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.

As has become my routine, I spent a solo autumn week in the Highlands. As I was coming from Snowdonia at the end of Gentian meet, I didn’t really fancy driving too far north, and settled for an extended stay at SYHA Crianlarich. This gave plenty of options for bagging new Grahams or returning to interesting Munros, according to weather and preference.

Having stayed at Ruth’s house on the Sunday night, it was only about a three-hour drive up on Monday morning. I parked in Glen Douglas to tackle the pair of Grahams on the north side, Tullich Hill and Beinn Bhreac. I had driven through a heavy shower minutes earlier on the shore of Loch Lomond, but started the walk in bright sunshine! Very long and tussocky grass made for hard going on the first ascent, so I was glad when the gradient finally eased near the summit. It was interesting to look back over the glen and see the 56 grass-rooved magazines of the ‘Defence Munitions’ facility, not shown on the OS Map! The reward at the summit was a good view over Loch Long to the Arrochar Alps.

Thankfully the grass on the descent to An t-Sreang and reascent to Ben Reoch was shorter. A few drops of rain fell as I ascended, but the worst of the shower missed me and blew down Glen Douglas. I had lunch in the shelter of the summit rocks, with a view over Loch Lomond, then continued along the gentle ridge to Beinn Bhreac, which had some interesting crags – probably a landslip – near the top. That just left an easy descent on an ATV track down the grass to Invergroin. Then it was only a short drive to Crianlarich, where I checked into the hostel before picking up provisions at the village shop.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2059159

Tuesday was forecast to be a more showery day with persistent cloud at around 700m, so I opted for Graham-bagging again, hoping to stay mostly low enough to have a view. I drove up to Tyndrum then west down Glen Lochy to Corryghoil, where I found plenty of parking space at the start of the track into Succoth Lodge, as well as signs for hydro and electrical works up the valley. I hoped that these would not disrupt my plans.

Although my walk started in the dry, I had had to don my full waterproofs within a few minutes as a heavy shower passed – a repeat pattern for the day. The mixed woodlands around the Eas a’ Ghaill were attractive with the early autumn colours, with easy walking on the tracks to Succoth Lodge, then very boggy walking on the traversing track south. Eventually it became indistinct and I lost it entirely, and was glad shortly afterwards to pop out onto the firebreak that would lead up towards my first objective, Meall nan Gabhar. It turned out that a large new track had recently been built up this firebreak, for maintenance of the electricity pylons that run up it and over the moors above. This made for much quicker and dryer progress than expected! Many of the pylons had men working up them on ropes – clearly a major project given the number of personnel involved and the size of the access track.

Once I was past the main northern buttresses of Meall nan Gabhar, I struck up to the right to make my way steeply up to the ridge, a climb that was, as the guidebook had remarked, easier than it looked! A bit below the ridge, I was into the cloud, so I didn’t hang around for long as I passed over both tops and then Meall nan Tighean. Another shower passed over as I descended west towards the forest. This section unexpectedly gave the best views of the day, with Meall nan Gabhar looking quite impressive from among the trees, and also intermittent views towards Beinn na Sroine to the north, and Beinn Bhuidhe to the south.

It was helpful that I had checked the layout of the forest tracks in advance on plotaroute, as there were quite a few changes since my Landranger map was printed! Once out of the forest, the climb up to Beinn Bhalgairean was straightforward but pretty unmemorable, back in the mist, as was the easy walk out to the road along the forest tracks.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2059797

Wednesday was forecast to start wet but clear to give a bright and calm afternoon, so I got a late start, around 10am, for my biggest walk of the week. My first objective was the Graham, Fiarach, above Dalrigh, where I parked. The walk up was damp but easy, along forest tracks beside the attractive rivers (in spate!) then ATV tracks up the hillside and various trods along the ridge. I was in and out of the mist, so didn’t get many distant views, but the summit itself featured an unusual protruding rock dyke, running several hundred metres across the moor.

The going got increasingly boggy and tussocky as I continued south then northwest to the bealach with Beinn Dubhchraig, so it was actually a relief to reach the short grass of the steep 500m climb back up. A clearer spell had given me decent views as I ascended, but a heavy shower arrived just as I reached the Munro summit and obscured the views ahead. At this point, of course, I met the well-walked Munro-baggers’ path, which at least meant I didn’t have to think too hard about the navigation towards Ben Oss. By the time I was down at the bealach, the shower had passed and it was getting sunny. Beinn Dubhchraig, Loch Oss and Ben Oss looked particularly good, glistening after the rain! A couple passed me going the other way, returning from Ben Oss having bagged it and Beinn Dubhchraig, and we chatted briefly.

Another brief shower brought a drop in the cloud-base as I started to descend from Ben Oss, and I needed to use the compass for a few minutes, but cleared out again a few minutes later. I enjoyed the views down Coire Laoigh, and towards the previous day’s first hill, Meall nan Gabhar, the other side. Ben Cruachan also came into view from the summit of Ben Lui, as did the Crianlarich Munros beyond Ben Oss.

I lingered for a while on the summit taking photos and enjoying the scene, then descended by the well-walked path down the northeast ridge and into Coire Gaothach, then down beside the burn to pick up the track all the way back through Cononish to Dalrigh, finishing around half an hour before dark. It had been a great decision to start late and persevere through the morning mist and heavy showers!
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2060686

The next day had the opposite forecast, with a dry morning then rain pushing in, so I started promptly for a walk up the nearby Munro, Beinn Challuim. I found a route on walkhighlands that seemed more attractive than the guidebook route, going up via Gleann a’ Chlachain and the northwest ridge. Starting at Auchtertyre, the first few kilometres were easy walking up the track through the glen, with some low cloud patches enhancing the view back into the valley and towards Fiariach (the previous day’s Graham). A very boggy crossing of the glen followed, up to the nearly-600m Bealach Ghlas-Leathaid, right at the head of Glen Lochay.

Soon after that, I entered the mist, which was broken here and there but never cleared the summit properly. Nevertheless, the ridge was an enjoyable one, with a few dramatic slabs to climb up/around and some sections of easy scrambling on the crest. With glimpses of blue sky above, but no horizontal view, I didn’t linger long on the summit, setting off down the standard route towards Kirkton and bearing right further down, away from the path, to return instead to Auchtertyre. By the time I’d driven back to Crianlarich, the rain had arrived – well timed!
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2061559

Showery, windy weather was the theme of the rest of the trip! Friday seemed like it offered two relatively good weather windows, early and late, with a front passing over in the middle of the day. I bagged a Graham in each! The morning choice was Beinn Damhain, above Inveranan. The hydro track into Lairig Arnan made for an easy ascent to 350m or so, with the occasional shaft of sunshine breaking through in the east, but fairly persistent light rain falling. Then the burn up to Lochan Beinn Damhain, followed by the surprisingly rocky northeast ridge, made a pleasant onward route to the summit, just about clear of mist despite the rain. Ben Vorlich was intermittently clear in the view to the south. I returned to the car the same way.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2062408

I kept an eye on the rainfall radar through the early afternoon and then set out around 3pm for my second walk, up Meall Odhar, west of Tyndrum. This time the lower slopes were climbed with the help of a zigzagging track through the old lead mines on Sron nan Colan. The views in all directions gradually improved as it got sunnier, and once on the ridge I could see Ben Oss and Ben Lui up the Cononish glen. The ridge to the summit gave pretty easy walking, with a path forming in a few sections – clearly this is one Graham that does get visited fairly regularly thanks to its convenient location. A little light rain unexpectedly returned as I descended the same way back to Tyndrum.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2062410

The dryest part of Saturday was the middle of the day. With conditions looking less bad further east, I chose to walk up another Graham, Creag Gharbh, south of Loch Tay. Starting just outside Killin, most of the ascent is very easy, on a tarmac hydro road up to Lochan Breaclaich, then a good gravel track to within half a kilometre and a 100m ascent of the summit.

The views over the expansive, flat moors to the south and east were fairly unremarkable, so the highlight of the day was definitely the summit view along Loch Tay, even though Meall nan Tarmachan and Ben Lawers the other side were not clear at that point. I continued to the eastern top of Meall Odhar, then dropped back down to the track and followed it back to the car. Above the forest, I did briefly get views of the Munros, and could see that there was a little snow above about 1100m! Then rain returned as I made the final descent through the forest.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2062998

Sunday would actually have offered a nice, sunny afternoon, but the necessity of driving home meant that I only had the morning available for walking. Still, I did get some sunny spells and only intermittent spots of rain on my short walk from the Glen Ogle pass up to Meall Buidhe. I followed a track up through the forest to a transmitter, then headed across the moor southeast to the summit, which gave good views south over Loch Earn to Ben Vorlich.

Continuing north to Beinn Leabhainn, I was rewarded with views Meall nan Tarmachan and Ben Lawers, with the snow-line now down having dropped to around 800m. Once I’d sat admiring it for a few minutes, sheltering behind the summit cairn from the very strong wind, I made the short descent back to the car.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2063903

The drive home went pretty well, pausing for lunch at Abington and only delayed a few minutes by the roadworks south of Lancaster. Not a great week weather-wise, with no entirely dry days, but I feel I made good use of the less wet and windy periods. Nine new Grahams and four revisited Munros seems a reasonable haul, all things considered!

My full photo album is available on Google Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/LtJ68jU27huBUjWN6

With Covid no longer restricting movements and gatherings, it was more-or-less back to normal for Spring Bank Holiday week this year, with a camping trip to the Highlands. What wasn’t normal was that a few friends were joining me for the start of the trip for my long-awaited final Corbett!

One long-term benefit of Covid has been the introduction of the option to work from home (although I rarely choose to do so!). Defining Ruth’s house as home for the day helped get my trip off to a good start by putting me north of the Manchester traffic before the Friday rush hour. Consequently, I had a good drive up to the Highlands, with a pause for dinner at the Real Food Cafe in Tyndrum, arriving in Glen Nevis to set up camp at around 8pm. With Alison and Iain not due to arrive until late evening, I headed to the pub for the rest of the evening to read and plan for the week’s walking.

Saturday was quite a bright day. Alison is also bagging Corbetts, and had proposed we walk up two Ardgour hills south of Glenfinnan. Ruth and I had done those two in combination with a third Corbett, so the shorter walk gave the opportunity for a different horseshoe with a totally new descent route for me. We parked by the bridge at Callop and set off south along the track. Soon it was time to turn off the valley path and head up the ridge of Meall na Cuartaige – pathless but fairly easy going with good views south into Ardgour. Once over the minor top, we continued up the ridge to the day’s first Corbett, Sgorr Craobh a’ Chaorainn.

From there, it was a fairly easy traverse along the ridge to Sgurr Ghiubhsachain, with a few steep slabs to negotiate towards the top. The summit gave excellent views over Loch Shiel into Moidart.

We descended the rocky north ridge to the fishing complex at Geusachan, then followed the tracks along the loch shore and through the forest back to Callop.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1922867

Once back in camp in Glen Nevis, and showered and changed, it was not long before my other guests started to arrive: Jeff, Helen and Ashleigh having paused for the night in the Southern Uplands and broken their drives by Loch Lomond and in Glen Coe; Ruth and Josh having done a walk up Beinn Dorain and Beinn an Dothaidh on the way up; Alan having driven across from Edinburgh after a morning parkrun. Jeff and Helen had offered to host a barbecue by their campervan (formerly Dave and Jo’s!), which gave a good chance for everyone to meet and eat together.

Sunday was Corbett completion day. We decided to be green and travel together in two cars to Gleann Dubh Lighe, starting the walk just after 9am and glad to get moving out of the midges after faffing with boots and gaiters in the sheltered forest car park. The first few kilometres were on large tracks up the valley, with a short pause to look around the bothy before continuing up to the bridge at the head of the mapped track.

From there, it was a fairly steep and unrelenting climb of 600m or so up short grass all the way to the ridge at Meall an Uillt Chaoil. Some found it tougher than others, but we all reconvened on that first top, taking the chance to admire the views south to Loch Shiel and the previous day’s Corbetts, and west over the less-often-seen Loch Beoraid. The ridge ahead to Streap, over the intervening top of Stob Coire na Cearc, was also impressive.

We made our way north along the undulating ridge, pausing for a lunch break on Stob Coire nan Cearc, and before too long were on the final grassy arete approaching the summit. Having had a few spots of rain on-and-off as we climbed, it was great that the sun came out for a few minutes on the summit as we enjoyed champagne in plastic cups and took a few photos.

Once we’d savoured the moment, aware that our dinner was booked for 6pm in Glen Nevis, we pressed on along the easier ridge east to Streap Comhlaidh, which just required a short re-ascent. Then it was a steep grassy descent back into the valley, thankfully quite pleasant underfoot with more short grass and no major tussocks or awkward bog. An ATV track led us back to the bridge and the firmer tracks from there back to the cars, which we reached at around 6pm. We called the Glen Nevis Restaurant to check that they would be happy to hold our booking, and headed straight there. A good hearty and sociable meal to end the day and conclude the celebrations.

Streap had proven to be a great choice of final hill – a fine day’s hillwalking, typical of the best of the Corbetts, with dramatic views in all directions , and not particularly difficult ground – enough to challenge the less experienced of my companions but to be unmanageable for them.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1922876

Most of the others departed on Monday morning: Jeff and Helen back home; Ruth and Josh towards Arisaig for a few days; Alan up to Glen Shiel and Glen Elchaig for a couple of days more Corbett-bagging. Ashleigh wanted a rest day, so I left her with a suggestion to visit the viaduct and memorial at Glenfinnan, and went off myself to bag a couple of Munro Tops northeast of Aonach Mor.

I started my walk at the Nevis Range ski / mountain biking centre, which I had visited for Fort William parkrun at Easter. The first couple of kilometres were zigzagging up the forest tracks. Then, as the gondola had not yet opened for the day and there were not yet any downhill bikers, I walked up the lower part of the black trail to easily escape the forest and get onto the ridge of Meall Breac. From there it was a fairly easy ascent, parallel with the bike route, with some good views over Loch Linnhe and towards Carn Mor Dearg, and on up to the lift station.

From there, I improvised a route traversing east across the ridge of Aonach an Nid and then through the valley to gain the ridge of Tom na Sroine. This gave easier going up to its 918m summit, the first of my Munro Top objectives for the day. The walking was rockier, with dramatic crags on the left hand side, for the continuation up to the second Top, Stob an Chul-Choire. There were impressive views of the Grey Corries to the east, and of the eastern crags of Aonach Mor, with many snow patches remaining, to the west.

Once over the Munro Top, the final bealach gave very dramatic views south towards Aonach Beag, the summit of which was stuck resolutely in cloud all day. I hadn’t been sure what to expect of the final climb up to Aonach Mor. It proved to be straightforward, mostly on short grass, easily avoiding a couple of snow patches and with a little mild scrambling in places, emerging very close to the summit cairn. I continued west a few paces to enjoy lunch overlooking Carn Mor Dearg and the north face of Ben Nevis, watching a shower approach over Glen Spean as I ate!

Soon after I continued walking, the shower arrived, and at 1200m turned out to be of snow rather than rain! It was only light though, and only lasted 10 minutes or so. I followed the ridge down over rough ground, back to Meall Breac and parallel with the bike track (now in light use) back down to the car park. Another good day out, actually more interesting and less awkward tops than I’d expected! I bet very few of the visitors to Aonach Mor make the detour to those ones!
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1922883

In the evening, Ashleigh and I cooked in camp then went to the pub for the rest of the evening. The next morning, she was feeling energetic enough for a short walk. I suggested we take a bit of a road-trip west onto the Ardnamurchan peninsula, where I had had my eyes on the short walk up Ben Hiant for some time! We took a scenic drive along the coast to the Corran Ferry, then over to Strontian and along the shore of Loch Sunart, pausing in Salen for photographs.

A few more miles along the minor road brought us to a good viewpoint over the beach at Camas nan Geall to Ben Hiant, which was grassier than I expected of a geologist’s mecca! It was not much further up the road to the highest point of the pass, from where we started our walk. A path gave easy walking all the way up the ridge to the summit. Sadly, although we started in the dry, light but persistent rain soon came over and lasted for an hour or so, until a bit after we’d left the summit. We had better views on the descent when it cleared out again, particularly north towards Rum and Eigg, and Skye in the distance.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1926556

Once back at the car, we continued west to the end of the road and had a look around the lighthouse at the end of the headland – the most westerly point on mainland Britain. The sun was shining by this point, giving great views over the sea to the islands, and we enjoyed an ice cream at the café before starting the drive back to Glen Nevis. We passed through a pretty torrential rainstorm on the way from Acharacle to Lochailort though! In the evening, we didn’t feel like cooking in the rain so went out for a curry in Fort William, then back to the pub for hot chocolates.

Ashleigh departed home on Wednesday morning, and I also packed up camp ready to set off on a one-night backpacking expedition from Glen Elchaig over a few new Grahams and Munro Tops. After a quick stop at Morrison’s to buy provisions, a couple of hours’ drive brought me to my starting point at the head of the road at Camas-luinie to set off walking just before noon.

My first objective was Carnan Cruithneachd, a steep and rocky Graham on the south side of the valley. Rather than follow the track up and then have to ford the wide river, I followed the south bank of the river right up as far as the Allt Ban an Li-ruighe, and was surprised to find a fair path even beyond the house at Coille-righ – a good choice! Once easily across that tributary stream, I struck diagonally uphill to pick up the stalkers’ path making a rising traverse around the west of the hill – clearly very little used but easily visible on the ground and still a good aid to progress. There were good views back down the valley.

The final approach to the summit was pathless but fairly easy over short heather, with attractive crags to weave through. The summit itself gave excellent views in all directions, and I could see most of the ground I would cover on the remainder of my expedition over the Munros of Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan and An Socach.

After a late lunch, I continued by dropping southeast over the moorland to reach the path over Bealach na Sroine, which I followed down to the Abhainn Gaorsaic above the Falls of Glomach. Sadly I didn’t get any views of the falls this time, and I didn’t fancy a detour with already a strenuous route planned. It wasn’t tricky to cross the river above its confluence with the Allt Coire-lochain, after which it was a fairly steep and tiring climb up grass onto the ridge of Creag nan Clachan Geala. I followed the ridge all the way up to my next objective, the West Top of Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan (a new Munro Top for me), enjoying the views into Kintail.

By the time I’d made the pleasant traverse over to the Munro summit and back, it was around 6pm, and I still had a few miles and undulations to cover to reach my planned camp, but the evening was brightening and of course there were many hours of daylight still available so that didn’t matter.

The ridge north included three more new Munro Tops: Stuc Bheag, Stuc Mor and Stuc Fraoch Choire, offering good views over Coire Lochan and Loch a’ Fhraoich-choire as well as back up to the Munro. A localised shower passed over An Socach but thankfully missed me by some distance! I continued over the lower tops of Creag Ghlas and Sgurr na h-Eide before dropping down fairly steeply to camp near the summit of the pass past Loch an Droma – a very secluded spot where I expected to see nobody all night and was not disappointed! There was some good soft, dry grass for camping, a good stream for obtaining water, and not many midges.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1926558

After a good night’s sleep, I was up fairly early the next day and all packed up by 7:40am. It was only a short climb north to my next objective, the Graham, Carn na Breabaig – not a dramatic hill but a good viewpoint over Glen Elchaig and Loch Mullardoch in particular.

As the weather was sunny and calm, I decided to take the longer option and walk up to An Socach rather than traversing its slopes. Some hints of path made the going easier on the fairly long ascent, and the effort was rewarded by more excellent views in all directions, including of Skye and Torridon in the distance.

A large descent and small re-ascent brought me to my final hill of the expedition, An Cruachan, which must be one of the remotest Grahams. It’s a great wild viewpoint over Loch Monar and the bigger hills beyond, particularly in the sunshine I was enjoying that day.

That just left the long walk back out through the valley, gently uphill initially to Loch Mhoicean in the saddle. As I descended to Iron Lodge, I was surprised that another walker dropped onto the path from the slopes of the Corbett, Aonach Buidhe. He had cycled most of the way in and stashed his bike at the lodge. For me, it was an easy but long-feeling 12km of track walking all the way back to Camas-luinie.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1926564

Back at the car, I drove the short distance down the glen to Ardelve, where I set up camp for the night before heading off to nearby Drumbuie to catch up with Amy for an hour or so, as she hadn’t been able to find childcare to enable her to attend my Corbett completion. I picked up a take-away pizza for dinner on my way back to camp on what became a disappointingly damp evening!

Friday was the final day of my trip. I packed up promptly as I wanted to fit in a short walk as well as the long drive home. The beautiful morning merited a short pause at Morvich to take a photograph over the loch.

About 90 minutes later I was back at Fort William, and a few minutes more brought me to Inchree, just near the Corran Ferry. My objective was the Graham, Beinn na Gucaig, which was an easy walk up and down the gentle southwest ridge, surprisingly featuring a small path most of the way! There were more good sunny views over Loch Linnhe and towards Glen Coe.
Route map: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1927815

The drive home went smoothly, stopping for a break and dinner at Ruth’s house and reaching Hilton by 9pm. All set for a weekend of brass banding to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee!

In conclusion, a super week in the Highlands with lots of the good weather that I associate with Spring Bank Holiday trips but cannot be relied upon! It was great to reach the end of my Corbett project with a dramatic walk up a fitting final hill with a good group of friends, even if most of my formerly-regular hillwalking companions aren’t available for such things at the moment thanks to having young children to entertain! Looking to the future, ticking off six Munro Tops in the week leaves me with only four left (all scrambles: three on Skye and one on Liathach), and four new Grahams takes me to 60 in total. I guess the Grahams will be my main Scottish project for the next ten years or so!

My full photo album can be enjoyed here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/CXbkv6EyRFDwCQzW7