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Sub 2k Marilyns: Leathad Mor
Date: 02 - 04/11/2018.
Distance: 16km (cycling), 6.5km (walking).
Ascent: 250m (cycling), 340m (walking).
Time taken: 2 hours (cycling), 1 hour, 50 minutes (walking).
Weather: Mostly grim - warm, wet and windy.
I'm not sure when Alan's Gorton trip became a thing, but it had moved from being a Thursday night before the Autumn meet to being a weekend in itself. I had first attempted to go in 2014, but failed miserably for reasons I can't remember, and each year after something had ended up standing in the way. Finally it was time!
Jackie and I had also talked about doing something else on the Saturday night - an Aonach Egach summit camp (optimistically!) or perhaps another bothy (more realistically). As the weekend approached, Saturday appeared to be a washout, and staying put at Gorton seemed like a better bet, with a quick bit of fresh air on Leathad Mor to break up the day.
I left work early on Friday and drove down to Loch Tulla, arriving at around 7:30pm. Knowing that it would take me the best part of 2 hours to walk in, I had thrown a bike in the car to speed things up a bit. I made an early error in missing a left turn and had to drag the bike over a fence and through a bog to reach the correct track, and there seemed to be loads more steep ascents than I expected. I finally reached the bothy at 8:45 pm after just under an hour on the bike - I could've run there faster (but probably without the coal)! Alan, Martin, Dougie, Jackie, Thomas and Sparky were already there and the party was in full swing. I was so relieved to get into the warmth that I decided to throw my dinner all over the floor - I hadn't even had a sip of beer at this point!
Friday night at Gorton (Alan's photo) 
Friday night at Gorton (Alan's photo) It wasn't too wild a night and we were up at a reasonable hour, despite the weather looking a bit grim. Everyone gradually tricked away, and eventually after lunch part 1, Jackie and I decided we had better go up Leathad Mor in the so-called weather window that she had identified.
It wasn't actually that unpleasant outside - not a day to be on the high tops, but it was fairly mild and there were views of sorts to begin with. We skirted Meall a' Ghortain to the west on reasonable ground until we came to the flatter area between Meall a' Ghortain, and Leathad Mor, which was unsurprisingly boggier. The rain came back on here, the cloud moved in, and my feet got wet. Oh joy!
Setting off from Gorton 
Orchy hills from above Gorton On the summit, the cloud parted slightly to give us fleeting glimpses of Loch Laidon and Rannoch Moor. As with about 50% of the summits we have been on recently, this one went onto the potential summit camp list
.
Glas Bheinn from Leathad Mor 
Fun times, great weather 
Jackie on Leathad Mor 
Towards Rannoch Station from Leathad Mor With nothing to hang around for, we headed back (walking into the driving rain this time), with Jackie having the great idea of going over the summit of Meall a' Ghortain instead of round it. No views and the extra few minutes meant that we hit the increasing wind and rain on the last descent to the bothy for slightly longer
Anyway, we had only gone out for the exercise really, knowing that it wasn't going to be a particularly great experience. Had we decided to walk out to go elsewhere, we probably would have ended up going home instead, and missing the decent forecast for Sunday.
The dregs of last night's fire were still smouldering away, and eventually we got it going properly again with some extra coal that I had hidden from Sparky the previous evening (the clue is in the name - it would all have been burnt by now otherwise
). Everything warmed up nicely and we were glad we had been out to do something.
Saturday evening drying session An earlyish bedtime meant that we were up at a sensible hour the following morning for the walk (or cycle in my case)-out, giving us plenty of time for a day in the hills.
Gorton I stayed behind to clear out the fire, before catching Jackie up after a mile or so on the bike. It was a little grey, but nicer than yesterday with the promise of even better weather to come.
Beinn a' Chreachain and Beinn Achaladair 
Walking out from Gorton 
Return of the girly bike after many years 
Sun on Meall Tairbh Gorton is a great bothy - I was glad to have finally made it there, and will be back again I'm sure.
Link to part 2