How very civilsed, a pre-departure coffee at Tea at the Shee!


I forked right onto a smaller track. I had hardly touched a blade of grass and was on the summit in 45 minutes.

This will be my shortest walk report with more pics than text! Simple opportunism gave me a short walk around very familiar territory, normally frequented on skis in decades past. Some aeshetes don’t like the ski clutter here but Glenshee, Butchart’s Corrie, and Meall Odhar on the opposite side of the road, were all well known to me and had been skied often. We even snow-holed regularly in the corrie beneath Carn an Tuirc across the road. If I learned to ski out of Balloch on Glencoe porridge, after moving to Glenfarg, whatever techniques I’d learned were refined at Glenshee, genuflecting as best as I was able to on Telemark skis, before doing it for real on many past Munro ascents.


Carn Aosda Summit Selfie. I was wet and vexed!


The obvious route down to Butchart's col is even signed!


Approaching the col above Butchart's Corrie.

So, the terrain was weel kent, and I’d used the opportunity as part of a journey south to divert up Deeside off the Orkney ferry from Aberdeen, to Glenshee to re-bag two or perhaps three Munros. The weather forecast wasn’t bad, but I’d reckoned without the winds which became apparent whilst chatting over coffee to the Tea at the Shee staff. They warned me that the lift would be closed owing to high winds on the tops. Great, the last time I was out two weeks ago in the Fannaichs we’d found it difficult to even stand on the west ridge of Sgurr Breac!


Loch Vrotachan with An Socach at the rear.


West towards An Socach detail with its lovely East Ridge.


Carn an Tuirc across the A93. We used to snow-hole beneath it.

I set off after my civilised cup of coffee (I’d been driving for two hours was my excuse!) and arrived at the summit of Carn Aosda only 45 minutes later! It was all track, and I hardly touched a blade of grass! The route went between the snow factory and upper café to the beat of a thumping generator, which didn’t seem to worry a covey of five red grouse, up the main track towards the col, then forked right up a lesser track which steepened to make the summit ridge just west of the summit.


I took in the views of the Dhirich Ridge from the ski bench near the col.


The wind screamed through the chestnut paling like a jet fighter taking off.


Nearing the summit of The Cairnwell.

This really is the easiest Munro as Carn Aosda is the lesser of the two peaks at 915m (The Cairnwell is 933m). The weather forecast had let me down again as I donned full waterproofs halfway up and arrived at the summit in drizzle and mist. As it happened, I was on the summit of Carn Aosda with its small pink cairn, but I could have been anywhere. There was no view, and I was wet, and vexed!


At The Cairnwell Summit. Pic by Roland.


Creag Leacach to the SE across the A93.

I needn’t have worried for it soon cleared, and as I headed SW off the summit and down the ridge, views opened up to the west across Loch Vrotachan towards the nearby Carn a’ Gheòidh and the more distant An Socach with its lovely east ridge. To the south through drifting mists The Cairnwell and its summit baggage looked reassuringly close! Butchart’s Corrie is even signposted en route to its col, where I had a decision to make. Carn Aosda’s summit wasn’t exactly calm, but the winds were increasing as I headed south across the range, pushing me nicely along.


Carn Aosda from The Cairnwell.

The A93 snaked below in the now strong sunlight as I reached the col. I was heading for Northumberland and pushed for time, so the decision was easy enough – the hat-trick and Carn a’ Gheòidh would need to wait, especially as I could sense that the return along the ridge above Choire Dhirich would involve a time-consuming battle against very strong winds.


Carn Aosda with the much higher Ben Avon in the Cairngorms at rear.

Gaining height along the connecting ridge to The Cairnwell was easy, especially as views were now 3600 and enjoyable. I paused on a bench made of skis overlooking Choire Dhirich and realised that the winds were now screaming through the chestnut paling ski fences behind me like a jet taking off! With the aid of walking poles I was able to keep stable heading up to the summit, but once up there it was impossible to stand still for any length of time.


Down the zig-zag and wet descent.


Carn Aosda and its attendants - the Snow Factory and Upper Cafe, my route went between the two.

An ex Rabbie’s guide called Roland was also at the summit with his French girlfriend, and we sheltered behind huts so that he could have a nostalgic conversation with me about Orkney which he knew well. I stayed inside the shelter of the summit howff for 15 minutes or so, enjoying the views south and west. I departed the summit at 11:30 and was down by means of a zig-zag and wet path by noon, for a plate of soup and a sandwich. I advised the café staff that they were indeed right about the high winds (we estimated 35 mph) and added two opportunistic ticks to my second round!


The Glenshee Ski Lift - not operating today owing to 35mph+ winds.