Sub 2k Marilyns: The Fruin.
Date: 09/03/2019.
Distance: 6.5 km.
Ascent: 190m.
Time taken: 1 hour, 25 minutes.
Weather: Mainly sunny, fresh breeze.

With a couple of hours available on Saturday morning, I decided to take a quick wander up the Fruin. It has a bit of a reputation for bog, and I thought I'd managed to find an easy way up, walking up the lane to Stuckenduff above Shandon. The most recent maps and aerial photos show vehicle tracks almost to the summit from here. This turned out to be some kind of shooting/horseriding/quadiking centre, and was bristling with 'keep out' 'shooting in progress' and 'dangerous dogs' signs. I wasn't convinced that this was in any way in keeping with the access legislation, but I only had a short window, and I couldn't be bothered dealing with it. So it was back down the track to the car, and on to the more normal starting point at the head of Glen Fruin.


Gare Loch from Stuckenduff


OK then...

There's plenty of room to park here, and a bit of track to start off, before deteriorating into tussocky grass and heather after a short distance. Given that I only had my old leaky boots available, I decided to go in my running trainers instead as they were already wet from the previous day.



View from the top of Glen Fruin


Beinn Chaorach

The going was certainly wet, the worst thing being that the water underfoot was bloody freezing! The weather cleared for almost the duration of the walk though, giving great views up to Arrochar and across to Cowal.


On the Fruin


Faslane and Garelochead


Gare Loch and the Rosneath Peninsula


Looking towards The Brack


Faslane


Glen Fruin hills


Across Gare Loch and Loch Long to Cowal

There isn't a great deal of ascent this way, but the going is a bit rough, with a couple of fence crossings. Not too slow though, and after a subsidiary summit, it didn't take too long to reach the top. With a bit more planning, I could've done a traverse to Helensburgh without much additional bog, but as it was I returned the same way.


North to Gare Loch


Loch Lomond and the Campsies


Beinn Mhor and Beinn Bheula from the summit


Beinn a’ Mhanaich and Beinn Chaorach


Across to Beinn Mhor of Cowal


Rosneath Point and Cowal


Looking back to the Fruin

Not a bad way to fill a morning!