free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
On a sunny autumn day in October 2016, we were sitting by the cairn on the summit of Sgurr a'Gharaidh, a rather obscure Torridonian Graham, looking north towards Beinn Damh and Beinn Alligin beyond. We were talking about which hills were worth a second visit, as we had already climbed the vast majority of Torridon peaks. At some point, Kevin pointed at a small hill just to the left of Beinn Damh and said he was intrigued by its shape and position. I checked on the map, that the mountain he mentioned was called Ben Shieldaig. A quick look at the list of Sub'2000-ers confirmed my suspicions that Ben Sheildaig was indeed a Marylin. The hill ended up on our to-do list, perhaps for a winter day.
In the end, we decided to visit Ben Sheildaig on a late spring day and do a longer, circular route, combining it with An Staonach, a second Sub just across the glen. The two hills are separated by Glen Shieldaig which has A 896 running through it and the walk can be started from any point along the road.
There is a large layby at the southern end of Loch Dughaill:
We decided to do the circuit clockwise, mostly because the climb up the western side of Ben Shieldaig looked very steep and we preferred to tackle that slope in ascent rather than in descent. After traversing Shieldaig north to south, we returned to A896 and climbed the SE end of An Staonach, traversing the second sub from south to north and descending along a faint ATV track along Allt a'Mhill Bhric. Most of the terrain is pathless, some slopes are very steep and overgrown, but no scrambling necessary and the surrounding scenery is stunning. Had these two been higher, like over 610m to classify as Grahams, they would be much more popular and therefore would have eroded paths all the way up and down. But maybe it's better that the Shieldaig Duo are just Subs. No need for them to be higher - they are amazing just the way they are.
From the parking area, we walked across the moorland to the deer fence. The gate is locked, but there is a stile provided for hillwalkers. As we gazed up, we knew, we were in for some rough climbing!
The slopes were overgrown with deep heather and as we gained height, the angle was becoming steeper and steeper, forcing us to zigzag and grab vegetation to stay upright. but views were opening up nicely
Loch Dughaill below:
After about 100m of steep climbing, we stopped for a breather and Kevin spotted a moth caterpillar:
Weather was improving and with cloud well above summits (even those of Munros) we knew we were going to have a lot to admire from higher up, but for the time being it was a painful trudge up tough terrain. Strangely, I was still grinning
Higher up, we followed a fence (there is no need to climb over it at this point):
The fence proved very useful as a railing
Behind me, Glen Shieldaig:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 031 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
We reached the ridge at the height of 450m. We made a mental note that there was a stile here so later we would have to come back to the very same spot to cross the fence, but for the time being we were interested in the summit, which lies about 0.5km to the north west, along the heathery ridge, easy going with superb views:
It didn't take us long to find the summit cairn. Sub-2000er no. 33! I couldn't resist a silly pose:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 072 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Kevin posing in a bit more dignified way
Now to the views. Even though the day was grey, we could fully appreciate the beauty of surrounding mountains. Ben Sheildaig is, as Kevin called it "the Sgurr na Stri of Torridon", with amazing views in all directions but especially to the north to the Torridon Giants of Alligin and Liathach.
The northern panorama: from Beinn Alligin (left) to Sgurr na Bana-Mhoraire, the N top of Beinn Damh (far right). Loch nan Eun in the foreground:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 064 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Centered on Beinn Damh:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 065 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Beinn Damh zoomed:
The northern top of Ben Shieldaig (529m). If we were doing only this Sub, we would go on and visit this top as well, but we had a double catch in mind today so we decided to skip it.
Alligin zoomed:
View south:
The distant cliffs of northern Skye:
Having sunk in enough views to last us a lifetime, we had a quick snack and cuppa, then packed up and descended back to the stile. Kevin crossed it first, I followed. It was a bit wobbly but stable enough to withstand the weight of a large cat:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 086 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
We crossed the high col, past a couple of small lochans and climbed to the next top on the ridge (497m). Views from here were just as good and as weather was improving, cloud was starting to break slowly and we stopped for another photo session...
Panorama of Torridons and the summit of Ben Shieldaig:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 092 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Zoom to Beinn Dearg across Loch Torridon:
A happy cat unleashed!
The remaining part of the ridge is still interesting, more lumps and bumps to come. Sgurr a'Gharaidh in the background:
On the 479m top:
The Trotternish Ridge:
Liathach and Beinn Eighe behind:
Studying the route to come:
We continued along the ridge, making frequent breaks for more photos. There is a lot to explore here and we took our time, photographing every nook and cranny, and hidden lochans, too:
Beinn Damh to the east - full ridge:
Another cairn on the way down - there are several tops with cairns as you traverse the ridge:
To the west, the cliffs of Beinn Bhan and in the foreground, our second target:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 150 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Beinn Damh and An Ruadh Stac. Maol Chean-dearg still hidden behind Beinn Damh:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 148 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
One more hidden lochan on the way down:
Just before the last top, Meall Dubh, we descended a short steeper section on grass and heather to reach the bottom of the glen. If doing only Ben Shieldaig, you could now follow the road north back to the starting point. But we had plenty of time left and weather was getting even better in the afternoon, so for us, the way back was over the second Sub
We decided to start the ascent of An Staonach by following the tiny stream seen in the middle of this photo:
The bottom of the glen is a bit wet but once on steeper slopes, it was easy climbing on short heather, with superb views returning very quickly as we gained height again. I kept stopping to admire the landscape around...
Beinn Damh, An Ruadh-Stac and Maol Chean-dearg:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 183 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Once on the ridge we turned right towards the summit. We encountered some large boulders which could be used for training scrambling, but we were not in scrambling mood today so we just admired them from below and skirted around them on easier ground
An Ruadh-Stac zoomed:
Maol Chean-dearg zoomed:
An Staonach (or Beinn a'Chait, both names are used) is only 516m high but what it lacks in height, it gains in both views and interesting terrain. I actually expected it to be more boring than Ben Shieldaig but on closer inspection, it was just as good! The final climb to the summit looks very daunting from the distance, but the view is misleading. There is nothing technical about this "face" and my doubts were unsubstantiated.
It's just steep and a bit craggy but all rocky sections can be avoided:
What a view from higher up!
The summit area is confusing, we counted 3 cairns and because we were not sure which one is the true summit, we visited all of them. It was windy so in the end we took a break hidden behind a large boulder. But before that, it was time for some recording
Beinn Bhan looks very close:
I was worried that the northern panorama from An Staonach would be restricted by Ben Shieldaig, but it's not. The main Torridon peaks are still visible on the horizon:
Loch Shieldaig:
Eastern panorama:
The summit area is dotted with countless lochs and lochans, surrounded by rocks and boulders, a perfect place to find shelter and take a tea break
Eventually, we started our descent. The western side of An Staonach is barred by vertical cliffs, so we had to traverse along the ridge for about 1km before picking less steep slope to descend to an ATV track along Allt a'Mhill Bhric. We were actually happy to stay on the ridge for longer, with such vistas it was pure pleasure!
Beinn Alligin behind Ben Shieldaig:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 268 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
On the way down, I was eager to investigate every rock we encountered...
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 275 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
...but some proved too heavy to move
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 278 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
"Balancing stone" seen from below:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 279 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
The same "balancing stone" from further down:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 283 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Can you spot the "balancing stone" now?
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 284 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
We found the track easily, higher up it was boggy in places but in the end it's worth following as lower down it provides good going and avoids the wettest sections in descent. As we walked, we could still see some of the fantastic views to the east:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 288 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
Abhainn nan Lub can be impossible if in spate, but we had no problems crossing and returning to the tarmac road. As a bonus, we spotted a heron:
2018-04-21 ben shieldaig 291 by
Ewa Dalziel, on Flickr
It took us 8 hours to complete the circuit, but we didn't rush it. In such surroundings it would be a sin to be too fast
One might think - phew, just a pair of Subs - but the overall ascent added up to over 1000m, most of it on rough ground, so these are not hills for the fainthearted. When climbed together, they provide a proper mountain adventure. Hard to believe that they are just Sub2000ers for what they have to offer!
........
Amazing little mountains. Amazing just the way they are.
........
So that was the end of our April hols, but not the end of hillwalking by any means
We still managed to add more mountains to our tally, on weekend days. Weather was smiling and days are longer now, so we could concentrate on higher hills: Munros, Corbetts. Also Grahams. My next TR will visit a certain Corbett-Graham combo in the south-east corner of Scotland. Watch this space for more stories