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Two years ago, in wet summer 2017, we set off from A835 near Inchbae, to climb a local Graham,
Carn Loch nan Amhaichean. We hoped to combine it with its more remote brother, Beinn nan Eun, but the day was wet, windy and miserable, so after reaching the summit of the first Graham we simply had enough of the splodgathon and decided to leave the second Graham for another day. And just as well, because Beinn nan Eun, the hill of birds, offered us a pleasant bike & hike along Loch Glass.
I have been told by a few different sources, that the eastern approach to Beinn nan Eun is cyclable even for a rubbish bike user like me. It's not that I don't like cycling, I love it, I'm just not a gifted biker. Therefore, a forest track if too bumpy or wet is a no-no for me. But this time, I was convinced I could do it. We had already climbed the easier Graham on the northern side of Loch Glass, Meall Mhor, and had a good look at the track alongside the loch. Looked fine even for me, so we were in for a ride!
As for Lucy, because we couldn't find a mountain bike small enough for her, she had to hitch a ride attached to my rucksack, as she usually does
The route starts from the end of public road at Eileanach Lodge, the follows the track along the loch to Wyvis Lodge and past, into upper Glen Glass. Bikes can be taken as far as a small hydro dam at NH 448741. The summit itself is then is only 2km away and roughly 400m of ascent. it is possible to include Carn Loch nan Amhaichean, but we didn't have to and just as well, because the day was quite windy. We were glad to spend most time in the glen, cycling, rather than being blown away on cold mountain ridges
Ready to go!
We started through the forest initially and I was thankful to Kevin, who had recently fixed my bike. I was supposed to get a new one, but to be honest, I'm sentimental about the old rusty thing
It was windy and quite nippy, but the lovely view along Loch Glass made us forget the low temperatures:
The track is excellent, as good as a non-tarmac track can be, and to my own surprise, I was doing pretty well:
The cycle along the loch took time but again, we didn't rush it and enjoyed a different kind of exercise. I admire people who do 20-30 miles rides, especially on bumpy roads. For me, it should be all flat, tarmac and bone dry
Still, this was not too bad:
At the opposite end of the loch, with Wyvis Lodge across the water:
View back to Meall Mhor:
Past the lodge, the track is marginally more bumpy and a bit more uphill:
The track and the south-eastern outlier of Carn Loch nan Amhaichean:
Eventually, the track turns right and enters the true wilderness. Our target Graham showed up for the first time (just visible to the right hand side):
We took bikes as high as we could, eventually leaving them on the side of the road just below the small hydro dam. There was another bike by the dam already, but we never met its owner (possibly, someone doing both hills).
Looking down from the upper end of the track, we knew we were in for a wee cracker. Views were already good and despite cold wind, we were desperate to enjoy today's outing!
And here it is, Beinn an Eun, waiting for us:
We followed Allt Beinn nan Eun for a short distance then simply climbed the final slopes to the summit. The ground is heathery and wet in places, nothing unusual for Scotland. We still stopped a few times for pictures. The best views at the moment were south towards Ben Wyvis:
View across the glen:
Just below the summit we entered the high wind zone and suddenly it became clear to us: we took the right decision aiming for a Graham. On Munro height, the gusts of cold wind would not be pleasant at all!
If you consider adding Carn Loch nan Amhaichean, this is the terrain you'd have to cross. Te summit of the second Graham is the round hill in the middle, just left of the large lochan:
Ben Wyvis from near the summit:
Graham no. 109! The next one will be the half way point
Lucy's count is 82 at the moment
After a few minutes taking photos on the top, we started to look for a suitable off-wind spot for lunch. Despite windy conditions, I stood for a while, gazing in the distance. I know Beinn an Eun is just an obscure Graham, but on a sunny day like we had, it offers superb views to the more distant hills of northern Scotland, including Fannichs, Torridon and Assynt. I noticed that the haze was gone and we had crystal clear air. Sadly, because we were cycling, we didn't take the bulky bridge camera, just my little FUJIFILM FinePix. Kevin added a few snaps from his mobile phone. Hopefully, the quality is not disappointing.
Panther and the remote hills of Ullapool:
Beinn Dearg group zoomed:
Carn Chuinneag and Loch Magharaidh:
A wider pano with Seana Bhraigh and the Fannichs:
East along Loch Glass, Meall Mhor to the left:
Zoom to the Fannichs:
The less known side of Ben Wyvis:
On the way back, we descended the other side of the stream, not that it makes any difference
Got back to the bikes in half an hour from leaving the summit and geared up for the long cycle back to the starting point.
It's a long way... back to Glen Glass...
Last glance at Beinn an Eun. It might not be an exciting hill, but it was an enjoyable, if short climb!
I would highly recommend this approach to Beinn an Eun (and its neighbour) as it's very scenic.The Strathrannoch route is not bad and could also be cycled, plus it's shorter, but I have bad memories connected to this way (ahhh, rain, bog, wind, low cloud, God knows what else
). We will return here one day to explore the outlying tops of Wyvis, something we've had in mind for a long time, still didn't get around to doing.
Lucy also liked the experience and as she can't get her own bike, she's happy to hitch a ride again!
........................
It was the last day of our April hols, a huge success, 7 out of 9 days hill bagging plus a successful WH Meet, could it get any better?... Well, it certainly did during the Easter break, we spent all four days of bank holidays hopping over Scottish mountains like happy Easter bunnies! So my next TR will start another series of stories: "How to spend Easter Panther style". In the first part we will return to Glen Orchy for some unfinished business! Report in progress
