Three Marilyns from Balmaha

[weaselmaster]

A fine day forecast - what to do... get a few Munros to boost this year's pathetic tally? some more Simms? Or maybe - since I'm only 10 Marilyns off the 600 needed to enter the Marilyn Hall of Fame (Lower Division) I make progress towards that goal? Seemed a reasonable plan - I had a scout about on the computer and found 3 hills that would lend themselves to a fine walk and only as far away as Drymen. Another very foggy morning leaving the house but sunshine by the time I arrived at Balmaha - cold, mind - the car reading 3 degrees.

conic_3..gpx Open full screen  NB: Walkhighlands is not responsible for the accuracy of gpx files in users posts

The walk starts from the carpark, joining the WHW towards Conic Hill - a frequently talked about hill that I'd never visited. Progress was swift up the track, with a subsidiary track leading up to the right once alongside the hill. Scarves of mist trailed over the vista looking out over Loch Lomond. After crossing three undulating bumps I reached the summit cairn. From here, Maol Odhar fills the eye looking north, but my next target was Binnien nan Gobhar which is not really visible from here. I trudged off Conic Hill through heather, descended to Cross Burn and set off through the heather in a NW direction.

On the Way to Conic Hill
DSC01890 by Al, on Flickr

The route to Binnien nan Gobhar
DSC01892 by Al, on Flickr

Loch Lomond
DSC01893 by Al, on Flickr

DSC01894 by Al, on Flickr

Conic Summit, looking South
DSC01896 by Al, on Flickr

Maol Odhar
DSC01897 by Al, on Flickr

Sometimes there were deer tracks to follow, at one point a faint boggy ATV track appeared, but mostly it was plodding through knee high heather. I managed to find a 4 foot deep hole with a stream at the bottom of it, secreted away under rushes, which I fell into and sat, as in a cold bath. So, now I've got wet feet (and bum) for the rest of the walk - although the warm sun made short work of the latter affliction. As I slowly gained height the heather became shorter and progress easier.

Towards Binnien nan Gobhar
DSC01898 by Al, on Flickr

View back to Conic
DSC01900 by Al, on Flickr

DSC01902 by Al, on Flickr

I made the top of The Vine then headed west across a deer fence to Stob a'Choin Dhubh. There's remains of an old deer fence - just the posts and a couple of stiles crossing nothing. Peat hags and boggy underfoot. Ahead of me I could see Beinn Bhreac, beyond that the true summit of Binnien nan Gobhar. Arriving at the trig point I met another fellow out collecting subs- Superstar_Tradesman as he is on this site. He'd come up from Cashel Farm and was intending to head over to Beinn Uird too, so we set off together, visiting the summit of Gobhar then dropping down the boggy ground to Clach an Iarunn where we found a wooden bridge crossing a stream, then set off up the gentle gradient to my last hill Beinn Uird. Over to the right lay Loch Ard and in the distance, Loch Vennacher.

Summit Stob a'Choin Dhubh looking to Beinn Bhreac/Gobhar
DSC01903 by Al, on Flickr

Beinn Bhreac summit
DSC01904 by Al, on Flickr

Summit Gobhar
DSC01905 by Al, on Flickr

Beinn Uird
DSC01906 by Al, on Flickr

View back to Binnien nan Gobhar
DSC01907 by Al, on Flickr

Ben Lomond from summit Uird
DSC01908 by Al, on Flickr

DSC01909 by Al, on Flickr

We stopped at the summit of Uird for lunch, the mighty bulk of Ben Lomond standing directly to the north. I was faintly tempted to keep on to climb the Ben as it was such a fine day but sanity prevailed. We had a discussion about the best route to descend by - the options were to head SW to Blairvockie Farm, or more southernly to the forest tracks of Queen Elizabeth Forest Park - one report describing that route commented on the "thrashing about" in the trees, which neither of us fancied. The descent was straightforward, a bit wet underfoot in places but not as boggy as I'd imagined. We reached the farm then onto the road, switching to the WHW at Sallochy. A lovely afternoon, the Loch playing host to all manner of water-pleasure seekers and a fair few walkers out on the Way. Reaching Cashel I took the offered lift back to Balmaha, with the vague idea that I'd have time to fit in something else before heading for home. Duncolm north of Old Kilpatrick was one I remembered as close by, but I had no map for it and a quick check on WH in the car suggested it was 15km - a bit much when I'd not arrive there before 3.30. I headed home instead having had a grand day on little hills.

Descent
DSC01910 by Al, on Flickr

[Collaciotach]

I m going to have to look up SIMMS and Marylins and all the rest you do

[superstar_tradesman]

Thanks for the company, weaselmaster! It was a grand day out, and I got a nice view back to the hills from my afternoon coffee later