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Some pictures from last weekend's walk in the Ben Lui range

Finally getting around to picking out some of the better pictures from my walk last weekend. I headed to Dalrigh, which is just about 5 miles north west of Crianlarich on the A82, early on Saturday to take in Beinn Dubhchraig, Ben Oss, Ben Lui and Beinn a' Chleibh. 

There was a chap frying bacon and sausage on his stove in the car park at Dalrigh as I set off on my bike down the track towards Cononish. I locked the bike up at the farm and struck up the grassy northern side of Beinn Dubhchraig. Halfway up, just as the impressive Ben Lui came into view I stopped to have some breakfast. Needless to say, after the lovely smell of frying an hour prior, an Alpen bar didn't really suffice!  

A pleasant walk followed. I've discovered in recent weeks the benefit of an early rise to take advantage of quiet roads and to get an early start on the hills. The first person I saw was on the summit of Ben Lui at just after 11am. There was soon a stream of walkers coming up on the path from the west.

All the while, there was a front pushing in from the east and you could feel the drop in pressure. After having reached the summit of Beinn a' Chleibh, I contoured around the northern side of Ben Lui and joined the path that leads back to Cononish to retrieve my bike. 

As I drove through Crianlarich on my way home the rain arrived. I timed that one to perfection! 

 

A day in the Arrochar Alps

An early morning trip to drop off my parents at Glasgow airport seemed like a great opportunity to get a good day on the hills in an area I had never walked before. Moreover the forecast was very promosing, and so I headed for the Arrochar Alps which lie to the west of the top part of Loch Lomond. 

The starting point for the walk was Inveruglas. I arrived at 5am just before sunrise. Here was the view looking SE over Loch Lomond towards Ben Lomond. 

The route was going to take in the four munros of Ben Vorlich, Ben Vane, Beinn Ime and Beinn Narnain. The sun was just rising as I started the walk to Loch Sloy which turned the rugged hills red. There is a small cairn at the side of the track about 1km short of the impressive Loch Sloy dam which marks the path up to Ben Vorlich. The climb was steep and relentless and I was thankful that I had a second breakfast before I started out. I reached the summit at 7am. There was hardly a cloud in the sky. So peaceful.

Here is my best impression of an Antony Gormley statue at the top of Ben Vorlich with Loch Arklet and the Trossachs to the ESE.

Panning around to the SSE, the view down Loch Lomond.

Then finally the view to the SW. Ben Vane, the next target, in the right half of the picture.

As I was heading for Ben Vane, I decided to take a more direct route down from Ben Vorlich. As soon as I was above the Loch Sloy dam, I descended one of the less steep grassy banks. Care was needed on the damp grass and after having to navigate around the steep cliffs, I found myself by the 56m high dam wall. As far as I was aware, there were no paths up Ben Vane from Loch Sloy and so I tried to pick out a route up following two streams and avoiding the cliffs and rockier sections. While climbing, I realised how I take paths up hills for granted but I was also enjoying the challenge of piecing together my own route. Alas, I got stuck with some serious looking rocks impeding my progress. So took a quick break. The view looking back to Ben Vorlich: 

A quick traverse to the north to less steep ground (NN282103) and a short climb later I was at the summit (just after 10am). I spent 15 mins at the top chatting to another walker who had made his way up on the path from the SW. 

The descent from Ben Vane to the west, although pathless, was easier going. I headed WSW to Glas-Bhealach before turning south where I came across a faint path leading to the summit of Beinn Ime, arriving just after midday. The view looking NE back across to Ben Vane, Ben Vorlich and the Lawers range in the distance:

With the sun still shining, I made my way SW to the Bealach a'Mhaim on the well trodden (and very boggy) path to make my last ascent of the day up Beinn Narnain. There was a constant stream of happy walkers making their way up Beinn Ime having taken in The Cobbler. Quite a contrast to having Ben Vorlich all to myself earlier in the day!

I reached the top of Beinn Narnain at 12:45 to find china figurines of Laurel and Hardy perched on the summit cairn! I settled down in a great spot for a little lunch and some sunbathing, overlooking the superb crags to the SE of the summit with Ben Lomond in the distance:

Reluctantly, I set off for the long walk back descending NE into the lush grassy slopes heading for the path cutting through the forest:

Halfway down, I caught up with a walker who I had met earlier in the day which made for excellent company all the way back to Inveruglas.

I arrived back at a very busy visitor centre at 5pm which made it, more or less, 12 hours since I set out. The distance covered was 15.5 miles with just over 2200m of ascent. Great weather throughout with stunning views all around. Next time I'll start at Arrochar and walk up The Cobbler! 

 

 

 

Calm day in the Cairngorms

I had a great day out in the Cairngorms yesterday. The high pressure system sitting over the northern half of the UK ensured some really good walking conditions. Although there wasn't much sun, it was one of the calmest days I've ever experienced out in the hills.

The picture above is taken on the arête which leads down from Carn a' Mhaim with the impressive Braeriach towering above the Lairig Ghru in the background. Starting from Linn of Dee, the route taking in Carn a' Mhaim, Ben Macdui and back across Derry Cairngorm took just over 8 hours. For those who like a good boulder field, I'd highly recommend the south west approach to Macdui!

A still Loch Etchachan with Cairn Gorm in the distance:

 

Maggie's Monster Bike & Hike 2011

With the blisters healing and having stopped walking around like a penguin, I thought it was time to look back at last weekend's Maggie's Monster Bike & Hike. The challenge, in aid of Maggie's Cancer Care Centres, was to make the 73 mile trip along the Great Glen Way from Fort William to Inverness in under 24 hours. I was part of a 5 strong team. Fiona, Mel and myself were participating while Jane and Su were our support team. The story begins on Friday afternoon ....

We arrived in Fort William at 4pm and proceeded to the Nevis Centre to register for the event and collect our all important Maggie's t-shirts (l-r me, Jane, Fiona, Su and Mel):

A bit later, we attended the event safety briefing. Some of the participants taking part who had been affected by cancer were invited to the stage to share their stories of visiting their local Maggie's Centre. One woman in particular had just finished her course of treatment 2 weeks prior but was looking forward to taking part in the challenge the next day. A true inspiration indeed.

We headed back to the Smiddy Bunkhouse, our base for the night, and carbed up before getting some sleep as we had an early start.

We were up at 4:45am on Saturday morning to grab some breakfast and then make the short cycle from Corpach down to Neptune's Staircase at Banavie where the event started at 6:30am. Conditions at the start line were good. The sun was shining with only a slight ESE wind and so we set off on the bikes for the first 30 miles in good spirits. 

The first 7 miles riding alongside the Caledonian Canal was fairly pleasant with minimal ascent. After Gairlochy, the route followed the shores of Loch Lochy with great views back to the Nevis Range. Progress was good and we passed through the half way point of the bike stage at 7:45am. Our team then hit a few problems after I stopped to take this photo of Fiona and Mel on the route:

At the 17 mile mark I went through a rather large crater on the track which was all too much for my front tyre. Instant blow out. So out with the spare inner tube and the pump while the rest of the field careered past! I was back on the bike again 25 minutes later and intent on catching up on some time. I was sure that the next time I would see my team mates would be at the finish of the bike section but to my surprise I caught up with Fiona and Mel at the 27.5 mile mark only to find that Fiona had also suffered from a puncture to her back tyre and Mel had to retrieve a mudguard that had fallen off enroute. Not surprisingly we were relieved to finish the 30 miles of biking! Here we are crossing the locks at Fort Augustus at 10:09am at the end of the bike section:

Our time to cover the 30 miles on the bikes was 3 hours 40 minutes. We were slightly disappointed with that but I guess punctures happen! We didn't want to let that get us down as we still had 43 miles to walk and therefore tried to spend as little time as possible at the checkpoint. Jane and Su were there to greet us and had all our kit ready for the walking section. They also went to get some baked potatoes so that we could refuel:

24 minutes later and we were ready to tackle the first walking section; the 8 miles to Invermoriston. With the sun still shining, we headed off at a really good pace and we climbed through the pine forest with glorious views over Loch Ness to the south east:

It took us 2 hours 46 minutes in total to cover the 8 miles from Fort Augustus to Invermoriston, where we arrived at 1:23pm just in time for lunch! I recall a lovely selection of food which had been put on at Glenmoriston Village Hall (the tray bakes really hit the spot!). 30 minutes later, refuelled, we hit the road again for the next section of the journey - the 15 miles to Drumnadrochit. The sun continued to shine with the temperature peaking at 24°C and we were all glad the organisers put on an extra water stop after a particularly gruelling 500m ascent at the 46 mile mark. Our support team, Jane and Su, met up with us again at the water stop just after the 49 mile mark (shades and bandana essential obviously!):

I enjoyed a rather nice cup of tomato soup at that water stop which got me through to dinner. Talking of which, we arrived at Drumnadrochit at 6:41pm having taken just under 5 hours to walk the 15 miles from Fort Augustus. I demolished a plate of vegetable curry in 2 minutes and then tended to my feet which were starting to give me a bit of bother! It is fair to say at this point that I had lost all sense of time. We had been on the go for over twelve hours and because we hadn't really stopped for breath at any point there wasn't much time to think about what we had done or what was still ahead. We just knew we had to keep on putting one foot ahead of the other. An hour later and having changed our clothes and kit for the walk through the night we were ready to start the last section of the walk - the 18 miles to Inverness:

The skies remained clear and so we were blessed with excellent light as we made our way north east until finally we veered north away from Loch Ness and into the forest. We arrived at the water stop just before the 62 mile mark at 10:12pm. Jane and Su were again there to help us out and cheer us on. A small mention must be made here to all the amazing volunteers along the route who manned the water stops and encouraged everyone who was taking part. A massive thank you to them all! We were definitely grateful for the coffee and bananas at this stop!:

The temperature suddenly dipped and therefore we all added a few layers and put on the head torches before we set off again. We had started the countdown at that point, only 11 miles to Inverness! I can't remember much about the miles we covered until the next water stop except that when we left the forest into the open it got very chilly! I was starting to feel the strain as we approached the stop before the 67 mile mark just after midnight. I was, however, given just the boost I needed in the form of a haggis burger! Trust me, haggis has never tasted so good as you can probably tell from this picture:

The orange glow in the sky from the street lights in Inverness appeared ahead as we set off for the last 6 miles, all the while enjoying the comradery of the other people who were taking part. I remember taking my time on the descent into Inverness as my right knee was letting me know that I had covered a few miles that day! Those last miles walking through the empty streets in the outskirts of Inverness seemed to take forever. We finally made our way across the Tomnahurich bridge and then into the grounds of the Inverness Aquadome to cross the finishing line at 2:37am on Sunday morning accompanied by cheering from Jane and Su and numerous event volunteers. The 18 miles from Drumnadrochit had taken us just under 7 hours. We were all tired but happy to be finished:

The time it took us to complete the 73 miles including all breaks was 20 hours, 5 minutes and 45 seconds. We came 136th out of the 321 people who made it to Inverness. The woman who won the event did it in 9 hours and 50 minutes which is quite incredible! Times and stats aside though, I'm overjoyed that our team finished and I'm so glad that I agreed to participate. I have to say a massive thank you to my team mates, Fiona and Mel, and our incredible support team, Jane and Su, for all their help and encouragement along the way. It was a great experience if not a little surreal! 

The most important thing though was being able to raise money for Maggie's Cancer Care Centres and help the charity continue the great work they do in supporting those who suffer from cancer across the UK. All that is left for me to say is a big thank you to all those who sponsored me - it really means a lot to me! And don't worry, if you would like to donate but haven't already, you can visit my JustGiving page here.

 

Countdown to Maggie's Monster Bike & Hike 2011

Less than 6 weeks to go now until the big event! On the weekend of 30 April, teams from all over the UK will descend upon Fort William to take part in Maggie's Monster Bike & Hike 2011. The challenge is to complete the 73 miles of the Great Glen Way in under 24 hours; the first 30 miles on the bike and the remaining 43 miles on foot.

Asked last summer whether I would be interested in taking part in this year's event, I jumped at the chance. The opportunity to challenge oneself amidst one of Scotland's most scenic routes whilst raising money for Maggie's Centres, a very worthwhile cause indeed, was too big to turn down.

And so here I am. One third of team "Small foot and the Hendersons" (yep, that took quite literally 2 seconds to come up with). What about training? Well, up until a month ago, I hadn't ridden a bike in 10 years. Back in 2001, I broke my shoulder bone when I crashed my bike while careering down a hill at speed. Needless to say, that put me off getting back on a bike for a while but having had my bike serviced and been kitted out with new helmet and padded shorts (very important!), I'm enjoying being back in the saddle. I'm slowly increasing the distance of each bike run and with some long walks planned in the next few weeks I'm hoping it's all going to come together for the event at the end of April. 

I'll keep you posted on how things are going here and on twitter and if you want to make a donation, my JustGiving page can be found here.

 

Here's a wee video of last years Monster Bike & Hike:

An Socach & Beinn Iutharn Mhor

After a solid first hill walk of the winter last weekend in the area north east of Glenshee, walking buddy Dan and I set off early up the A93 again yesterday, this time with our sights set on An Socach further west.

Starting at 9:00am from the small plantation at the head of Glen Clunie (NO139832), we headed south west along the track for 2km until we crossed the stream at the foot of Coire Fhearneasg (NO123812). Taking the path directly after the stream which makes its way up the eastern shoulder of An Socach, we made the gradual climb up to the east summit of the hill. We then headed west (image below) to the true summit, arriving at 10:40am.

With the sun shining, blue skies and only light winds we decided we had to take advantage of the conditions and the opportunity to scale the impressive Beinn Iutharn Mhor to the west was just to good to miss! We planned our route and having put on our crampons, carefully* descended the steep west side of An Socach. This is the view as we descended (you might just be able to see the frozen Loch nan Eun at the centre of the image below the prominent peak of Glas Tulaichean):

We headed south west to the north tip of the frozen loch (NO065785). Obviously stopping for a photo or two:

From there we followed the contours round to the bealach between Beinn Iutharn Bheag and Mam nan Carn (NO061786). Then followed a tricky traverse before reaching the next saddle point between Mam nan Carn and Beinn Iutharn Mhor (NO047784). I was feeling the burn by that point and since it was just passed 1:00pm, we decided to stop for lunch. It was a nice spot apart from the sporadic spindrift!

After lunch, we made the short climb (admittedly I was a bit slow to get going again!) to the summit of Beinn Iutharn Mhor arriving just before 2:00pm. We were greeted with quite spectacular views all round. The Cairngorms to the north:

Beinn a' Ghlo to the south west (so much more impressive from this viewpoint than when you look at them from the south!):

Dan also went down to look at the impressive snow cornice to the east of the summit:

Having almost filled up our memory cards with pictures, we decided to start the long journey back, retracing our steps to the frozen loch and then heading west to find the track which runs alongside the Baddoch Burn which took us right back to our starting point.  We arrived back at the car at 5:00pm just before it was completely dark. According to Dan's analysis we covered 16 miles with 725m ascent (it felt much more!). Awesome day.

Check out Dan's amazing panoramas! 

* Edit: Dan would like me to point out that he scraped the skin of two of his distal interphalangeal joints on his left hand while practising self arrest using his ice axe. So perhaps not that carefully!

View over An Dubh Lochan towards Stob Coire Sgriodain, Loch Treig

I captured this scene at the end of a walk which took in Stob a' Coire Mheadhoin and Stob Coire Easian to the west of Loch Treig last Sunday. The ascent to the summits of these two fine Munros was made in good spirits but on the way down tiredness set in and sliding around on boggy ground did not help my mood (as my walking companion would definitely testify!). I am, however, glad I stopped off at the Lochan to take a few pictures before making it back to the car. 

Ben Nevis via the Càrn Mòr Dearg Arête

I'm keeping words to a minimum as I'd rather let the pictures do the talking.

A group of four of us travelled up to Corpach near Fort William on Friday night where we had booked the cosy little Smiddy Bunkhouse as our base for a weekend of walking. We awoke on Saturday morning to the sun shining and that's how it remained for the whole day until we witnessed it setting behind the mountains in the west. In between, we made the climb up to Ben Nevis via the Carn Mor Dearg Arete with breathtaking views at every turn.

As we reached the summit of the Ben at around 6pm, it did mean the last hour of the trek back to the North Face carpark near Torlundy was made in complete darkness but hey, it was worth it just to see the gorgeous sunset.

A truly unforgettable day.

Ring of Bright Water by Gavin Maxwell

Many years after watching the film of the same name, I have finally read the book. The copy, pictured above, is an early edition published in 1962 which I came across while looking through @Blair_Bookshop's online store.

The film itself always stuck in my mind. The story of man purchasing an otter as a pet and leaving the city to live in a remote cottage by the sea in the north west of Scotland is, I guess, somewhat unusual. Now I realise it was only loosely based on the book by Maxwell in which he recounts the true story of the years he spent at his cottage at Sandaig in Knoydart. It is here where he fully appreciated his love of wildlife and provided a perfect location for his beloved otters. 

A complete joy to read and one I will likely return to in years to come. 

Creag Meagaidh

These are the cliffs of the north east face of Creag Meagaidh, which my friend Dan and I climbed on Saturday. We arrived in Aberarder, the starting point of the walk, which is on the A86 to the north of Loch Laggan at around 11am and set off to climb Carn Liath, the first of the three Munros which make up the Creag Meagaidh range. However, having completely missed the path to make our first ascent (we were to find out why later!) we made our way along the path to the foot of the cliffs then up through the gap known as The Window at the right hand side of the image above. From there, we made the relatively easy walk to the summit of Creag Meagaidh, reaching the summit at 1:30pm.

After having some lunch, we decided to take advantage of the good weather conditions and also take in the nearby peak of Beinn a' Chaorainn to the south west. We made our way down the broad western ridge of Creag Meagaidh to the Bealach a' Bharnish at 820m before making the easy climb up the north east ridge of Beinn a' Chaorainn taking in the great views of Coire na h-Uamha before reaching the summit just after 3pm. This is the view from the top of Beinn a' Chaorainn looking south west over to Loch Trieg with the two prominent peaks of Stob a' Coire Mheadhoin and Stob Coire Easain to the right of the loch.

Instead of retracing our steps back over Creag Meagaidh, we took the decision to skirt around the north side and head back towards The Window. Although this route goes across crags and scree, it was an enjoyable challenge and we caught sight of a large herd of deer to the north as well as having a close up view of Lochan Uaine.

We arrived back at The Window at 5pm had a quick bite to eat and then made our way back east along the long ridge which takes in the Munros of Stob Poite Coire Ardair and Carn Liath. Here is me at the summit of Carn Liath which we reached at 6:40pm. 

The path south down from the summit of Carn Liath is not that well defined but is marked with iron fence posts. As you reach the lower slopes it winds its way through a bit of a dense woodland jungle! When we emerged back on to the main path it was obvious why we had missed the path to make the ascent up Carn Liath earlier in the day. It is marked with a small cairn but unless you spot the iron fence posts you would find it hard to believe there was a path there at all as the trees are so bushy and overgrown at this time of year! A short jog later and we were back at the car at 7:30pm. 

We covered approximately 21 miles with 1500m of ascent. The weather was good throughout as we enjoyed sunny spells, no precipitation and just light winds.