August 2011 - Walking - Public transport antics and Mamore magic

It's a long write-up (as usual), but it's a report for me as much as anybody so I have a full account of what I've been up to, and it may be of interest to reader that want a little more detail than is usually found online! Click the photos to enlarge, the full set can be found at http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150354386845498.394069.618910497&l=ae2aff5eb3&type=1

TRAVELLING DAY

I don't recall why I decided it was time to do the Mamores, possibly because it seemed like a suitably arduous achievement to fit into a bank holiday weekend. I do know that I thought my friend Vicky might be a suitable partner as we discovered at Easter that we're pretty equally matched in terms of stamina and speed both up and downhill, and I thought she might not have done the Mamores yet living over in Aberdeen. It turns out she's already done two of them, but didn't mind doing them again and having a go at the whole circuit, as per this link. She also pointed me in the direction of Megabus with the help of which I managed to plot an entire round trip including a bit of beautiful train line, for only £56 (and it is possible to do it cheaper still), compared to £120 or thereabouts by car.

On the morning of Friday 26th August I packed, dealt with the garden and chickens, and drove over to Stoke all to a finely tuned schedule, and still managed to have to run for the train just catching the one later than planned, which I would also have missed if it wasn't running late. Thankfully a swift walk across Manchester with my various bags saw me on time for my Megabus at 12:40. There was a bit of chaos when it came to actually boarding the bus, but I manage to squeeze onto the front bus that was going direct to Glasgow, rather than the one that was stopping on route. The guy taking tickets assured me the coach had all mod cons, and it wasn't until we were about to pull away that the driver informed me the brand new toilet was out of action as someone had managed to lock the handle before closing the door. I was dismayed as I quite needed it after all my dashing about, but the driver was a nice chap and we made a stop at a service station up the motorway so those of us with weak bladders could run in and out. Nice, but not a push over as he (quite righly) chided the passengers who didn't re-board the bus after the alloted 5-10 minutes, which I was pleased about as I only had an hour in Glasgow to make my train connection. The next area of excitement was a 3 hour traffic jam near Carlisle. Thanks to phone calls, maps, iphones, and some banter, we took a couple of detours and after a bit of traffic but nothing like 3 hours of delay we were flying Northwards again. The coach journey felt like something out of a film, I got to know a couple of my fellow passengers and the drivers, and it felt like a little community on there everyone rallying together to get us to Glasgow on time, I'd happily travel to Scotland that way again in future.

Damp start but high spirits

At Glasgow I walked the short distance to Queen Street station and found they hadn't even put up the platform number yet, so I treated myself to Burger King and got chatted to a cyclist who it turned out had the seat opposite me on the train. I had been looking forward to taking this journey, part of the whole point of planning the trip the way I had, as it would give a different perspective of the mountains. It's a shame darkness had fallen by the time we diverted from the road and went across the wilderness of Rannoch Mor (my planning had various holes in it) but for the bits I did see it was nice to share it with someone who also had a passion for the outdoors. I'm keen to re-do that part of the journey another time and extend it to enjoy the Fort William to Mallaig section, which is meant to be one of the most beautiful train journeys you can do in the UK. The long journey becomes a lot less tedious if it becomes part of the adventure. I noticed quite late on that the train went through Roy Bridge, where we were staying for the night, before it got to Fort William, and I managed to get hold of Vicky just in time to divert her to meet me there instead. That saved us about 40 minutes which we made the most of by having a pint in the Stronlossit Inn, before retiring for a not-so-early night.

HILL DAY 1

Ridge from Stob Ban towards Sgorr an Iubhair 

Path to Stob Ban

We managed about 6 1/2 hours sleep before our alarms went off at 6am. We had a quick breakfast and packed and were out of the hut by 7:10, drove round to Glen Nevis, and started walking by 7:45. The day was looking overcast and discouraging and it promptly started raining, but we donned waterproofs and pressed on regardless. I had a couple of minor issues, my right achilles was complaining whenever the ground got steep, and I seemed to have acquired a minor sprain in my right wrist, but I assessed them and decided that neither were critical, and although they didn't improve much over the weekend they didn't get much worse either. We walked up through a felled forest, then up onto the ridge of Mullach nan Coirean. We were getting pretty toasty with all the uphill exertion so stripped off the waterproofs but thankfully it seemed to have stopped raining, we could even see above half of Ben Nevis behind us with a patchwork of small fluffy clouds over it. The longer we walked, the nicer the weather seemed to become. The clouds, where they weren't fluffy, were like a light lace shroud being wafted up and down over the summits, occasionally giving you views and keeping you guessing the rest of the time. There was something odd about the moments of visibility too - they seemed to happen just after we'd looked at the map or directions and worked out which direction we were heading in next, almost as if the weather was rewarding us for our navigation skills, and showing us we were right before we actually started onwards. At one point we felt a bit of warmth and looked up to see a hazy yellow disk burning a hole in the clouds until the sun appeared for real.

Stob Ban (left) from Lochan Coire nam Miseach 

We took a photo at the first summit and continued, on towards the aesthetic hill of Stob Ban. The rock changes noticeably from red granite to pale grey quartzite between these two and the path and ridges become more defined. Near the summit we were passed by two friendly RAF lads doing the Ramsay round who we had a chat with when we all paused at the cairn for a quick bite to eat. They headed on first and we followed a little later, only we hadnít gone very far when I noticed the way ahead was descending to the valley floor. A quick halt and a check of the route description told us weíd missed a turning, so we turned round and walked the other way a little so we could take stock of our bearings. Something about doing that made the entire world flip 180 degrees in my head, and itís quite an odd sensation not being able to marry up a single item between the view and the map. Suddenly the reality dawned on my, just as Vicky pointed out we were facing the way weíd come up, and I righted myself ñ weíd been going the correct way in the first place, just forgot to hook a sharp left down a shapely ridge that in fact Iíd already paused to take a photo of! After a little way we dropped off the ridge and descended gradually to lochan coire nam miseach, then zigzagged up the other side, dumping our bags at the top so we could travel lightly out and back along the spur of the Devil's Ridge. This is billed as both exposed and scrambly - we found it neither, but nevertheless it was lovely, a flat path on a pointed ridge, which crosses over a couple of rocky bits then ascends steeply up the grass flanks of Sgurr a' Mhaim. The views now were becoming more impressive, with the shapely peak of Stob Ban above the green lochan the most dominant.

Munros ahead from the Devil's Ridge. Sgorr an Iubhair (ex Munro on right), Am Bodach (pointy one against sky), Stob Coire a' Chairn (pointy one against black), An Gearanach (left), Na Gruagaichean (black peaks back right) and Binnien Mor (black peak back left)

Vicky against the backdrop of the Devil's Ridge

Back at the bags we had a quick lunch, then summited Sgorr Iubhair which used to be a Munro but got demoted in 1997. The short stretch over to Am Bodach was pretty straighforward. At the top rain threatened again, and a chap that was travelling in the other direction looked a little harried after the ascent he'd just done that we were about to go down, saying it would be even worse in the wet, so we were a little nervous about it. It was actually completely fine, the ground was steep but it wasn't overly loose, foot placements were flat and on an obvious path and there were always things to hold on to. After this little blip in the weather we had the best weather so far, blue skies with puffy clouds passing over the summits, some appearing to emanated straight from the Ben Nevis summit, and elsewhere suns rays picking out various features on the hills' flanks and on the valley floor. I'm not sure that I appreciated them enough as I'd just realised that I'd mis-counted and we'd only done 4 Munros not 5, so I was feeling a bit dejected. Thankfully though it wasn't far to Stob Coire a' Chairn, which was the real number 5 and I perked up a bit.

Clouds over Ben Nevis

Steep but reasonable descent off Am Bodach

Next up was the second spur out to An Gearanach via An Garbhanach. This was also billed as being scrambly, and this time it was. From afar it looked reasonably tricky but as we neared we noticed a path up the side of rocky triangle outlining the initial ascent up. The path then continued along the righthandside of the crest, but we followed the rocks in the purest line straight along the needle edge of the crest, which was reminscent of the Cuillin with its pointed rocks which sloped away to either side. After An Garbhanach the terrain was grassy again, and took us onto our sixth summit of the route, we were really making progress now. The route description said this was an excellent viewpoint so we rested for a minute or two to take in our surroundings, Ben Nevis right in front of us. We returned directly along the path for the sake of speed, starting to become aware of the time, we no longer had seemingly endless daylight to play with.

An Garbhanach (front) and An Gearanach (back)

Scrambling on An Garbhanach

Back at the bags we sat for a little more food and to come up with a plan. The route here contoured round Stob Coire a' Chairn that we'd already done, rose just a little and rejoined the ridge heading to Na Gruagaichean. This section was about 1km so we decided to time it to see what kind of speed we were currently walking at. Then we'd know what we could achieve in the remaining daylight. It took us 35 minutes from 6pm to 6:35, rather slow, but it wasn't exactly representative as first we'd had to find the path, and then I'd stopped to fill my waterbottle up in the stream - it's very unusual for me to run out of water, especially when the amount I was carrying normally lasts me a full weekend, but it had been a hot day. Ideally we'd hoped to manage 8 Munros and camp down by Coire an Lochain but this was now looking a bit ambituous. That aim was more so that we could make the most of the better weather and have less to do in the forecasted rain the next day, rather than because we actually needed to split it up that way to achieve the full set, so it didn't matter if we camped elsewhere. We picked out a couple of other options from the map, all places with the necessary running water for cooking. We eliminated the coire bowl to the north of Na Gruagaichean as it was directly in the wind, and instead decided to bag that summit, head past it to the bealach then drop down to the South to the streams there. And this we did, despite the weather worsening - the wind was picking up and the rain forced us to stop to don waterproofs again. We practically flew over Na Gruagaichean's top and the summit itself. Between the two there was a little unpleasant ground across a little notch - steep and loose - but it was soon over. As we scrambled up the last bit of ascent, zigzagging up boulders on an indistinct path, the light was noticeably fading and I was panicking a little. I was encouraging Vicky to move faster as time was against us and was aghast when at the summit she said she was hungry and wanted to stop to make a sandwich. I plied her full of dried apricots which I had to hand and after the essential photo I shood her off down the crest towards the bealach. The path down looked fine and the rain had lifted again, but our intended camping spot was still hidden behind out of sight and I didn't feel I could relax until I knew the terrain. As we descended there was a beautiful sight to my left. The area was darkening except for a single, wide, bold, orange sunbeam passing from the northern flank of Na Griagaichan in a gradual diagonal down to the ground. It was so long you had to move your head to see the whole thing. There wasn't time to stop and take a photo so I committed it to memory and I think the sight is now permanently ingrained in my head, not something I'll not forget for a while!

Catching breath on An Gearanach, Grey Corries in background

 Munro no.  6 An Gearanach in front of Ben Nevis

We reached the bealach thankfully quickly as the path was good, and there on our right we could see, as hoped, some flat ground with a couple of streams, and also a little lochan. My spirits lifted, then I relaxed almost entirely when we were looking for a nice way to descend and Vicky spotted a zigzag path taking us down. The last of the light seemed to linger and we actually had plenty of time to pitch the tent exactly 12 hours after setting off, and start cooking. The highs and lows continued though, as the rain started for real causing us to huddle with the stove in the not-very-sheltered open porch, and the dinner was disgusting. So disgusting that it turned Vicky's stomach and she was poorly for a few hours. We kind of took it all in our stride though, as you don't really have much choice in that situation. Vicky eventually managed to crawl into bed, and eventually we both managed to fall asleep, although I keep waking with an unexplained pain below my right knee - it seems I'd bumped it earlier in the day and it didn't like lying down. Despite finding a sheltered spot to camp the wind must have turned because occasionally a significant gust shook the tent. It held up surprisingly well though considering how lightweight it is, and we remained in relative comfort.

Sun beam into Kinlochleven

Wild camp

HILL DAY 2

Munro no. 8 Binnein Mor

We had plenty of hours in the tent but it wasn't all relaxing so we didn't make a particularly early start. We started rising at around 7, and didn't start walking until 8:45. My knee was causing me a little trouble but eased off after some ibuprofen. First stop was Binnein Mor's south top, then the rocky path to the main summit. Binnein Mor is the highest Mamore but there isn't actually much height gain to it as you're already pretty high. Still, it seemed to take forever to get to, but thankfully much quicker to return from. As we conginued to Sgurr Eilde Beag, Sgurr Eilde Mor's south west top, we noticed that the mist was lifting and the day proved to be better than we'd expected, although it was cool enough and damp enough that we left our waterproofs on all day.

On the scree up Sgurr Eilde Mor 

Where I got blown over on Sgurr Eilde Mor

The route description we were following said to descend this top direct, down the steep rib to the lochan below, but I had a go at the start of it twice and really didn't like it - it was steep, loose and there wasn't anything to hold on to. Of course Vicky just waltzed down it, but I called her back and we decided to take an easier but longer descent, a sweeping path that also led to the lochan. I felt a bit uncomfortable about having avoided that descent, as I previously believed that I can manage any summer walker's ascent of a Scottish mountain (it's a whole different thing in winter, even an easy slope can stop me in my tracks, even with crampons on), but I consoled myself by reminding myself that this is only one man's suggestion and not an accepted route. Sgurr Eilde Mor proved to be reasonably challenging mountain. We followed a path that zigzagged up from the lochan, taking us first over scree on a reasonable path, then up steepening red dirt and pebbles to a high ridge. It was never certain whether we had enough purchase on the gravel to move up more than we moved down, and I wasn't looking foward to coming back down it afterwards. I was pleased when we reached the rocky path on the final narrow ridge to the summit, but the wind had picked up even more and was gusting across us. I had a real heart in mouth moment when I was blown off the side of the path and fell backwards over the rocks. It was a real out of control moment where I knew I was at the mercy of fate. As I was falling I remember spotting a particular rock that I thought I could grab hold of to stop me falling off the back of the mountain, but thankfully I stopped before needing to grab it. I held on to steady myself before standing up, and flashed Vicky a look of stunned, terrified relief. We carried on carefully up and back down, not stopping at the summit except for the obligatory photo. The descent of the loose ground was actually way better than expected, and easier than the ascent had been. The wind was blowing into our faces and kept us upright, which made us feel a lot more stable. Also I employed a technique I'd learnt on the descent down An Dorus on the Cuillin Ridge, of keeping my back and body upright and straight, and driving my heels into the loose ground on each step. For the first time ever I felt like I'd improved at going down hills, something I've always been slow at, as I experienced the new sensation of placing a second foot while the first was still moving, usually I won't move a foot until the one I've just placed is solid.

The descent I didn't do and Coire an Lochain

Munro no. 10 Binnein Beag

We branched off the path just before the lochan and took a shortcut over to the good path which lead round the flanks of Binnein Mor and over to the little lochan in the col between that and Binnein Beag. This was easy going and was a welcome relief, and I felt like we were on the path home now, even though we still had one Munro left to bag. Binnein Beag is the smallest Munro on the route but you start from quite low so it has the second most ascent on the circuit. We followed a path all the way up though, which made the passage through the boulders trivial. It wasn't the most obvious of paths but I seemed to have a sixth sense in finding it, a subconscious assessment off logical line, lighter rocks with signs of wear, different kind of rocks imported in or moved and levelled ground on scree, all observations made experience in the hills. The descent after summitting was rather exciting though. Straight down the west rib, which looked, and was, just a loose red gully. At one point it steepend more but Vicky led us left down grassy ledges and we reached the plateau to a tiny lochan. From here we tramped the heathery, boggy ground north west for some distance to the Water of Nevis, thanfully not stranding ourselves on any of the small rocky cliffs that were scattered about along the edge of the river. We looked for a crossing point, first going upstream then deciding to follow some trodden ground downsteam a bit. This led us to a shallower section and we waded across. Amazingly I only received a tiny trickly of water down each boot, probably because I was still wearing my waterproof trousers which created a seal, I'd expected to get totally swamped.

Overjoyed to be back at the car

Crossing the Water of Nevis

Following the Water of Nevis the views were quite varied so that kept us entertained but it still seemed to take an age just to reach the Steall bridge. We started to encounter other people so we knew we were nearing civilisation again, but perhaps due to the harder ground my feet were starting to hurt and the going was getting tough. As we walked along the tourist track past the pretty cascades of Glen Nevis that I'd last seen in the snow 5 years ago the achilles of my right leg, blister on my left instep, and squashed heels of both feet were vying for the title of most painful injury. There was then nearly 3km of road which I just knew would go on forever. I stuck my thumb out whenever a car past but nobody seemed inclined to stop so we accepted our fate and trudged along, struggling to speak. As we travelled I reflected that it was only experience that told me I would do another Munro, because at that precise moment it wasn't a concept I could even consider, I was all Munro-ed out. We'd done 10 Munros and 7 Tops over 22 hours with a wild camp, covering 34km with 2.5x Ben Nevisses in ascent (3400m). Desperation made me pick up the pace, and finally the car suddenly appeared closer than I'd expected, and 9:45 after setting off. With deep joy I pulled off my boots, to find, with less joy, the soles of my feet were white, wrinkly and hard - the onset of trenchfoot? Who knows. A baby wipe and some clean socks and they started to feel better already. We drove back to Aberdeen via Aviemore where we stopped off at an Australian restaurant, where Vicky had an American dish and I had a Chinese one. Very Scottish. Then we snatched a few hours kip at Vicky's before she took me to the bus station for 7am. I slept for the first half, pretty soundly considering the transport, then a nice lad from Bangladesh sat next to me and offered me a headphone so I could watch 'Seven Years in Tibet' with him. I gratefully accepted and was in Manchester before I knew it. I didn't have to rush this time, so sat down for a pizza before I boarded my train. The walk back to my car at the other end was uphill and difficult and I was dying for a wee, so I experienced all kinds of relief when I got home, and the chickens seemed to be getting on better too! A memorable trip, for sure.