Bitter & Twisted after Beinn Dorain.

[Morecambe Monkey]

It's about time that i caught up with my walk reports,so here's the third day of my June trip to Tyndrum:
Thursday came & it was time to tackle the mountain which,along with Ben Cruachan,drew me to this area in the first place. Beinn Dorain is a peak i have admired probably longer than any other,first setting eyes on it from the train on a trip to Fort William in the mid 1980's. After many more trips North by both train & car over the years,this awesome looking mountain still always grabs my attention & has always been a firm favourite with railway photographers too.

It was a nice,easy 10 minute trundle along the A82 to Bridge of Orchy from the campsite in Tyndrum & yet again my gaze was drawn towards Beinn Dorain,this time to the fact that the top was covered in cloud. Leaving the pub car park at 1010 i headed across the A82 & up the track towards the station,smiling wryly to myself as i remembered the last time i came up here,a full 11 years ago after 'a few' pints of Caledonian 80 in the Bridge of Orchy Hotel,two of us(my mate Pete & i) running up to the station in the pitch black of a freezing cold March night for the Southbound sleeper train,crashing into each other like Larry & Mo!

Had a quick check of the timetable to confirm the time of the last train back to Tyndrum & then it was through the gate above the station passing the mobile phone transmitter & on to the obvious path leading up alongside the Allt an Dothaidh. It was a straight forward climb towards the bealach though a lot steeper than it appeared. Already i was aware there were more people about on this first section than i had encountered on the whole of the two previous walks & it was nice to exchange pleasantries with a few folk for a change. After a couple of minutes chatting to one lady her black labrador decided that i was a suitable candidate for the 'You throw the big stick & i'll run after it over & over again game'. This went on for a few minutes until she finally called him back & i could resume puffing & blowing my way towards the bealach. As i entered Coire An Dothaidh i started to feel good as by now my weary old legs were beginning to loosen up & the surrounding crags were an awesome sight.

Up through Coire An Dothaidh

I reached the bealach which i was suprised to find was deserted,so i took the opportunity to have a sit down,take on some food & water & generally relax for a few minutes-the views were excellent.

Looking down Coire An Dothaidh

It was now decision time,which do i go to first? The decision was quickly made for me when a couple i had passed on the way up arrived at the bealach & headed off to Beinn An Dothaidh so i went in the other direction,"no point in getting in each other's way on that narrow looking path" i said to myself. The going was nice & easy on the climb to Beinn Dorain with a good obvious path to follow-or so i thought.

Beinn An Dothaidh from the climb to Beinn Dorain

As i contoured the side of the hill,i realised my error so i headed back up to the ridge & on to the actual main path where i soon reached (the rather rudely named ) Carn Sasunnaich.
By now the early morning cloud i'd seen from the A82 was long gone,in it's place was warm(ish) sunshine & stunning views in all directions with the obvious & gentle route to the summit of Beinn Dorain stretching out in front of me.

Carn Sasunnaich

Reaching the main summit i stared down the steep cliff edge & over to the pub,thinking of the delights it's bar held in store for me later in the day!

The Pub

The required photos were taken before returning to the bealach...

Beinn Dorain summit

South from Beinn Dorain

where i again met the couple who had earlier gone to Beinn An Dothaidh,we exchanged "Hello's"(again) as we passed,they heading for where i'd just been & vice versa. I must admit that i found the climb to Beinn An Dothaidh a bit of a trudge,it was pretty boggy & there wasn't a great deal to look at except boggy grassy slopes unless i stopped & turned round to get a great view of the north side of Beinn Dorain. Following what resembled a path,i tried to keep away from the worst of the wet stuff,such a contrast to the climb to Beinn Dorain,eventually i came across a track heading along the side of the hill which i took until i found a suitable place to head up to the summit. This brought me out at a point in between the main & south summits so nipped over to the south summit first before retracing my steps to the main summit.

Beinn Dorain from Beinn An Dothaidh

Beinn An Dothaidh South top

The views from up here were breathtaking which more than made up for the wet misery of the ascent,but my inexperience denied me the knowledge of which mountains i was actually looking at in each direction. Continuing round the ridge to the west top,i then picked my way down the grassy slopes back to the ascent path,managing to mostly avoid the wet sections & eventually arriving back at the bealach to be greeted by the same couple for a third time! The descent back down to Bridge of Orchy was hard on the old knees & i must admit to being relieved to reach the gate which leads down under the railway. At this point i met a guy heading up towards me carrying what looked to be the biggest/heaviest rucksack ever & i naively asked him if he was doing the West Highland Way. He replied that he was actually carrying a hang glider & that he was heading up on to Beinn Dorain as he'd heard it was an excellent place from which to fly! I wished him luck whilst thinking "Rather you than me mate carrying that thing up there!" before continuing back to my car. It was now nearly 5pm & i was being picked up at the campsite at 6pm by my friends from Glasgow Matt & Jasmine who were heading up to Skye for the weekend via an overnight stay in the Bridge of Orchy hotel,just enough time to drive back & grab a shower. I was duly picked up & while they checked in their room,i headed off over the bridge to get a couple of photos of today's conquests before meeting them in the bar(which has changed quite a lot since the last time i was there).

Beinn Dorain viewed from the West Highland Way at Bridge of Orchy

Beinn An Dothaidh from Bridge of Orchy

At the bar i was greeted by the sight of a Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted pump clip staring me in the face,what more could i ask for at the end of an excellent day on the fells than my favourite ale to quench my thirst?!! Time soon passed & after a nice meal,a good catch up with friends & 'a few' of said ale,it was time for me to stagger off for the Southbound sleeper train back to Tyndrum. Leaving the pub at 2125 i headed across the A82 & up the track towards the station,smiling wryly to myself as this time i'd given plenty of time to make the train without running.

[tomyboy73]

hi, nice report, I went up there about a year ago and the tops were covered in snow, so, nice to see it without snow, also ran out of time and only did Dorain. There are great views from up there

[pollyh33]

Fantastic report MM.
I was last up Dorain in a wintry storm in 1981! Still to get to the summit of An Dothaidh. Could be nice wee day out.

Thanks for all the useful info.

[Morecambe Monkey]

hi, nice report, I went up there about a year ago and the tops were covered in snow, so, nice to see it without snow, also ran out of time and only did Dorain. There are great views from up there

Cheers tomyboy73,i bet it was stunning up there in the snow.

Fantastic report MM.
I was last up Dorain in a wintry storm in 1981! Still to get to the summit of An Dothaidh. Could be nice wee day out.

Thanks for all the useful info.

Thanks Polly,if you've not been up Dorain since 1981 then i think you're well overdue a revisit! Doing them both on the same trip isn't a problem really,my knees just took a fair old hammering on the descent from the bealach as i was cutting it a bit close for time & wasn't hanging around.

[nathan79]

I did these two with Stretch and Jockstar on the way home from the WH meet last Halloween under the burden of a slight hangover. Glad i did, a great pair.

Glad to see you had some decent views MM.

Polly, have a word with yourself and get back up there!