walkhighlands

Share your personal walking route experiences in Scotland, and comment on other peoples' reports.
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.

Beinn Eighe

Beinn Eighe


Postby BlackPanther » Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:27 pm

Route description: Beinn Eighe (western summits)

Munros included on this walk: Ruadh-stac Mòr (Beinn Eighe), Spidean Coire nan Clach (Beinn Eighe)

Date walked: 15/08/2010

Time taken: 8 hours

Distance: 18.5 km

Ascent: 1200m

2 people think this report is great.
Register or Login
free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).

This is going to be a long essay... OK, I'll try not to be boring.
Actually, can anyone be bored by the magnificent Beinn Eighe?...
My first experience with THE BEN (as I call it sometimes :) ) was in March 2008, when we visited Coire Mhic Fhearchair. I was overwhelmed by the majestic Triple Buttress and the stillness of the loch. And since that day I knew, I had to conquer this mountain - I fell for it, I was under the spell and I couldn't get it out of my head.
We kept coming back to Coire Mhic Fhearchair every spring (once in February, when it was completely frozen), but somehow I couldn't get myself motivated to walk the whole hill. My husband, who had done Beinn Eighe twice before, wasn't in a great hurry, either. But eventually last August we got around to climbing THE BEN - I simply couldn't wait any longer :D :D
The best starting point is the car park west of the bridge over the Allt a'Choire Dhuibh Mhoir. From there, a good path took us immediately into the very heart of Torridon, when we walked between the steep flanks of Liathach and Beinn Eighe. I could hear The Ben's call in my head - the spell came to life again...
ben eighe 002.JPG
The slopes of Beinn Eighe

The path crossed the stream and continued through the stepping stones to some small lochans, where it parted. At this point, we were captivated by the mesmerising view of Beinn Dearg and Beinn Alligin just behind it:
ben eighe 021.JPG
Beinn Dearg and Beinn Alligin

The path then climbed up and as we traversed across the foot of Sail Mhor, more of the beautiful scenery came to view:
ben eighe 030.JPG
Slioch from the path to Coire Mhic Fhearchair

ben eighe 049.JPG
Beinn an Eoin and Baosbheinn

The final climb of the first stage of our walk took us by some impressive waterfalls and to Coire Mhic Fhearchair itself. Here we couldn't resist taking a short break just to "breathe in" the scenery. It may sound stupid, but I felt like I was in the right place at the right time. This was my moment and I was living my life to the full. The spell of The Ben was certainly working :) :) :)
ben eighe 052.JPG
Waterfalls below Coire Mhic Fhearchair

ben eighe 073.JPG
The Tripple Buttress

ben eighe 082.JPG
The slopes of Sail Mhor

Now it was time to face the final push to the top of the ridge. The path circled the loch and eventually we climbed more steeply towards the scree gully. As we gained height, Coire Mhic Fhearchair could be seen from a completely different perspective:
ben eighe 098.JPG
A different look at the loch

ben eighe 127.JPG

ben eighe 122.JPG
Looking up the slope

The gully itself is supposed to have a bad reputation, but I found it easier than I expected. Yet it was a great fun for me! I charged it without any hesitation and after a short push I was standing on the top of the ridge... speechless. What I saw was almost more than I could take :o
ben eighe 139.JPG
The scree gully

ben eighe 149.JPG
Don't look down or your vertigo will kick in :P

ben eighe 157.JPG
more scree...

20100815132703_0001.jpg
The Cat climbing The Ben

The spectacular view across to Spidean Coire nan Clach are second to none:
ben eighe 166.JPG

ben eighe 177.JPG
Towards the summit of Ruadh-Stac Mor

After a few minutes of enjoying the scenery, we walked up to Ruadh-stac Mhor. The path was very rough at first, but it soon reached a plateau before the final short pull up to the rocky summit. As the highest top of The Ben this is certainly a fantastic viewpoint for most of the mountain range. :D :D :D
ben eighe 179.JPG
The panorama of Torridon from Ruadh-stac Mhor

ben eighe 188.JPG

ben eighe 199.JPG
The Triple Buttress again

The next stage of the walk was to come back to the bealach between the top and Coinneach Mhor and then a short, steep climb to the latest. From there, the best part of the route took us along the rocky cliffs to Spidean Coire nan Clach, the second Munro of The Ben. At some point I found an exposed bit of the cliff and posed for a few pictures there. I sent these to my dad and he almost had a heart attack :oops: I have to be more careful next time...
ben eighe 225.JPG
The Cat on a hot tin roof?

ben eighe 239.JPG
The summit of Spidean Coire nan Clach

ben eighe 272.JPG
Liathach from the summit of Spidean Coire nan Clach

ben eighe 260.JPG
Looking back to Coinneach Mhor

Sitting on the top of Spidean Coire nan Clach, I knew it was time to say good-bye to Beinn Eighe, yet I still felt bewitched by The Ben. It was Kevin who finally woke me up and dragged down the Coire an Laoigh path... which was quite steep and slippery. The final part of the great day was the view of the southern flanks of the mountain as we descended into shadows...
20100815164815_0001.jpg

All that was left was now a short stroll along the road, back to the car park. An unforgettable day on the most magnificent mountain I've ever climbed... What else can I say? :D :D :D

our_route.gpx Open full screen  NB: Walkhighlands is not responsible for the accuracy of gpx files in users posts

Last edited by BlackPanther on Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
BlackPanther
Mountain Walker
 
Posts: 3839
Munros:268   Corbetts:182
Fionas:136   
Sub 2000:75   
Joined: Nov 2, 2010
Location: Beauly, Inverness-shire

Re: Beinn Eighe

Postby Alastair S » Fri Nov 26, 2010 1:45 pm

Superb stuff there panther :D Only done one of the Torridon big three and this has whetted my appetite even more!
User avatar
Alastair S
Hill Bagger
 
Posts: 1283
Munros:78   Corbetts:13
Fionas:6   
Sub 2000:13   
Islands:22
Joined: Dec 14, 2008
Location: Banchory, Aberdeenshire

Re: Beinn Eighe

Postby U059361 » Fri Nov 26, 2010 5:34 pm

Spectacular stuff, thanks for sharing. Know what you mean about being careful who you show what when you're doing walks like that :lol:
User avatar
U059361
Walker
 
Posts: 547
Munros:107   Corbetts:38
Fionas:20   Donalds:27
Sub 2000:40   Hewitts:5
Islands:32
Joined: Jul 24, 2010
Location: Perth

2 people think this report is great.
Register or Login
free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).




Can you help support Walkhighlands?


Our forum is free from adverts - your generosity keeps it running.
Can you help support Walkhighlands and this community by donating by direct debit?



Return to Walk reports - Scotland

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: rebeccarobertson and 72 guests