Set off at 6:30 am Sunday aiming for Carn Mor in Glendessary but the trip through Glencoe was stormy to say the least and by Fort William the rain was bouncing down. We decided to take the easier option of 3 - 4 hours in the rain rather than a full day so headed for Glenfinnan and Sgurr an Utha. Took the track from the road up the shoulder of Fraoch-bheinn with the rain steady and very heavy by this time, full waterproofs in July ! The ridge up to Fraoch-bheinn is very reminiscent of the nearby Ardgour peaks and I suspect accurate route finding in the mist up here could be a problem. As it was visibility was ok, it was just the rain causing problems ! from F-b it is a nice little ridge to Sgurr an Utha but as we turned into the wind the rain just got heavier. as we approached the final summit knoll, the rain stopped and the sun came out ~ brilliant views for under 2 minutes and then the hailstones started. The size of peas the noise from the hail hitting jackets and hoods was amazing. We made a descent back to the glen by following down a very swollen stream. got back to the car in about 3.5 hours and back to Fort William for a browse round Nevis Sport ! Of course as we drove home through Glencoe again the weather was brilliant with high broken cloud and blue skies ! !
The ridge up to Fraoch-bheinn is very reminiscent of the nearby Ardgour peaks and I suspect accurate route finding in the mist up here could be a problem.
Correct.. and the magnetic rock here does not help.. Mind holding the compass away from the rocks is all it takes.
Meanwhile in the Mounth, the showers were light , infrequent and short. Mind there is a Corbett shortage, and I was after a Corbett top and trespassed into the realm of the Munro Bagger. 4th one this year(2nd this week!) - steady on!
Nice one Graham, your plugging away at the Corbetts always sends me to a map to see where you've actually been. The Munros (both done and undone) are etched in my brain, but Corbetts for me are much more an unknown quantity, so it's good to look at an area anew. Your original plan was the Corbett done from Strathan by a poster on here a couple of months back, if I remember rightly. I don't think we're in for much of a summer, weather wise - I'm off to the NW tomorrow, weather poor..... more cloudy cairn photos :-)
Nice one Graham, your plugging away at the Corbetts always sends me to a map to see where you've actually been. The Munros (both done and undone) are etched in my brain, but Corbetts for me are much more an unknown quantity, so it's good to look at an area anew. Your original plan was the Corbett done from Strathan by a poster on here a couple of months back, if I remember rightly. I don't think we're in for much of a summer, weather wise - I'm off to the NW tomorrow, weather poor..... more cloudy cairn photos :-)
Funny... Its been a stinker, but due to the showery air, I have had more distant views than usual this year. Lots of shrp colourful piccies.
stormy ... rain ... rain ... rain steady and very heavy ... full waterproofs in July ! ... rain ... wind ... the rain just got heavier ... hailstones the size of peas.
As much as I hold your tenacity in the highest possible regard, I confess that this apporoach to mountain walking is utterly alien to me.
Well done all the same. Aren't Corbetts wonderful ?
"RJ Webb" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
Funny... Its been a stinker, but due to the showery air, I have had more distant views than usual this year. Lots of shrp colourful piccies.
Lovely sunrise this morning looking from the slopes of Beinn a' Chlaidheimh, rain started at 1 pm after I'd finished for the day (only 2 of the 4 planned completed, ah well they'll be there a long time) and was intermittent and heavy all the way home. Cloud was above tops, views reasonable and little or no wind. Forecast wrong for the morning, I suppose those conditions were correct for the afternoon. Got a wonderful picture of a stag on cliff edge looking out over the glen......
