Kilfinnan Falls and Loch a' Choire Ghlais

[clem_f]

Wanted to go up to have a look at Kilfinnan Falls yesterday, but had a few extra hours spare, so thought I would go up above there, and Allt a' Choire Ghlais, hopefully to the end. Have been up Sron a' Choire Ghairbh a number of times and looked down at the loch in the choire, but never been there. Lovely day to start, some sunshine and a fair bit of fresh snow up higher. There is no route as such, and above the falls, after a deer fence I had to walk up slightly higher on the side of the hill as the stream was in a deep ravine, and the only way up that way would have meant getting very wet. This was roughly the wooded area on the OS map between about 200 and 350m height. Long quite wet walk in, but rewarded with lovely views at the end. Was in a bit of a rush to get back as I was nearly out of time. Memo to self, never underestimate how much effort it is to walk through deep snow, even downhill. If you wanted to go up here, but weren't bothered with the falls, I would say the return route I took, to the south of the burn, was easier than the way up. Except for the snow that is!

As an aside, one good reason to do this walk is that the Choire is the location for a large pumped storage hydro scheme which has been approved. Whether it will actually go ahead I don't know, but if it does, this walk will be impossible without the use of a submarine after the construction of the dam.

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Kilfinnan Falls

Upper falls, with Ben Tee in the background

Lookin back towards the east from the route on the side of the hill above the burn

Following the deer footprints in the snow. Ben tee on right, Meall a' Choire Ghlais on the left

Looking up across some heathery ground

Loch a' Choire Ghlais, Sron a Choire Ghairbh rising above

Ben Tee, and the burn with the long trudge through the snow ahead.

[Sunset tripper]

Good pictures of a route which is visited very rarely.
I've been up to the Kilfinnan falls a few times and well worth a visit on their own. Nice route up to the lochan looks good in winter.
All the best.

[clem_f]

Good pictures of a route which is visited very rarely.
I've been up to the Kilfinnan falls a few times and well worth a visit on their own. Nice route up to the lochan looks good in winter.
All the best.

Thanks, yes is a nice walk up, probably would have been easier if the snow wasn't so deep! Pretty straightforward, I just had to backtrack a bit when I got up to the gorge above the falls and go on the side of the hill on the north east of the burn. Didn't look to be any easy way of navigating along the burn without getting very wet.