Re-completing the Corbetts

[weaselmaster]

Back in December last we celebrated Completing the Corbetts on Fraochaidh. Job done - onto the Donalds and Grahams thought I. Then the surveyors set about their dark arts and Lo! Cnoc Coinnich, a Graham that we'd not got around to yet gets promoted to Corbett Class earlier this month. Managing to jump from 761m to 763.5m in the process. So it became a matter of some urgency to regain the title of Corbetteer - I suspect Ardgarten is going to be pulling in a fair few folk in the coming weeks.

Luckily I had a seminar day at work which finished up in the early afternoon. We won't get out to the hills this weekend, so this was a chance to nip up the A82 and get our Corbett. Turning off the A83 at Ardgarten, we drove along the single track to Coillessan where there's a parking spot and some portaloos at the end of the roadway. The Army were doing some manoeuvers in the area and a couple of times we met large Army trucks head on driving to the parking place. Changing into hill gear was a signal for the rain to start I'd hoped it might be a dry afternoon but no, rain was with us again. Met a pair of walkers just coming down to the carpark as we were leaving in their shorts and shirtsleeves, telling us we'd just missed the weather

coinnich.gpx Open full screen  NB: Walkhighlands is not responsible for the accuracy of gpx files in users posts

P1130392 by Al, on Flickr

View to The Brack
P1130393 by Al, on Flickr


We headed along the Dukes Pass for a short way then turned up to our right onto the Cowal way. This is quite badly eroded in places - looks like there;s been some flash flooding that has gnawed the roadside - wouldn't fancy takling a large Army truck up here. We stayed on the track for a while then came to a sign for a footpath up the Cowal way, leaving the main track slightly to the left - we took this, continued over a couple of footbridges and then quite steeply uphill at the edge of the plantation. Up ahead the hillside was smeared with mist.

Cowal Way
P1130395 by Al, on Flickr

Tulich Hill
P1130396 by Al, on Flickr

P1130398 by Al, on Flickr

We came to a stile & gate then some white marker poles signing the rather wet underfoot Cowal way trail. After just under a km from the stile we turned up to our left onto the shoulder of Cnoc Coinnich. To our right The Brack was looking fine and knobbly, to the west the chain of hills ending in Beinn Bheula sat under the clag line. We continued up the grassy/mossy slopes of Coinnich with views to Ben Arthur behind Cruach Fiorach. It was windy and cold in the rain, the cloud settling in to diminidh our views. Pressing on we saw the cairn perched on a ledge up ahead. Posing for a quick snap we sought shelter in the lee side of the summit and warmed up with a coffee plus a warmer layer on under the rain jacket.

P1130399 by Al, on Flickr

Towards the shoulder of Coinnich
P1130400 by Al, on Flickr

P1130402 by Al, on Flickr

P1130403 by Al, on Flickr

Blue sky over The Brack
P1130404 by Al, on Flickr

P1130405 by Al, on Flickr

Hills to the West
P1130406 by Al, on Flickr

Cruach Fiorach
P1130407 by Al, on Flickr

Towards the summit
P1130408 by Al, on Flickr

P1130409 by Al, on Flickr

P1130410 by Al, on Flickr

Corbetteers once more
P1130412 by Al, on Flickr

On a better day I might have pressed on to include Beinn Reithe, but this would have added another 4 or so km and a steep descent southwards off Coinnich - plus it didn't look too easy to cut down through the trees to the east of Reithe, meaning a return over Coinnich. For another day then. Descending, I interested the sheep with a rendition of Modern Romance's Ay Ay Ay Ay Moosey, much to Allison's displeasure The sun dried away the rainclouds and it turned into quite a fine evening. Back at the car we were pleased to be Corbetteers once more, heading to the Village Inn in Arrochar to celebrate with a pint.

Towards Ben Arthur
P1130413 by Al, on Flickr

P1130414 by Al, on Flickr

It's a nice evening now
P1130415 by Al, on Flickr

P1130416 by Al, on Flickr

P1130417 by Al, on Flickr

[basscadet]

Och thats a sodden place to go on a soggy day! We did that bit of the Cowal way and at the bealach the ground was so wet it rippled like a water bed
Well done yet again

[malky_c]

Pretty sure this is a good hill, but you didn't see much more of it than I did! There's a newish bothy on the coast south of Beinn Reithe and the Saddle, so no doubt I'll be back for another look some day.

I'm trying to keep ahead of these surveyors, but I'm wondering when they will introduce a hill I haven't been up to the Munro/Corbett/Graham lists. Knowing my luck, it will be Rodger Law in the Daer hills - both unexciting and miles away .

[BlackPanther]

Congrats on re-completion

I already have a Corbett in my "climbed" book that has changed its summit since I visited it... And I'm not bothered to repeat it just for the sake of touching another cairn, a few hundred m along the ridge from the one I touched the first time

[Sgurr]

Had the same sort of foray. Having compleated, on the Innses, I then started worrying about Buidhe Beinn, which at the time was a twin top, whose other half I had done. The day after, I dragged husband up Buidhe Beinn on a belt and braces principle, and was vindicated later when the resurvey was done and it was found to be the higher. We had climbed this one as a Graham, so no action needed, thank goodness. I doubt if it will see as much traffic as Stob Coire Raineach did when it was reclassified in 1997. People were reported to be out climbing it in all sorts of elderly comfy footwear. Re. Rodger Law, I think malky_c is safe there. Had a look at the col and it is nowhere near 150m drop.

[mrssanta]

Oh it does seem a bit mean all this reclassification. We've a few extra Munros to do - Bidean and Beinn Eighe - but also a couple which have been demoted as well. Well done on getting it done.

[chriselligott]

As a Munroer (completed, on second round), Corbetter (47 to go), Donalder (completed) and Grahamer (about 100 to go), my principle is that you have completed a list as it stands on the day you complete it. You can, of course, go back and do anything extra but it needn't affect the principle. I had already done Cnoc Coinnich as a Graham but it will now be included in my Corbett list as I have not completed them yet.

[Collaciotach]

'S math a rínn thú

[GillC]

Is it ok to drive up to Coilessan to park? I recall that being closed to vehicles when we first tried the Brack and we ended up walking all the way round.

[weaselmaster]

Is it ok to drive up to Coilessan to park? I recall that being closed to vehicles when we first tried the Brack and we ended up walking all the way round.

There were no problems when we did it earlier in the year.
I'm sure The Duster will cope with the current snow/ice nae probs

[GillC]

Is it ok to drive up to Coilessan to park? I recall that being closed to vehicles when we first tried the Brack and we ended up walking all the way round.

There were no problems when we did it earlier in the year.
I'm sure The Duster will cope with the current snow/ice nae probs

[prog99]

Fine in September when we also recompleted the corbetts. You can get much further up the track than the map implies.