I went on Am Bathach, the green ridge above Cluanie. I managed to slip off a rock in the burn and had wet feet from the start. Just above the corner of the dark forest I stopped for a few minutes while a rain shower went past. Didn’t bother with overtrousers. The ascent seemed to take very little effort, and the summit ridge was a pleasure, steep slopes on both sides. Great views through the glens to the North and West. Higher peaks nearby cut the views. Like being on the middle hump of a W.
I decided there was not really enough time to go on Ciste Dubh, so I turned to Sgurr an Fhuarail, which led me back in the direction I wanted to go, towards Cluanie. A very heavy shower caught me up on the ascent, and I took refuge on the lee slope, overlooking the steep ground which falls to An Caorainn Beag. I sat on my overtrousers and sheltered them and my rucksack – and everything else – with my coat. After 10 minutes, however, I was getting a bit cold, and decided to move on, wearing my overtrousers if necessary. Unfortunately the rain had been getting onto a little bit of them at the waistband, and I decided they would make me wetter, and in places that were much more uncomfortable, than just plodding on with the legs. The stretch power fleece comes into its own on days like this.
Over the Eastern top – I thought the Western top higher but didn’t have the inclination to bag it – I took a few more photographs then pushed off down the steep slope to Cluanie. That was a wet slope! Probably no wetter than the one I had come up, but very prone to make me slip and slide. Strong smell of fox in many places. Welcome sight of 2 golden plover on the way down, near the top. Back to the car for 6.10.
Area :
Glen Affric and Kintail
South of Loch Mullardoch you will find the Glen Affric and Kintail area whose southern boundary is the A87 road to Inverness. The Five Sisters of Kintail, Beinn Fhada, Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan and Carn Eighe are just some of the impressive peaks in this area, and all have their own unique selling points such as remoteness, size, steepness or height. As a result, peaks in the list are all over 900m.
