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An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie


Postby howzat » Sun Mar 25, 2012 4:31 pm

Route description: An Socach from Glen Clunie

Munros included on this walk: An Socach (Braemar)

Date walked: 24/03/2012

Time taken: 4.5 hours

Distance: 15.5 km

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The weather forecast was generally excellent for the weekend, Sunday looking the best, but Saturday would hopefully be OK after the fog/mist/haze cleared albeit apparently slowly from the southern end of the Cairnforms NP where I planned to tackle An Socach. After sitting around at my sister in laws in Blairgowrie for most of the morning I decided with the fog/mist/haze still around to set off anyway. My wife dropped me off at the head of Glen Clunie and I set off around 12.30pm, the visibility improving all the time with the sun trying to breakthrough, following the track past an old farmhouse into the Baddoch Glen.

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The old farmhouse

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The track down Baddoch Glen

After fording the Allt Coire Fhearneasg I somehow managed to miss the small path right next to it and instead walked across the heather heading straight for the cairn (700m) at the foot of the southeast ridge of An Socach. (I returned via the actual path and found it pretty boggy whereas my cross heather route was nice and dry!).

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Views back down to the Baddoch Burn

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Looking up to the cairn (700m) behind it the the eastern summit of An Socach (snow patch)

I reached the cairn an hour after setting off, and followed a boggy path followed by a steep climb just to the left of the snow patch up onto the stony eastern summit.

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After reaching the cairn (700m) the narrow path up to the eastern summit of An Socach can just be made out

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Stony approach to the eastern summit

From the eastern summit it was about a 30 minute walk across the undulating stony ridge to reach the windshelter cairn at the true western summit, which I reached in 2hrs 20mins after setting off. I arrived at pretty much the same time as Jockstar & Suhowfar (plus Ruby the dog) who kindly took this photo for me, just as the sun made a welcome appearance.

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View across the stony ridge to the western summit

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Summit of An Socach

After about 20 minutes it was time to set off back. I decided to return via the outward route and took a few photos along the way.

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Finally blue skies!

I finally reached my setting off point in 4hrs 30mins, now a glorious early evening (can this really be March?), where the welcoming committee was waiting to take me back for a night in Blairgowrie where a nice bottle of red and bowl of chilli was waiting for me (and of course a hot soak!).

:D
Last edited by howzat on Thu Mar 29, 2012 8:18 pm, edited 6 times in total.
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby ChrisW » Sun Mar 25, 2012 5:29 pm

great stuff Howzat, brings back happy memories for me, looks like we had a similar sort of day but mine cleared up to full sunshine at the summit :D
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby Tomsie » Sun Mar 25, 2012 5:36 pm

Did this last week and after crossing bridge went diagonal beneath Sgor Mor and came back off eastern summit bit steep but yeah it got quite boggy. :(

Did you pass the pond full of frogs
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby howzat » Sun Mar 25, 2012 5:42 pm

Tomsie wrote:Did this last week and after crossing bridge went diagonal beneath Sgor Mor and came back off eastern summit bit steep but yeah it got quite boggy. :(

Did you pass the pond full of frogs


Indeed I did. Wondered what the bubbles were in the pond. Took a look and saw a frog with one on its back who just as I was getting my camera out submerged!
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby howzat » Sun Mar 25, 2012 5:43 pm

ChrisW wrote:great stuff Howzat, brings back happy memories for me, looks like we had a similar sort of day but mine cleared up to full sunshine at the summit :D


Finally had blue skies as I was nearly back to the eastern summit on my return.
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby Tomsie » Sun Mar 25, 2012 5:44 pm

howzat wrote:
Indeed I did. Wondered what the bubbles were in the pond. Took a look and saw a frog with one on its back who just as I was getting my camera out submerged!



The dog ran down and they all dived for cover :lol:
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby KMHills » Sun Mar 25, 2012 9:40 pm

Mr Howzat - its your jealous friend in Kent again (KMHills). Looks a wonderful day - with or without frogspawn. My records suggest I did this in June 2003. I seem to remember hiring a bike in Breamar, cycling down Glen Ey then straight up very steep slopes to the summit (albeit in the dry). I think I'd planned to do some others but was so knackered ended up returning to Breamer for ice-cream. Keep it up at as at this rate you'll soon be snapping at my heels (or is that hills?). On other trips down Glen Ey saw Golden Eagles - they are big, and Adders - they are stripy! :D
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby Jockstar » Sun Mar 25, 2012 11:42 pm

Hi again Howzat and good to meet you at the summit of An Socach. :D its interesting that having a look at previous reports as to the actual 'true' summit though the stone wind shelter seems to be the winner by a short head!! It seems that this isn't a popular hill but the views at the end were great across to loch nan eun and towards the Cairngorms. However it seemed to take us a good while to get to the true summit and the timings for the walk seemed to be a bit off the WH information. That along with wrong information of crossing the bridge just after the farmhouse led us to believe we were heading the wrong way.
However, Good to meet you and we will hopefully meet again along the way. :D
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Re: An Socach (Braemar) from Glen Clunie

Postby Jockstar » Sun Mar 25, 2012 11:43 pm

Hi again Howzat and good to meet you at the summit of An Socach. :D its interesting that having a look at previous reports as to the actual 'true' summit though the stone wind shelter seems to be the winner by a short head!! It seems that this isn't a popular hill but the views at the end were great across to loch nan eun and towards the Cairngorms. However it seemed to take us a good while to get to the true summit and the timings for the walk seemed to be a bit off the WH information. That along with wrong information of crossing the bridge just after the farmhouse led us to believe we were heading the wrong way.
However, Good to meet you and we will hopefully meet again along the way. :D
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