Geo-Trips :: A long day out
West Monar Forest
A walk from the Bearnais bothy, Fri, 11 Sep 2015 by Richard Law
preceding leg | This trip is part of a series. | next leg |
2 Corbetts and 2 Munros taken in a clockwise direction from the Bearnais bothy.
The day started inauspiciously. My mate decided that some running repairs to one of his gaiters were required, so tried to create an additional hole in the strap that runs underneath the sole of his boot. In the course of this, the penknife folded over on itself and sliced a big chunk out of one of his fingers. Much blood and some naughty words ensued, followed by a bit of looking rather green, then turning a peculiar shade of pale and lying down for several minutes. This passed, fortunately, as we were miles from anywhere and completely unable to summon help by phone. We strapped it up with a small first aid kit and set off for the day's walk, to 'see how it goes'. I'll be honest, his hand remained rather sore all day and needed 3 stitches in Fort William A&E when we got back there a couple of days later.
In reality, the only technical difficulty on this walk is finding a way up onto Bidein a' Choire Sheasgaich from the Bealach an Sgoltaidh; there is a faint path up from the pass, which takes you to a stepped ramp through the first band of crags, but then rather peters out in the middle grassy shelf of the hill. The previous evening, we'd spotted a gully round to the right of this shelf, so a bit of traversing grass and rocks brought us to that, and a swift clamber up saw us safely on the north ridge of the hill, not far from point 852 and the wee lochan on the side of the ridge. From there, the top is easy, and the walk along the ridge to Lurg Mhòr is fine. The narrow eastern ridge of that second Munro proves to be a real treat, and must be missed by many walkers who've come in from the road - bent on getting back to the car, they'll cut out unnecessary extensions. We had other thoughts, one of which was collecting a few Firsts on the way down through Coire a' Charra, and the other of which was getting up onto Ben Dronaig for the day's second Corbett.
He must have recovered OK, as we ended up doing 17 miles and 6800' of ascent, collecting two Corbetts, 2 full-blown Munros and his final Munro 'top' of a complete round. Not too bad for a pair of 50-somethings.
Click the blue circles to see a photograph taken from that spot and read further information about the location. The blue lines indicate the direction of view. There is also a slideshow of this trip. ( )
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Along the ridge of Meall Mòr
Due east along the long narrow ridge of Meall Mòr, which drops very steeply... more
Descending Coire a' Charra
Walking down Coire a' Charra from the ridge of Meall Mòr, with Loch an... more
The lower slopes of Coire a' Charra
After a long, albeit grassy, descent of the coire, the prospect of a good... more
Lower slopes of Coire a' Charra
Low down in the corrie, looking towards An Gead Loch.
Sheiling huts by the Allt a' Ghraigh-fhear
Unmarked in sufficient detail on the maps, which only show one structure here.
Across the glen towards Cnoc a' Mhoraire
Cnoc a' Mhoraire is the name given to the 'lumpy' ground of glacial moraines in... more
Across Coire Beithe
The rather shapely Coire Beithe defines the northern side of the Corbett Beinn... more
Coire Beithe from above
Looking across the 'alp' of the upper corrie, with a mixture of moraines and small... more
Upper Coire Beithe
Not far above the exit of the gorge of one of the burns that drains the corrie,... more
Upper gorge of the Allt Coire Bheithe
Here the narrow gorge a couple of hundred yards below has opened up to a rubble-run.
Along the stalkers' track
This well-constructed track runs across this western face of Beinn Tharsuinn... more
Short stretch of stalkers' track
Taken from somewhere just beyond the point at which the track in [[4673505]] dips... more
Errr, do you know where we are?
Yep, I do, cos I've got a GPS in my hand, and I can say with some certainty that... more
Tributary of the Allt Coire Bheithe
The map shows two burns draining the upper corrie, this being the more... more
Northern slopes of Beinn Tharsuinn
The Corbett Beinn Tharsuinn has a separate western 'top' which lies just in... more
The Allt Coire Beithe
Clean water and exposed bedrock in the bed of the stream; almost a Lakeland gill scramble.
Rocks and the upper gorge of the stream
Jumbled rocks at the top of a short scramble up the stream bed; it's actually all... more
Northern summit of Beinn Tharsuinn
A large, rounded dome at 817m, which lies off to the north of the true summit of... more
Beinn Tharsuinn's summit cairn
Not a particularly large affair at all, and long may it remain so. This feels like... more
Lochan on Beinn Tharsuinn
This windswept lochan lies on the ridge of the Corbett, overlooking and draining... more
High on Beinn Tharsuinn's west ridge
Well above the corrie that I'd taken a lot of trouble to photograph the evening... more
Yup, it goes up there
A narrow but easy rocky ramp - this short pitch is the key to the ascent of Bidein... more
At the top of the ramp
The distance to the bealach below indicates that we're roughly 700' above that... more
On the NW face of Bidein a' Choire Sheasgaich
We'd lost the lightly-cairned path up the north face at this point, but had... more
Up there next...
After a traverse of the hillside, this is the view of a narrowing grassy gully... more
Up the grassy gully
A rather unusual way to ascend Bidein a' Choire Sheasgaich. Not helped in this... more
Lochan on the north ridge
Passed here at the relatively sheltered eastern end - there was a fierce easterly... more
Looking down the north ridge of Bideain a' Choire Sheasgaich
Not hard country at all - just gloriously wild and remote. The lower part of the... more
Rather like the edge of the known world
The north ridge of Bidein a' Choire Shaeasgaich drops off steeply just here for a... more
Summit cairn on Bideain a' Choire Sheasgaich
At 945m, it's the 224th highest Munro, so not particularly high up in the... more
Eastern corrie of Bidein a' Choire Sheasgaich
The hill has a steep eastern ridge, here seen in profile, which encloses a... more
Down into the eastern corrie
The nameless eastern corrie of Sheasgaich, which drains into Loch Monar via the... more
Back upwards onto Bidean a' Choire Sheasgaich
The Bealach Cùl an Torrain
The name is printed on the OS 1:25000 map in the corrie on the north side, but... more
The Bealach Cùl an Torrain
A low drystone wall has been constructed along this bit of the ridge, but it's in... more
Heading up onto Lurg Mhor
Second visit for my mate here, who rather carelessly omitted to bag the 'top' on... more
Lurg Mhòr's west ridge
Back down the west side of this hill, at 968m the 163rd-highest Munro. Bidein a'... more
Last few steps to Lurg Mhòr
Practically at the summit cairn, which is a superb viewpoint for the hills to east... more
Summit area from the east
Walking away from Lurg Mhòr towards its nearby 'top'of Meall Mòr,... more
It's proper steep on the east ridge
This northerly face of Lurg Mhòr's east ridge drops roughly 2200' into the... more
East ridge of Lurg Mhòr
Steep cliffs on the east ridge, not far from the summit.
Walking towards Meall Mòr
Not quite as intimidating as it looks, unless you walk right on the edge in a... more
Back up towards the summit of Lurg Mhòr
A little way down the narrow east ridge, with a big drop of 2000' on the right (as... more
Out on the eastern ridge
Heading over the last significant bump in the ridge towards the 'top' of Meall Mòr.
Meall Mòr from the west
Meall Mòr is a nearby 'top' of the Munro Lurg Mhòr, but is... more
Last section to the 'top'
The final stretch of path from Lurg Mhòr onto the 'top' of Meall... more
Meall Mòr summit cairn
Right on the top. And completing my mate's round of all the Munros and their tops,... more
Steep ground near the summit of Meall Mòr
Steep slopes drop down on the north side of this ridge, towards Loch Monar whose... more
Rock ribs and grassy gullies
This sort of mixed ground dominates the steep northern slopes of the ridge here.... more
The steep northern side of the ridge
This slope drops down nearly 2000' to Loch Monar.
Down into Coire a' Charra
In contrast to the diabolically steep northern side, this slope drops easily down... more
On the northern side of Coire a' Charra
Unspectacular grass and rock slope on the flank of the corrie.
The floor of the corrie
Coire a' Charra has well-drained flanks, but a rather more boggy and peat-hag... more
Lower slopes of Coire a' Charra
Exiting the corrie, with An Gead Loch in the glen below, and Loch Monar beyond... more
Across Coire a' Charra
The flat(tish) floor of the corrie comprises mainly peat hags and boggy ground.... more
Below Coire a' Charra
Exiting the bottom of the corrie into the glen, where An Gead Loch and Loch Monar... more
Below Leathad a' Charra
On the lower slopes of Coire a' Charra, with An Gead Loch and the Pait Lodge arm... more
Argocat track below Coire a' Charra
This track runs right across this hillside, apparently joining Pait Lodge in the... more
Argocat track across the hillside
The track formed by regular use of a small vehicle running between Pait Lodge and... more
Allt a' Ghraigh-fhear
A burn draining the south-eastern side of Lurg Mhòr; it flows into the... more
Ford across the Allt a' Ghraigh-fhear
An easy paddle in low water conditions, which might be a little more interesting... more
Inside the sheiling hut
The interior structure of the largest ruin in [[4662562]], which originally seems... more
Upgraded stalkers' track near the Allt a' Graigh-fhear
Originally a pony path, but now like so many in the glens, this has been widened... more
Stalkers' track below Coire a' Graigh-fhear
The track runs across the hillside, joining Pait Lodge with Bendronaig Lodge; Loch... more
Moorland and the glen floor
Extensive, slightly boggy, moorland in the glen, with Lochan Gobhlach in the... more
Floor of the glen
Extensive boggy moorland, with An Cruachan and the Munro of An Riabhachan beyond.
Along the glen towards Maol-bhuidhe
Although the bothy of Maol-bhuidhe isn't visible in this shot, it lies at the foot... more
Below Lurg Mhòr's southern spur
The mountain sends out a long southern ridge, which encloses one side of Coire a'... more
Track below Lurg Mhòr
Stalkers' track that traverses the lower southern side of Lurg Mhòr,... more
Stalkers' track and the glen below Lurg Mhòr
Looking back along the stalker's track that runs the full length of this glen,... more
Resting on the sheep fank below Lurg Mhòr
Many of the stones in the walls of this enclosure have suffered the ravages of... more
Track past Loch Calavie
The stalkers' track runs the full length of the glen between Pait Lodge and... more
The bigger beach
On the eastern end of Loch Calavie (ie the one that usually gets the brunt of the... more
Get the swimming trunks out...!
Ooh, hang on, there's an even better beach just along the way [[4680910]].
Sheiling remains on a hillock
From close-up, this is clearly a man-made structure of stone walls, but not... more
If you don't fancy the stepping stones, you can 'monkey' across
The alternative pedestrian crossing of the Allt Loch Calavie - there are stepping... more
Stepping stones at the outflow of Loch Calavie
No problem crossing here when the water level is low, as on this occasion. Higher... more
Last gasps of the stalkers' track
Exactly as mapped, the path up the eastern flank of Dronaig dies right here.
Stalkers' track, Ben Dronaig's eastern end
This track wends its way up onto the higher reaches of Ben Dronaig, then peters... more
From Ben Dronaig to Loch Calavie
On the eastern end of Ben Dronaig
A reasonable path eases the first 500' or so of the steep eastern end of this... more
Two deer on steep ground
The last two individuals from a small herd of red deer climb the hill. Rather... more
Tiny lochan on Ben Dronaig
A small peaty lochan, which provides a foreground for the hills of the Pait... more
An evening ascent of Ben Dronaig
Not an easy evening stroll at all - this was actually the last climb of a 17-mile... more
Lochan without Red Deer
The same lochan as [[1570885]], but without the local wildlife.
This requires the jacket on again
After a long (1500') climb up the east ridge, a brisk wind was whipping the top of... more
Flush Bracket on the summit
Flush bracket S9741 in the base of the summit Vanessa trig pillar. Originally... more
Vanessa trig on Ben Dronaig
The cast concrete trig pillar on the summit rocks; flush bracket on the south side... more
Just below and west of the summit
A sheltered cranny to sit in, and to admire the view over to Bideain a' Choire... more
Faint path between two lochans
A nascent hill-baggers' path is starting to form on the ridge between these two... more
The top of steepish ground, north side of Ben Dronaig
A view to Bidein a' Choire Sheasgaich from the start of a descending traverse of... more
Back up towards the summit of Ben Dronaig
The actual summit & trig pillar are just out of sight, hidden by the rocks at... more
Coire na Sorna
The upgraded track is clearly visible; the fence that runs just above it on the... more
The Allt Coire na Sorna - upstream
This burn drains an area of moorland between Bidein a' Choire Sheasgaich and Ben... more
The Allt Coire na Sorna - downstream
Track junction just above Bendronaig Lodge
The shonky footbridge above Bendronaig Lodge
It's still usable, there are other photos on here to demonstrate that. And would... more
Estate track northwards towards Loch an Laoigh
This one-time pony track has been widened and 'improved' as far as the loch, where... more
Track towards Loch an Laoigh
Fading evening light, and we still have a couple of miles to walk to get back to... more
The track past Loch an Laoigh
A rather late afternoon/poor light shot of the upgraded and widened stalkers'... more
Ford on the track east of Loch an Laoigh
This section of track hasn't received as much attention recently as that further... more
Moorland Argocat track
Repeated use by a small vehicle has formed this trackway across the peaty ground... more
All images © Richard Law and available under a Creative Commons licence .