For this year’s New Year trip to the Highlands, we had booked an Airbnb cottage in Kinlochleven, which would give us good access to the Mamores and the Glen Coe hills. In order that he and Ruth could take their bikes, and to have plenty of room for luggage and provisions in general, Josh drove us up in his van this year. The drive went well, without major delay, pausing for a supermarket shop and lunch at Morrison’s in Dumbarton. The roadsides were pretty snowy through the Highlands, but the road itself was clear.
The cottage was attractively located right at the top of the village, giving views down the loch with the Corbetts of Garbh Bheinn and Mam na Gualainn either side. Soon we had unpacked the shopping, settled into our rooms and prepared dinner for the night. We had read reviews saying the cottage was chilly in winter, but the electric heating actually proved more than capable of keeping the place cosy, with or without the assistance of the woodburning stove.
Wednesday seemed to have the best forecast of the first three days, so we elected to get out at dawn for a walk in the Mamores, fairly similar to one I’d done three years previously when Ruth and I were staying in Glencoe village, but in the opposite direction and following different ridges up and down. We started alongside the Grey Mare’s Tail waterfall before gaining the grassy south ridge of Na Gruagaichean, earning ever-improving views over Loch Leven and towards Am Bodach as we climbed.
At about 900m, we decided the snow was hard enough for crampons to be worthwhile – the long-awaited first use for Josh’s pair that had been carried in vain on numerous previous outings! We were in and out of the mist on the final approach to the summit, but had views enough of the time to get a good impression of the dramatic surroundings.
A fairly steep descent and reascent led us to the NW Top of Na Gruagaichean, perhaps a better viewpoint than the main summit. Then it was much easier walking along the broader, gentler ridge to Stob Coire a’ Chairn, with great views of An Gearanach close-by, and the Nevis range in the distance.
The traverse to Am Bodach was narrower and steeper again, and very enjoyable in the snow. The clouds dropped a bit as we made the final ascent to deprive us of a summit view though. We descended by the SE ridge towards Sgurr an Fhuarain, but dropped off southwest well before that minor top to follow a snowy gully down into the valley – much more pleasant than the rough heather either side. We ran out of snow at around 500m, so took our crampons off there before continuing down to meet the West Highland Way which led us back to Kinlochleven.
The cloud was lower on Thursday, and a few showers were forecast, but it seemed better than Friday at least. We chose to head to a Graham, Druim na Sgriodain, on the far side of the Corran Ferry. Foot passengers go free, so we parked at the east side of the ferry, which drops you right where you need to be for this hill anyway.
The first couple of kilometres were north along the lochside road as far as the burial ground at Cille Mhaodain. From there, it was a steep ascent up fairly easy grassy terrain to gain the ridge of Sgurr na h-Eanchainne. This offered good views into Ardgour and back down to Loch Linnhe.
The peak had been clear as we ascended, but was in cloud by the time we got there, so we didn’t linger long before continuing west and southwest on compass bearings past various lochans to reach the Graham summit, 4 metres higher than the more shapely Sgurr.
Descending the ridge to Meall Breac, we soon dropped back into the clear. A slightly awkward descent down a steep grassy gully brought us safely between the crags into the bottom of Coire Dubh, from where a small path led more easily down beside the waterfall of Maclean’s Towel to a transmitter mast. The sun was coming out, giving attractive views over the loch and towards Beinn a’ Bheithir. Easy tracks led the rest of the way back to the ferry.
On Friday, more persistent rain was forecast. Ruth and Josh were tired and opted for a cycle ride around Loch Leven, while I headed up the nearby Corbett, Garbh Bheinn. On my previous visit, I had taken the standard route up the west ridge, so this time the east ridge would give some variety. The rain was light but persistent as I set off up the hydro tracks into Coire Mhorair, so I soon paused to put on full waterproofs.
Once I’d reached the small reservoir at 160m, I turned more steeply up the grassy slopes to the west, and made steady but tiring progress up through increasingly-deep snow to the East Top. The Mamores to the north were mostly in cloud, but the Aonach Eagach to the south stayed clear, providing dramatic views to my left. After a short pause for a snack and to put on an extra layer, I continued up the broad, snowy ridge to the Corbett summit, which gave closer views of the craggiest parts of the Aonach Eagach, and also down the loch to the Pap of Glencoe.
I returned to Kinlochleven by the same route, the light rain never really stopping or getting heavy enough to give me a soaking, and my footprints (the only ones) making the navigation quick and straightforward! On reaching the cottage, I was surprised to find Ruth and Josh just setting out for a stroll up to a nearby waterfall, having abandoned their cycling plan due to the rain being too heavy. Clearly it had been worse in the valley than on the hill!
Saturday, New Year’s Eve, had the best weather forecast of the trip, with light winds and high cloud predicted. But we were pleasantly surprised when we got up to see that the skies were in fact cloudless! This confirmed our intention to have a go at a circuit of Bidean nam Bian, one of the more challenging peaks in Glen Coe. It was about half an hour’s drive to the start point at the Three Sisters viewpoint, where we set off a bit before sunrise but in good light. The path down to the river and up the other side into Coire Gabhail – the ‘Lost Valley’ – was mostly dry and unexpectedly ice-free, making for easy progress.
Once we’d escaped the narrow gorge, it didn’t take long to cross the flat, rocky bed of the hanging valley above and reach the snowline. After a short detour up the wrong side of the river to realise we were separated from the path by an uncrossable gully, we retraced our steps a short distance to get back on track and continue up through ever-deepening and steepening snow. The crust at lower levels was mostly firm enough to take my weight and Ruth’s, but not so often Josh’s!
There were clearly no rocky obstacles on the route up the snow all the way to the bealach at the head of the corrie, but we could not really tell whether there was a significant cornice to cross there. I led the way, breaking the trail and kicking steps where needed! Ruth put crampons on part-way up, and Josh and I followed suit a bit later. The final section was as steep as I’m comfortable ascending without a rope, but the snow was pleasantly solid and it never felt like the foot or ice-axe placements might give way. The final metre or so turned out to be a softer cornice, but not quite vertical, and solid enough to climb over the top rather than having to cut a route through. It had been tiring work though, and I was relieved to reach the easy flat ground above, particularly when the views in all directions were such a magnificent reward! I took a few photographs and offered what advice I could as Josh and then Ruth followed me up.
Once we’d all gathered our breath and had some refreshments, we continued the walk up the easy (but very snowy) ridge to the first Munro, Stob Coire Sgreamhach. This was a super viewpoint over the two Buachailles to the east, and back over the bealach to Sgurr na h-Ulaidh and Bidean nam Bian itself.
We returned to the bealach then ascended easily the other side to reach the main summit of Bidean, revealing more incredible views over Stob Coire nam Beith to the west. We were amazed that nobody else had come up that day, our footprints being the only blemish in the deep, pristine snow.
The ridge onward to Stob Coire nan Lochan had the deepest snow yet, a little softer where it had accumulated on the north side of the hill, but didn’t provide any real obstacles to progress. Soon we were at that final Top, where we met a climber who had just come up by one of the easier gullies on the north side. It turned out there were quite a few climbers there, although none had made the continuation to Bidean.
It did mean we had plenty of tracks to follow for a quick descent down into Coire nan Lochan to gain the path back down into Glen Coe. An enjoyable end to perhaps the best winter day I’ve had in the Highlands. In the evening, we enjoyed Toad in the Hole and Sticky Toffee Pudding for our Hogmanay dinner, but were tired from a bit day and decided not to stay up to see in the new year.
On New Year’s Day, it looked like the best of the weather would be on the coast, so we picked the two Munros of Beinn a’ Bheithir as our objective. We started in Ballachulish and set off south up Gleann an Fhiodh. Light rain fell to start with, but soon petered out to nothing, and it stayed dry from then on. A well walked path leads up onto the ‘Schoolhouse Ridge’, the NE ridge of Sgorr Bhan.
We gained height steadily in just a thin covering of fairly grippy snow, and after a while reached the scrambly section. The crux step proved to be quite a major obstacle in winter conditions! Josh clambered up with some difficulty in his boots, and recommended that Ruth and I put our crampons on before attempting to follow. Ruth’s regular climbing experience helped her get up too, but I was less confident, chickened out and took an easier line by grassy ledges around the south side instead. From there on, the route was more straightforward, the rocky steps having a better covering of snow on the ledges which thus felt a lot more secure under the crampons!
We had entered the cloud part way up, and didn’t get any unrestricted views as we continued along the ridge, slightly down and back up to the first Munro, Sgorr Dhearg, then more significantly down and back up to the second, Sgorr Dhonuill.
There we met two men whose footsteps we had been following since the summit of Sgorr Bhan, and chatted briefly before they continued. We had lunch on the summit, then returned to the bealach and descended easy snow slopes to the north into the corrie. Ruth found a small, well-built path that avoided the boggy ground and felled forestry on the book route. Then the final few kilometres were an easy march, gently downhill on forest tracks back to the village.
On Tuesday, we sadly had to head home. It was a sunny morning, so we had lots of awesome views to enjoy as we drove back up Glen Coe and over Rannoch Moor to Crianlarich and along Loch Lomond. Conditions got steadily less snowy as we continued south through the Southern Uplands, and there was barely any snow in sight in the English hills of the North Pennines and Lake District. The final drive home from Ruth’s house to Derby wasn’t a good one, with significant bank holiday traffic clogging the M6, but I made it eventually and without incident, with a few hours spare to get the laundry and unpacking sorted before bed and the return to work.
In summary, five excellent, contrasting days on the hill. I revisited seven Munros and a Corbett, and bagged one new Graham. Very atypically of recent New Year trips, the wind was never strong and the rain never heavy! The crampons and ice axe saw more use than they have for years, with quality winter days on the Mamores and Beinn a’ Bheithir, and of course the undoubted highlight of that perfect New Year’s Eve walk up Bidean.
Maps of our routes are available at the following links:
– Na Gruagaichean to Am Bodach
– Druim na Sgriodain
– Garbh Bheinn
– Bidean nam Bian
– Beinn a’ Bheithir
My full photo album can be found here.
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