free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
It was going to be a weekend of showery, unstable weather. Originally, Sunday looked good anywhere north of Inverness, so we looked at the possibility of climbing Beinn a Chlaidheimh, the demoted Munro of Fisherfield. Unfortunately, the morning forecast showed a band of cloud and rain moving in from the south and the only area avoiding the washout was said to be the far north. I'm used to last minute changes though
and we had a few alternatives prepared. One of them was a walk we both yearned to do, "the Caithness weirdos" as I call them (in contrast to Assynt weirdos
). We hoped they are so far north, that the bad front wouldn't affect us. And we were right!
The full Caithness weirdos traverse covers 2 Grahams and 2 Sub'2 Marylins. Because we couldn't rely on weather holding, we decided to follow WH route and climb only one Graham, Morven. Then, conditions-depending, we could add one or both Subs, leaving Scaraben for another day. TBH, I'm glad we split the walk in two. The area is so beautiful that I will be happy to return here for a full traverse of all tops of Scaraben
Our route covered Morven, Smean and Maiden Pap. The three hills provide so much fun and games, that we didn't even realize how much time we spent on each summit (especially on Smean tors). But this walk should be savoured. Morven & friends are more than just lower hills!
We started from the end of public road in Braemore (an ample car park by the booth) and crossed the river on the bridge. Weather was splendid for the time being, beautiful blue sky though a tad windy:
Berriedale water - what a lovely name for a river!
Even from the very beginning of the walk, we could see Maiden Pap, the most prominent of the weirdos... Hey, I really wanted to scramble up to the top of this wee rocky hill!
So when we left all the buildings behind I started to analyze the visible side of Maiden Pap, thinking, which would be the best way to get to the summit?
Maiden Pap and Morven just peeking out from behind:
We walked past a couple of forest plantations, the track was still good and easy underfoot, but I remembered from WH description that we should expect boggy ground later on. So far, I was preoccupied with Maiden Pap... Believe me or not, there is a way up without scrambling!
The norther face of the virgin hill...
Kevin had a look at the map and he decided, we would go to Morven first, just in case weather broke earlier than expected. At the moment, just a few fluffy clouds floated above us, but the edge of the front was coming from the south and we wanted to bag the Graham as soon as possible.
It was fine by me - Morven (right in picture below) looked just as interesting. To the right, another Sub'2, Smean, which we hoped to traverse on the way back:
Kevin spotted a large bird hovering over a forest plantation - probably a buzzard:
The obvious line of ascent to Morven is from the col between the Graham and Smean, but judging from the map, it's just as steep from any side:
The good track ends by the old farm building in Corrichoich, but a fainter VT track can be followed almost all the way to the col. It was a pleasant walk along the humming river, not too boggy which was a surprise, as this walk has a WH bog factor 4 out of 5. It had probably something to do with the recent dry weather - even the worst bog has dried out!
The closer we were to Morven, the better it looked. Steep, yes, but it shouldn't be too difficult...
View back to Maiden Pap and the blue Caithness sky:
On the col, we located a well worn path - obviously this is a popular hill! We now faced over 300m of steep ascent, the lower half of this on the path, overgrown with heather in places.
Views behind us getting interesting:
Higher up, the path disappeared in the rubble of stones. Climbing now turned into some kind of of a rock-dance routine
Many rocks are loose and wobbly, so at this stage care should be taken. I wasn't sure if I was enjoying or hating the whole experience
2017-05-21 morven caithness 063 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Despite the stony ground, there is no real scrambling needed, only one very easy section just below the eastern top:
On the eastern top, we stopped for a photo session. The true summit was now in sight, only some 50m of additional ascent:
2017-05-21 morven caithness 084 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
The remaining Caithness weirdos from the eastern top:
The summit ridge was windy but nothing could stop me from reaching the highest point! Walking amongst the weirdos provided additional fun
The summit of Morven is the highest point for many, many miles, therefore views must be excellent - ant they were. In every direction, the horizon line can be seen, with all the familiar shapes of Assynt and Sutherland mountains dotted around. The summit itself is very small and airy, with vertical cliffs on two sides:
2017-05-21 morven caithness 115 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
By the cairn with wee Lucy - my 76th Graham (Lucy's 42th):
2017-05-21 morven caithness 101 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
We sat on the summit for a long time, sinking in the fantastic panoramas of the far north of Scotland
Another trip that proved beyond doubt: bigger does not always mean better. This modest Graham offers views superior to those from many Munros!
To the west, Small Mount and a whole crowd of weirdos on the horizon...
Some of them zoomed: Beinn Griam Mor, Ben Loyal and Ben Hope:
The undisturbed view to the north...
Zoomed to Orkney... The Old Man of Hoy just visible on the edge of the cliffs:
Eastern panorama, the weirdo parade:
DSCF8550 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Kevin the Morven free man
DSCF8538 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
To the south, Beinn Dhorain and the hills above Brora:
I don't know if it happens to many walkers, but sometimes, when up on the hills, one particular song gets stuck in my mind and plays all over and over again, like on a broken disc player... Today, it was a song by Robbie Williams (himself an oddity
) singing:
"Where the future rests in the bistro
where the music is for weirdos,
We like it different we like it strange
in our own way we haven't changed"
Today, it was not just music that had a weirdo theme
Having spent an awful length of time on the summit of Morven (by now we agreed it was Morven just a Graham), we began the careful descent back to the col. Weather was holding well, the wind strengthened a bit but no sign of the heavy cloud bringing rain, so we were happy to return over Smean and Maiden Pap rather than retrace steps back to Corrichoich. We don't really care much about Sub'2000 Marylins, but these two looked like fun
Soon we discovered that the two subs are actually just as interesting than the Graham or even more, especially Smean, probably the underrated hill in this group. It is topped with a set of superb tors and views are good, too!
On the way up Smean, with Morven behind me:
View south from Smean, some fluffy cloud gathering but no big, scary front just yet!
The tors of Smean:
Maiden Pap made me salivate like a Pavlov's dog
I run towards the tors, ready for explorations. What is it about weird-shaped rock formations that makes me meow?
The eagle-shaped rock:
Meowing time!
This formation is unusual. the rock is very grippy so it's easy to scramble to the top of most of these little weirdos...
...and narrow, claustrophobic corridors between them provide a good hiding place. Pick-a-boo!
I managed to haul myself up the highest of the tors, to say I climbed the hill properly!
Morven from the tors:
View south towards the smaller tors below:
Scaraben and more tors:
Maiden Pap and even more tors!
Squeezing through a gap in the rocks. This time I was careful not to split my trousers!
Running for more tor explorations!
2017-05-21 morven caithness 210 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Posing with Maiden Pap in the background:
Kevin bagging another rock
2017-05-21 morven caithness 231 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
I don't know how much time we spent on the summit of Smean, most likely more than on Morven, but the world of tors was fascinating and weather was holding well for us
2017-05-21 morven caithness 222 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Eventually, we descended east from Smean to cross the high col between the two Subs. This was a bit boggy and dotted with peat hags. In wet weather this stage would be a nightmare to cross...
Looking back at Smean from the col:
2017-05-21 morven caithness 239 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
From the distance, the rocks of Maiden Pap look formidable, but as we came closer, we saw a couple of routes up to the summit. Kevin said, that this hill reminded him of a certain Spielberg movie, one involving mash potatoes
2017-05-21 morven caithness 247 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
As for me, that bl***y Robbie was singing again in my head...
"In the universe we are magenta
you can join us if you enter,
Because you're different and you are strange
in your own way you're just the same...!"
I hate that song!!!!!
Reaching the summit turned out easier than one might think when looking at the hill from the distance. We picked a line up the southern slope, where we located a faint path. Steep and heathery, but no real scrambling involved. Soon we were on the summit and relishing the views
2017-05-21 morven caithness 267 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Summit panoramas from Maiden Pap:
DSCF8556 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Scaraben - I'm coming back soon to walk the whole ridge!
DSCF8555 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
It is possible to descend the way we came up, but we managed to find a route down the northern face of the hill. High heather made it easier to get a good grip on the steep ground, as we picked our way down:
A quick jaunt across a wet meadow saw us back on the Corrichoich track and walking to the car with big smiles on our faces
We left behind the pointy shape of Maiden Pap, but carried with us all the great memories of the fun and games the three hills provided. And Robbie was still singing in my head...
"I want it different I like it strange in my own way I haven't changed"
To sum up, the Caithness weirdos are a must-do's for all hillwalkers, not just Graham and Sub baggers! The whole route took somewhere around 7 hours, but I think half of that time was spent lurking around. Am I becoming a Sub collector? Probably not, but I really enjoyed the lower hills of Caithness.