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I'm getting better at finding obscure Grahams
Of course I'm nowhere near completion (if ever...) but climbing the obvious and popular ones is not enough now - I have higher ambitions! Kevin is happy to plod along just as long as the hills have something interesting to offer. In case of Sabhal Beag, it was the hope of seeing mighty Foinaven topped with white... and we got that in abundance!
To be honest, a few years back, when we did Meall Horn, I had a look at the possibility of adding the Graham and decided, I couldn't be bothered. I have changed my mind since, yes, I could be bothered! And the walk itself could be a real cracker if weather plays along (it was a bit nasty for us).
So if doing this hill on its own, the best approach is from Loch Stack, starting from the car park by the bridge - the usual route for Arkle/Meall Horn/Foinaven. We followed the good track up Strath Luib na Seilich up to the highest point of Bealalch na Feithe, from where it's only about 300m of straightforward ascent to the summit of the Graham. Walking along Abhainn an Loin is a pleasant experience in sunny weather
Getting ready:
As we prepared for the walk, two gentlemen arrived, said they were doing Meall Horn. Naturally they asked which hill were we heading for and were surprised to her the name Sabhal Beag, indeed they didn't even know of the hill's existence
I had to pull out my map and show them the whereabouts of our target mountain
That really shows the "obscure obscurity" of this Graham. There is a Polish expression saying: a place even a dog with a limp wouldn't bother to visit (the equivalent of English ass end of the world). Well, I'm a cat, not a dog, and since my knee recovered I don't limp, so I can try to get to the obscurest of the obscure
Panorama of Arkle across Loch Stack:
The forecast said: bright morning, then a band of showers passing over, should clear by midday, followed by a sunny afternoon. So far, we had nice weather but we knew that band of showers was lurking somewhere in the north just waiting to make the entrance
Sunny Ben Stack:
Arkle and Meall Horn from the track along Loch Stack:
Just past the bridge at Lone, the track divides, we took the one heading east, easy going:
As I looked back, I saw a nasty cloud charging towards us from the NW direction... Heyy, here comes the band of showers!
The last photo taken before we were swallowed by storm. You can see showers developing over Ben Stack:
The first flakes of snow fell as we reached the top of the pass, so we stopped to wrap up. Coats, overtrousers, hats, rucksack covers, you name it... And gloves, of course. Funny, we only took one pair of gloves each, thinking that we wouldn't need spares, ohhh how wrong we had been. When the snow started, we expected it to pass in 15-20 minutes, but as we walked into the glen, it never stopped. Quite opposite, it became worse. Visibility down to 10m or so, snow melting as it fell, turning the ground into squelchy-soggy soup. Thank heavens we had the track to follow.
In that neverending blizzard, we somehow staggered to the top of the bealach. The snow was easing of a bit but no sign of cloud lifting, indeed it was well down to where we stood, trying to make out the way up the slope in front of us.
Our gloves were soaked but taking them off was not an option, it was far too cold! Up here the white stuff was not melting as it fell, so we faced a 300m steep-ish marching in ankle deep snow. Looked like winter still had something to say! Hah-hah, we got Christmas Eve weather for Easter Monday
But we had no choice, having walked that far, we simply couldn't turn back. So up we went, hands freezing in our wet gloves, praying that this hellish experience would end soon...
It didn't take long to get to the summit area, it's a straightforward climb and thankfully, the snow stopped falling when we found the summit cairn. It's just a flat pile of stones but I was never happier to see one at last!!!
We took a short break by the summit. Visibility was still zero so we decided, 5 minutes and we head down. Kevin took the time to squeeze gallons of water out of our gloves:
Cold, wet and half-frozen for Easter Monday... on my Graham no. 68!
We had a quick sip of tea to warm up, put on the wet gloves again and started the descent. But we might have walked maybe 20m down the slope when suddenly, like with a touch of magic wand, the cloud dispersed. It was truly amazing, how quickly all the clag burned off! As if it never existed and bang! we were basking in sunshine.
We looked at each other...
Back up? Kevin asked
Yeah, back up! I shouted, turned around and run up the white slope back to the summit cairn!
What a change in only a few minutes... At least Lucy could come out of the rucksack where she was hiding from the bad weather... for a summit snap on her 34th Graham!
So, now to the mountain porn. The top was cold and a bit drafty, but with views so amazing we simply had to stay for a while, take photos and enjoy the scenery!
Meallan Liath Coire Mhic Dhughaill, a long ridge with even longer name. Usually not seen from this side, its northern flanks are steep and covered in snow, made for a superb view:
Foinaven and Meall Horn in full white:
Arkle:
Cranstackie and Beinn Spionnaidh:
Ben Hope:
Ben Loyal:
Quinag:
I felt really privileged to see this area covered in white (not many walkers wander up here in winter) and I was so happy that I couldn't resist my ritual Panther Dance:
Some may say I have bats in my belfry, but can you sit still when having such views around...
View west, from Ben Stack (far left) to Cranstackie (far right):
Having spent enough time on the cold summit for our hands to get numb, we headed down, this time for good! The snow cover was melting as we descended and the temperature was rising quickly. By the time we reached the bealach, we ditched the soaked gloves and removed windproof hoods.
Meallan Liath Coire Mhic Dhughaill once again, panoramic shot from the slopes of Sabhal Beag:
Looking down from the top of the bealach, we saw that all the snow from the lower ground has gone already and we were in for a sunny afternoon:
At least we got good views on the way down and spent some time lurking in the glen, photographing countless waterfalls and strangely shaped rocks. Hard to believe that only a few hours earlier it was full-winter experience!
This glen is very, very nice and it's well worth exploring! one of the falls:
Looking down the stream, Ben Stack on the horizon:
More rapids:
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One happy Panther, Sabhal Beah behind me:
Silly posing on the rocks has become a habit...
Panoramic view of Sabhal Beag-Sabhal Mhor ridge:
Wide pano:
The western flanks of McDhugaill's Hill:
What a lovely end to Easter Monday! It was a journey from hell straight to heaven and I'm glad we took the opportunity of a weather window - we were lucky to see this area covered in snow! Well, we suffered a lot on the way up, but all the pain and tears were quickly forgotten and the memories of clear summit views will stay with us forever...
The beautiful Arkle:
Of course, this wee Graham could be added to Meall Horn and maybe one day we will return to do the full traverse, it's always great to visit the weird landscape of Sutherland. But first - Foinaven! I can hear it calling... I'll just wait till snow melts!
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The following day weather was much better, so we headed south-east for a longer round, concerning 2 Corbetts and a Graham. TR to follow
