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Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic


Postby wilkiemurray » Sun Nov 13, 2016 3:34 pm

Route description: Stac Pollaidh ridge and circuit

Fionas included on this walk: Stac Pollaidh

Date walked: 13/11/2016

Time taken: 20 hours

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“You’re going where?”
“Four hours in the car to spend the night on a freezing mountain!?!”
“Why?”

Ok, so I am maybe paraphrasing here but you get the gist of a conversation I had with a colleague who had asked me what my weekend plans were. Those “in the know” don’t ask and even those who don’t understand but have known us for long enough start to accept our addiction with such activities!

Film :



For me, I love any outdoor activity but there is something about being on the summit of the mountain, alone and spending the night in solitude. The effort required to transport your temporary belongings up the hill is sometimes energy sapping, and just the solitude is sometime award enough, but occasionally you get rewarded with natures finest spectacles! I was rewarded at sunrise in Assynt on this weekend’s adventure for sure……

Stac Pollaidh ain’t big, not even in Scottish terms. At just 2008ft in height a statistician looking at lists and numbers may well dismiss it. However it may well be one of the finest mountains (and not just “small mountains”) in Scotland. This was my fourth visit to Pollaidh and my first in over 8 years. On every prior visit I have been amazed at how much fun and adventure can be packed in to 2008ft of ascent and an afternoon or mornings exertion! A well-made path takes you round to the north side of the mountain before ascending to a col near the Eastern Summit. From here the fun starts as the route to the higher western summit takes you along the mohican ridge of Stac Pollaidh. The mountain’s ridge had attained its hair cut “Mohawk” during the last ice age as the ice sheet swept past its lower ramparts but left the ridge poking out and exposed to weathering. This Nunatak had Mother Nature as a hair stylist and I am so glad it did!

ImageCul Mor reflections by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

Weaving in and out of the sandstone pinnacles and rocky blocks was great fun and for those with a scrambling or climbing frame of mind can increase or decrease the level of difficulty as so desired. Paths do bypass most of the difficulties but this isn’t the mountain for you if one doesn’t like exposure or hands on fun. The real and most tricky scramble isn’t optional if you want to make the summit however! A rocky block bars the way just as the summit looks touchable! A tricky, but short lived scramble gets the adrenaline pumping for the final few strides to the summit!

ImageWestern Summit STAC pOLLAIDH by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

Having set up camp on the Eastern Summit and then taken my time enjoying the Torridonian Pinnacles I was aware that daylight was staring to run out, and I wanted to get back to camp for sunset – did I mention the views you get from this hill (more of that later!).

A careful reversing of the “bad step” and I was heading back down the Mohawk, taking a different route back. The Bad Step is seen by many as the trickiest part of the scramble but I think it’s the views that provide the danger. You can’t keep your eyes on your feet as the views over Assynt – in all directions – are amazing! Forget the 3hr timing that most guidebooks suggest – just spend the whole day up here, you won’t be disappointed! There is a reason why Landscape Photographers flock here as individuals and also whole classes! I’ll not bore you with the view descriptions – just watch the video ! (please ignore my stupidness as I got the Culs mixed up right throughout the length of the film – doh!).

Safely back at camp and Mother Nature had extinguished any chances of a fiery sunset. The cloud had moved westwards and dusk approached in monochrome… However winds were light and the views stunning, a few light showers drifted in over the watery landscape before night arrived.
In the wee small hours I was woken as the wind had picked up. The tents sheets were making it a bit noisy and my sleep was broken until I decided to rise around 05.30am. It was still pitch black but by the time a coffee had been made I could make out a band of clear sky towards the lightening eastern horizon… A good sign for sunrise… The next 90 minutes were fantastic. The light just got better and better, the skies burned red then pink towards the east and I was so occupied by this view that I nearly missed the pink rainbow lurking over Stac Pollaidh behind me! I have seen many rainbows but never one this colour and a manifestation from the sunrise- it was some sight!

ImageSunrise over Assynt by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

Imagesunrise Fannich by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

ImagePink rainbow assynt by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

As the sun rose over the horizon the light shifted and the focus on the sky changed to the landscape of Assynt lighting up. Suilven won the crown with the light contrasting its rugged form perfectly. Surely this must be one of the most impressive landscapes in Scotland. I had managed to time the sunrise perfectly as shortly after this the sun was extinguished by the encroaching weather front that was to bring high winds and blizzards later in the day. I counted my blessings, packed up and headed back home. Another memorable trip….

Imagesuilven colours by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

ImageStac Pollaidh Sunrise by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

ImageAutumn Light by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

ImageFirst Light awakens Suilven by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr

ImageAssynt expanse by Scotland's Mountains, on Flickr
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Sgurr » Sun Nov 13, 2016 4:22 pm

Fabulous. Would the pink rainbow be a fog bow? I have only ever seen greyish white, but believe they can be pink. I'm glad I didn't see those aerial shots of the ridge before I did it. Was quite concerned about how narrow it seemed in places without realising it actually IS.
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby weaselmaster » Sun Nov 13, 2016 6:24 pm

Now that was tasty - thanks but I wish it could have been me up there :lol:
One of your best, Wilkie
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Sick Kid » Sun Nov 13, 2016 7:15 pm

Oh my god!!!! That almost brought me to tears :D :D :D
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby scoob999 » Sun Nov 13, 2016 7:27 pm

Simply Superb!
Must be your best yet :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Petr Dakota » Sun Nov 13, 2016 7:43 pm

:clap: :clap: :clap: :thumbup:
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Jaxter » Sun Nov 13, 2016 10:43 pm

This is amazing :shock: :D :clap: :clap: Was talking about this as a perfect location for a summit camp but thought getting gear up there would be impossible (I'm too short to get over the top and have to slide through the wee hole :lol: ) You've made me believe it's possible now :D :D You lucky person, it must have been incredible :clap: :clap:
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby jupe1407 » Sun Nov 13, 2016 11:31 pm

That's absolutely jaw-dropping. Brilliant video and some awesome stills, especially of Suilven.

Very well played :clap: :D
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Sun Nov 13, 2016 11:49 pm

Beautiful :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Borderhugh » Mon Nov 14, 2016 1:20 pm

Im totally mesmerised. Stunning, sublime, majestic, inspirational :clap:
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Alteknacker » Mon Nov 14, 2016 3:59 pm

What can I say? Everything that can be said has been said already. :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

Thanks for posting these pics and vids. They give so many of us such a lot of vicarious pleasure. :thumbup:
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby jmarkb » Mon Nov 14, 2016 5:17 pm

Brilliant! :D

Sgurr wrote:Would the pink rainbow be a fog bow?


I'm pretty sure it's a rainbow: at sunrise/sunset most of the blue end of the spectrum of sunlight is scattered due to the extra long path through the atmosphere (that's why the sun looks red at sunrise/sunset, and it's the same effect that makes the sky blue, see http://www.atoptics.co.uk/rainbows/redbow.htm ). So when the sunlight is refracted into a rainbow at this time of day, you only see the red end of the spectrum. Fogbows are predominantly white because the droplets are much smaller than in rain. The light gets diffracted much more as it passes through the drop, so the colour bands get smeared out and largely overlap each other, instead of being cleanly separated as in a rainbow. A dawn/dusk fogbow should also in principle be red, but I'm never seen a picture of one - they would be quite faint and hard to capture, I imagine.
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby Sgurr » Mon Nov 14, 2016 6:21 pm

This is what I got when I googled pink fog bow on images. There are other less striking ones. Very impressed by your technical explanation.
Image
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby gammy leg walker » Mon Nov 14, 2016 10:06 pm

Amazing
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Re: Stac Pollaidh Wild Camping - Sunrise Magic

Postby dooterbang » Mon Nov 14, 2016 10:32 pm

My favourite moontin in Scotland :) Think I've been up it over a dozen times or so. Can't believe its 8 years since you've been up it, but well worth the wait :wink:

Always fancied a summit camp at the West tip but East is fine, saves taking the gear over the tricky section.

Agree, you can have so much fun on this mountain....the grin is a constant :)

Having the drone really captures a different perspective...

Awesome stuff :clap:
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