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My first attempt on Braebag was scuppered by low cloud, when the rest of the group were more interested in the caves and weren't too bothered about the hill and I reckoned to push them on in nil visibilty wasn't the best idea. Coming for a second attempt with Liz I knew there was more likelihood of reaching the summit, whatever the weather threw at us.
The path as far as the caves is excellent, passing the pretty waterfall on the Allt nan Uamh (Burn of the Caves), then the spring bubbling up from the ground with the strangely dry riverbed above. This is a feature of limestone country where a watercourse can disappear underground, appearing again further on in its journey. The water emerging here disappeared underground a kilometre further upstream.
Underground spring
It was a lovely autumn morning with blue sky above Canisp to the west.
View back to Canisp
We took the direct route to the caves, crossing the riverbed and taking a right fork up the side of the hill towards the cliffs that hold the caves.
Bone caves
Excavations have unearthed the bones of wolves, bears, lynx and arctic foxes that took refuge in these caves when Scotland’s climate was much colder than it is now. Reindeer bones and antlers have also been found, but reindeer are unlikely to have entered the caves, and so it is unclear how these remains accumulated. Human artefacts and bones have been found in the caves, but very few have been dated. However, the discovery of a 2000 year old walrus ivory pin in one of the caves tells us that people were here by the Iron Age (~700 BC to AD 500). For more about the caves see report from my previous visit.
https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=76626 Route to Braebag continues up dry riverbed
Instead we turned right, joining this path from higher up
To be honest this was a mistake on my part and I initially thought the path that swung round the hill of caves was the way WH meant. The path continued for a short distance up a grassy gully then fizzled out which is when we realised we weren't on the intended route. We veered to the left and struck out over heathery moorland towards Braebag, which lay to the east like a grey hull of an upturned ship. There was no path but it wasn't difficult walking and with the benefit of hindsight wasn't a bad way to go, especially since we returned by the WH route, which was quite badly eroded at one point on the steep side of the gully.
Braebag across the moor
We decided against a full frontal attack up the rock slabs and headed for a grassy gully over to the left. Looking back we could see our earlier route up the dry riverbed via the caves.
View back - caves left of centre
There were no problems getting on to the ridge, with a short damp section in the grassy gully and stonier ground higher up. As we gained height we saw more of the magical Assynt landscape to the south, west and north. There's nowhere else in Scotland quite like this.
View SW from Braebag's stony ridge
Suilven, Canisp, Quinag
The summit area is a bit confusing with two parallel stony ridges. We walked south along the westerly one until we could see what looked like the summit cairn on the ridge to the east and crossed over to it. This took us out near to where a group of deer had been standing on the skyline watching us, as if bemused by our zig zag approach. As it happened we topped out on the second ridge very close to the summit, with its windshelter offering us a timely seat for lunch!
Braebag summit
Liz and her camera
Once in a while you meet people you feel you should have known long ago. Liz is one of those. We first met through Walkhighlands, commenting on each another's reports, which led to doing three Affric Munros together, along with her husband Roger, their two spaniels and my two labs. It was then we discovered we are exactly the same age and as children had lived only 5 miles apart in North Yorkshire and if it wasn't for a mistaken policy of the local council would have been at the same secondary school. Years later we both spent a substantial part of our working lives in Dundee. But we never crossed paths until we had both moved to the Highlands and got connected through this site. So thanks Walkhighlands for more than good hill discoveries!
View from my seat in wind shelter
Assynt landscape including Ben More Coigach, Cul Beag and Cul Mor (Liz's photo with her superior camera)
Still watching us
Loch Assynt and Quinag
North to Conival and Ben More Assynt
Liz and Roger had climbed these two in cloud so she was glad to get a better view of it from Braebag.
Descent off ridge
Suilven, Canisp and more deer
We made our way more directly to the grassy breach in the rock we came up by and headed straight down towards the dry riverbed and gully we had missed on the ascent. We found as we neared the gully several animal tracks headed that way and there was sometimes a choice which to take. We kept to the right of the riverbed, but I suspect either side would have worked.
Heading towards caves and dry riverbed
View back to grey hull of ship that is Braebag, our grassy gully far left
Gully we came down
The sides of the gully were steep and the paths along them narrow. I think we were on the best path but care was needed on a short eroded section where a slip on the gravel could have meant an unfortunate fall. Once over that there were no further difficulties and we were soon on the well made path below the caves.
Looking back up the limestone valley to caves and Braebag
At the spring again
It was altogether a most enjoyable and interesting day out - and one to be recommended.
