Munros and Other Walks

I set off early this morning to travel up to Tyndrum, a wee town some 60 miles away. I was still unsure of what hills to tackle. Would I give Beinn Dubhchraig and Ben Oss another try? Would there be much snow? And most importantly, would the weather hold? As I approached Tyndrum I found that my luck was in, the skies were clear and the sun was shining! I chanced it and headed some ten miles further, near Loch Awe. I had seen pictures of the Cruachan hills and they looked impressive with their rocky summits and jutting peaks into the sky. All the pictures were taken during the summer and they looked quite a challenge then. I knew they would be even more difficult in the winter. I parked on a layby just at the main road. Thinking I was first I quickly set off only to see half a dozen cars parked along the farm track that leads to the hills. It seems that everyone is cleverer than me first thing in the morning. The farm track was covered in mist and it was only after about 200m that you g...

The ridge leading to the summit of Beinn a Chochuill

Looks like the weather is going to hold for tomorrow. The weather report states sunny conditions, which means rain. If they had predicted rain then I would have expected heavy rain. A report of torrential rain means build a boat and gather the animals in two's. Anyway I think I might travel up to Tyndrum and try a couple of hills around that area. Who knows I might get crazy and go further afield than that. I hope it is sunny I'm in dire need of some vitamin D.

This was the second time that I was to take the trip near to Crainlarich to try Meall Glas, 957m / 3158ft. The other attempt was last March that I managed to complete the other Munro in that area, Sgiath Chuil. The signs weren’t good as I hit a patch of black ice on the drive up and nearly spun off the road. Some weren’t so lucky and did leave the road and although they were fine the cars looked anything but! The track up to the open moorland from the farm was icy and quite treacherous in places so it was a good test for the new boots. The moorland is quoted in the guide book as being featureless and this certainly is the case. It was made all the more difficult by soft snow and ice in places. My idea was to ascend to Beinn nan Imirean, a Corbett first, then move onto the bigger Munro. Conditions worsened at 600m onwards and navigation became reliant on map and compass skills. Luckily I had come across another walker who was also ascending the Corbett. He also had a GPS system that cut...

There are different classifications of Scottish Mountains. First of all there is the Munros, hills over 300ft. Under that the Corbetts, hills which range from 2500ft to 2999ft. Below this There are Grahams and Donalds ranging between 2000-2499ft and 1500 to 1999ft respectively.