This area is listed in the SMC Munros Guide as ‘The Drumochter Hills) and covers the hills and mountains between Loch Rannoch and Newtonmore. Loch Ericht forms the western boundary and Glen Tromie the eastern boundary, with the Pass of Drumochter (the A9 and the Highland Main Line) dividing the area in two. Among the seven Munros in this area, only one is over 1000m (Beinn Udlamain is 1011m).
This was a lovely winter walk with a good friend. I was very concerned about the avalanche risk. The avalanche forecast advised that north and west-facing slopes could be risky, and I drew up an alternative route approaching from the south to avoid this risk. However when we reached the foot of the mountain there was not much snow on the lower slopes, and the angle of slope did not look very steep, so we decided to stick to the western path. On the way up we did hear what sounded like a shotgun from the neighbouring hills to the south, and we wondered if it was an avalanche. From about 850m, the snow became considerably deeper, and I started to get quite worried, especially when I stuck my walking pole into the snow and felt air underneath. However the ground leveled out a lot from 890m. Near the summit there was a complete white-out, however we managed to find the enormous snow-covered cairn quite easily!
