Weasel's Revenge on Beinn Laoigh

[weaselmaster]

Back in January I nearly came a cropper when out trying to climb Ben Lui from Tyndrum.
http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=59178
The time was ripe for me to have another go - hopefully without mishap What would happen today?

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

I set off at 7 and arrived in Tyndrum about 8.30. I had thought of starting from Dalrigh but Tyndrum was actually a shorter distance on the track. The forecast wasn't all that promising - rain in the morning, a brief dry spell in the middle of the day and heavy rain from mid afternoon. It was waterproofs on from the start. I saw 3 tents out in the car park beside the Good Food Cafe - presumably WHW walkers with no cash. Off to the station, across the tracks onto the path to Cononish. Low cloud covered the tops of the surrounding hills - looked like cloud was down to around 500m. There was a new sign up on the gate going towards Beinn a'Chuirn - Gold and Silver - visitors not welcome...I came to the crossing of the Allt an Rund and followed a clear path alsongside the river up into the bowl of Coire Gaothach.

P1130506 by Al, on Flickr

Laoigh in clag - sweet
P1130507 by Al, on Flickr

Follow the river
P1130508 by Al, on Flickr

Coire Gaothach
P1130509 by Al, on Flickr


Having got to around 750m fairly quickly the path lost itself amongst a number of scree runs. I couldn't see much up ahead for clag and didn't really know which way the path I had been following would go. deciding to play safe, I contoured round to the shoulder of Stob Garbh and picked up a path once more. This weaved in and out of crags and gained height quickly. The wind was strong about 850m, but coming at me from the direction of the Coire, so no chance of blowing me in there. I was up at the first cairn then at the summit in just over 2 hours.

Laoigh summit
P1130510 by Al, on Flickr

Got it at last!
P1130511 by Al, on Flickr

Mistake - I continued SE on a path heading down Carn Mhuirich rather than to Beinn a'Chleibh - silly. Correcting my course, I wondered if my subconscious was keeping me well away from Fionn Choiren where I nearly got avalanched in January. I had a look at it when climbing up Chleibh - to think my bones could be lying there, picked clean by the ravens . Chleibh gave no difficulties and I made it back down to the bealach before stopping for lunch.

Chleibh
P1130513 by Al, on Flickr

The "near-death coire" Fionn Choiren
P1130514 by Al, on Flickr

Summit Chleibh
P1130515 by Al, on Flickr

The next section took me contouring along the SE flank of Laoigh - I looked down into Coire Annaich and remembered the sheer exhaustion of floundering through waist deep snow for what seemed hours - the closest I can remember feeling like just giving up. It was much easier keeping high up here - until I tripped and fell onto some boulders, hurting my right arm and ribs - damn - this mountain is definately trying to kill me I didn't seem to have broken anything although I was in quite a bit of pain and my arm & hand were numb all the way down the ulnar side for the next couple of hours. I arrived at the Creag Dhubh a'Bhealaich to start the ascent of Beinn Oss groaning a bit.

Creag Dhubh a'Bhealaich
P1130516 by Al, on Flickr

Sgiath Dhubh
P1130517 by Al, on Flickr

Laoigh top just in the clouds
P1130518 by Al, on Flickr

Oss
P1130519 by Al, on Flickr

Again I picked up a path and quickly reached the summit of Oss. I could just make out the next section to Bealach Buidhe under the clag, and passed a group of folk labouring up the opposite way to me. Down and up again - it's a while since I've done 4 Munros in a day and I was now feeling the extra effort of re-ascending. Got to the summit of Dhubhcraig as the drizzle started and met 2 blokes who'd come out from Dalrigh and looked a bit puggled - they were put off continuing to Oss by the weather turning.

Oss summit
P1130520 by Al, on Flickr

route to Dhubhcraig
P1130521 by Al, on Flickr

P1130524 by Al, on Flickr

Summit Dhubhcraig
P1130525 by Al, on Flickr

From here I dropped down the northern side of Dhubhcraig and wandered across the grassy/boggy ground making for the River Cononish and the track. I followed a stream down towards the farm and crossed on a bridge, though the river wasn't difficult to ford. Back on the track, my chest smarting a bit, and back towards the car. Just before the railway station I met a guy heading off for Laoigh with no map. He asked how long it might take and I told him my timings, suggested a route, but in clag with no map it's hard to know if he'd make it or not. Back to the car in 7.5 hours which I was quite pleased with. I think this is a good way to do Laoigh rather than the Dalmally route, and getting the 4 done had been less tiring than I'd thought it might be.

There's gold in them thar hills!
P1130526 by Al, on Flickr

Cononish
P1130527 by Al, on Flickr

P1130528 by Al, on Flickr

P1130529 by Al, on Flickr

[Alteknacker]

Glad to see you made it - and at some speed!! It's a heck of a hill in any conditions; but I think I'd have given up in Tyndrum in weather conditions like those - it's nicer in clean snow!

Isn't Connonish just beautiful....

[Collaciotach]

Great stuff ...you should have lifted that sign

[simon-b]

The Cononish glen is a great approach to those hills, and Laoigh is magnificent from that side. As has already been said, a fast time for that quartet, WM.