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......fortunately, none of them where with me on this fine day in the cairngorms. After gratefully accepting Gammy Leg Walker`s invitation to join him and Alan S on a trip to Bynack More, I met up with Pollyh and joined them for the long drive to Glenmore Lodge where we met Tomsie,and Leithysuburbs wasn`t long in joining us in the small car park. We all greeted each other warmly and got ourselves ready for the walk, which would be my 27th Munro, but who`s counting eh, Alan, Wullie ?
I had sat the previous night looking at the weather and wondering what kind of clothing to wear and eventually decided to be "sensible" and wear my heavy lined trousers and bring the "big" jacket. Immediately regretting that decision, I emptied my sack in Gammy`s boot to find space to stuff my jacket into, as although I knew I wouldn`t really need it, you don`t know how conditions can change higher up.
We set off at 8.50 and I really expected there to be snow on the ground, but there wasn`t a patch to be seen anywhere and there was a real fresh spring feeling in the air and the bright green caledonian pines looked magnificent standing tall amongst the regular birch. After a mile (or 1.7km for those using the metric system) we arrived at the truly beautiful Lochan Uaine.
- Lochan Uaine 1
- lochan uaine 2 toned
- lochain uaine 3 toned
Wow ! That`s all I can say really, I had read reports of this luscious little loch and saw the odd picture and kinda hoped I wouldn`t be dissapointed when I saw it for myself, but it is absolutely splendid. The water around the edges are so clear and gradually get a deeper shade of green the further away it gets from the eye. And it`s not a scummy green you get around lily ponds etc, there`s nothing floating about in it, it`s just beautiful.
We had a quick look around, walking down the mediteranean(?) style steps to the shore and headed off back onto the path of the Ryvoan Pass. When we got to the other end of the loch, I told the others I would catch them up and walked down through the heather to take some more pics. There was a small sandy beach at this end and I thought I could just stay here all day and how great it would be to camp here. Then I thought what camping would mean to a place like this, campfires, rubbish and all sorts of bams hanging around, no thanks , this place should be left exactly how it is.
- beach
I ran back up onto the path nimbly avoiding a marshy bog on the way, I could imagine the other`s killing themselves laughing if I had returned to them up to my knees in Ryvoan mud. I eventually caught up with them after a little jog only to be informed that Pauline had lost her much treasured Hagloffs hat already !
As we headed along the path we spotted the Ryvoan Bothy off to our left sitting in the wide open plain,below the corbett Meall a` Buachaille, which Leithy(Dougie) had told us of his scary descent from some time previously ,and Polly and I had a wee game of " Where`s Wally" as the inhabitants of this mountain refuge all seemed to be milling around outside it in red and white jackets.
We slowly gained hieght and I regretted not bringing my macrame t-shirt and began stripping off the layers as the heat built up. We soon crossed the shiny new looking bridge across the Strath Nethy river, which is nearly 3 miles into the walk (or 4.45km).
- river
This is where the walk starts to take some height. We all interchanged who we walked and talked with along the way and at this point I tried to keep the pace up, as although it was a lovely day we knew that the wind was to pick up strongly in the afternoon. As the summits of Bynack More and Beg peaked out over the horizon I reckoned it was time for a break as I needed some food as I only had a cereal bar on the way up in the car and it was time for an energy boost. We all sat around a pile of flat stones, one of which had some kind of inscription on it and we joked that it may have been some kind of grave !
( Is this what is left of the old RSPB shelter?)
- cairngorm
Once we were well fed and rested we headed back up the hill, obviously. Again we came across another plateau and we now had a great panoramic around us with bynack in front of us, Cairngorm and Carn Lochan na Beinne to our right and a wide open plain behind us stretching away out north, where we could see windmills far off in the distance generating the usual discussion about their looks, worth and effects on the economy. The path splits into a fork, the left looking obvious because of it`s new laying of sand and gravel and the right fading into the heather, we took the left and eventually skipped over to join the one in the right as Alan checked his satmap didgerdoo, obviously.
- Bynack More
- groovy rock armadillo ?
As we approached the final ascent, the real steep part of the hill, the wind had noticeably picked up and we could now see cloud forming around the peak of the hill. As we reached about a thousand metres I had lost all sight of the rest of the crew, as I had stopped for a wee, and my glasses had been covered in speckles of water caused by the blowing mist around us. I eventually caught back up with Gammy just before the summit, where the rest waited for us.We made it in just about bang on 3hours. We deliberated wether we should visit the barns but the wind was quite strong and everything in front of us towards the rest of the cairngorms was covered in cloud , which just seemed to hang there, in front of us, cloud,.. behind us, clear as the eye can see, very strange
So we dropped down a bit and rested and had another munch. I decided to pull my jacket out and wear it while we sat as it was now quite cold,and I had carried it all that way, and we all sat happily chatting as a fog bow appeared in the cloud, don`t know if anyone managed a decent picture ?
He headed back down on our merry way and once I got down off the steep ascent I stopped to sort out my gear as I was too hot and still a little hungry and rested on a huge flat rock as the rest made their way back. The beauty of a hill like this is you can afford to split up fom the pack as you can see the well maintained path stretch out in front of you for miles without fear of getting lost or left behind. I eventually jogged after the rest but it`s amazimg how much ground you can lose just taking a five minute break, I thought I would never catch them ! But as it was I caught them as they slowed down to talk to various other walkers on the path and I thought how great it would be to dive into those green waters of lochan uaine, which I stupidly told the gang about. "So you goin in then Tommy ?" was all I got out of them till we got back there
We stopped for a bit and basked/bathed in the some for some ten minutes, not really believing what a great day we had for this time if year.
- me at viewpoint
On our return to the lochan , we stopped for pictures and the inevitable " Well then, Tommy ?" and Polly saved my blushes by saying she was going for a paddle and I duly joined her. As we first stepped in we lied " Oh, how warm it is !"
but the human body has various tell tale signs to show the opposite, if you get what I mean,
So we all headed back to the lodge and our cars and we really had a great day and it was a pleasure to meet you all and I hope we can all stay in touch and hopefully do it again some day. And I imagine there will be some great photos of this day which might make it into the photo of the month competition which generated great debate among us all day.