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Mountain Ranges:
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Walks in Ben Lawers, Glen Lyon and Glen LochayIndex to Walks in this Section
Meall Dearg21 January 2008
This hill is located to the west of Glen Cochill and the A816 Aberfeldy to Crieff road runs through the glen making access relatively easy. Climbing this hill should take around two hours so rather than make a special journey to this area I decided to take a diversionary route home to bag this Graham. Parking is a bit restrictive at the point where I wanted to stop but I found an area on the east side of the road just south of the bridge over the Cochill Burn. I left my vehicle, crossed the road and a fence and headed over rough ground avoiding some bog. Patches of snow were down as far as road level but it was mainly soft snow so I tried to avoid it. I crossed the old General Wade's Military Road, which is now used by sheep, and shortly thereafter started the ascent of Meall Dearg. The snow conditions were very variable. Sometimes it held my weight, other times I was up to my shins in the snow. Occasionally it was icy especially where the sheep had been and the bootprints left by walkers, probably a few day's earlier. The ascent was just a matter of seeking the easiest route following the edge of a stream until a slightly steeper ascent took me to the summit trig point. Here there was a cold wind blowing but I made use of my new down jacket and sat there for a while taking in the surrounding views which included the Ben Lawers mountains, Carn Mairig Group, Schiehallion, Beinn a'Ghlo and the Drummochter mountains.
The descent was by the upward route. Half way down a mountain hare ran off but then stopped long
enough for me to get a photograph.
Creag Each and Creag Ruadh14 October 2007
The start of this walk was the north side of Loch Earn where the A85 runs between St Fillans and Lochearnhead. Just west of a house called Woodhouse there was a large farm building where ample parking was available in lay-bys at either side of the road. Immediately I alighted from my car I heard the roar of the stags on the south side of Loch Earn. I went through a gate and walked up a rough vehicle track passed some derelict buildings, some of which were being restored, and into Glen Tarken. There were a couple of other gates to pass through and beside one there was a misleading sign stating "keep to roadways during shooting season 12 Aug - 15 Feb". In terms of the access legislation this blanket ban isn't permitted and in any case it was a Sunday when stalking doesn't take place. As I continued up Glen Tarken I could hear the roar of the stags above me and on reaching the stream flowing down from Creag Each I left the track and headed uphill. Initially I had to avoid some cattle and then tried to work my way round bracken and into a small corrie where I disturbed some deer. This obviously upset the stag as he wasn't able to control his harem of hinds which disappeared into the cloud. The roaring continued as I climbed a gully and also entered the cloud before reaching some peat hags. At this point I climbed to the summit of Creag Each, which in the mist didn't appear as rocky as the map showed. I left this summit and followed a bearing, roughly north, until I cleared the cloud and descended to the vehicle track in Glen Tarken. On the descent I found evidence of a deer having been shot, probably in the past few days, as there was blood and intestines lying about. I walked along the track in Glen Tarken and heard voices in the distance. There were probably about a dozen walkers about a kilometre behind me. At the point where the track turned and headed back along the opposite side of the Glen I left it and commenced the climb of Creag Ruadh. As I gained height I aimed for Loch Eas Domhain and spotted a vole which quickly disappeared. In fact I saw at least three voles that day. In was very misty at the Loch so I needed to walk on a bearing to reach the summit of Creag Ruadh working my way round some rocks. It was a bit cold and windy on the summit but there were ample sheltered places to eat lunch in the mist. After lunch I descended into Glen Tarken, where again I had to avoid some cattle, crossed the vehicle track on the east side of the Glen and followed various animal paths to the west side track. I then followed it back to my car again with the roar of the stags above me and from the other side of the Loch.
Creag Gharbh13 October 2007
The plan was to hill walk elsewhere but the weather forecast for the weekend wasn't very good with low cloud and some rain so I settled for some Graham bagging. The start of this walk was the South Loch Tay Road around 1.5 kilometres from the village of Killin at the bridge over the Achmore Burn. There are very few parking spaces at this location. I left my car and walked along the tarred road, on the east side of the burn, which climbed steadily through the forest. Eventually I cleared the forest at a communication tower and the road continued along the edge of the forest and onto the Scottish Hydro Electric dam at Lochan Breaclaich. At this point the tarred road ceased but a rough track continued and I walked along it for just under two kilometres to a 'U' bend. From here it was a relatively short climb over some rough terrain to the summit cairn of Creag Gharbh. It was rather windy on the summit so after taking a few photographs of Loch Tay and the surrounding mountains, the tops of the higher ones being cloud covered, I found some shelter for a bite to eat with views of Loch Tay. After my snack I took a more direct route back to Lochan Breaclaich and re-traced my steps along the tarred road to the start of the day's walk.
Mor Bheinn23 September 2007
The Graham Mor Bheinn is situated south of Comrie and was a convenient hill to climb on my return home from the west coast. The ascent started from Craggish on the south-west side of the village on a narrow road where only verge parking was available. I walked along the signposted private road to Aberuchill Castle by-passing the Castle by a vehicle track to the south-east. At Tomanour, which appeared to be holiday homes, a vehicle track, not marked on the map, headed towards Mor Bheinn. The Estate had obviously spent a lot of money on fencing and improving the Estate and was obviously breeding pheasants to shoot. In fact I have never seen so many pheasants together flying about and squawking. I followed this newly found vehicle track which initially followed the stream flowing from the bealach between Mor Bheinn and Ben Halton. Unfortunately the track later changed direction and I was left with no option but to wade through heather and bracken as I headed towards Mor Bheinn. Occasionally there were some animal tracks to follow. There was no relenting from the deep heather and as I headed towards the summit several deer ran off down the north–east ridge. The summit trig point was eventually reached with views of St Fillans and Loch Earn, as well as the Ben Lawers range of mountains, Ben Mor, Stob Binnein, Ben Vorlich and Stuc a’Chroin. It was rather windy on the summit but I found shelter for lunch looking out over Comrie towards Crieff and Perth. There were a couple of cairns to the north so I visited them but they didn’t appear as high as the trig point. I then commenced the descent of Mor Bheinn and found some grassy areas to use which was easier than going through the heather and bracken. I came across some feral goats which ran off when they spotted me. There was also another family of goats on the opposite side of the glen. The descent route eventually took me back to the vehicle tracks used earlier that day and I followed them back to the start.
Meall Buidhe25 August 2007
The route of the A85 Lochearnhead to Lix Toll Road goes through Glen Ogle and at its high point, opposite Lochan Lairig Cheile, there is a parking area. Here a 'hot food' van operates so the car park may be busy. East of the car park the area has a large deer fence with a vehicle track, not shown on my map, that leads uphill to a radio mast. A locked gate prevents vehicle access and a sign indicates that walkers should find an alternative route although they have built a wicket gate. As alternative routes are over rough terrain I went through the wicket gate and followed the path to the radio mast, which is actually beyond the top end of the deer fence, where there is no advice regarding route taking. The weather consisted of some low cloud and light rain but the track made for good progress and from the radio mast I headed over rough ground to the bealach between Beinn Leabhainn and Meall Buidhe. From the bealach it was a short climb to the summit of Meall Buidhe which has two cairns. The northern one appears the highest and the southern one a viewpoint down to Glen Ogle and Loch Earn. I had a brief view of Loch Earn before the cloud closed in again. The return was by the route of ascent. There appear to be no problem using this track despite the notice at the start. There is also a fence round the radio mast but I left the track a few metres before reaching the mast.
Beinn na Gainimh29 July 2007
I was looking for a short walk prior to my return home so I settled for this Graham and decided to climb it from Glen Quaich. Access to Glen Quaich was from the Sma' Glen on the A822 north of Crieff at Amulree. There is a single track road running through the Glen and parking at the start of the walk at Croftmill wasn't possible but I managed to find some verge parking further east. I walked back along the road, up the side of the house at Croftmill, through a gate and onto a vehicle track which I followed to Lochan a'Mhuilinn. It was a bit windy but at least the sun appeared on occasions. Beyond the lochan the track ceased and became a path with some wet sections as the ground at this point was fairly flat. At a suitable location I left the path and climbed through heather to just west of Beinn na Gainimh's North-East top. On looking back into Glen Lochan I saw a couple of ruined cottages, probably flattened during The Clearances and Lochan Uaine which was covered in weed. On reaching the ridge I was confronted by a double fence, both electrified, so I followed it to a bealach and up the side of the crags to the north of Beinn na Gainimh. Here the wind was rather strong and cold despite the sun. There was no break in the fences so I had no option but to cross them before I headed to the summit of Beinn na Gainimh. The summit which was covered in Cloudberry in fruit. was marked by a few stones. There were views of Auchnafree Hill and Ben Chonzie to the south and Beinn a'Ghlo to the east so I managed to get a few photographs. I left the summit and traversed to another top to the east but again I never found any break in the twin electric fences. Once across them it was a pleasant decent to Meall Mor where the gradient increased but there was no difficulties. Lower down the ground was a bit wet before I joined the vehicle track used on the outward route and returned to my car.
Meall Ghaordaidh23 April 2007
This walk was booked by Shona, one of my regular walkers, who had invited two of her friends, Barbara and Sue. Both were fairly new to climbing Munros, unfortunately the weather wasn’t kind to them. Drizzly rain welcomed us at the start of the walk in Glen Lochay, just west of the bridge over the Allt Dhuin Croisg. On leaving the public road we crossed a couple of fields as we headed up the west side of the Allt Dhuin Croisg as far as the Shielings. From there we followed a bearing up the south-east ridge of Meall Ghaordaidh and into the cloud. Higher up it was windy and I tried to stay on the lee side of the hill as we approached the summit trig point. On the summit it was wet, windy with limited visibility so after a short break within the circular cairn that surrounds the trig point we headed downhill and followed the walker’s path which was mainly wet and boggy. Lower down, once out of the cloud, we stopped for a bite to eat before continuing to our cars in Glen Lochay.
Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers10 September 2006
This was the second day guiding for Ashwood Apartments, Callander and the plan was to climb the Munros, Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers. However, only Steve was available for the walk as his partner had sustained a knee injury in a slip on Ben Ledi the previous day. The weather forecast was for a fine day so we were looking forward to some good views from these mountains despite the mist as we approached the starting point, which was the National Trust Car Park on the link road between Loch Tay and Glen Lyon. We set off from the car park and followed the path up the north-west ridge of Beinn Ghlas. The wind got stronger as we gained height and the cloud was blowing around obliterating any views. The summit of Beinn Ghlas was reached which was followed by a short descent and the climb to the summit of Ben Lawers, which was Steve’s fourth, 4,000 foot Munro. The cloud was still covering the mountain so we returned to the bealach and took the path leading to the Beinn Ghlas/Meall Corranaich bealach before returning to the National Trust Car Park. The forecast had been rather inaccurate as a few fellow walkers mentioned when we spoke to them.
Meall nan Tarmachan7 August 2006
I had the morning to spare en-route home from Glen Coe so I decided to utilise it to climb Meall nan Tarmachan, it being a relatively easy hill to ascend within a couple of hours. It was sunny with a cold wind when I set off from the parking area north of the Lawers Visitor Centre on the road that links Loch Tay to Glen Lyon. I walked along a vehicle track for a short distance and thereafter followed the path that led to the summit of Meall nan Tarmachan over its South East Top. It was fairly cold and windy on the summit so I only remained there for a few minutes before heading back down the path to the car park. During the descent I saw collie dogs and their owners at work clearing sheep and lambs from the south slopes of Meall Corranaich.
Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers15 May 2006
This walk involved American clients who have been coming to Scotland for their annual vacation for the last five years. During their holiday in Scotland they spend one day climbing a Munro. On the previous four occasions the weather in the mountains has been typically Scottish with wind, rain and poor visibility. This year they were hoping their luck would change and at least they would get some good views from the summits. It was raining when I met my clients in Crianlarich and drove them to the National Trust for Scotland's Visitor Centre. The clouds were at least rolling around the hills and not at a set height so there was a chance that we may at least have some views. We set off from the Visitor Centre and took the marked trail to Ben Lawers. The rain had relented and it was now just a light drizzle as we walked across the wooden walkway over the bog. The rain eventually ceased but the rest of the day there were some light showers. Once out of the conservation area we headed up the eroded path towards Beinn Ghlas. Sections of the path had been repaired so walking was relatively easy. The summit of Beinn Ghlas was eventually reached where it was windy with no views so we descended to the bealach with Ben Lawers where there were still some patches of snow at the edges of the ridge. The ascent of Ben Lawers was slightly steeper and again the path had been repaired in places. As we climbed towards the summit there were a few breaks in the clouds and we had short glimpses of the north ridge of Meall Corranaich. We met a couple, whom we had seen earlier, returning from the summit and they said they had no views. However on our arrival at the summit a few minutes later we had several short breaks in the cloud to at least allow my clients an idea what the surrounding mountains looked like. The ground under the trig point on Ben Lawers is very eroded with the wooden supports showing so unless some attention is given to the base of the trig point it will eventually collapse. We returned to the bealach and took the path round the west side of Beinn Ghlas before re-joining the path used on the upward route and returned to the car park as the rain started again and on this occasion it was heavier than what we had experienced on the hill. Unfortunately that is now five years, and six Munros and my American clients haven't had a decent weather day Munro bagging. For statistical details see here.
Creag Uchdag14 May 2006
Ardeonaig, on the south shore of Loch Tay was the starting point for this walk where a sign indicated the 'Right of Way' to Glen Lednock and Comrie. The initial section of this track was difficult to find as it crossed fields of sheep and cattle. Once onto the open hillside the path, sometimes wet and boggy, was more obvious as it followed the east side of the Finglen Burn. It then became more intermittent so I left it and climbed up the north ridge of Creag Uchdag and near the summit I spotted a few hares which ran off. At the summit trig point there was a cold breeze but at least I had some views down to Loch Lednock, over to Ben More and Stob Binnein and across Loch Tay to the Lawers Range. The return took me along the north ridge of Creag Uchdag before gradually descending to the 'Right of Way' and back through the fields of cattle and sheep. For statistical details see here.
Creag Mhor and Beinn Heasgranich8 May 2006
It was a bright but windy morning when I set off west along the 'high road' in Glen Lochay to climb the Munros Creag Mhor and Beinn Heasgarnich. I had planned an early start to enable me to finish mid afternoon so there was no one else about, other than an empty car, when I started. I walked the five kilometres along the vehicle track to the bridge over the Allt Batavaim and climbed up Sron nan Eun. There were a lot of rocky outcrops lower down, very few of them indicated on the map. On Sron nan Eun there was a path and it was very windy in places so at times it was a bit of a battle to reach the summit cairn of Creag Mhor. It was too windy to stop at the summit so I descended towards the bealach with Meall Tionail before heading down to the bealach between Creag Mhor and Beinn Heasgarnich avoiding several snow fields. Here I spotted a fellow walker going in the opposite direction also trying to avoid the snowfields. On reaching this bealach it was a steady climb up onto the west ridge of Stob an Fhir-Bhogha where again it was very windy. From this summit to the top of Beinn Heasgarnich it was tough going in the wind but I eventually reached the summit cairn where a couple were trying to take shelter. They had come up from the high point on the road linking Glens Lochay and Lyon. I descended into Coire Ban More avoiding the snow filled burns as a lot of the snow was ready to collapse into the water. I took a direct route over the north-east ridge of Stob an Fhir-Hogha, which involved a steep and in places rocky descent to the wet and boggy ground to the south of Lochan Achlarich. Finally I climbed the south ridge of Creag nam Bodach and descended directly back to my car arriving there mid-afternoon as planned. For statistical details see here.
Beinn Dearg26 February 2006
This was the final Corbett I needed to re-ascend in Glen Lyon so I set off again from Innerwick and followed the track on the east side of the Allt Ghallabhaich through the forest. Once beyond the forest I followed the bank of a stream to a bealach where a couple in front obviously decided that they had had enough and headed back downhill. From the bealach it was a relatively easy climb through some snow, bog and heather to reach the summit cairn with its views of Carn Gorm and the Ben Lawers range. It was cold and windy on the summit so once I took the necessary photographs I descended by my ascent route to the start. For those climbing this hill in poor weather there is an old fence which follows the west ridge of Beinn Dearg for the final 130 metres. In fact it rises up out of the Lairig Ghallabhaich and could be used if heading across to the Graham Meall a'Mhuic. For statistical details see here.
Creagan na Beinne24 February 2006
The start of this walk was Ardtalnaig on the south shore of Loch Tay. A sign on the gate on the north side of the bridge over the Allt Chilleine suggested the Right of Way on the opposite side of the stream should be used. However I crossed the gate and set off across the field following vehicle tracks. There were several gates to cross and a number of different tracks which required a bit of decision making before the one I wanted headed uphill in a series of zig zags. As I gained height I had views of Loch Tay and to the snowy Ben More. Once beyond the zig zags the track headed to the bealach south of Beinn Bhreac. Although this was possibly an old drover's track, it is now a bit wet and churned up with cattle. Once at the bealach the wind was cold but the sun was trying to break through the cloud, which was at this time above the lower summits. I negotiated the 658 knoll with its peak hags before descending to more peat hags which were mainly frozen. From these peat hags it was a steady climb up the north ridge of Creagan na Beinne disturbing some deer. It was now very windy with some spin drift and it started to snow as the cloud lowered. Old fence posts led to the summit where it was very chilly in the strong wind and blowing snow. I didn't stay long at the top and returned along the north ridge before descending into Gleann a'Chilleine where there were dozens of hares. Once in the Glen I followed the track, a Right of Way, to Claggan and then the tarred road back to the start. For statistical details see here.
Meall nan Subh19 February 2006
This Corbett only takes around an hour to climb so it is a suitable hill to add to a morning walk, like Cam Chreag (see below). The starting point is the gate at the highest point on the single track road leading from Pubil, in Glen Lyon, across to Kenknock , in Glen Lochay. The gate may be locked as apparently the road belongs to the Hydro Board. Initially the walk involved a fairly steep climb where I disturbed a hare and some deer. Once beyond some rocks the gradient eased and I reached the snow level. Here it started to lightly snow for a while and I was engulfed in cloud with some poor visibility as I headed onto the south ridge of Meall nan Subh. From here I navigated to the summit, where there are four different knolls, the north-east one being the highest. As I approached the south-west knoll the cloud broke to give me some views and this happened several times as I made my way over the south-west top before heading for the summit. From the summit I went to the north-west knoll to take some photos of the sun as it tried to break through the cloud above the summit of Beinn Heasgarnich. I left the this knoll and descended back to the start disturbing more deer, or possibly the same deer again. Despite the snow and poor weather conditions it was an ideal short walk to finish of the weekend and of course to bag another Corbett. The time taken to climb this hill doesn't really justify a day's outing so it should be tagged onto something else in the area. There are of course plenty to choose from. For statistical details see here.
Cam Chreag19 February 2006
The starting point of this walk was Innerwick in Glen Lyon and from here I followed the track up the west side of the Allt Ghallabhaich and onto the track up the side of the Allt a'Choire Uidhre to a corrugated hut just below the highest point in the glen. It was a cold and cloudy morning with the cloud below the summits. From just before this hut I climbed up through some soft snow, into the cloud and onto the wind swept fairly level ridge and headed for the summit cairn. I waited at the cairn for a few minutes as it appeared that the cloud was going to break up but to no avail. I descended by the south-east ridge, spotting a ptarmigan en-route, to Coire Odhar before joining the upward route and the walk back along the track to the start. For statistical details see here.
Schiehallion17 February 2006
The forecast was for a fine winter's day so I decided to extend my weekend hill walking and head for Schiehallion. It was fine and sunny when I arrived at the car park at Braes of Foss and Schiehallion had a good covering of snow. The car park was already more than half full of parked cars as I set off along a new path, well new to me as I hadn't been here since its creation. The path ran southwards near to a stream before it headed up the east ridge of Schiehallion. The path was a vast improvement on the eroded one that previously headed directly onto the east ridge. It also gave better views. As I climbed up the east ridge I passed family groups who were out for the day as well as walkers heading back down the mountain. From around 650 metres there was lying snow and the path subsequently disappeared underneath it so I am not sure how far up the mountainside the path actually goes. There was no difficulty with finding a route as several walkers had been there before me and I soon reached the summit with some cloud swirling about. I spotted a group of about seven walkers descending a gully towards Carn Dearg and I later saw them heading towards Gleann Mor. There was a cold wind blowing but I found a sheltered spot and sat in the sun eating my lunch with a snowy Carn Mairg Group in front of me. I had the summit to myself until I was joined by a chap I spoke to at the start. He had been concerned about the snow conditions as he didn't have an axe or crampons. I returned to the car park by my ascent route but despite it being mid afternoon there were still people heading for the summit as well as a few strollers. For statistical details see here.
Glen Lochay Munro & Corbett3 December 2005
On my last visit to the Corbett Beinn nan Oighreag I thought that combining it with the Munro, Meall Ghaordaidh, would make an interesting day out so this was today's plan. I set off from just west of Duncroisk in Glen Lochay and followed muddy vehicle tracks through a couple of fields on the north side of the Glen. It was cloudy with spots of rain at this time. Higher up, near some shielings I followed a boggy path up the south-east ridge of Meall Ghaordaidh and as I gained height the wind became a bit stronger and it was cooler. There was some snow patches but these I could avoid. I reached a more level section of the ridge, which I recalled was a quite boggy, but on this occasion the ground was still a bit frozen so the traverse of this area was a bit easier. I was now into the cloud base as I headed up steeper and rockier sections of this mountain and again I was able to avoid the snow patches, before reaching the summit trig point, where it was trying to snow. A couple of walkers, whom I had seen earlier were leaving the summit, while another three, who had just arrived, were trying to get into their bivy shelter. Another four walkers, whom I had come across on the hill earlier arrived, well three of them did, as I never saw the slowest member of their group, once we were in the cloud. You can see that the summit was a bit crowded for a poor winter's day. I took a bearing and paced my way off the first section of Meall Ghaordaidh as I wanted to walk along its north-east ridge. This involved taking in Cam Chreag and Point 815 where I located some old fence posts. From this point I descended steeply, beside some rocky outcrops and fence posts to the watershed between the Allt na h-lolaire, which flowed south towards Glen Lochay and the Allt Lairig Luaidhe, which flowed north into Glen Lyon. As I descended I came out of the cloud and I must have disturbed a large herd of hinds as they were headed up my next hill. From the watershed a climbed up onto the south ridge of Beinn nan Oighreag which had large patches of snow, some of which couldn't be avoided and back into the cloud, which was more patchy here. I followed the ridge to a cairn that I presumed was the summit. The map showed a large area all above 900 metres so I checked my GPS to confirm that this cairn was the summit. However the GPS indicated that the summit was slightly further south at a large rock so I visited it as well but there was no cairn. I later checked three books and they all gave different grid references for the summit, so those visiting this hill be aware. In the mist it was very difficult to say what was the highest point but I think that may be the case in a clear day as well. I then retreated down the south ridge of Beinn nan Oighreag and reached the stream crossings as it was getting dark. The last section of the walk, which later joined the morning's route, was done with the aid of a head torch. Combining these two hills is an ideal way of bagging a Munro and Corbett in one outing instead of making two separate trips.
Tummel Corbetts20 November 2005
These two Corbetts are located north of Aberfeldy in Perthshire. We had two cars so these hills were suitable for a linear walk thus avoiding retracing our steps. I left my car at Edradynate on the north side of the River Tay with permission from the Keeper there. My client then drove us to the B846 Coshieville to Tummel Bridge Road to a point north of the Schiehallion road. From here we walked along the vehicle track, which is fairly steep, through the forest. Once out onto the open hillside the gradient eased and we followed the track to just below the summit of Meall Tairneachan. We left the road and followed traces of a path to the summit trig point. The strength of the wind increased and bands of low cloud were blown through obstructing our views from the summit. There was little likelihood of an immediate improvement in the weather so we descended to the track and headed to the Baryte Mines. I was told on a previous visit to these hills that this is one of only a few areas in the United Kingdom where this mineral, which is used in drilling mud for the North Sea, is mined. The area is a massive tip of old and defunct vehicles and rusting scrap along with the present equipment. Once beyond the mine we continued on the vehicle track to where it ended on the north side of Creag an Loch. From here we walked through some long heather and round some bogs until we were just below Farragon Hill. We ascended this hill from the south side as it was more sheltered and it was warmer here as we had a brief sunny period. It was cold on the summit so we descended east and sought some shelter while we ate lunch. The cloud had descended by the time we were finished and we continued down the ridge to reach the track that went from Edradynate to Loch Tummel. This track was followed back to Edradynate and the end of the walk.
Glen Lyon Backpack2 - 3 July 2005
The request from my client was a backpacking trip taking in two Corbetts, commencing from Pubil in Glen Lyon. This was the first time I had climbed these hills from the south. On a previous visit, in 2001, I did a complete traverse of Loch an Daimh taking in the Corbetts and Munros. It was late evening when we set off from the Loch Lyon dam and by this time the sky had clouded over and it was windy. The start of the walk involved a short steep climb to the track that runs along the north side of Loch Lyon. We followed this track for about a kilometre to a point where a fence and the remains of an old dyke headed off uphill. We did likewise keeping to the west side of the fence. The climb, as expected, was fairly steep in places but relatively easy underfoot. The Ordnance Survey map for the area shows several broken contours which map readers will be aware indicates steep ground. However the main problem was the wind which was now stronger. We reached the top of Meall Phubuill and headed out towards Point 796, traversing round its north-east side to avoid the wind. From here we tried to keep to the lee side of the ridge as we headed to the bealach between the two streams Eas nan Aighean that flowed into Loch Lyon to the south and Fieth Thalain that flowed in the opposite direction into Loch an Daimh. It was now getting dark so we dropped down from the bealach where we set up camp and as we did so the rain commenced. It was a rushed job so that our equipment and ourselves could stay reasonably dry. During the night the wind became stronger with frequent heavy showers. My tent took a fair battering and I remained awake most of the night concerned that it was likely to take off. I went outside on a couple of occasions to tighten guy ropes and ensure the tent was still pegged down. One of the poles kept bending and I thought it was going to snap but thankfully it stood up to the wind. In the morning it was still very windy and it would probably have been impossible to walk along the ridge to Meall Buidhe. I was also concerned about leaving my tent in the wind in case it blew away. We were grounded for most of the morning but later the wind appeared to drop slightly and we headed off to the summit of Meall Buidhe mainly following a line of fence posts. It was windy with frequent rain showers but at least we weren't carrying packs so the climb to the summit wasn't too much of a problem. The descent back to the camp site was in rain and a hail shower. On our return we found our gear still there and we had lunch. During lunch there were frequent rain showers and together with the strong wind this prevented us from dismantling the camp site until the afternoon. Once we had packed up we headed off down the side of the Feith Thalain before traversing to the bealach, which was ridden by peat hags, south-west of Sron a'Choire Chnapanich. Progress was slow trying to find the best route through these peat hags but we eventually reached the other side and commenced the final climb to the summit of Sron a'Choire Chnapanich. At least the frequent rain showers were easing now as was the wind. From the summit we headed off down the south ridge to the Allt Phubuill where we picked up a track which we followed to Pubil. The final stage was a short walk along the tarred road to the dam where we had started the previous day. This was the end of what was planned to be a short backpacking trip but in reality turned out to be very eventful. One consolation was there were absolutely no sign of any midges.
The Northern Ben Lawers Range7 March 2005Today I was booked by Shona to climb the Munros Meall Corranaich and Meall a'Choire Leith. The starting point was the road leading across to Glen Lyon from Loch Tay. This single track road is not kept open during the winter months but fortunately most of the snow and ice had melted and there were only a few sections of the road affected by patches of drifting snow. We parked at the cairn north of Lochan na Lairige and headed over wet snow covered bog towards the ridge west of the Allt Gleann Da-Eig. Unfortunately in one of these boggy sections my leg disappeared down a hole and into the bog. There was evidence that others had done the likewise over the preceding weekend. There are some old fence posts running along this ridge almost to the summit which assisted with navigation. Some icy patches required to be avoided but it wasn't necessary to use our crampons. The cloud base was down below the summits so there was no view as we approached Meall Corranaich where we encountered a light snow shower. It was a bit colder here in the wind. From the summit of Meall Corranaich we descended the north ridge which later splits in two. The cloud was starting to clear and we were able to see some of the cornices that had formed on the east side of the ridge. As we reached the bealach we had views back towards Meall Corranaich and across to Beinn Ghlas, Ben Lawers, An Stuc and Meall Garbh. Meall a'Choire Leith was relatively easy to climb and on reaching the summit cairn we had some good views of the snow clad mountains. We then descended through the snow towards the Allt Gleann Da Eig, spotting lots of deer feeding on the bare parts of the hillside. At this stream we had some lunch before we climbed to the summit of the Corbett Meall nam Maigheach. There are two cairns here about 500 metres apart and we visited both. However we believe the northerly one to be around a metre higher if the altimeter can be believed. We left the summit of Meall nam Maigheach and headed to a stone dyke which we followed for a while before crossing the hillside to the start of the day's walk.
Ben Chonzie14 February 2005This mountain is just outwith the Ben Lawers area being a few miles south east of Loch Tay but it is included here as there are only a few hills in this particular area. It was a sunny morning when Phil and I parked in Glen Lednock at Invergeldie, but there was a cool wind blowing. Once we had sufficient warm clothing on we set off through the farm and up onto the open hillside following a track. We weren't far from the farm when a shepherd on a quad bike past us with a dead sheep on board. He was heading higher up the hill to either bury or dump the sheep as he past us again on his return without the sheep. Further up the track we met a young lad on his way back down. He had set off at 7.30am and found it very windy on the summit ridge. Later we met two ladies who were having an early lunch. In the short discussion we had with them I learned that they both originated from my home city of Aberdeen, although they now resided elsewhere. We reached the snow level around 450 metres but there were numerous boot prints on the snow covered track. We were interested to know how many successfully reached the summit the previous day in the fierce winds that swept the country but we will never know. Higher up we left the track and headed onto the ridge where it was windy. Most of the snow had been blown off the summit ridge so walking was reasonably easy as we avoided pockets of snow. On the final climb to the summit cairn the wind was very strong and any conversation was impossible. Once we reached the top of Ben Chonzie we had a quick look at the surrounding summits and headed back down the ridge. Lower down we were able to resume our conversation but it was too windy and cold to stop to eat. In fact we didn't find a reasonably sheltered area until we reached the dam at the Invergeldie Burn. On our descent we met several people heading to the summit. After lunch it was a short walk back to the car but it was noticeably windier there than when we set off. However it had been reasonably sunny so it hadn't been too bad a day.
Auchnafree Hill3 October 2004The forecast was for a wet and windy day and when we arrived at the Loch Turret car park it was raining. However the prospects looked favourable and by the time we had donned our outdoor gear the rain had stopped. We set off on the track along the east side of Loch Turret and at the far end of the Loch we climbed another track which led almost to the summit of Auchnafree Hill. There is traces of a path that lead you the final few metres to the summit cairn. From the summit we were able to pick out a few neighbouring Corbetts together with the nearby Choinneachain Hill, which is only two metres lower but looked higher than our present location. My fellow Corbett bagger questioned whether or not we were on the correct hill but I was able to re-assure them that we were at the correct location. We commenced the descent but immediately encountered a heavy shower and a strong wind. Fortunately it didn't last and we were able to return to the cat park reasonably dry. Once back in Crieff the weather forecast for earlier in the day of wind and rain struck so we had been reasonably lucky.
Lawers range23 June 2003Collected two ladies, Laila and Shauna, and headed for the Lawers group of hills. From the Visitor Centre a path leads easily up onto Beinn Ghlas. Although good views were had the wind was very strong and care was required. After a coffee break on the lee side of the summit we headed for Ben Lawers and then onto An Stac. The wind was still very strong and the cloud base had lowered so views were now restricted. A return towards Ben Lawers and a traverse round its north ridge took us to the bealach and a path back to the car.
Glen Lyon Munros7 June 2003I joined a group for a walk round the four Munros in Glen Lyon. Starting from Invervar in Glen Lyon we strolled up the path at the side of the Invervar Burn and once beyond the forest crossed the stream and headed over open hillside towards Carn Gorm. Frances and Helen were forcing the pace as they blethered away ignoring the others’ demands for a coffee break. At last they heard the shouted abuse and we all enjoyed a short break for a cuppa and to take in the views. Shortly after this the rain started and we summitted Carn Gorm, some of us a bit wet. The next target was the Munro Meall Garbh without taking in the Munro Top An Sgorr, as the leader seemed to want to avoid the short climb to its summit. After Meall Garbh the rain stopped and we found a sheltered location for lunch prior to the ascent of the Munro Top Meall a’Bharr and the Munro Carn Mairg. Allison, Frances and I went out to the Munro Top Meall Liath before catching up on the others who had cut across to the final Munro of the day Creag Mhor. A nice leisurely descent down its south-west ridge took us back to our starting point and the end of a good day’s walk.
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