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Toll Creagach Tom a Choinich Carn Eighe Beinn Fhionnlaidh Mam Sodhail Map Glen Affric. I knew this was going to be a long day as the guide book reckoned it would take around 12 hours to cover the full 23 miles, 5 munros and various intermediate tops, so I wanted to get an early start. Having driven up to Cannich on the Friday I got a not very filling meal of canneloni at the Slaters Arms and then slept in the car in Glen Affric, near to the start point of the walk. When I went to sleep the weather was overcast - it had been raining on the way up - but at least there were no midges around. The next day, however, when I blearily looked out of the window at about 5.30 a few of them had appeared and were dancing around but the weather still didn't look very nice so I had another half hour in the sleeping bag. Then I looked out again and, to my dismay, the whole glen was now one seething, solid mass of midge! They were everywhere, baring their teeth at me through the windows and charging towards me, desperate for my blood. Some even found their way inside via the car's air vents. Still, while I remained inside I was fairly safe and at the same time I was being treated to a good view of a shrew which was rummaging about in the grass and under leaves, looking for its breakfast. It had a round, brown body about 2 inches long excluding tail and it moved in quick stop-start motions, poking its head here and there, totally oblivious of the unseen watcher in the car. Because of the midge menace I skulked in the car and had to get dressed and break my fast without opening a door or a window - tricky but I managed it. I then drove a few hundred yards to the actual car park and got out. There I met another bloke who was wondering whether to make the trip in the light of the rather poor weather prospects. He said he would but I never saw him again so I think he thought better of it. Personally I had less choice, of course - having driven 580 miles for this I could hardly give it a miss without good reason and although it was cloudy it wasn't actually raining. I left the car at 7.15 and followed the track towards Toll Creagach. It was fairly easy going and just past the point where a branch in the path turns off to the right I set off directly up the steep grassy side of Toll Creagach. Lots of heather there, making the route a bit harder but eventually I got near the top and the incline slackened off. I was in light cloud by this time and visibility was only a couple of hundred yards. I walked on and on and arrived at the top of Toll Creagach at 9.40 - a trig point on stony ground with little to see because of the cloud.
Turning west I had an easy amble along a broad, gently declining slope until I came to the Bealach Toll Easa. I had to check the bearings with a compass on the way as there was no sign of a path and the mist obscured any reference points. At the bealach a steeper drop down took me to the low point from where a steepish climb back up led me to the top of the second Munro, Tom a Choinich. At least there'd been a path up this last stretch, though, which made things a bit easier. Another misty, stony summit, reached at 11.05.
From here I followed the ridge, having to crest a couple of interim, nameless tops on the way. It was a great ridge walk and a shame I was taking it in cloud and not seeing it at its best. As it was I could appreciate the occasional narrow bits and the distinctive pinnacles and crags which loomed out of the shadows as I passed. All safe enough though. Just past the 1131 metre peak (which had been a hard slog and seemed worthy of Munro status to me) I came upon the only person I was to see all day on the hills. He was a Canadian, about 60, short white hair and yellow jacket on which was some kind of badge with the words 'Canadian' and 'Sierra' something. He wasn't very talkative when I said hello and when I asked where he was going he pointed off at right angles to the path and said 'North. I'm going to Beinn Fhionnlaidh.' I told him if he went that way he'd end up in the corrie and that he needed to head West first and then North. He didn't look very convinced but said he'd have a look at his map and I left him to it, sitting on the rocks in the middle of the cloud. I carried on along the ridge and arrived at the summit of Carn Eighe (1.30) without any difficulties - a barren rocky place with a trig point but no views because of the cloud.
From here the next Munro is Beinn Fhionnlaidh which Cameron McNeish describes thus:
Summoning my willpower I set off down the northern shoulder of Carn Eighe and had quite a long descent. Fortunately a path bypasses the 917 metre top which sits between the two mountains, and this brought me easily down to the Bealach Beag. Having crossed the bealach it was then a simple, gentle, mostly grassy ascent to the summit of Beinn Fhionnlaidh (2.40). Still in cloud - visibility about 150 yards so no views.
I turned back and soon met my Canadian pal coming up the hill. I was glad he'd managed to find the way in the end because I'd been a bit worried about his apparent lack of navigation skills and had been wondering whether or not to mention him to the police when I got back down, in case he went missing. Still he'd made it so I suppose I must have underestimated him. I knew it shouldn't be necessary to re-ascend Carn Eighe as the guide said it was possible to contour round it on the west side. There wasn't much of a path to follow and I used the GPS to check my altitude so as to meet the col on the other side at the right height. From the col there was a path which led up to the top of Mam Sodhail (4.25). The way was fairly steep and rocky with some short grass and at the top sat an enormous turret-like cairn.
Now all that remained to do was to get back to civilisation. I didn't take the suggested route along the Sgurr na Lapaich ridge as it appeared to involve some re-ascents and I was pretty knackered by now - plus there would be nothing to see because of the cloud. Instead I made my way down the SE spur of the mountain to the col and then turned east along a reasonable path. (ie it didn't keep disappearing.) There was no difficulty with route-finding but it was a long, gruelling walk back down. Before reaching the trees on the banks of Loch Affric the path comes to a junction - shown as a purple border on the 1:50000 Landranger map - at which point I turned east. From there it was a straightforward, mostly level, walk back to the car. On rounding a bend I came upon a red deer stag bestriding the track. He was sideways on to me and turned his head directly towards me presenting me with the full sweep of his antlers. He looked very impressive as he stood there for a moment, watching me approach. Then he casually bounded off into the undergrowth. Not very far though for I could still see him there, waiting till I'd gone. I didn't want to disturb him any more so I kept on going - after all he lived there not me.
From Mam Sodhail it was all of 6 miles back to the car, making it quite a strenuous day; I got back at 7.30 having taken twelve and a quarter hours for the trip. I couldn't find any B&B vacancies in Cannich - it's not a big place - but found a great backpackers hostel. Only £10 a night and it had a shower and TV room and a very well-equipped kitchen. For an evening meal though I was forced back to the Slaters Arms for another rather unsatisfying meal of veggy canneloni. Just not enough bulk after a high energy day like today, even with the trifle for afters. Still I was ravenous so it all went down. | |||||||||
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