Smiler Cuthbertson – Mountain Guide

Setting off from Dores around 8am, it took an hour and twenty minutes to get into Glen Affric,and ten more minutes to reach the official car park, quietly dreading the new £2.00 charge for day visitors, which has created so much anger so far. I was in luck; the machine was out of order. I wonder why? Someone messing with it? Who knows. When my sack was packed (including a short axe just in case) I walked along the metal road for almost a mile before spotting a small track which seemed to be the one described in the Munro book,  leading up and in the right direction, and going east across the front of Am Meallan (652m) and round the back of this smaller peak, before heading north to the river running west to east down the Gleann nam Fiadh. I took the track and soon was heading around the mountain.

Across the plateau to the river

The track was almost driveable with a 4 x 4, but I started to wonder if it was going the right way. A quick check with the map assured me it would swing back north after a long curve, so I cut the corner off. Big mistake. The ground was sodden, mushy, soaking wet, you name it, and it was with some effort that I climbed at first then dropped down a little before reaching the sanctuary of the original path. No more short cuts, I vowed.

In some occasional snow flurries, I reached the river and checking ahead in the direction of the Bealach Toll Easa, I spotted the track rising up the hillside. Getting across the river wasn’t so easy, and the grassy ground on the other side rose sharply for a good height. I shrugged shoulders and battled my way up the hillside, but even when I reached the (supposedly better) track, it wasn’t! Following the general direction of the track, I tediously changed alternatively from the right-side to the left-side and only occasionally did I consider the track, being soaking wet and very boggy, and it was easier to stay on one side or another. It took quite a while before the angle eased and I looked forward to reaching the Bealach.

Approaching Bealach Toll Easa

The advent of snow covering all around the col and beyond put paid to any easy stroll from now on. Again, I buckled down to post holing up to my calves, and eventually I felt the cooler wind telling me I was on the Bealach Toll Easa. The light snow had picked up a little, but it wasn’t as bad as last Monday in the Cairngorms.

A few minutes rest and a cup of flask tea on the Bealach , then I was off to the east. The book said the summit was that way and I assumed, as it had quoted -

‘The summit is easily reached from here’.

The summit of Toll Creagach was in sight

 I didn’t think it would much of a distance. I was wrong. It was over 2k through calf deep snow which, no matter how I tried, the surface wouldn’t support my weight for more than the first couple of seconds. Strenuous walking.

However, a vague summit was in sight although I was surprised it turned out to be so far along the fairly easy angled-and broad ridge.

No worries now though, I was set on the summit, but I’d already realised I was really going in the wrong direction for this trek, with

A few more metres

Toll Creagach in front of me, and Tom a’Chionich -1112m, the sister peak behind me. The lack of RTFM had meant I’d started up the wrong end, but I had no worries. It was cracking excercise, just what I needed. However,  I was silently pleased to think, because of the soft and surprisingly deer snow lying on the high peaks, I wouldn’t be back-tracking to the Bealach and off up the second peak, for sure. I’d leave that climb for another day.

It was with slight relief that I reached the semi circle of rocks around the trig point. Taking a needed break with food and drink, I checked for the expected great views over west I’d been hoping for. Unfortunately, with the clouds producing these flurries of snow, everywhere was dark and often cloudy, and I missed out on great picture. I took some for the record though.

With Tom a’Chonich out, left for another visit when there’s less snow, I scanned the hillside to the east, called Beinn Eun. This was the way I should have come up. Oh well. I’d had a good work out.

I chose the Beinn Eun ridge as the way back

I took off down the easy slopes towards the river, some 2k away, but soon found it more awkward than planned. I needed to zigzag to avoid great holes full of water, but eventually, the slope levelled out and I crossed the river onto the south bank. All needed to do now was follow the river and meet up with the path come down from the nearby Am Meallan. The ground was a bit awkward, and I had tokeep deciding how close to the water’s edge I would follow. It

Reaching the river

was logical to keep close to the river’s bank but it was also quite messy

along this line. Around 30 minutes brought me across to the fairly good track.

I rested here, and I realised it now seemed much more inclined than on the way down. Another cup of sweet tea and I climbed slowly (yes, the pace had diminished now) and positively towards the crest of the hillside. Over that crest would be all downhill to the road.

Bill had been traversing the valley on either side of the river that day, and we both rested while we chatted, and the flask of tea was eventually emptied. I bade farewell to this nice chap and continued up hill, passing over some level ground before I knew it was virtually all over, now I was going downhill.

Loch Beinn a' Mheadhoin (Glen Affric) from below the summit

I hit the road exactly where I’d started and the mile along the track was unavoidable now. The car seat felt a bit like heaved, and my 2^nd flask of hot tea was exactly that.

Driving back tom Dores, I realised there were many more hikes and scrambles around Glen Affric, so here was a place I could call unfinished business after all.

Next I will read the manual!

Three more good Munros to the east of Am Meallan

He’s just reached 60 yrs now and both Clare and I were invited along with a few other close friends to a small party at his and partner Jo, their lovely house in Fangdale Beck, North Yorkshire, the ‘do’ starting around 6.30pm at a pub in the nicely-named ‘Chop Gate’ village.

It was great seeing the ‘lad’ and Jo again and others ‘famous legends’ that were there. The problem was, the beer had flowed too fast and, driving back north on Sunday morning, I didn’t feel too good. Clare did do the driving though.

Not too clever for my acclimatisation and fitness training for Peru, but I had to be there.

As Monday dawned with better feelings, I considered a day out on the hills again. I’d read the latest ‘Scottish Mountaineer’ magazine which described a ‘secret winter climbing crag’ in the Cairngorms, and I was keen to check the approach and even the descent down this ‘Recovery Gully’ which led between two 70m buttresses to the Strath Nethy valley. 

Blizzard conditions at car park

Parking up at Corrie na Ciste, things didn’t look good. It was a blizzard (in May?) but luckily it didn’t last too long and after packing my ‘sack I swung past the ski tows and trudged off up the reasonably good trail towards the right-hand side of Corrie Laogh Mor. After a short rise up the track, I felt it was heading away from the corrie so I cut off left towards the hillside above.

There was a lot of wet grass and some small snow patches low down, and as it got steeper, with no track, the going got quite tough. At least the weather had improved.

 I forced myself at my usual too rapid a pace (I must get someone to come out with me on these walks, then I can relax and take my time) and it got quite strenuous. Especially when I broke out of the deep heather and met up with large areas of calf-deep snow. Still pretty steep, this wasn’t easy ground to get through, but I felt it was good (?) for me with Peru coming in less than three weeks.

I crested the ridge and switched on the Sat Nav. The ground was much more extensive than I had imagined, and somehow I had to locate this ‘Recovery Gully’ that would lead me down to the bottom of the cliffs. The mist wasn’t too bad and I trudged across the plateau making a long line of postholes which would be useful if the visibility got worse.

 I’m getting more and more impressed with my Garmin 62st Sat Nav. The magazine article’s grid reference was spot on. However, as I peered down a very steep gully, I did feel there was no way I was dropping into this one today. Full of deep, soft and wet snow, I’d be taking a major risk. So I took some photos and started to consider my next move. Looking south

This could be an easier gully

along the cliff edge, I spotted, less than 50 meters away, another depression which might be another possible descent? It didn’t take more than a couple of minutes to reach the spot and I was peering into a much-easier way down.

I still noted the snow in the gully, and decided I’d done enough for today, and so, with the mistdropping now and not really wanting to go back down those steep grassy hillsides, I took a bearing to the south and followed this easily through some snowy rocks to the top of a spur which ran directly down the west side of Coire Laugh Mor.   The easy snow descent I had planned when going down this ridge turned into a huge post holing job and I was somewhat relieved to

I decided it may be easier to go down that ridge back to base

reach the easily-angled ground. I veered west again, across a small col and summitted a small rise ahead of me. Directly below and in clear view now were the car park and the continuation of the track I’d turned off, some three hours earlier.

Another fifteen to twenty minutes and I was clambering past stacked ski-tow chairs and across to my car. A few other cars were now parked up and I saw a few folks wandering around on the nearby tracks in the heather fields. My mountain boots had lost their protective gaiters long ago and my socks were now wringing wet, so changing attire, and after getting a cup of tea and some food down me, I was heading for Aviemore and then home.

The numerous rescue service vehicles that streamed past me going south, betrayed another accident on the A9 somewhere further down, and it was sad to hear the following day of the triple-lorry crash north of Dunkeld. Come on – dual the road for goodness sake!

My day had been fairly short but great and very effective, although I will return when the snow is less or gone completely and will check out the routes from below. The ‘secret’ corrie looks great from above. It has, according to the latest ‘Scottish Mountaineer’ magazine,  fifteen two-pitch routes presently, ranging from winter grade II to VII and with a cliff base of 950m, and a potential for dozens of shorter lines, especially to the left (south) of the descent gullies.

It all bodes well for next winter, when conditions for the approach should be better, firmer, and the crowds in Corrie an T- Sneachda are happily scurrying up the classics and down the Goat Track.

Happy hooking.

I will be back here, for sure.