I was walking by 6.45am from Linn of Dee car park so it was time for the head torch until I was through the woods and ten minutes up the main track. Another flat calm morning and a few degrees above freezing so just the one layer required although it was a long sleeved top for the first time since about March.
I'm not sure how many times I've walked up to Derry Lodge but fair to say it's a lot so I don't hang about and after 55 minutes I'm at the mountain rescue hut and heading for Glen Derry.
- Looking up the glen towards Derry Lodge
- Arriving at the mountain rescue hut
- Misty view from Derry
Just beyond the hut there is a warning of severe flood damage to the track but I prefer the views from the east side of the Derry Burn so continue on anyway. There seem to be a number of pockets of mist both on the glen floor but also on some of the tops. The walk through the Scots Pines is always a pleasure and it's no different this morning although there is no sign of any sunshine. There were two points where the track was affected by the flooding, the first was easy with a plank in position to help walkers and non purists over the mess and the second required a short jump which was easy but the landing rock was damp so a little more problematic.
Leaving the woods behind I'm now out in the open walking along the floor of Glen Derry. At last I hear the red deer rut albeit just a couple of them off to my left somewhere.
- Looking back down Glen Derry
- I defy anyone to walk past a dead tree without taking a pic
- Mud slide
The climb up to the split of the track (Hutchison Memorial Hut to the left and Fords of Avon to the right) is very gentle and good underfoot so I make decent time up to this point.
- Looking back down the glen
- Hutchison Hut looking tiny with the hills surrounding it
- Looking beyond the ford towards Bynack More
A few more deer are off to my right just as I take the Fords of Avon track and they are making a bit of noise then a group of around twenty cross the track ahead of me, with the autumn colours, if they didn't move they would be very hard to see.
The path down to the Fords of Avon was just as I remembered it, quite slow going and damp in patches. The crossing looked OK so I kept the trainers in the rucksack and was able to use stepping stones to get me over the burn.
- The crossing
- River Avon
- First sighting of Loch Avon
Rather than cross the River Avon (which would definitely have involved getting the trainers out of the rucksack) I chose to take the path along the south bank. Initially quite lumpy, the path levels off once the loch comes in to sight and the views are just fantastic. I don't know how many times I stopped for photos but it certainly took a long time to reach the shelter stone before starting the climb up to Loch Etchachan.
The climb away from Loch Avon and up to Loch Etchachan felt quite steep but was reasonably short lived. Close to Loch Etchachan I noticed three Ptarmigan and luckily I had brought the bigger zoom lens with me and so I was able to get a half decent shot of them.
- Ptarmigan
- Loch Etchachan
At Loch Etchachan I had a decision to take, the initial plan had been to drop down on the path that would take me past the Hutchison Hut and out in to Glen Derry but with the tops clearing I decided to head over to Derry Cairngorm which would allow me to do a circular route back to Derry Lodge.
After the loch I took the Ben Macdui path then branched off to head over towards Derry Cairngorm.
- Derry Cairngorm
The climb up Derry Cairngorm is fairly straight forward with a path leading to a boulder field then it's just a case of rock hopping to the top on a reasonable incline which is a lot easier than the climb away from Loch Avon.
- Derry Cairngorm summit
I spent 5 minutes at the top before deciding to get myself off the boulder field and head down the obvious track which would take me back to Derry Lodge. The descent is straight forward but the last section before the Scots Pine wood is steep and I was glad to cross the bridge and arrive back at the mountain rescue hut bedside Derry Lodge.
- The walk back to Linn of Dee lies in front of me
On the far side of the bridge I stopped to grab a sandwich out of my rucksack which I ate as I walked down the final section of my walk from Derry Lodge back to the Linn of Dee car park. The legs were quite tired now so the pace wasn't dramatic but I made decent time back to the car.
- Odd shaped cloud
The plan had never been to take in Derry Cairngorm but by doing so it did make for a more varied walk. Never really saw the sun all day but still really enjoyable and at last I've been to Loch Avon. I hadn't really appreciated how dramatic the west end of the loch is, a special place and one I'd love to return to, hopefully from the north next time. It's a fair trek at 22.6 miles but well worth the effort.
Only walked once to Derry Lodge and that was once too many, always take my bike now 
We were on Bynack More that day and spent 2 hours lurking and scrambling over the Barns.
