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First ever Munro attempt, which is a wee bit shameful. Only up from here!
Day wasnae looking too promising, with threats of clouds and drizzle, but myself and the OH set off to Glencoe anyway. Made it to the start later than anticipated due to a stop for a cup of tea and bacon sandwich, but this may have been a good decision to get the required energy.
Nice gentle incline up from the car park opposite the cairn, which had a few other folk heading off on various routes, but not too busy for a Saturday. Had the usual being overtaken by ladies with zimmer frames and one-legged dogs as we warmed up the legs, but spirits were still high.
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- Starting out
Nice views of the other hills as usual in Glencoe as we climbed, and the clouds stayed high and in the sky rather than dripping doon. The middle section of "steps" up to the bealach was a bit of a leg killer for the uninitiated, and involved some rather more frequent stops to admire the view than perhaps the view demanded. Some definite bigger steps up than these legs on my 5"4' frame would prefer, and probably less gainly than I would like to imagine.
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- Admiring the view
We took a wee detour to the right before reaching the bealach, thinking we'd found a path and boot prints suggested we weren't the only ones to get excited at an inappropriate juncture. Nae bother meeting back up with the main route, as all very easy to navigate in good weather with a clear view.
Decided to head straight to Stob Dubh as the further peak, and found the climb to the first cairn not so bad as the steps had well and truly broken us in by then. Brief tea stop at the cairn, then only another 15 minutes along the ridge and the final push to the summit, which was a bit rocky but nothing too tricky.
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- Summiting
Glorious views towards Bidean and the Nevis range, to the big Buachaille on the other side, and all the way down Glen Etive towards home.
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- Views down Glen Etive
Weather decided to play nicely and let the sun through as we stood at the summit, which we took as recognition of a job well done. Had a decent lunch break at the top and took it nice and gently back down, as the sun was still shining and we were in a jovial mood. Decided not to pop up to Stob Coire, as clouds were gathering in the distance and pleased with a single summit for the first time. Rain came just as we got in view of the car park, allowing us to once feel we had made some good timing choices, as so rarely happens.
