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A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros


Postby Mountainlove » Tue Jun 03, 2014 11:17 am

Route description: Chno Dearg and Stob Coire Sgriodain

Munros included on this walk: Beinn na Lap, Chno Dearg, Stob a' Choire Mheadhoin, Stob Coire Easain, Stob Coire Sgriodain

Date walked: 01/06/2014

Time taken: 14.5 hours

Distance: 33.6 km

Ascent: 2672m

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The walk to complete the 5 Munros around Loch Treig had been on my mind since I have read Dooterbangs report a few years ago. I had thought about doing the walk in a day, but then decided that adding a wild camp at the bottom of the loch would be a much nicer outing. :D I also fancied doing the walk clockwise, completing the first 3 Munros on day one and leaving the remaining 2 for the next day. :thumbup:


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Setting off Thursday after work, my home for the first night was my usual camping spot in Glen Etive. 2 beers set off the evening perfectly, until I heard the sound of a big rock avalanche down the Buachaille :shock: . Straining my ears for any shouts, I did not hear anything, but still hoped no one got hurt in it. I retired to bed early and after a really good night sleep, I packed my kit for the day ahead. Lifting the 13 kilo bag, it felt pretty light and I was confident that it would not cause me any issues on the 35 km ahead of me.

Driving to Fersit, the day could not have been any nicer and by the time I set off towards the hills it was half ten. Feeling great, I waded through the boggy start of the way and by the time I found the path, I stuck to it like glue. 8) Ahead of me was another guy who started climbing up the first steep sections of the hill. It was the suggested route up, but checking the map I decided to stick to the path and climb the hill later on. Around half an hour later the summit came into view and spotting an easy slope to my right, I started to climb. It was so easy and in no time I made it to the top, actually having caught up with the guy who had been ahead of me, so the decision to stick to the path had not cost me more time. Nice

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The car park

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The start of the walk

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Stick to the burn on the way up

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On the way up to the top

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Looking back towards the car park and Fersit

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View down Loch Treig with the other two Munros on the other site

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Chno Dearg

The views on top were incredible and it had only taken me 1.45h not bad considering I was carrying my camping gear. :thumbup: Sitting down for a rest, I had a bite to eat, took some photos and then made my way towards Chno Dearg. It was an easy path and 3h after leaving the car I reached the summit with great views towards the Mamores and the remote area in which I would climb down to. I was getting excited to leave the path and people behind and climb down the unknown. :D :D :D

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Views from Chno Dearg

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Me on the summit

Getting my map out, I checked out the two options I marked on my map. The first one was the walk towards Meall Garbh, continue until Garbh-bheinn was reached, climb down to the burn and up again the other site to reach the summit of Beinn na Lap. Looking at the steep climb down and up, I made up my mind to follow the second route I marked on my map. From the top of Chno Dearg I walked down Sron Ruadh and then made my way down the grassy slopes towards the burn Allt a' Ghlas-choire which I then followed down to the bottom.

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The walk down Sron Ruadh and Allt a' Ghlas-choire with stunning views ahead

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Beinn na Laps south site

The walk down was steep but easy and the views towards Loch Ghuilbinn and beyond were spectacular. I loved the feeling of remoteness, which was only spoiled by the private road in the distance. By the time I had reached the bottom, I had a picnic and paddle at the edge of the burn. The sun was so nice and warm and sitting in the middle of the burn with my feet dangling in the water, it was hard not to set up camp for the night- it was a magic place!

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My resting place at the burn

Resentful, after a good 45 min, I put my shoes back on and looked up Beinn na Lap which was laying ahead of me. The mountain itself is rather long, but somehow I looked forward to walk the whole length of the mountain. The walk itself starts up the south side, up a slope called Sron na Cloiche Sgoilte and continues for nearly 4 km until the cairn is reached. It was quite a trek, but after the initial climb it was a gentle rise. I took my time and loved the grassy slope, which was covered in hundreds of cloud berry flowers.

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Flower of a cloud berry

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Lots of cloud berry flowers

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Views close to the summit

The top itself was a bit of a letdown, but the views towards Corrour station were bizarre. It might be different arriving by train, but having seen no civilization for most of the day, the train station just looked out of place. I had expected at least a couple of people, but I ended up alone on Beinn na Laps summit.

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The summit of Beinn na Lap

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Towards Corror station

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The station zoomed in


Walking down I took a faint path and aimed towards the railway bridge in the distance. By the time I reached it I was surprised to see 3 teenagers underneath it. They shouted a “ Hello” and my answered “Hello”, was followed by the question "Do you want a peanut butter sandwich?" I stared at them with both confusion :wtf: and laughter :lol: and agreed. It was probably the strangest thing I have heard a stranger asking me and the remoteness of the area just added to it. Amused I watched one of the boys unpacking a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a knife and making me a sandwich. 8) :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Sitting next to them I ate my Sandwich while being drilled with questions about were I did came from and the disbelieve that it was possible to climb 3 Munros in one go...god bless them. :angel:
Soon after they said they had to move on, for their planned night in one of the bothies. Saying good bye, I finished my sandwich and followed them down the path towards Loch Treig.

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The railway bridge you have to cross under to walk towards Loch Treig

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My peanut butter sandwich makers

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Loch Treig comes into view

Loch Treig which translates to the Loch of Death in Gaelic looked stunning in the sun. There was nothing deadly about it. Believing the folklore of Scottish Lochs and Springs, there is a long history of kelpies or water horses in the Loch. In 1933 divers who were working on the hydro electric scheme said that monsters are in the depths of the loch and had left or asked to move to other jobs. Even though I looked for the water horses, they must have moved on, but my planned swim later on would hopefully give me another chance :wink:

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The walk along the shore...lovely

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A rocky beach on the shore

My planned stay for the night was close to the sunken village of Creaguaineach. I had read that since the construction of the dam the old communities of Kinlochtreig and Creaguaineach at the lochs southern end were submerged. They once had hosted locally important markets and had been the end point of cattle drove roads.
Arriving at Creaguaineach Lodge, which seemed to be the last house standing, I could see the old walls poking out of the water and decided to set up my tent in the old animal dwelling which had the softest grass :D

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Creaguaineach lodge and the area of the old community

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Approach to the lodge

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I want to move there

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The old stone walls poking out of the water

With my tent up, it was time to put my bikini on for my planned swim in the loch. :D During my bikini clad walk to the loch I was sincerely hoping no one would see me, but I was also beyond caring...I needed to wash the sweat of the day off. Needless to say the water was freezing and which each step I took further into the loch, clouds of mud hindered my view into the water. It was quite spooky to think what might lurk in the deep, :shock: but I was out of luck in my quest to spot some water horses. :(
As it was too cold to stay in the water too long, I walked back to my tent and had a marvelous time walking bare footed through squishy peak bog. 8) :lol: 8) With black feed I returned, cold, but glad to have taken some long trousers and fleece. Cooking my dinner I was soon getting cold and retired in my tent for a hopefully a good night sleep…


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A fine place for a tent

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Ready for a swim

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Waiting for my dinner to cook, while my clothes drying on the wall

A few hours after drifting off to sleep I woke up. It was dark and confused why I had woken up, I remove my ear plugs. A strange sound, similar to rain could be heard on top of my tent :shock: :problem: :shock: confused I opened the tent and held my hand outside… no rain, but the sound remained- spooky. :think: :shifty: :think: Poking my head out of the tent door was like being touched by a silk curtain. :shock: Confused I realized seconds later, that hundreds of midges had latched on my face. Within second my head was back inside, the tent zipped shut and over and over again I wiped my face leaving trails of dead midges on my pillow. The tiny space inside my tent did not help and I was close to a panic- Midges everywhere and no where to go. Panicky I remembered the midge repellent I brought along and in a mad rush I sprayed my face and hands. I tried to calm myself, but the small space inside my one man tent and the thought that my only option was to go asleep with +300midges in my tent, was horrible. :shock: :thumbdown: :wtf: :shifty: Spraying myself with midge repellent again, I tried to kill as many midges as I could feel on my tent ( in the panic I had forgotten I had brought a torch, maybe just as well) Laying awake the rain like sound remained and it dawned on me that it was made by the god knows how many midges outside my tent, trying to get in. :shock: I am not sure how I fell asleep, but I drifted into a deep sleep filled with strange dreams.

My alarm woke me.up just after half seven. Opening my eyes I checked my hands and face, but my fears of countless bites were luckily no reality. The midge repellent had done its job and looking around me I was face to face with about 200 midges all over my tent. Looking at my pillow an even greater number were around my pillow- Argh. :-| :crazy: :-| I was out of the tent in a flash and realized that only a few midges were flying outside...not surprisingly as the other has shared the night with me. By the time I had washed my face and hands, I watched the sun climbing higher in the sky and with it the midges outside had disappeared and with grim determination, :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: I packed my tent which still held god knows how many Midges inside- and said “Die and suffocate you horrible creatures!” :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: The loch of death had claimed a few hundred casualties that night :wink:

Sitting down with a breakfast of porridge oats, milk powder, cinnamon, sugar and cold burn water :lol: .... it tasted better than it sounds, I took my time to pack my bags and just before 9:00 am set off to climb the remaining 2 Munros. Just like the day before the morning was warm and sunny and I was soon sweating buckets on my way towards the left side of Moine na Gaibhre. The most logic path up Stob Coire Easain the first Munro of the day. Yet again I loved the valley below me and the Mamores and Glencoe could be clearly seen in the distance. The climb is a 900 meters ascent straight up. I was sweating so much and for the first time felt the weight of my backpack. :? Luckily water is a plentiful source around the mountain and I took frequent breaks to fill up my bottle. :D

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The start of the walk from the old animal dwellings

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Looking back down to the valley

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One of the plenty water supplies

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Looking back down the way I came up, with Loch Treig towards the left

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The views higher up

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The grey Corries

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Towards Glen Coe

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Panorama views

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The two Munros finally come into view

The walk was hard, but when the top and second summit came into view, I was in good spirits again. 2.15min after setting off, I stood on the summit still alone, but the first hill walker of that was had already climbed the second summit. :thumbup:

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Deer enjoying the snow!

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Looking back down the path I came up

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First summit of the day-Stob Coire Easain

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Summit views

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The walk towards Stob a' Choire Meadhoin

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Easy walking

I stopped for an early lunch and made my way down towards Stob a' Choire Meadhoin. At the bottom I met the hill walker I had seen and after a brief chat I moved on. Stob a' Choire Meadhoin was an easy climb and only stopping for some photos, I made my way along the path at the back of the mountain, which had great views towards the loch and area I covered the previous day.

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From the top looking back towards Stob Coire Easain

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The walk back down

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Great slide

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Views across the loch

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Looking back up towards the summit

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Quite a lot of snow left over

The walk seemed so easy at first and I used one of the snow slopes for a slide-brilliant! By the time I had reached the only real steep part of the mountain, I had promptly lost the path. :roll: After all what I have been through, I could not been bothered to find the path again and made my own way down. Steep but fun and at the bottom I was soon back on the track.

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The walk when you miss the path- not too bad

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Looking back up

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Sheep with Chno Dearg in the background

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The car park is coming into view

Unfortunately the path isn't what I would call a great path. Boggy and hard to spot, my legs were soon covered in dirt and I think the last time I looked so dirty I was under the age of 10. :lol: But hey who cares. Finally 5.5 hours after setting off in the morning I had reached my car. My feet were sore and I was glad to put some trainers on, but what a great two days it had been. I shall be back in the area :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby malky_c » Tue Jun 03, 2014 11:37 am

Looks like you made the best of the weather by getting out on Friday 8) . I was over in Ardgour for the weekend and the weather on Sunday was a bit disappointing. Same tent/midge battle as well :lol:

This looks like a great circuit, and nicely photographed too. May do it one day.
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby Mancunian » Tue Jun 03, 2014 11:41 am

What an amazing TR! :clap:
I'm a wee bit jealous because of the great weather you had. Only 4 weeks ago a few friends and I came over from Germany for our annual Highland walk and had nothing but rain. But then you mentioned the midges and your scary experiences in the middle of the night and this convinced me that rain is better than a shared tent with these little bastards.
Its also interesting to know that your rucksack is only 13kgs including a tent, sleeping bag and everything needed for 2 days in the wild. Mine was 18kgs without a tent. :thumbdown:
Keep the great TR's coming, they are a welcome distraction from work 8)
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby BoyVertiginous » Tue Jun 03, 2014 11:46 am

Great report or a grand tour, ML. I've been avoiding the Walk Reports forum as I'm injured and reading about everyone's hikes, during the best time of the year for walking, isn't helping :wink: Glad I looked in today though :thumbup:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby iainwatson » Tue Jun 03, 2014 12:13 pm

:clap: :clap: :clap:
fantastic report and the pictures are stunning! :D

thanks for sharing
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby goth_angel » Tue Jun 03, 2014 1:01 pm

You got some wonderful photos there.

Still quite a bit of snow around - noticed it was blocking the normal descent route in between the last two hills.

Only done Beinn na Lap out of these - as a winter walk - it is a cracking viewpoint.
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby Mountainlove » Tue Jun 03, 2014 2:32 pm

malky_c wrote:Looks like you made the best of the weather by getting out on Friday 8) . I was over in Ardgour for the weekend and the weather on Sunday was a bit disappointing. Same tent/midge battle as well :lol:
This looks like a great circuit, and nicely photographed too. May do it one day.

On a day like last Friday I didn't mind taking a holiday off work. :D Not sure whats wrong with the midges this year- still seems a bit too early,to be out in full force :(

Mancunian wrote:What an amazing TR! :clap:
I'm a wee bit jealous because of the great weather you had. Only 4 weeks ago a few friends and I came over from Germany for our annual [url=<span class="skimlinks-unlinked">http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=42351</span>]Highland walk[/url] and had nothing but rain. But then you mentioned the midges and your scary experiences in the middle of the night and this convinced me that rain is better than a shared tent with these little bastards.
Its also interesting to know that your rucksack is only 13kgs including a tent, sleeping bag and everything needed for 2 days in the wild. Mine was 18kgs without a tent. :thumbdown:
Keep the great TR's coming, they are a welcome distraction from work 8)

I need to have a look at your trip report- nothing worse that having a holiday in the rain. Although as you said- midges are horrible and I am guessing quite a few of us would not mind a bit of rain , instead of hordes of midges!
Regarding midges have a look at this story (sorry all, it is in german) http://www.mariasmultiverse.de/mm1.hebriden/Midges.htm
Regarding 13 kilo gear, I only manage that in warm weather with minimal gear (my tent is 960 grams)

BoyVertiginous wrote:Great report or a grand tour, ML. I've been avoiding the Walk Reports forum as I'm injured and reading about everyone's hikes, during the best time of the year for walking, isn't helping :wink: Glad I looked in today though :thumbup:

Many thanks :D Hopefully your injury will heal quickly!! That sounds like a bummer!!

iainwatson wrote::clap: :clap: :clap:
fantastic report and the pictures are stunning! :D
thanks for sharing


Many thanks! :D :D

goth_angel wrote:You got some wonderful photos there.
Still quite a bit of snow around - noticed it was blocking the normal descent route in between the last two hills.
Only done Beinn na Lap out of these - as a winter walk - it is a cracking viewpoint.

Thank you ! Yes the snow on the lower hills is quite surprising...although at the moment it can be easily avoided :thumbup:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby Shug » Tue Jun 03, 2014 4:05 pm

Really nice photos and great trip report, even if it making me feel itchy after reading it!
Sounds like a remake of Alfred Hitchcocks The Birds, but with midges! :lol:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby dogplodder » Tue Jun 03, 2014 6:15 pm

Great photos! :D Envy all of that except sharing the tent with a plague of midge. :shock:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby pigeon » Tue Jun 03, 2014 6:29 pm

The midge is a nasty invention :( Good trip again though ML,well done :thumbup:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby jimandandrea » Tue Jun 03, 2014 6:45 pm

An epic. Grand stuff and brill pics - you packed in everything including the weather!

The Midge - without doubt the scourge of the outdoors.
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby Collaciotach » Tue Jun 03, 2014 6:46 pm

A good round indeed and you hit the jackpot weather as well . Its a grand spot you camped at not far up the Glen is Staoineag Bothy another cracking spot , some famous Gaidheal from the Creaguaineach area :D .... the Campbell family left in the 60's not that long ago really.

but dissssssppointed

no bikini shot :wink:


haha ..Well done :clap: :clap:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby Just me » Tue Jun 03, 2014 6:58 pm

Well done, this has been on my bucket list for some time. I think your report may just have encouraged me to do it :-)
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby scottishkennyg » Tue Jun 03, 2014 7:39 pm

Nice report ML and glad you did not bare all with the midges around :wink:
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Re: A solo 2 day adventure walk around Loch Treigs 5 Munros

Postby mrssanta » Tue Jun 03, 2014 9:28 pm

Lovely. We were just wondering if there was a report for such a trip, and up it pops! And smashing weather.
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