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My initial plan was to walk up Stob Ban and Mullach nan Coirean, with the possibility of camping at the summit for some photography. But I wasn't very hopeful as the met office were forecasting 45mph+ winds! I conceded that my chances of camping were quite slim, so I opted to leave my tent in the car to save weight and packed my bivvy bag just in case. I packed my camera and tripod as well which always adds a fair heft to my backpack.
I set off from the Polldubh car park about 12pm and sauntered my way up towards Stab Ban. The ascent was fairly straight forward but I kept having to stop because the tube from my Osprey hydration bladder kept disconnecting
As I approached the main bealach the sky darkened and it started to rain. I stopped once more to put on my jacket before heading onto the exposed bealach. From here, the steep quartzite faces of Stob Ban looked mighty impressive and the views down through the clouds towards Glen Nevis were stunning. I had plenty of time to spare so I hung around for a while to see if the weather would lift, and thankfully it did!. First it turned grey, but then the sun came out momentarily and lit up the valley.
After reaching the summit, I slid down the scree slope at the back of Stob Ban towards the ridge which leads onto Mullach nan Coirean. I was surprised how different the ground was on Mullach nan Coirean compared to Stob Ban, given how close they are to each other. Mullach nan Coirean has a lot more grass, a very flat summit and is made up of red granite.
After reaching the summit I looked over towards Meall a' Chaorainn and thought that it looked like a great place to spend the night. From the summit there were lovely views over towards Glencoe, Ballachulish and Loch Linnie. (I still can't work out if Meall a' Chaorainn is a corbett or just another top of Mullach nan Coirean, doe anyone know? )
Looking back towards Stb Ban
...followed by the obligatory summit photo
I still couldn't make my mind up weather I was going to bivvy on the summit or not, so I found a spot which was partially shaded from the wind and brewed a coffee whilst I made up my mind. I drank my coffee while taking in the views and managed to find enough phone signal to check the weather for a final time. The forecast was for the night was still 40mph gusts, 30% precipitation and feeling like -5. I wimped out and decided to head down! I walked back towards Mullach nan Coirean and followed the steep bath down the ridge towards the Nevis Forrest. It rained heavy on the way down and at that moment I tried to convince myself I was glad I had chosen not to stay.
