A Six-Pack for Dolly
After one of the wettest Highland summers ever, there came a dry interlude. It was still raining heavily in Glen Coe, but over east in Glen Shee, Dolly and I found – at last – a clear dry day.
We started up Carn an Tuirc, and in warm weather with only a light breeze, the rolling high plateau of the White Mounth and above Jocks Road was a delight. These broad undulating moors are a navigational worry in poor weather; but in settled and improving conditions, we strode easily over the back to the summit of Tolmount, perched on the edge of cliffs looking down Glen Callater.
A short step to its neighbour, Tom Bhuide, and then back over the 1052-metre Carn of Claise completed a grand day.
On Monday, the good weather even extended west, and we picked a substantial scramble which combines with 2 more Munro summits. A long hike on forestry tracks from Roughburn on the Laggan road, led after 2 hours to the East Ridge of Beinn a'Chaorainn.
As a summer scramble, this offers 200 metres of ascent, at Grade 1. It rises as a series of rock steps and aretes, punctuated by grassy inclines. Some of the initial rock might be considered a tad vertical for the grade, however big handholds are plentiful. (The rocks which do not pull off in your hand are the best ones to use, we found).
There is no defined route, just here and there the odd footprint or crampon mark (some of the latter made by a YMC party 2 or 3 years back). So you pick and mix your own, until after 40 minutes or so of interesting clambering, it suddenly levels off and deposits you on the Munro summit. Well deserves its 2-Star status in “Scrambles in Lochaber”.
A long traverse down the western flanks of the mountain brought us to the bealach and the knobbly north ridge of Beinn Teallach – at 915 metres the smallest Munro (weirdly, my road atlas marks it as 2994 feet............. !!). And so down to Roughburn.
Must get a new atlas. Anyway, it showed the way back to England on a sunny evening with 6 Munros added for Dolly, and a bit of rock which had well pleased us both.
ANDREW
