mullach Fraoch -choire the first Munro, then double back to A'Chralaig and descend its south east ridge.
It was not long before we were following the footpath along An Caorrann Mor and admiring the misty mountains, summits appearing briefly through the swirling cloud.
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Cloud swirling about Ciste Dubhe
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11:00 heading up Coire Odhair.
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Amazingly complex landscape and terrain
We stopped for a brew and to fill water bottles at the top of the burn before tackling steep grass and loose rock at the top of the Coire.
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13:00 and the ridge is still enshrined in mist
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13:15 We are on the ridge but where are the pinnacles
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The bird was a surprise. Maybe a dotterel I am not sure.
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Staying on the crest as the path starts its bypass
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A hand traverse for the most exposed section
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Into the daylight
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Back into the gloom
All fairly easy scrambling on very dry grippy broken schist, until we reached this.
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A final pinnacle or off route outcrop?
After a few attempts we managed to get up it via a slippery chimney. Once on top we exited onto steep grass on the right, then down the slabs and the scrambling was over.
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The final walk to the summit took us above the clouds.
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A' Chralaig peeking out
Who wouldn't want to linger on a summit with views like this.
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Half an hour later at 15:10 we thought we ought to move as well.
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An atmospheric walk along the ridge
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Along the path looking up at the pinnacles
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In and out of the cloud
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All the way to A' Chralaig
.
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17:00 and out into the sunshine
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Making a little mist of our own.
In the mist some careful navigation was required to ensure we went down the right ridge and identfy the correct places to turn to avoid the steeper ground
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Broken Spectres follwed us quite a way down
After a day on the atmospheric ridge the descent on broad grassy pathless slopes couldn't have been more different.
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We eventually picked up the Landrover track by the burn and then a final 2km down the road to reach the car at 20:00
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Cairngorm creeper
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Dunblane Bagger » Mon Jun 13, 2016 5:00 pm

Hey CC,

Looks like a magical day. Thanks for sharing your day.

These are next on my to do list so was interesting to see what I'll be letting myself in for.

Your report has certainly whetted the appetite to get some decent scrambling in.

cheers,
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Tue Jun 14, 2016 7:50 am

[quote="Dunblane Bagger"]Hey CC,

Looks like a magical day. Thanks for sharing your day.

These are next on my to do list so was interesting to see what I'll be letting myself in for.

Your report has certainly whetted the appetite to get some decent scrambling in.

Glad you liked it, It was magical, I hope you have as good a day as we did.
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby basscadet » Tue Jun 14, 2016 9:52 am

Wow, what a wonderful day you had - the best ridge in Kintail by my standards :D I can't believe how fearsome you have made the pinnacles look :shock: makes me feel a little better that I was a bit scaredy going over them in the snow :D We also got an inversion the first time we went up - amazing place :) makes me wonder if there are some hills more liable to inversions than others?
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Tue Jun 14, 2016 6:14 pm

[quote="basscadet"]Wow, what a wonderful day you had - the best ridge in Kintail by my standards :D I can't believe how fearsome you have made the pinnacles look :shock: makes me feel a little better that I was a bit scaredy going over them in the snow :D

The mist gave the pinnacles a wonderful eerie look, and although easy in the dry, they were exposed in places, I don't think I would be brave enough to try them in the snow.
Last edited by Cairngorm creeper on Tue Jun 14, 2016 6:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Cairngorm creeper
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Tue Jun 14, 2016 6:18 pm

basscadet wrote:Wow, what a wonderful day you had - the best ridge in Kintail by my standards :D I can't believe how fearsome you have made the pinnacles look :shock: makes me feel a little better that I was a bit scaredy going over them in the snow :D

We also got an inversion the first time we went up - amazing place :) makes me wonder if there are some hills more liable to inversions than others?

This got me thinking so I googled it and came up with this article.
http://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/page.php?id=7888


But would an inversion be so good if you had predicted it? :wink:
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Cairngorm creeper
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby old danensian » Tue Jun 14, 2016 7:38 pm

Cracking photographs - great experience

MFC rates as one of my finest tops - that ridge is invigorating and the views down into Affric superb

And a broken spectre thrown in as a bonus

OD
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby basscadet » Wed Jun 15, 2016 9:40 am

Cairngorm creeper wrote:
basscadet wrote:Wow, what a wonderful day you had - the best ridge in Kintail by my standards :D I can't believe how fearsome you have made the pinnacles look :shock: makes me feel a little better that I was a bit scaredy going over them in the snow :D

We also got an inversion the first time we went up - amazing place :) makes me wonder if there are some hills more liable to inversions than others?

This got me thinking so I googled it and came up with this article.
http://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/page.php?id=7888


But would an inversion be so good if you had predicted it? :wink:


Its an interesting article, but surley everyone hopes for an inversion when setting out in mist? Of course sometimes you know you are kidding yourself for a little motivation :lol:
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Wed Jun 15, 2016 5:36 pm

old danensian wrote:Cracking photographs - great experience

MFC rates as one of my finest tops - that ridge is invigorating and the views down into Affric superb



OD



Thank you OD I sure can appreciate why this ridge is such a favorite :D
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Wed Jun 15, 2016 5:42 pm

basscadet wrote:
but surley everyone hopes for an inversion when setting out in mist? Of course sometimes you know you are kidding yourself for a little motivation :lol:


Very true :lol:
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby litljortindan » Wed Jun 15, 2016 9:01 pm

Spectacular!
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Re: Mystical Day on Mullach Fraoch choire

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Fri Jun 17, 2016 5:55 pm

litljortindan wrote:Spectacular!
It was indeed. :D Thank you
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