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Both our previous ascents of Beinn Fhionnlaidh have been from Glen Etive. I'd never much fancied the up-and-down west ridge route from the Glen Creran until some friends recommended this circuit (which appears in one of Ralph Storer's books), and uses an old stalkers path to access the hidden valley between Fhionnlaidh and An Grianan.
We set of from Elleric, turned left at Glenure House, and then right up a short piece of track that ends at the top of the woods. The start of the old stalkers' path is reasonably obvious, but it soon fades out: looking at the 1:25k map we actually kept a bit too low near the burn, but the going is easy enough. Further on, we picked up the path again just before it passes through a small col. It then loses a little height and traverses above the Allt Bealach na h-Innsig for a while until meeting the burn at a lovely hidden meadow. We followed the burn past a higher meadow and then its left branch until the ground opens out at around 500m. There's no real path other than some deer tracks, but the going is generally good. We then took a rising line to join the east ridge of Beinn Fhionnlaidh at the obvious col. From here there's a nice section of ridge with a couple of wee rocky steps leading to the summit (in common with the Glen Etive route).
After a sunny sheltered lunch stop, we headed off down the normal west ridge route back to Elleric. As you can see from the photos, we were just of the edge of clear skies to the south west and cloudier weather to the north, with shafts of light briefly picking out the various summits. I'd recommend this as the nicest way of doing this hill: it would also give access to the scramble on the south face - one to come back for in summer time!
View to Mull from the stalker's path
The first meadow
Beinn Sgulaird
Looking back down the hidden valley
Approaching the col
Unusual patterns in the snow
The Buachailles
Beinn Bheithir
Approaching the summit
Mull
Cruachan
Stob Ban
Summit rocks
Bidean
The west ridge
Beinn Bheithir
Fraochaidh
Sgorr a' Choise
Ben Starav
Glas Bheinn Mhor
Snow shower over Loch Creran
Stone Age Scousers nicked my wheels....