My first post on WH. Way back in 1993 I climbed Beinn Ghlas, Ben Lawers and An Stuc. It was for a charity and I really enjoyed the day. However due to genuinely not having the time to continue climbing as I was working out the country and running a business when I managed to get home, I never really got around to it. I did though climb my local hills in Fife and was quite content with that. Until last year, when I gained some freedom to be able to have full days free.

One day last year I decided to go for it. Schiehallion was my choice so why Schiehallion? Well, I was a lucky 14 year old pupil at a wonderful secondary school in Fife with Innovative teachers way back in 1965 [I think]. One was a Mr Hamish Brown. We made our own canoes at woodwork class and tested them in the sea at Buckhaven beach, brilliant.

Hamish somehow managed to acquire an old half stone, half corrugated iron cottage on the shores of Loch Rannoch where a class of us stayed for a week. We paper trailed, we learned maps and compass, primus stove use, canoeing, how to right an upturned canoe, the whole works. We headed early one morning to Schiehallion and had to turn back due to weather. That's why I chose this mountain for my first solo which I did last summer and I thoroughly enjoyed it, pity I had to wait until I was 62 years old to get the bug!!!

On now to last week. Forecast was clag, clag, clag. Anyway I decided to drive up from Dunkeld and get to the car park and see how the weather was. I had done this in 1993 and never seen any views as it was all clag and I desperately wanted to take in the views that many people have reported. Obviously once I was there I started up and decided as long as the paths were clear I would just go on, which I did.



Nice steady hike up to Beinn Ghlas in the clag, visibility around 10m at times but path very clear to see. Also one hiker above me and I heard voices behind so didn't feel so bad. Something quite creepy being in the clag. Came up against a section that needed a bit of scrambling and met the hiker who was in front now coming down. I asked him the age old question "how much further"? He told me not so far, just look for the wee cairn for Beinn Ghlas then further on you'll see large cairn for Lawers. Ok, no need to check the map, all ok. Found the small cairn and carried on and came to the large cairn. Only 2 hours, good going Bob!. Wee bell ringing though, 2hours? That's quick. Anyway had a bite to eat and some tea and started to go back when a couple came out the clag. We had a wee blether and then found I was not even on Beinn Ghlas summit yet!!! I asked Tom and Moira if I could tag along with them and they were happy to do that. Off we went and eventually passed Beinn Ghlas top and onwards to Ben Lawers.


Thanks to Tom and Moira for salvaging my day. I would have been reporting doing two Munros wrongly. I feel that the hiker who I met who was going down may have not reached his goal!!




On the way down the cloud broke for a few minutes and I managed to get some photos but it was only a few minutes. We took the path around Beinn Ghlas which saved a return ascent. All in all a brilliant day considering the clag and a special thanks to Tom and Moira. They have done all the Scottish mountains and have so much experience and were great company.


This week, I hope Thursday if weather ok I am going to do Meall Nan Tarmachan. .