22 June
The weather for this weekend wasn't looking good, and I nearly bottled it in favour of an easier option. I'd given two days to climb eight Munros on either side of the Loch Ossian to Culra divide. But with rain forecast (and lots of it), I wondered for a while whether to go for something less risky, like the individual Munros NW of Fort William.
The reason I finally went for it and didn't bottle out, was because Struan was joining me. He'd booked train tickets from Edinburgh, was going regardless, and if anyone could push me on during a hard trip it was going to be him. On the phone the previous night, I said "I'm coming, but don't let me bottle out of doing them"! I sure as hell didn't want to have to come back, that would be a day down on schedule.
I got the morning train from Tulloch to Culra on the 22nd. Struans train got in half an hour later, so I rolled out the sleeping bag and got a bit more kip until he rolled into the station, well keen for another weekend out.
Outside, the hills were grey and rain-washed. We were on our way. We set off for Carn Dearg, which was dispatched in the relentless rain. It hadn't rained quite like this in a while, and soon the water was making it's way through my waterproofs. The last time that happened was in the wet days of May.
We met Robin Howie (11-times Munroist!) on our way up Sgor Gaibhre, and plodded up the long slope to the top. On the summit, the rain unexpectedly ceased falling. When the rain falls, it's always too miserable to really stop for anything more than a look at the map and a picture. So we counted ourselves lucky and had a break. Even Ben Nevis was out of the mist... what's going on?!
We'd made our first day the longer of the two, since the weather would be wilder the following day. From Sgor Gaibhre we headed over to Ben Alder, a huge mountain with long access from any direction. I was amazed that the weather held all the way over this mountain, and it even stayed sunny as we continued beyond.
We slogged over the top of Beinn Bheoil, stopping en route just to curiously sit in the silence, have a break and take the whole place in. We'd done about 20 miles, it was good to sit in the sun and just watch while we could.
But ultimately, it was amazing to finally get back down to Culra. It's a great bothy, always busy and seemingly always surrounding by DofE tents. From here, Ben Alder looks incredible, especially under the veil of rain and covered in remnant snowfields. We met Roy and Steve in the bothy and shared a lot of chat. They'd been up the Geal-charn 4 (tomorrow's hills for me and Struan) and were heading out to Dalwhinnie in the morning.
Pasta for tea, and we turned around to sleep.
22 June
The bothy came to life the following morning when Steve and Roy came in for breakfast. Outside the rain pelted down, the hills were green and covered in mist. The wind had rocked the bothy during the night, but now it didn't seem so bad.
After breakfast, we set off into the weather, and struck straight up the first Munro Carn Dearg. This hill was all rain and wind. The rain would come in pulses, showering us and soaking us right through. The wind wasn't too bad on the way up, yet on the summit ridge it was numbing. The map and compass came out and we started navigating toward Geal-charn.
Geal-charn is an enormous mountain. It's probably underrated in my opinion, a multi-faceted peak with a few interesting coires. Last summer I watched over 100 deer charge away from me on the vast summit plateau. The ridge climbing from Diollaid a' Chairn (our ascent route) is quite west coast in character too.
A compass bearing brought us straight to the summit, and the wind and rain had eased enough for me to bring the camera out. From here, I knew the last two Munros would be fairly quick. That's an understatement: they were rapid-fire and Struan and I got them done in great time. Struan's worries about missing his train home were dismissed, we took a compass bearing off the summit of Beinn Eibhinn (Munro #150 of my Round) and we headed off in the direction of Corrour. The pressure was off; the summits done.
The rain eased up, and we walked down to Loch Ossian dry, but the burns were spilling over with fresh water. The river was raging and dark brown. We pulled off wet waterproofs to let our clothes air out (wet underneath, again), oddly enjoying the smells of the pines and flowers (so not me) and watching swallows dart around above the water and over our heads. We went down the shore of Loch Ossian at a pace, getting to Corrour in good time to get a meal from the Corrour Station House Restaurant. It's a unique restaurant, a great place run by folk not much older than me (stunning place to decide to move to) and it only opened last year. The atmosphere of the place is nice and the food is great, the perfect blend of restaurant, bar and space to pass the time before getting the next train. It's a shame I won't be back here on this Round, but afterward, for sure.
Struan headed home on his south-bound train, I sat with a book until after 9pm when my train arrived. From Tulloch, I headed to Fort William to stay with James for the next wee while. The trip was hard work, but fitness really takes care of that. It was good to finish a big portion of the Central Highlands, and now I can continue pushing into the west.
We met Robin Howie (11-times Munroist!) on our way up Sgor Gaibhre, and plodded up the long slope to the top. On the summit, the rain unexpectedly ceased falling. When the rain falls, it's always too miserable to really stop for anything more than a look at the map and a picture. So we counted ourselves lucky and had a break. Even Ben Nevis was out of the mist... what's going on?!
We'd made our first day the longer of the two, since the weather would be wilder the following day. From Sgor Gaibhre we headed over to Ben Alder, a huge mountain with long access from any direction. I was amazed that the weather held all the way over this mountain, and it even stayed sunny as we continued beyond.
We slogged over the top of Beinn Bheoil, stopping en route just to curiously sit in the silence, have a break and take the whole place in. We'd done about 20 miles, it was good to sit in the sun and just watch while we could.
But ultimately, it was amazing to finally get back down to Culra. It's a great bothy, always busy and seemingly always surrounding by DofE tents. From here, Ben Alder looks incredible, especially under the veil of rain and covered in remnant snowfields. We met Roy and Steve in the bothy and shared a lot of chat. They'd been up the Geal-charn 4 (tomorrow's hills for me and Struan) and were heading out to Dalwhinnie in the morning.
Pasta for tea, and we turned around to sleep.
22 June
The bothy came to life the following morning when Steve and Roy came in for breakfast. Outside the rain pelted down, the hills were green and covered in mist. The wind had rocked the bothy during the night, but now it didn't seem so bad.
After breakfast, we set off into the weather, and struck straight up the first Munro Carn Dearg. This hill was all rain and wind. The rain would come in pulses, showering us and soaking us right through. The wind wasn't too bad on the way up, yet on the summit ridge it was numbing. The map and compass came out and we started navigating toward Geal-charn.
Geal-charn is an enormous mountain. It's probably underrated in my opinion, a multi-faceted peak with a few interesting coires. Last summer I watched over 100 deer charge away from me on the vast summit plateau. The ridge climbing from Diollaid a' Chairn (our ascent route) is quite west coast in character too.
A compass bearing brought us straight to the summit, and the wind and rain had eased enough for me to bring the camera out. From here, I knew the last two Munros would be fairly quick. That's an understatement: they were rapid-fire and Struan and I got them done in great time. Struan's worries about missing his train home were dismissed, we took a compass bearing off the summit of Beinn Eibhinn (Munro #150 of my Round) and we headed off in the direction of Corrour. The pressure was off; the summits done.
The rain eased up, and we walked down to Loch Ossian dry, but the burns were spilling over with fresh water. The river was raging and dark brown. We pulled off wet waterproofs to let our clothes air out (wet underneath, again), oddly enjoying the smells of the pines and flowers (so not me) and watching swallows dart around above the water and over our heads. We went down the shore of Loch Ossian at a pace, getting to Corrour in good time to get a meal from the Corrour Station House Restaurant. It's a unique restaurant, a great place run by folk not much older than me (stunning place to decide to move to) and it only opened last year. The atmosphere of the place is nice and the food is great, the perfect blend of restaurant, bar and space to pass the time before getting the next train. It's a shame I won't be back here on this Round, but afterward, for sure.
Struan headed home on his south-bound train, I sat with a book until after 9pm when my train arrived. From Tulloch, I headed to Fort William to stay with James for the next wee while. The trip was hard work, but fitness really takes care of that. It was good to finish a big portion of the Central Highlands, and now I can continue pushing into the west.
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