An 80% Chance – July 2008
It was looki=
ng
like we’d timed it right – MWIS said the forecast for our walk-=
in
on Saturday afternoon was bright and showery, with a bright sunny day to fo=
llow
for the summits on Sunday – just the chance of a very isolated shower=
and
an 80% chance of cloud-free summits on the Munros.
When MWIS go as far as 80%, they’re usually very confident of a good =
day!
Our targets =
were A’Mhaighdean and Ruadh Stac Mor,
two of the remotest hills in the Fisherfield/Letterewe=
area of the North West Highlands. A’Mhaighdean
in particular occupies a spectacular position and is highly-rated.
The chosen r=
oute
was the north-west approach from Poolewe, via <=
span
class=3DSpellE>Carnmore. It didn’t start particularly well. We=
’d
read something rather vague on the internet about an improved route around =
the
top of the forest above Kernsary and so deliber=
ately
ignored the direct turnoff towards Carnmore whe=
n we
passed it. Mistake! Before we realised that the new super-highway didn̵=
7;t
exist (never believe anything you read on the internet!), we were nearly in=
the
area marked on our 1976 OS Maps (which had cost each of us £1.15) as =
“Bad
Bog”. This left us with a long slog over this aptly named area with o=
ur
full packs, trying to work out just where the forest boundary now ended (not
where it was in 1976, obviously) and trying to find a way back to the main =
path
we’d so happily left behind. I spent the time trying to remember the =
name
of the bog from which the Hound of the Baskervilles had emerged – it =
seemed
appropriate somehow.
Eventually, =
we got
back onto a decent path below the cliffs of Beinn Airigh Charr, only to mak=
e a
further error in trying to short-cut the dog-leg up the Strathan
Buidhe, by crossing the river (easy enough) and
walking across the bog back to the path below Meall Mheinnidh (far from easy). Believe me, that path to <=
span
class=3DSpellE>Carnmore is the best and only way – don’t=
even
think about diversions or non-existent improvements!
Some pleasant
evening sunshine greeted us as we crossed the causeway between Fionn Loch and Dubh Loch =
to
arrive at Carnmore after 5 hours. A’Mhaighdean
looked good for the following day. There were a couple of parties camped ne=
arby,
but we had the bothy to ourselves. The bothy has a good roof, walls which are nearly weather=
proof
and a dirt floor. It also has a few old bed frames and karrimats
on which to sleep, though you need to be amongst the first 4 or 5 to arrive=
to
get one of these.
In view of t=
hat
optimistic forecast, the weather in the night was rather alarming. There we=
re
some long periods of very heavy rain on our plastic roof and the door was
rattling rather a lot. Still, it always sounds worse in a tent (or bothy), doesn’t it? And by the time we got up f=
or a
7.00am start, the rain had stopped.
The SMC Guide
suggests that you take the path from Carnmore f=
or a
while and then cross the Allt Bruthach
an Easain and another “little stream̶=
1; for
a direct assault on A’Mhaighdean’s
north-west ridge. Quite how this was supposed to be don=
e,
was a mystery. The night’s rain had left the “little streamR=
21;
as an uncrossable raging torrent, while the
We headed fo=
r the col as the rain and wind strengthened and the clag
descended lower and lower. Some 80% chance! It wasn’t even clear at 5=
67
metres, let alone on A’Mhaighdean’s=
967
metre summit! We arrived at the col at the same=
time
as a party of four, one of whom was doing his last two Munros
– a right bloody day he’d picked for it! Choosing to do Ruadh Stac Mor first, we scrambled up a steep path to the =
trig
point. For a moment, the rain stopped and the sun could be vaguely seen try=
ing
to poke through the clouds. Perhaps we’d get a decent day after all &=
#8230;..??
No bloody ch=
ance!
Before we were half way back to the col, the st=
orm
had strengthened with renewed fury and the final ascent of A’Mhaighdean,
so highly recommended, was just a wet slog. We even had a little difficulty
finding the summit in these conditions, though this was achieved with the a=
id
of GPS. No fine views down to Dubh Loch or acro=
ss to Sgurr Ban and An Teallach=
, no
relaxing in the sun to celebrate our achievement, just a quick bite to eat =
and
a nip or two of Glenlivet to celebrate Terry=
217;s
100th Munro. Then back to the col an=
d that
river crossing (by now a little deeper), this time facing into the wind and
rain.
Just before =
Carnmore, the conditions finally abated a little, tho=
ugh
the trip to the summits, which we’d estimated would take 4-5 hours, h=
ad
actually taken 7 by the time we got back to the bothy<=
/span>
to load up our gear and start the walk-out. Even though we kept to the path
this time, this proved a real slog, despite the
lighter loads which resulted from having eaten all our food. The rain final=
ly
decided to pack it in, though the clouds remained firmly clamped onto the
summits of A’Mhaighdean and other surroun=
ding
peaks. The few people we met on the way back were all very wet indeed! Only=
the
midges seemed happy as they came out in the forest above Kernsary.
We eventuall=
y got
back to Poolewe after 8.00pm, just in time to b=
ook a
welcoming B&B and get a meal and a few pints in the pub. The total trip=
had
been about 53km, rather longer than suggested by the SMC guide, but then the
SMC didn’t recommend a visit to “Bad Bog” did they? The
following day was bright and clear and A’Mhaighd=
ean
could be seen down the valley laughing at us!