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The September weekend [i]and[i] good weather! This weekend last year we tackled Aonach Beag and Aonach Mor with our 16 year old daughter and nearly put her off the hills for ever. She hated every step of the climb up the pathless Aonach beag. One year on, she's completed the West Highland Way and beginning to think about hills again, so we wanted to do something that she could achieve relatively easily but that would give her some pride in that achievement. As skiers, climbing over the top of Cairngorm, with the promise of a hot chocolate with cream and marshmallows seemed to fit the bill. We didn't mention that we'd also sneak in Ben Macdui en-route!
Setting off from the ski centre along a very good path was great. She and I both like an obvious path! We climbed quickly, passing several people along the way - always a good psychological boost. We passed a group from Dundee university who were having a break and one of their members was tucking into the remains of his cold fish and chips from the night before!! You have to admire students' abilities to make it through to adult life! And yes, been there done that myself!
We reached the top of Ben Macdui fairly quickly...ok, so starting at the ski centre helped! Unfortunately, our personal hill cloud, the one that seems to float along just ahead of us to the summit of any hill we're nearly at the top of, made it there just as we did! We had time for a quick summit photo before it really descended. But then there was no point in hanging around when there was nothing to see, so off we went.
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- Ben Macdui
Halfway down, we had a very strange moment. The people heading up towards us used to be our next-but-one neighbours 10 years ago in Northumberland! Turns out that shortly after we moved to Glasgow, they moved to Inverness! Very surreal moment, especially after being at the Inchnadamph Hotel in the summer and finding that the landlord used to live 8 doors along from us on that same Nortumberland road!
The path round to the top of the Northern Corries was very quick going and out of the cloud, so we stopped for a while to take photos and watch climbers appear over the top. Fantastic views in all directions!
Miss R particularly liked the scrambling over the rocks as we came down towards the last climb upto Cairngorm. By now, the sun was beginning to blaze and we were starting to melt, but we needed to get to the cafe before 4pm, though maybe not for hot chocolate now. Cake??? Quick march!
Cairngorm was easy. We stood at the cairn and weren't sure which way to go down? Ok, I'm kidding! I'd guess the row of cairns could be seen from the moon! And then there was the rope guided path!
A quick stop for cake before the cafe shut - I like this cafe on a munro - wonder if the South Glen Shiel Ridge has one, or the Aonach Eagach? It certainly keeps a 17 year old girl happy...and her mum!
Then we set off once more, but a strange thing happened. We stopped talking in terms of footpaths. "We'll just follow the M2 and then the day lodge poma and then we'll be finished." Winter is coming!
