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Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!


Postby Chloeeh » Mon Jan 23, 2017 12:32 pm

Route description: Fionn Bheinn, Achnasheen

Munros included on this walk: Fionn Bheinn

Date walked: 21/01/2017

Time taken: 5 hours

Distance: 12 km

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So after climbing Ben Lomond 2 days prior in the cold and rain we decided to follow the good weather and headed up to Achnasheen. We didn't fancy anything too challenging as I'm still recovering from a cough so Fionn Bheinn seemed like the best option in that area.

We stayed in a little Air BnB at the bottom of the hill, it was great to simply walk out the door and start the walk without having to drive anywhere :D

We set off at 7am whilst it was still dark and tried to navigate our way through various gates and up the hill. It is quite boggy but luckily the cold had frozen the ground some what so it was easier going than expected. Eventually we rose above the cloud inversion to stunning views of the sun rising...

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Trying to resist the urge to keep looking back at the view we pressed on (little did we know in the wrong direction...)

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We headed towards what we thought was Fionn Bheinn, across difficult and boggy ground but soon realised it was a Graham and the real Fionn Bheinn was over to our right... oh dear :lol:

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Easy mistake to make I guess... real Fionn Bheinn on the right, imposter Fionn Bheinn on the left!!

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By this point the sun had fully peaked over the tops of the hills and we were going in the right direction at last...

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Powering up the steep slope! A short cut to make up for lost time

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Enjoying using my new camera (Xmas present from my other half)

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The last push to the summit. Getting followed up the hill by a group of other walkers but still determined to be the first 2 at the summit!

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Happy we're at the top, enjoying the views across to the Torridon and Ullapool hills..

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Quite a simple summit, just a single trig point on top of grass...

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Aimed for these unusual wooden posts on the way back down, it was hard to navigate the various fences with the inversion still blocking the view of down below but we managed quickly enough and were back down the hill in time for lunch :D

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I can imagine on a rainy and bleak day this hill would not be so inspiring, but we were lucky we got such amazing weather and it was one of my most enjoyable walks to date. Munro number 34 conquered!
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Chloeeh
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Re: Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Postby rockhopper » Mon Jan 23, 2017 1:37 pm

That looked great - good day for it, so much nicer than my trip here in the rain and clag :roll: - cheers :)
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Re: Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Postby Cairngorm creeper » Mon Jan 23, 2017 3:08 pm

Wow! That was a beautiful inversion. :clap:
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Cairngorm creeper
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Re: Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Postby BlackPanther » Mon Jan 23, 2017 5:12 pm

And some people say this is a "pointless" Munro... It's not, it just has to be climbed on a good day!

It was a superb day for inversions and FB was busy. I think we saw you reaching the summit? We started from Achnasheen about 8:30, by then there were at least 4 other groups/couples going up as well!
One pano we took on the way up:
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Taking the advantage of excellent conditions, we traversed to the Graham Meall a'Chaorainn and spent half an hour on the summit (there was no wind on the lower hill), before descending through the ocean of peat hags back to the village.
I must say, very unusual conditions for January, with the lack of snow. It felt more like April!
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Re: Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Postby Chloeeh » Mon Jan 23, 2017 8:20 pm

What a coincidence :lol: yeah we saw quite a few people coming up behind us. If you saw a woman with a bright red jacket then it was probably me!
That's an excellent panoramic. We were tempted to climb the Graham as well but the bogs put us off. Glad you got to enjoy the great weather as well! :D we might bump into you again sometime
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Chloeeh
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Re: Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Postby Mal Grey » Mon Jan 23, 2017 9:32 pm

Great conditions. It may be a little dull in terms of route interest, but the views from Fionn Bheinn to Torridon and to the Fannichs are amazing.

Thanks for sharing. :clap:
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Mal Grey
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Re: Spectacular Sunrise and Inversion on Fionn Bheinn!

Postby dogplodder » Tue Jan 24, 2017 9:26 pm

Thought it looked the same day BP did it - same fabulous inversion shots! :D
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