The Cairngorms are ‘a little piece of the arctic in Scotland’ according to the SMC Munros Guide and the area contains many of the tallest peaks in the East Highlands. Ben Macdui (1309m), Cairn Gorm (1244m) and Braeriach (1296) are probably three of the better known and the whole area is full of steep corries and high plateaux. Access to the mountains is typically from Aviemore or Braemar.
The day began on a fire track that led into the forest, followed by a beautiful single track that took us up the valley towards Lurcher’s Crag. Although the weather wasn't ideal, it was an improvement over the previous day. We encountered a few other walkers in and around the forest, which added some company to the day.At the furthest point of our hike, we decided to go off-trail and scramble up to the top of Lurcher’s Crag. We had spotted it across the valley the day before, during our ascent of Beinn Macdui, and felt compelled to climb it. The kids found the ascent challenging, but we managed it with a steady pace and took plenty of rest breaks to keep everyone motivated.After reaching the Summit, we descended back to the trail and enjoyed lunch prepared with my Jetboil on our way back down. Although we didn’t spot any deer this time, the abundance of wildflowers and lichen provided plenty of interest and conversation throughout the day.
