My Cairngorm adventure started on Thursday night when I decided that I would venture into the mountains and take on the second highest mountain in the UK, Ben Macdui. I also decided that, after seeing a post on instagram that it would be an ideal place to wild camp and try to catch a sunset/sunrise looking down over the Lairig Ghru.
Day 1 - So after finishing work on Friday I headed up to the Ski centre, parked my car and began the ascent of Ben Macdui around 6pm. The forecast wasn't great but I was holding out for a clear sky on the Saturday...as visibility began to degrade around 9pm I decided to find a camp site and knuckle down for the night and an early start. After some food and a look over the map I decided to take on another munro the next day and planned to head for Carn a'Mhaim then double back and head to the car.
Day 2 - I reached the summit of Ben Macdui pretty early (around 7:30am) in some pretty poor weather and no scenery in the distance. I decided that perseverance was key and headed on for the next munro in the hope of scenic views. A short walk later across a tricky boulder field and steep descent I reached Carn a'Mhaim. By now the clouds were beginning to clear and I could see Lairig Ghru in all its glory, so much so that I decided to take on the Devils Point. From there it seemed daft not to complete the circuit....and by 5pm on Saturday I had reached my sixth summit taking in Cairn Toul, Sgor an Lochain Uaine and finally Braeriach. Reaching the summit of Braeriach was unexpected given my original plans but the views were well worth the extra hiking. From here I began my long descent down through the Lairig Ghru and back round to reach the car around 7pm, a much welcome sight after a long days hike!
Warning
Please note that hillwalking when there is snow lying requires an ice-axe, crampons and the knowledge, experience and skill to use them correctly. Summer routes may not be viable or appropriate in winter. See winter information on our skills and safety pages for more information.