Although the MWIS forecast had, realistically, warned me, I was still somewhat miffed to find that the weather was less than perfect. Summer of 2018 has really spoiled us! Summary of what I found - low cloud and strongish wind all day. Drizzle/rain for about 90 minutes before noon and then the cloud lifted to give great views between about 12:30 and 3:30, before descending again. I was so lucky to have the wonderful views from summit to summit and I got the chance to appreciate that Ben Alder is indeed a magnificent big hill and that its neighbour is beautifully situated.
Here are a few images, taken when the weather allowed, in more or less the order of the anti-clockwise route that I took:
- Cloud lifting over the top of the Leachas
- Boulder field between Leachas and Ben Alder summit
- Ben Alder plateau looking south to cliffs around Garbh Choire
- Looking over towards Beinn Bheoil
- Ben Alder summit above the cliffs of Garbh Choire
- Around top of Garbh Choire, looking towards Beinn Bheoil
Some other comments on the day:
Cycling to and from Dalwhinnie was easier than I expected, mainly due to the quality of the track surfaces. I got to Culra in about 2 hours and took 90 minutes to return. See my report against the separate WH section on that route.
The bothy was closed and locked
- Closed Culra Bothy
The stalker's path from Culra up Choire Bheithe is in great condition and there was evidence of recent work to keep it that way.
- Typical view of stalker's path
the cut-off towards the Long Leachas is clearly marked by a small cairn:
- Cut-off towards Long Leachas
To get to the Long Leachas, it's necessary to cross Allt a'Bhealich Bheithe. Although there has not been a lot of rain recently, I didn't find it to be particularly straightforward. It might become really exciting in spate!
- Allt a'Bhealich Bheithe
I had read that the Long Leachas is much less challenging than the short Leachas. I'm sure that is the case, but the LL is still worthy of your close attention in the slippery conditions I experienced in the wettest and windiest part of the day.
- Sideways look at the Long Leachas
The descent to Bealach Breabag is fairly steep and consists of that classic combination of wet and boulders that is very familiar to those who walk in the Scottish Highlands. I went too far towards the end of Garbh Coire before I started down. You might want to have a recce a bit earlier. There is a path which is absolutely obvious - but only when you are looking up from the bealach! Actually, having re-read the WH route information, I wish that I had paid attention the first time because it does tell you where to start the descent.
- Bealach Breabag and south end of Loch Ericht
On the way up to Beinn Bheoil, I recommend that you take the very small detour to Sron Coire na h-Iolaire, for a spectacular view of Loch Ericht. Don't do it if you don't want to see how far it is to Dalwhinnie!
- Loch Ericht from Sron Coire na h-Iolaire. Dalwhinnie at the far end.
The descent from Beinn Bheoil to Culra is one of the gentlest and prettiest that I can remember.
- Approaching the end of the ridge running north from Beinn Bheoil
- Looking north to Loch Pattack, Culra Bothy and lots of wide open space
There was a surprising number of fellow walkers for such a remote hill, although I guess it was a weekend day in holiday season. They were split roughly 50/50 between campers and day trippers. A few had approached from Corrour.
Finally, one ever-so-slightly-political note. I had been a good boy and checked the 'Heading for the Scottish Hills' website before I left, to find out about any plans for deer stalking in the area. I found that Ben Alder Estate had not uploaded any information. Instead, a walker is expected to 'follow reasonable direction given locally'. That's fine, unless you travel all the way to some remote location to find that the local direction precludes the route that you had planned to take. When I got to Dalwhinnie, I saw this board:
- Estate Information Board
My gripe is that if the estate staff knew that there was going to be no stalking before 20 August, why did they not upload that info to the website and put my mind at ease? Maybe one of you good people out there will spot something that I have missed!
