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I had originally hoped to combine Ben Challum with the two neighbouring corbetts, Cam Chreag and Beinn Chaorach before the end of 2010 but a bad cold and cough put paid to that plan. However, as I was keen to get a walk in before returning to work on 5 January, I decided on the Saturday to opt for the blue skies forecast for the Sunday as it was to worsen to cloud/rain/sleet on Monday and Tuesday (didn’t quite work out this way though, as it stayed grey and overcast all day but at least it was dry
).
I still hadn’t got rid of my cold so planned to take it a bit easier and didn’t get up quite as early as usual. My car was the first in the layby on the west side of the A82 just past the entrance to Kirkton Farm. I walked over the bridge, turned left just as I reached the farm building, up just on to the West Highland Way beside the ruin of St Fillan’s Priory (there’s a wee plaque which explains the history) and then up the farm track past a humming generator and through the gates to cross over the railway track. I had read various reports which explained how boggy the lower sections were so I headed NW at this point rather than going up the normal path further over to the east. This gave no problems with bogs probably more because the ground was frozen. I then got to the deer fence and had to head SE to cross the stile and rejoin the normal track.
From then on I had no problems with boggy ground as the bogs were all frozen over. However, it did mean there were extensive areas of very slippy, hard ice which made the going tricky. With no wind, I had to remove a layer as I was too warm and didn’t need to put it back until much further up the hill. The views started to open up and I could see Ben More, Stob Binnein, Cruach Ardrain group, Ben Lui group and further over Rannoch Moor. Unfortunately the promised blue sky and sun didn’t appear; the cloud remained uniformly grey
.
The going was getting very slippy as I got up past the 800m stage due to both the frozen bogs and the small amount of hard packed, icy snow. As I approached the south top at 997m, I was passed by the first walker I had seen all day; he had already put on his crampons and I did likewise. I had held off for as long as practical given the amount of exposed ground but didn’t think it would be possible or safe to go further without them.
It was then a straightforward walk to the 997m top where I had to head sharply west to pick up the ridge which leads to the main north top. This ridge didn’t have much snow on it which made it tricky in crampons but they were definitely needed the rest of the way to the main summit.
At the cairn I had a chat with the walker who had passed me further back. By coincidence we were both recovering from colds but were happy to be out and about. We also both thought that we’d have seen more walkers on the hill that day. I had some refreshments and wandered around looking at the views from the top.
I then walked over to have a look at the approach to Cam Chreag via Ghlas Leathaid bealach and then the route round to Beinn Chaorach. I still had plenty of time to return this way but, with the weather being rather grey, some very light snow flurries starting to appear, a comment Graeme had made about Ben Chaorach and the fact that I wasn’t 100% due to my cold, I decided that I was happy with the day’s walk and headed back down the normal return route
.
Then the flood gates opened and I think I must have met at least 20 other walkers on their way up as I descended. On the way down I had a long chat with a lady walker who had compleated the munros a couple of years ago, was also getting over a cold and had decided to wait while her husband went up to the top as she had walked Ben Challum twice before – she was the first person I’d ever met with the same 1980’s ice axe as me.
Back in summer 2010 I had no thoughts whatsoever of adding to my tally of 13 munros mainly from my younger days in the 1980’s. That all changed when I went for a couple of walks in the hills in northern Montana in July; on returning, my wife, younger son and I then walked up the cobbler (my second time) in August and I got the hill walking bug back again after a 20 years+ break. The good August weather and finding encouragement from the WH site and its members had a lot to do with it I’m sure and I’m now in planning mode for more walking, if all goes well, in 2011. Hope to see some of you on the hills this year – happy new year !