Carrbridge and Sluggan Bridge loop
This post is not published on the Walkhighlands forumDate walked: 29/02/2024
Distance: 17.5km
Ascent: 320m
Views: 10
Deeside wanders including Coyles of Muick and Meall Alvie
Sub 2000s: Meall Alvie, The Coyles of Muick
Date walked: 26/02/2024
Time taken: 5.75 hours
Distance: 20.5km
Ascent: 820m
Sub 2k Marilyns: Coyles of Muick, Meall Alvie.
Date: 26/02/2024.
Distance: 8.5 + 5 + 7 km.
Ascent: 370 + 250 + 200m.
Time taken: 2 hours 30 minutes, 1 hour 30 minutes, 1 hour 45 minutes.
Weather: Cold turning to strong sunshine.
We had just spent a night on the White Mounth plateau, swimming in Lochnagar itself, picking up a couple of wayward Munro tops and generally messing around (hopefully Jackie will get around to writing that one up at some point). Arriving back at the Spittal of Glenmuick carpark we had a feeling the next day might still have some reasonable weather and we couldn't be bothered driving anywhere. So we put up the tent in the twilight and stayed the night there. The next morning was less glorious as suggested but still nice enough - what better way to start off than jumping in the burn?
Morning grimace
After that sharp wakeup call we packed up and headed for the Coyles of Muick - the only Marilyn in the vicinity that I hadn't been up and one that Jackie had enjoyed enough that she was content to go up it again. Planning to start just across the river from the Mill of Sterin we were somewhat surprised to find that the bridge had disappeared! On Jackie's previous visit in 2018 there had been a section of road washed away but it was passable on foot. Defeated early on we returned to the car and drove around to Birkhall to start there instead.
Now there's no bridge here either
A track led us straight towards Meall Dubh and the ridge that bounds the west side of Glen Muick. Higher up we picked our way through felled and fallen trees on reasonable ground and emerged on the moorland. While there had been the odd light shower on the way up, the sun began to emerge at times and the cloud began to break up.
Looking towards Ballater from near Meall Dubh
Aside from one boggy pool the path from here to the Coyles of Muick was really good and pleasant walking. I hadn't realised that the going would be so varied - it reminded me of Birnam Hill.
Looking towards the Coyles
Creag Dubh from the ridge
A glimpse into Deeside
Sgor an h-Iolaire
Back to Meall Dubh
A last steep pull took us up to the two large cairns on the summit where we stopped for a break. Lochnagar never did clear but Conachcraig and Loch Muick were visible and there were occasional glimpses of the Cairngorms in the distance.
Summit crags
Cairns on the other summit
Loch Muick from Coyles of Muick
Backwards Jaxter
Summit views
Conachcraig from the Coyles
We wandered over to the other summit out of curiosity - afterwards I discovered that this one is actually the highest point!. Then we descended the grassy slopes to a break in the trees that Jackie had come up previously. As it turned out her route up had been more complex than she remembered and we had to get the map out a couple of times to find which tracks to follow and which ones to cross.
Conachcraig and Loch Muick
Nice woodland on the higher slopes
Across Glen Muick
Before too long we rejoined our outward track and minutes later were at the car. The weather was now lovely and we had timed things perfectly for a lunch stop in Ballater - great cakes from The Bothy.
Next it was my turn to go up Jackie's only unclimbed Marilyn in the area - Meall Alvie. This was less interesting but shorter and the weather was lovely and almost warm up at Keiloch. We followed a good forestry track then a poorer path through the woods taking us fairly easily to within half a km of the summit. Then it was time to head into the trees and heather - Jackie's favourite!
Lochnagar from near Keiloch
Craig Leek
Scots Pines on Meall Alvie
After an initial thrash we were able to find some good ground beneath the older trees and the steep ascent wasn't anywhere near as bad as I had found it the first time. Another short section of heather after things levelled out led us to the summit area, which is mostly covered in trees and not the best for views. My remembered view of Lochnagar was much more overgrown than last time but I had forgotten about the view to the north which was much better. Regardless, the older parts of the forest were lovely.
A glimpse of Lochnagar from Meall Alvie
Carn Liath and Culardoch from Meall Alvie
We went back down by a similar route - in the end it hadn't taken too long. Probably not a summit I'd go back up a third time though!
With a couple of hours of daylight left and the weather still good we decided to have a look at some of the cairns above Balmoral. Parking at the big carpark at Crathie, we again managed to fall foul of a bridge that wasn't open and had to retrace our steps.
Crathie church
Behind Easter Balmoral we climbed into the woods past Princess Beatrice's Cairn - much more in the trees than I remembered. The one we were aiming for is Prince Albert's Cairn, a stiff climb further on and the most impressive.
Princess Beatrice's Cairn
Prince Alberts Cairn
We pretty much arrived at sunset - quite a spectacular place to end the day. After dropping down to the main Gelder Shiel track we diverted briefly to get out of the trees and enjoy a last view of Lochnagar. Then we dropped back down to Easter Balmoral, leaving the more western cairns for another visit.
Geallaig Hill
Beinn a Bhuiridh and Ben Avon
Cairn Toul and Beinn a Bhuiridh
The cairn
Prince Alberts cairn
Last look at Lochnagar from the edge of the woods
Sunset over Deeside
A lovely end to what ended up being almost as good a day as the two preceding it. Nicely finished off with a chippy in Grantown on Spey on the way home.
Date: 26/02/2024.
Distance: 8.5 + 5 + 7 km.
Ascent: 370 + 250 + 200m.
Time taken: 2 hours 30 minutes, 1 hour 30 minutes, 1 hour 45 minutes.
Weather: Cold turning to strong sunshine.
We had just spent a night on the White Mounth plateau, swimming in Lochnagar itself, picking up a couple of wayward Munro tops and generally messing around (hopefully Jackie will get around to writing that one up at some point). Arriving back at the Spittal of Glenmuick carpark we had a feeling the next day might still have some reasonable weather and we couldn't be bothered driving anywhere. So we put up the tent in the twilight and stayed the night there. The next morning was less glorious as suggested but still nice enough - what better way to start off than jumping in the burn?
Morning grimace
After that sharp wakeup call we packed up and headed for the Coyles of Muick - the only Marilyn in the vicinity that I hadn't been up and one that Jackie had enjoyed enough that she was content to go up it again. Planning to start just across the river from the Mill of Sterin we were somewhat surprised to find that the bridge had disappeared! On Jackie's previous visit in 2018 there had been a section of road washed away but it was passable on foot. Defeated early on we returned to the car and drove around to Birkhall to start there instead.
Now there's no bridge here either
A track led us straight towards Meall Dubh and the ridge that bounds the west side of Glen Muick. Higher up we picked our way through felled and fallen trees on reasonable ground and emerged on the moorland. While there had been the odd light shower on the way up, the sun began to emerge at times and the cloud began to break up.
Looking towards Ballater from near Meall Dubh
Aside from one boggy pool the path from here to the Coyles of Muick was really good and pleasant walking. I hadn't realised that the going would be so varied - it reminded me of Birnam Hill.
Looking towards the Coyles
Creag Dubh from the ridge
A glimpse into Deeside
Sgor an h-Iolaire
Back to Meall Dubh
A last steep pull took us up to the two large cairns on the summit where we stopped for a break. Lochnagar never did clear but Conachcraig and Loch Muick were visible and there were occasional glimpses of the Cairngorms in the distance.
Summit crags
Cairns on the other summit
Loch Muick from Coyles of Muick
Backwards Jaxter
Summit views
Conachcraig from the Coyles
We wandered over to the other summit out of curiosity - afterwards I discovered that this one is actually the highest point!. Then we descended the grassy slopes to a break in the trees that Jackie had come up previously. As it turned out her route up had been more complex than she remembered and we had to get the map out a couple of times to find which tracks to follow and which ones to cross.
Conachcraig and Loch Muick
Nice woodland on the higher slopes
Across Glen Muick
Before too long we rejoined our outward track and minutes later were at the car. The weather was now lovely and we had timed things perfectly for a lunch stop in Ballater - great cakes from The Bothy.
Next it was my turn to go up Jackie's only unclimbed Marilyn in the area - Meall Alvie. This was less interesting but shorter and the weather was lovely and almost warm up at Keiloch. We followed a good forestry track then a poorer path through the woods taking us fairly easily to within half a km of the summit. Then it was time to head into the trees and heather - Jackie's favourite!
Lochnagar from near Keiloch
Craig Leek
Scots Pines on Meall Alvie
After an initial thrash we were able to find some good ground beneath the older trees and the steep ascent wasn't anywhere near as bad as I had found it the first time. Another short section of heather after things levelled out led us to the summit area, which is mostly covered in trees and not the best for views. My remembered view of Lochnagar was much more overgrown than last time but I had forgotten about the view to the north which was much better. Regardless, the older parts of the forest were lovely.
A glimpse of Lochnagar from Meall Alvie
Carn Liath and Culardoch from Meall Alvie
We went back down by a similar route - in the end it hadn't taken too long. Probably not a summit I'd go back up a third time though!
With a couple of hours of daylight left and the weather still good we decided to have a look at some of the cairns above Balmoral. Parking at the big carpark at Crathie, we again managed to fall foul of a bridge that wasn't open and had to retrace our steps.
Crathie church
Behind Easter Balmoral we climbed into the woods past Princess Beatrice's Cairn - much more in the trees than I remembered. The one we were aiming for is Prince Albert's Cairn, a stiff climb further on and the most impressive.
Princess Beatrice's Cairn
Prince Alberts Cairn
We pretty much arrived at sunset - quite a spectacular place to end the day. After dropping down to the main Gelder Shiel track we diverted briefly to get out of the trees and enjoy a last view of Lochnagar. Then we dropped back down to Easter Balmoral, leaving the more western cairns for another visit.
Geallaig Hill
Beinn a Bhuiridh and Ben Avon
Cairn Toul and Beinn a Bhuiridh
The cairn
Prince Alberts cairn
Last look at Lochnagar from the edge of the woods
Sunset over Deeside
A lovely end to what ended up being almost as good a day as the two preceding it. Nicely finished off with a chippy in Grantown on Spey on the way home.
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Distance: 8.5km
Ascent: 570m
Views: 205
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Comments: 2
Views: 685
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Date walked: 09/02/2024
Distance: 10km
Ascent: 320m
Views: 28
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Distance: 15km
Ascent: 200m
Views: 17
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Date walked: 28/01/2024
Distance: 20km
Ascent: 740m
Views: 29
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Distance: 22km
Ascent: 480m
Views: 17
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Date walked: 07/01/2024
Distance: 10km
Ascent: 540m
Views: 32
-
malky_c
- Location: Glasgow/Inverness
- Occupation: Civil Engineer
- Interests: Walking, Scrambling, Cycling, Mountain Biking
- Munro rounds: 1
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- Wainwrights: 140
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- Trips: 11
- Distance: 176 km
- Ascent: 6080m
- Corbetts: 2
- Fionas: 4
- Sub2000s: 4
- Trips: 92
- Distance: 1327.5 km
- Ascent: 55630m
- Munros: 17
- Corbetts: 12
- Fionas: 14
- Donalds: 3
- Sub2000s: 18
- Hewitts: 14
- Wainwrights 19
- Trips: 82
- Distance: 934 km
- Ascent: 46615m
- Munros: 20
- Corbetts: 12
- Fionas: 11
- Donalds: 7
- Sub2000s: 26
- Hewitts: 1
- Wainwrights 1
- Trips: 73
- Distance: 783 km
- Ascent: 40150m
- Munros: 11
- Corbetts: 2
- Fionas: 17
- Donalds: 3
- Sub2000s: 34
- Hewitts: 14
- Wainwrights 20
- Trips: 73
- Distance: 840.25 km
- Ascent: 43115m
- Munros: 9
- Corbetts: 4
- Fionas: 21
- Donalds: 2
- Sub2000s: 41
- Hewitts: 15
- Wainwrights 23
- Trips: 72
- Distance: 1114 km
- Ascent: 66725m
- Munros: 23
- Corbetts: 19
- Fionas: 17
- Donalds: 4
- Sub2000s: 43
- Hewitts: 12
- Wainwrights 2
- Trips: 74
- Distance: 1529 km
- Ascent: 85110m
- Munros: 20
- Corbetts: 29
- Fionas: 21
- Donalds: 28
- Sub2000s: 41
- Hewitts: 51
- Wainwrights 20
- Trips: 59
- Distance: 1009.8 km
- Ascent: 54765m
- Munros: 27
- Corbetts: 11
- Fionas: 9
- Sub2000s: 36
- Hewitts: 23
- Wainwrights 9
- Trips: 55
- Distance: 1132.8 km
- Ascent: 59985m
- Munros: 18
- Corbetts: 20
- Fionas: 20
- Donalds: 4
- Sub2000s: 33
- Trips: 50
- Distance: 1009 km
- Ascent: 58815m
- Munros: 10
- Corbetts: 18
- Fionas: 35
- Donalds: 5
- Sub2000s: 26
- Trips: 52
- Distance: 1143 km
- Ascent: 56245m
- Munros: 11
- Corbetts: 23
- Fionas: 43
- Donalds: 33
- Sub2000s: 23
- Trips: 45
- Distance: 1121.2 km
- Ascent: 52310m
- Munros: 9
- Corbetts: 23
- Fionas: 36
- Sub2000s: 26
- Trips: 61
- Distance: 1911.9 km
- Ascent: 64050m
- Corbetts: 8
- Fionas: 16
- Sub2000s: 19
- Hewitts: 96
- Wainwrights 16
- Trips: 49
- Distance: 867.2 km
- Ascent: 45165m
- Munros: 5
- Corbetts: 21
- Fionas: 31
- Sub2000s: 11
- Hewitts: 18
- Trips: 45
- Distance: 987.3 km
- Ascent: 49290m
- Munros: 7
- Corbetts: 33
- Fionas: 32
- Sub2000s: 10
- Hewitts: 4
- Trips: 43
- Distance: 741 km
- Ascent: 35725m
- Munros: 8
- Corbetts: 35
- Fionas: 14
- Sub2000s: 5
- Hewitts: 1
- Trips: 47
- Distance: 540.5 km
- Ascent: 37865m
- Munros: 15
- Corbetts: 22
- Fionas: 18
- Donalds: 3
- Sub2000s: 6
- Trips: 40
- Distance: 471.5 km
- Ascent: 30550m
- Munros: 22
- Corbetts: 19
- Fionas: 7
- Donalds: 3
- Sub2000s: 4
- Trips: 36
- Distance: 472 km
- Ascent: 32785m
- Munros: 39
- Corbetts: 7
- Fionas: 4
- Hewitts: 1
- Trips: 29
- Distance: 464 km
- Ascent: 27635m
- Munros: 29
- Corbetts: 7
- Fionas: 1
- Sub2000s: 2
- Hewitts: 5
- Wainwrights 8
- Trips: 43
- Distance: 839.4 km
- Ascent: 47975m
- Munros: 60
- Corbetts: 6
- Fionas: 2
- Donalds: 2
- Sub2000s: 1
- Hewitts: 1
- Trips: 45
- Distance: 798 km
- Ascent: 51905m
- Munros: 68
- Corbetts: 5
- Hewitts: 5
- Trips: 47
- Distance: 634 km
- Ascent: 42245m
- Munros: 46
- Corbetts: 3
- Fionas: 3
- Hewitts: 24
- Trips: 61
- Distance: 738.5 km
- Ascent: 59035m
- Munros: 45
- Corbetts: 1
- Sub2000s: 1
- Hewitts: 53
- Wainwrights 23
- Trips: 51
- Distance: 512.5 km
- Ascent: 42190m
- Munros: 19
- Corbetts: 2
- Sub2000s: 1
- Hewitts: 55
- Wainwrights 26
- Trips: 47
- Distance: 504 km
- Ascent: 43786m
- Munros: 23
- Corbetts: 1
- Hewitts: 48
- Wainwrights 4
- Trips: 37
- Distance: 378 km
- Ascent: 33525m
- Munros: 12
- Hewitts: 46
- Trips: 43
- Distance: 512.1 km
- Ascent: 44205m
- Munros: 19
- Corbetts: 4
- Fionas: 1
- Donalds: 2
- Hewitts: 63
- Wainwrights 6
- Trips: 40
- Distance: 476.5 km
- Ascent: 40740m
- Munros: 12
- Corbetts: 2
- Hewitts: 75
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- Trips: 2
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