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It's been a very long and hard journey. Finally we've only one Munro left to complete to become a 'Compleator'!!!
The 283rd Munro was one we'd been leaving due to it's remoteness and solitary status. Gulvain has a reputation as being a relentless and steep slog, but it turned out to be a fine walk even in cloudy, claggy conditions.
My legs were getting worn out over the last few weeks. All the hills or groups of hills were being swept up in preparation for the final, and 284th, Munro. We'd recently done the three at the N of the Glen Affric YH, Seana Bhraigh, Maoile Lunndaidh, and a few other huge trips.
We arrived at the start of this one in cloudy, claggy weather. Perfect for the midges and they were out in force. Quickly sorted, bags on, and we were off. The initial part of the walk is a pleasant stroll along a good track through Gleann Fionnlighe.
Pleasant, but soon degenrates into a bumpy affair close to the end of the forest. From here we got first view of the elusive Gulvain. A fine looking hill.
The slope up to the 855m top isn't really as bad as it's made out. It's not that steep and there's a good path zigzaging most of the way. This was the view back down the glen from the slopes.
Shortly after the 855m top, we entered the cloud. 20m visibility and no views. We soon reached the next point, the 961m top with the old trig point.
With no views, but in light wind, we headed along the ridge to the large summit cairn. The ridge narrowed quite a bit, but good paths made for easy going.
We retraced our step back to the 961m top. Descending, we came through the cloudbase to some nice views east.
Finally, we reached the 855m top and descended back into the glen. This was a fine walk.
