A Tour of Torridon and Assynt.

Saturday April 6th;

 After my climbing trip to Torridon in late February I went back with Margaret to share with her the unrivaled beauty of the area. Once again I took the sleeper train to Inverness and we set off on Saturday morning in our hire car for the west. The weather forecast for the three days available to us wasn't great but we were delighted to find ourselves enjoying bright sunshine and views of snow capped mountains. I had feared that Margaret might not get to experience the majesty of the scenery but at least today it seemed would be good so she could see for herself what I had been waxing lyrical about for the past five weeks. As we reached Achnasheen I was reminded of my mis-adventure, geographically speaking, and here we got our first views to Liathach and Bienn Eighe. After stopping to take some photos at Loch a Chroisg we continued to Kinlochewe and turned onto the single track road to Torridon. Here we stopped at Loch Clair and enjoyed the famous views towards Liathach from here. Time slipped past and we decided that Margaret would visit Inverewe Gardens on Sunday morning instead of this afternoon as originally planned and we explored the area at our leisure for the rest of the afternoon.

Liathach

View from Achnasheen

Slioch

We arrived in Poolewe about five in the afternoon and once we were settled in our B&B I took advantage of the proximity of a ready made run and did a circuit of Loch Kernsary before dinner. This was a joy as the first half was along an estate road where I soon entered the wild spectacular landscape with views back along Loch Maree towards Beinn Eighe and Beinn Airigh Charr. Then you suddenly arrive at the lake and the return is along a delightful trail that wends and winds its way along the lake shore back to the village. So after an hours worth of trail running heaven I was ready for dinner which was a tasty fish and chips in the local hotel. The forecast for the next day wasn't good but at least we had had a great day today and we would take whatever tomorrow would bring in our stride.

Sunday April 7th;

We awoke to a winter landscape of snow this morning. Cloud was hovering at only 200mtrs or so and it was snowing steadily and there were already several centimeters resting on the ground. It didn't look good for either of our planned activities today. There didn't seem much point in Margaret visiting Inverewe Gardens or in m,e trying to do a long trail run through the snow. By the time we went down for breakfast the snow had stopped and an imperceptible lightening of the sky was in evidence. As we lingered before we had to leave there arrived a little thaw and the snow retreated slowly up from sea level and conditions looked like they were on the up so we were all set and Margaret headed for the gardens and I readied myself for my run. I was now regretting eating a prodigious breakfast but I set off at lets just say a gentle pace. The plan was to head along the estate road from the evening before and when I reached the point of the trail along the lake I could extend my route all the way to the road end about five kilometers further on and retrace my steps and them follow the trail along Loch Kernsary. This I did and it was a treat. What a great feeling it was to be running through such a beautiful landscape with not a care in the world and where all I had for company were deer and what was perhaps an eagle soaring over the hill to my right. I arrived back at the car after two and a quarter hours tired but very happy.

Looking across Loch Maree towards Torridon

Loch Kernsary

We had a nice sweet treat in a little cafe in the village and then headed north. By now the day was lovely with big patches of blue sky and only a chill breeze to remind you of the snow of early morning. We were both delighted with our respective mornings and we were looking forward to the new scenery and landscapes that were ahead. First up was Dundonnell which sits at the head of Little Loch Broom and is towered over by the iconic An Teallach which unfortunately kept a blanket of cloud on its summits. Still there was much to please the eye and once we passed the village we climbed and crossed the vast expanse of bleak wilderness to its south before we arriver over the more verdant valley that reaches out from Loch broom. Soon we were in Ullapool and we had a little wander around here before we set off north again towards Assynt. It wasn't long before I had to stop the car and look in wonder at some of the most beautiful scenery I had ever seen. A succession of stunning vistas which framed some of the most iconic mountains in Scotland made for frequent interruptions but each delay was so worth it. Stac Pollaidh was like something captured from Lord of the Rings. It could have been Mordor itself. As if that wasn't enough next came Suilvan, followed by Quinag and many more. I was hooked and could only agree with all the great things I had heard about this wild and wonderful part of Scotland. We now had to turn our attention to finding somewhere to stay and after calling at a couple of places that were full we found a lovely B&B in the interestingly named Scourie which nestles at the head of its own little bay and here we enjoyed a lovely sunset after  I had my first dinner of Haggis Neeps and Tatties.

Stac Pollaidh

Towards Ullapool

Suilvan

Typical scenery

Quinag

A couple of the locals

Monday 8th;

Once again blue skies were the order of the day and we emerged to a sunny and decidedly chilly morning. I went for a run after breakfast and the plan was to cross the rough ground from the village to the little cove of Tarbet and then return via the road. There was supposed to be a track across the wild ground but as is my wont I couldn't find it and I had to try and make my way through bog and heather and rock outcrops. It was unrunable so I found myself having to walk a lot of the time and I was relieved to be able to join the road before the village and run back to the car. We set off north for a short while before we turned finally in a southerly direction and began our return to Inverness. I suppose that today Ben Stack was the star of the show and proved yet again that a mountain doesn't have to reach Munroe status to be either impressive or beautiful. We drove at our leisure along big impressive lakes from which mountains reached skyward. As we went further south the landscape became less wild and eventually agriculture and I suppose what you could call civilization became the norm. We stopped awhile in the charming and pretty town of Tain and then returned into Inverness and enjoyed a nice dinner and had a little stroll around this nice little city. Soon the time arrived for us to catch the south and we begun the long journey home. Once again Scotland had delivered and I can only recommend that you visit its extraordinary northwest region. I look forward to returning and continuing to explore.

Sunset over Scourie Bay

Ben Stack

Towards Foinaven

Ben Stack

The Cappagh Glen Killarney Easter 13

A swim anyone??

Yesterday I went back to Killarney to meet Frank. We decided, as the day was wet and windy, to visit the Cappagh Glen near Lough Guitane. It had been a while since either of us had been here, and we were looking forward to seeing again, one of the most beautiful places in the area. Once we had negotiated the obstacle course, that is the road to the trailhead, we set off into the biting wind and rain. For a change, instead of heading directly into the glen, we opted to climb the steep northeast flank of Eskduff Mountain. Fortunately the rain had eased off, and we were able to enjoy the flat walk past the productive pastures, before we reached the wilds of the inner glen. Here, we had to cross the Cappagh River, which today, after the dry spell of weather, presented no problems. At our crossing point, there was a glorious pool just below a little waterfall, which we were briefly tempted to have a plunge in, but good sense prevailed, and we vowed to return when better weather arrived.

We are going that way??

The face of exhaustion

Wonderful views

What a trooper

The slog up Eskduff has little to recommend it, but at least we gained height quickly, and soon the views opened up, and afforded us good reasons to stop and rest. The wind was pretty fierce, and at times it was a struggle to maintain balance, as it tried to blow us this way and that. The clouds that blanketed the top, were fairly scudding by, and promised that conditions weren’t going to get better as we got higher. Eventually, we reached the summit plateau, and we briefly toyed with the idea of turning west and heading for Stoompa, but the wind, and now snow, that was hitting us, made up our minds, and we opted to traverse across and descend to the back of the Cappagh Glen. Here, we entered the beautiful wild terrain, that remains one of Killarney’s best kept secrets. Even though the heights reached here, are low in comparison to the larger neighbours nearby, there is a truly wild and remote feel to this place, that is rare to find in Ireland. Rugged rocky bluffs and boggy basins, make it tough ground to cross, and you are unlikely to see another person to disturb you. Even the red deer we saw, seemed startled by the intrusion into their domain. After we sheltered behind some rocks for lunch, we had to head straight into the wind to reach the valley, and here the snow, that was hitting us in a horizontal assault, made it tough going, especially when it catches you right into the eyes.

Head down into the wind

Having fun really

Corkscrew oaks

Fairy Glen

Eventually, we reached the sanctuary of the ancient oak woods, that straddle the river in the glen. This is a magic place, where trees are gnarled and twisted into strange formations, and everything is blanketed by a generous coating of moss. Sheltered from the elements, it is easy to linger here, and imagine fantastic adventures with a child’s mind. Soon, we reluctantly left the wood, and entered the flat open ground at the back of the glen. |Here, the eye is drawn along the glen, that is flanked on the west by Eskduff, and the east by the rugged Bennaunmore. We followed the river out through the rocky narrows, and all too soon left the untamed landscape behind, and re-entered farmland. It had been a fairly short outing, but what it lacked in distance, it more than made up for in ambiance. We even enjoyed the harsh weather, as it all added up, to make the experience feel even wilder. I had had two very different mountain days in succession, with different conditions and goals. The one thing that links them is the great company I was fortunate enough to enjoy on both days. 

Bennaunmore

Ice on Carrauntoohil and the Hot Aches

Today I went to Killarney and met up with Kevin and we headed to Carrauntoohil. We hoped to get in some ice climbing as the weather over the previous week had been cold and dry. I had hoped that there would have been some snow on the mountains as this would have given us further options but it was clear on the way back that no snow had fallen on the hills.With that door now closed to us, there being good ice was now our only chance of a good climb. Mountaineers, especially in winter are a hard bunch to please and I felt kinda silly bemoaning the fact that the day was sunny so it might get too warm and there had been no snow so we wouldn't get any mixed routes in. As I said, hard to please. Anyway I also knew that a day with Kevin would be a good one regardless. We set off after me getting my usual coffee and headed for Cronins Yard where there is secure parking and great facilities and started out from there. Kevin was feeling in top form and it showed as despite carrying the rope he set off like an express train and I was literally having to break into a jog to keep up. Fair to say that we made rapid progress.

Feeling better after the aches

As we gained height we were delighted to see that there was indeed lots of spots of ice to be seen but the quantity was sparse and none of the lines looked really complete. I was reasonably confident/hopeful that "The Lick" would be climbable but I was to be disappointed when we arrived at the second level of Coumeenoughter and could see that the bottom two pitched were almost non existent and high up things still looked thin. We had no choice but to turn away and after a little disappointed discussion we headed for Curve Gully. There was enough ice here and the bottom thirty meters had some decidedly tricky sections. I had brought the wrong gloves with me and at the bottom of the climb I couldn't fit them on and had to rely on my thin liner ones. Predictably in short order my fingers were frozen and I lost all feeling and started to feel a little queasy. Then I started to feel the beginning of the dreaded "Hot Aches" and that queasy feeling got worse. I had to go and sit down and when I eventually got the liner gloves off I put my hands into my arm pits and waited for things to run their course. It had been a while since I got a dose like this and it was dreadful .At times I wasn't sure whether I would faint or get sick or possibly both at once and I just sat and waited. All the while Kevin was like a mother hen who fussed about me and tried to keep my mind occupied until the worst passed. He sorted out my gloves for me and when I had sufficiently recovered to try and get the gloves on they were toasty warm from him blowing into them. A small bite to eat and a drink and eventually I was able to continue.

Some nice ice about half way up.

Not exactly "technical" but at least the axes and crampons were out.

Up near the summit

My minder.

Slowly at first I was soon back into the groove and there was some nice little sections as we got higher. The ice was at times bullet hard and the front points weren't exactly digging in deep but it was all fairly straightforward. Eventually we were above the ice and we had a nice ribbon of neve to the summit. Here we rested a while and enjoyed the wonderful views in all directions. I had expected the wind to be strong on top but we were curiously sheltered as we enjoyed a sip of coffee. It was still chilly and we didn't linger too long and we set off down in the direction of the Devils Ladder. Now the wind found us and it was a vicious one that cut right through into the sinus'. Thankfully we weren't exposed to it too long and by the time we turned for the Heavenly Gates we were out of the worst. By the time we were back down I must confess to being a bit tired as the effects of an eight mile run on Bweeng Mountain the evening before and Kevins blistering pace of earlier took its toll. Still it was a good tired and we were both in good spirits despite not really getting the type of route we had hoped done. Its always good to be with someone who simply loves getting out and about and makes the most of the day regardless of what conditions bring. We both realize that we are fortunate indeed to be able to visit these wonderful places.

Caher from the summit of Carrauntoohil