After a mediocre sleep on the Caledonian Sleeper, we stepped out of the train at Blair Atholl train station. Ahead of us – six days in the Scottish Highlands, aiming to bag Munros, stay in bothies, and explore some of the more remote areas in Scotland. The first two days would take us into the Southern Cairngorms, a barren landscape with rounded and gentle tops, guarded by bog and heather, the later 4 to Ben Alder Forest.
Day 1
I was a little nervous about this day. It was a long one – longer than I’d done on an expedition before. I knew I was fit, but as usual, I was concerned that I wasn’t fit enough for the ordeal ahead. My backpack wasn’t light, and I was fatigued from a long and stressful term. Definitely not an ideal way to start such a long and arduous trip!
To begin with, we walked along a good track, then we turned off at NN 915 726 and began climbing on another 4×4 track, which gradually took us up to the summit of Carn a’ Chlamain, our first Munro of the trip. The hills had a cosmetic coat of snow, which I always adore. Sadly, as this was an expedition, my normal antics, to lie face down in every snow patch I see, had to be curtailed (this took a great deal of self-restraint!).
The descent to the Tarf Hotel bothy from here is quick and simple. The terrain permits reasonably rapid movement until the 800m mark, below which heather and bog hinder progress a little, but with a little common sense with route choice, progress remains quick.
Upon arrival at the Tarf Hotel bothy, we had a brief lunch and ditched our tents and sleeping kit – we’d be returning here later in the day so didn’t need to carry them over the remaining two Munros of the day.
We began moving West along Tarf Water river to NN 903 805, where we followed the stream up to the saddle NN 912 817, although I’m doubtful this was the optimal route. Progress in the valley was slow and difficult, with heather, bog, and lingering snow sapping energy from my already knackered legs. I’d be curious to know if a direct ascent from NN 917 799, following the shoulder, would take you out of the boggy and heathery terrain faster, and allow for an easier passage. Whichever route you take, progress becomes much simpler once the broad shoulder is obtained, and progress towards the summit was made quickly, despite the sweltering heat.
Frustratingly, there is no way to avoid the 300m or so loss in altitude to reach the neighbouring Munro, An Sgarsoch. The ascent is reasonably hard going too – with bog and heather hindering any aspirations of rapid progress. Nevertheless, it is still reasonably short and the views from the slope are wonderful. Upon obtaining the summit, we were blessed with views across to the Northern Cairngorms, Ben Alder Forest, and Southern Highlands.
The descent to the Tarf Hotel Bothy from here is simple. The progress slows down as the gradient levels, and bogs and heather become much more problematic. We arrived at the bothy at 18:00, having been walking for nearly 12 hours. Needless to say, we slept well that night.
Day 2
I woke up pretty tired. I always find the second day of an expedition poses the greatest challenge; neither the body nor the mind has become accustomed to the strains that they will be placed under, nor have you acclimatised fully to slightly more primitive living arrangements. Luckily for us, today was slightly shorter.
It began with a reasonably fast trudge East along Tarf Water, before following the track going South-East from NN 957 797. We then followed the track to NN 956 762, where we began the hard, steady plod up to the saddle at NN 952 728, where we ditched the bags and moved across to summit Carn nan Gabhar. As we moved back to grab our bags, it started snowing and I hit the wall hard. I hadn’t eaten enough much all day and I suffered for it.
Tragically, the weather did not permit a lunch stop! We pushed on over Braigh Corie Churin Bhalgain, and then onto Carn Liath. At this point, we were both in a bad place. I was unable to get energy back into my legs due to my poor nutritional strategy, and my friend was suffering from a nasty sickness. It was a long walk into Blair Atholl, where we enjoyed Fish and Chips.
Day 3
After this expedition, and with the weather looking far from ideal for the week ahead, we realised quickly that some replanning was called for. We opted to take the train to Corrourand stay in the YHA there for three nights, bagging the local Munros.
Day 4
My friend woke up feeling rough, leaving me with the prospect of a wee bit of solo Munro bagging. We agreed that the best option would be for me to head up Carn Derag and Sgor Gaibhre, a simple set of Munros that in total, would only mean walking 20km or so, and climbing 19km.
The weather was dreich. Far too wet to risk walking without a hardshell on, but far too sweaty if you have it on. Bloody nightmare! I met two madmen who had done a summit camp that night; it was cold and windy at hostel level, I dread to think about the kind of conditions they had to tolerate. Despite the weather, the summit of Carn Derag can be obtained uneventfully. Essentially, it is a heather slog to obtain the ridge around NN 410 669, then only the odd boulder field hinders extremely rapid progress towards the summit. From the summit, a rapid descent to the saddle at NN 432 669 is easy, and then the short climb up to Sgor Gaibhre is uneventful and simple, with a good path leading straight to the summit. I then dropped back down to the saddle and began descending the broad valley to the Eastern tip of Loch Ossian. A slow and heathery bog bashing session awaited me, until, joyously, I obtained the 4×4 track which carried me easily back to the hostel.
Day 5
The weather had improved today, as had my friend’s condition. This enabled us to attempt a summit dash to Beinn na Lap. This is a simple summit, with a long, broad, gradual shoulder leading to the summit at an incredibly consistent gradient. It is a little boggy near the bottom but is really very simple. We got snowed on a little at the top, which made my hands a little cold as I only had glove liners on, and was far too lazy to get my burly ski gloves out of my rucksack lid (not a wise idea). We descended an almost identical route to what we’d come up with, choosing to cut off to the south slightly quicker to minimise the time spent in the cold.
That evening, we enjoyed a wonderful plate of Fish and Chips in the Station House; a wonderful restaurant that serves fantastic food.
Day 6
The plan had been to walk to Tulloch, but due to illness and snow falling to hostel level, this was not a wise idea. Instead, my friend would stay at the hostel, trying to heal up a little, and I would journey out to Ben Alder. The prospect of this scared me. It was a long walk alone, and quite a remote one, without phone signal. Whilst I knew, in reality, my skills were more than adequate, I couldn’t help but feel nervous as I stepped out of the door of the hostel.
As I began the 12km approach to the base of Ben Alder, my anxiety worsened. I could see spindrift being blown at speed over the tops of Munros, and even at valley level, the gusts were causing significant buffeting. With each step, I became increasingly stressed, fearing every possible thing that could go wrong. I cut off from the path too early, desperate to start the climb, leaving me a longer than ideal heather bash to obtain the start of the slope I’d climb at NN 468 717.
As I looked up the broad mountainside, I saw spindrift being blown around violently, and yet again, my stress levels increased. I took a moment to rationally assess the situation; even though I was well within my comfort zone skill-wise – something about being alone was causing me anxiety. As I knew I was safe, and the concerns were psychological, rather than founded, I pushed on.
With each step up the broad slope, I began to feel more confident. As I looked back down at the river below, those lingering fears and worries began to shed. I reached the first band of spindrift, and it caused me no difficulties. The wind, whilst a hindrance, wasn’t above 40mph in the gusts, so didn’t impede mobility like I’d feared.
I reached the plateau – now in a mental state approaching euphoria. Somehow, looking out at the barren plateau, my worries and stresses had evaporated; I began to trust my skills. A quick nav check confirmed my direction, and I moved across this arctic environment to the summit, striding out on the consolidated snow like it was a London pavement.
The views behind were astonishing, the mountains were all covered in snow and the sun was shining from behind. Spindrift blew over each summit, highlighting the ridges and cliffs like a halo. Perhaps it was just the elation of achieving something that stressed me out, but as I moved towards that summit, it was one of the most special moments I’ve had in the mountains: totally isolated, without a phone signal, surrounded by stomach-churningly stunning mountains. I felt totally self-reliant – totally free and it was magical. I think I’ll remember those few special minutes for a long time…
The state of ecstasy from that magical 20 minutes on the summit plateau carried me back to the lodge, alongside a cheeky bit of karaoke; although we won’t talk any more of that. My friend met me at the start of the 4×4 track, liberating me from a lonely slog by the Lochside.
Closing Thoughts
Every trip I do to Scotland offers me something different. Some feel like an exercise in suffering, others feel like an escape. This trip felt like a change. It changed my mindset on what I can achieve, gave me confidence that I can manage longer days, and I can look after myself on the hill when alone. It made me realise how much I enjoy meeting new people, and how I’m perhaps less introverted than I initially thought. Most of all though, it gave me a much-needed break from the stresses of reality. Ace!
Oscar Outdoors 