Scottish based aspiring mountaineer always on the look out for some new adventure that will stretch and develop me. One half of a husband/wife Alpine adventure couple.
It’s been some year . I knew that due to a lot going on at home including my wife’s illness ( now thankfully completely passed) , work and an impending house sale / move that not only had I been out in the wilds very few times but that if neglected to post .
Discovering my last post was 2022… full of optimism for a winter season in the hills and mountains .. was a shock to say the least.
So , an apology to my readers and a promise that more is coming very soon. I do have some content that’s been on my desk ( figuratively of course) for an age and new content to come also so near with me and “watch this space”
I’m writing this update from a very very long overdue and much needed full on relaxation holiday on the lovely island of Gran Canaria . No hiking , climbing , driving or exploring ancient sites , just rest and recuperation ( mostly for my wife but as much for me I think). Here then at least are some nice holiday snaps to keep the site moving ! Be back soon!
ok so I said no ancient sites.. I kind of snuck 1 in. On the beachfront is a c1000 year old habitation site ( below)
Getting to the end of the year, I realised I still had a few days annual leave left to take and so decided to grab a Monday for a change and use it to get on a hill. Don’t know about you but Mondays are usually the day that sucks most , not matter how much you enjoy your job, so taking one off to head into the hills instead can only be a GREAT idea!
Trossachs bound, my route took me past (for about the 100th time) the Stirling monument, in honour of Sir Archibald David Stirling DSO OBE, the founder of the Special Air Service (SAS) – born locally at Bridge of Allan. An amazing character brought to life along with his fellow SAS pioneers in the TV show recently aired called SAS Rogue Heroes.
The Stirling monument My target, can you guess which one?Loch Lubnaig from the start of the path up my chosen hill (got it yet?)
We’d been having sustained cold weather (sub zero) and waking up early and setting off in the dark, it’s still -7C when I arrived at my starting point – the car park at Strathyre cabins.
This could only mean one hill – Ben Ledi (did you work it out?) , near Callander, and rising above Loch Lubnaig. Ben Ledi is a gnats follicle below a Munro and at 897m is one of the larger Corbett’s around, and its steep forest start, false summits and long loop return (if chosen) make it every bit as big a day out as any Munro.
Usually very busy I was overjoyed to see the car park almost empty and as I set off, my breath misting as the sun rose to make tinsel of the frosty spider webs in the undergrowth I couldn’t help but grin and think – “yep THIS is how to spend a Monday! ” The name Ben Ledi is apparently a corruption of the Gaelic Beinn Letir , meaning Hill of the Slope and has been more recently mis translated to mean hill of God (an error due to the similarity on the name le dia .
Getting the new kit out on the hill ahead of “real” winter days
As I was on my own for a change I was happy to set off at my own pace but still stop and just drink in the views and atmosphere as I felt was needed or wanted. No pressure today ! Today was also the first outing for some new kit from Jottnar, and a new winter pack from Osprey so an easy day was a great way to just get to grips with all the zips, pockets, features and foibles of the kit, ahead of proper winter days out to come. A review of the Jottnar shell jacket and pants to follow. The Osprey I will probably review at season end once I really find out what I do and (possibly) don’t like.
As dawn gave way to clear blue skies I thanked the hill gods for what was proving to be a truly superb day !
After making my way up the steep forest path (very well maintained – honestly I don’t know how you folks do it!) i emerged into open ground and as I rounded the shoulder of the hill i came into sun – and this was cue to strip off a layer , the heat amazingly going from sub zero to “warm”.
From here we continue to rise to a false summit before descending to the bealach nan Corp (pass of the dead, so named as it was an old coffin “road” between Glen Finlas and St Brides chapel close to Loch Lubnaig. They were hardy folks back in the day !
Starting to get more frosty / snowy now – what a view !
At Bealach nan Corp (Pass of the dead)
Local folklore also tells of a party of 200 funeral goers who while attempting to cross the pass in the dead of winter made and error and while crossing the frozen lochan (a small lake) fell in due to its ice breaking – all of them losing their lives. Ben Ledi is also perhaps familiar to some due to its appearance in Walter Scott’s poem The Lady of the Lake – it’s got some history !
History aside for now, the bealach also offered me a lovely spot to rest and have a nice hot cup of coffee ,courtesy once again of my trusty Sigg flask (now adorned with Jottnar stickers! ). Taking in tyhe views both sides of the pass – white mountains stretching east and west , i could not have been happier. It being a Monday, and not at work only made me more so! And barely a soul on the hill – NOT common for Ledi!
Coffee done one last push up to the summit and we reach the snow covered top , with its trig point but not before stopping off at the iron cross, a memorial to a tragic accident involving Killin MRT when a helicopter incident saw Sgt. Harry Lawrie lose his life. A brief stop to pay respects and to take in the beauty of the views stretching as far as the Wallace monument and the Ochills and Campsies to the south west.
Play spot the mountain to your hearts content
A seat, a sandwich and a coffee- at the summit then. Insulated jacket on and hood up to keep the heat in, sitting on my pack i just – paused – just taking it all in, allowing the cold air to fill my lungs, the silence to envelope me a strip away the stresses of the day. A small slice of snowy heaven. It’s why we do it right?
I cannot rate this flask high enough !
After a while, a quick chat to a fellow Monday hillgoer and a summit snap it was a last chance to take in the calm of the summit for a few more minutes then it was time for home. Off down then path, bypassing the worst of the water ice cascading across sections of the path, chatting to those heading up and having nothing more stressful to think about than what i would do with my afternoon once i got down.
Heading back down
It was around this point, about half way down, mind wandering, me fiddling with my pack and all of a sudden my feet weren’t on the path anymore.. they were sliding. GOING DOWN! Yep , one last bit of ice id told myself on the way up to watch on descent.. only landing on my pack and keeping my head forward saved me from anything more serious than cut finger and bruised ego 😀
Just a wee bit of ice on the path
Four and a half hours later, back at the car, a quick change into comfy trainers (not better feeling) and I had one last coffee standing breathing in the mountain air before closing the boot , jumping in the driver seat and heading for home….
A last minute unexpected shout and Davy and I were on the road at 6am 2 days before Santa arrives, Cairngorms bound to try out luck and see what if anything was in nick in Coire an t-Sneachda if at least get a walk in. Hopes weren’t too high given the “turbothaw” of the last 2 days but we have been lucky in the past me and him. Would our luck hold?
Rolls and sausage, and car coffee fuelling us as we made our way up the A9 in the dark, we arrived at Aviemore and the Cairngorm ski gate not in the highest of optimism – there was a lot of black earth showing around the hills… park up, jump put and wham!
2 things hit us.. one – its BALTIC! Id forgotten how cutting and cold that Cairngorm car park wind is in winter and i was very glad of my new Jottnar jacket and pants (full test post coming very soon), and my hat , gloves and buff just to get my gear pulled together ! and Two.. there is SNOW – optimism scale just went up !
Davy Wright (of My Outdoors) along with Fraser Brown is a fairly long time hill buddy (both in Scotland and in the alps – we summitted the Monch , 4107m together). Along with Fraser , Davy is someone I’d happily follow anywhere on a hill. His fitness, doggedness and experience are superb, so being on a hill with him always instils an extra bit of confidence in me , even if I do end up breathing out an orifice not intended for breathing out of, trying to keep up with him!
Myself (L) and Davy (R) on the snowy walk in to Coire an t-Sneachda
As usual he set off at a pace and by the time we got to the corrie I have forced us to stop about 5 times and was very much looking forward to the break I’d get stopping to gear up for the route . What did motivate me however for the last 20 minutes walk or so was the very clear amount of snow at least in the gullies – were were defo getting on something that might involve sharp pointy things on feet and in hands!
Coire an t-Sneachda .. and snow !Aladdin’s buttress across the boulder field and frozen lochan (the dark mass middle left of photo), Aladdin’s Couloir runs up the left hand side of it
As the rock was very lean and its been a fair while since either of us has done anything too taxing in winter we decided to be sensible and take one of the easy gullies. The easiest route (albeit I hadn’t been on it before) is Aladdin’s Couloir , a simple Grade 1 so we decided we could solo it it , being well within our comfort. It was clear from the outset though that i was also leaner than usual, steep all over and we could see even from the route base there was going to be a short but fun step to negotiate about 50 metres from the start. (That could be off , I didn’t have a tape measure 😉 )
Tramping up to the route start, occasionally finding a nice hole that we could fall into thigh deep we got on the route and Davy led off, both of us moving relatively fast without a rope to manage . Ill cut a long story short and let the pictures tell it but we headed up, enjoying getting our arms and feet back on snow, some areas starting to firm up to a neve that would be in with a good cold blast. The step did indeed prove to be fun and offered a good training for getting back into steeper climbing but didn’t present any difficulties before we headed up the main chute before moving onto the left hand running ramp and up to the plateau.
Lower ramp up to the route proper (Davy)Davy with me trailing behind… as usual 😀With the spindrift I was glad of goggles. Davy tackling steep step Yours truly finishing the step
As we neared the top the wind was up, spindrift was getting up and visibility on the plateau so neither the trudge home via Corrie Ciste or even trying to locate the top of the Goat Track (our usual return route when climbing here) were particularly inviting so we opted for the most obvious return, heal planting back down Aladdin’s, knowing wed need to down climb the step. By now the wind was definitely increasing speed and things were getting colder.. and more “spindrifty” Our recent footprints and kicked footholds were almost filled now so it was definitely starting to come in a bit.
Its these views that I do it for – adventure on our doorstepThe team we passed on descent
We had met a group on the walk in and they had come on the route behind us , doing some winter mountaineering training, 2 teams of 3 on rope and we met them now coming down just above the step, which was am obvious “no passing” pinch point so Davy and I dug out seats and prepared for a seat and a wait. Soon the lead of group1 came up to the rock in front of us to set up a belay and had us chatting away while she methodically prepped and set up the belay, brought up her team then moved off just as the second team arrived to do the same.
By this point the chills were setting in so gloves pair number 3 – the big warm guide gloves were on and my fingers were starting get cosy again, As soon as the teams (from RAF rescue up to do Christmas cover) moved off we stated to downclimb, giving each other plenty space to avoid any real problems and once both down the step (much more fun on downclimb), back down the lower ramp of the route , a tricky wander over the rocks and back onto the path before our walk out and a coffee once we got back to the ski centre.
Looking back down to Loch Morlich
It may have been a simple route but getting out on a winter route after so long away, having the views that the Cairngorms offers up and spending the day with a good buddy made it one of the best in some time ! Couple of hours in the car and it was feet up, dinner and a tipple to reflect on a brilliant day out.
Here’s to many more to come !! Oh and Davy , you left your hat in my car !
Actually this part of the trip was more than just the great mans house but hey that title would draw you in for sure 😉
After a good nights sleep we set off towards Bangor, the town where Stephen Kings house (he mainly lives elsewhere now) resides and the town he based Derry on in his many books both standalone and within the dark Tower epic. (If you’ve seen IT for example… that’s Derry!).
Heading up through lovely lillt New England towns, in no rush and taking in the beautiful house types and winding wood lined streets (quote simialir at times to Scotland but with a NE twist) we arrived at Bangor around lunch time and wound our way round the town to our main (and most MINE) objective, Stephens Kings House.
We arrived in a plain suburban street , lined with trees and large New England style houses, rolled up to his and spotted it immediate – not many houses have gates and a fence interwoven with all manner of creepy and spooky images such as bats , and not many have a large totem pole in their yard !
Mr Kings House
There were a few other fans like me , clutching various King Novels ( I brought a very early copy of the first Dark Tower novel – The Gunslinger), in the vain hope that maybe.. just maybe the great man would be around to give it a sign (no such luck although we did see someone leave in their car and we will always be sure it was his wife) .
Excuse the knees! Me with the Gunslinger
A few photos snaps, me fanboying over the house, some nice conversation with other lovely fans (amazed at my being from Scotland) then it was back in the car to go find lunch and plan our return to Portland with a couple of stop offs on the way.
First stop we had planned to stop off and see what is known as the “most photographed lighthouse in New England” – Bubble Nidick but as it was early in the day still we decided to take one of random road trip detours (thats what road trips are all about right!?) to Acadia nation park, South east of Bangor.
Winding across the island and with no real goal we finally ended up at a small harbour and just took some time to sit and watch the boats come and go. It was very peaceful and a good piece of real “down time” among what can be a pretty full on itinerary.
Reluctantly we climbed back into the bus and headed for Portland, but first Nubble Niddick . Arriving at the busy car park we find a wedding in full swing so crowd gather to watch , with the beautiful white lighthouse and red roofed house as a backdrop to their photos . Rather than fight through the crowd or risk interrupting we spotted an Ice Cream stand so headed for that. One thing they don’t do in the US is scrimp on portions.. a SMALL cone was MASSIVE and some of the best tasting ice cream we’ve ever had but my god it was not easy to finish before it melted , but hey we gave it a good shot !
Nubble Niddick Lighthouse
Photos done, we hooped back in the car and made for our home for the night Portland. When we arrived we changed , freshened up and went for a wander on town to find somewhere to eat and grab a beer. After first of all finding almost nothing and beginning to think Portland was a bit of a ghost town by wife’s keen nose and eye spotted folks moving around a couple of streets nearer the harbour – lo and behold a whole run of brilliant bars and eateries!
We settled on a cosy and busy beer hall called the Portland MashTun that not only served THE best selection of beers I’ve ever seen with great humour and banter but their food was INCREDIBLE – from memory (we had a lot of beer) they were spicy chicken taco’s and my god they were good !… we slept well.. dreaming of the Vermont adventure to come tomorrow! More of that in the next post!
The folks next to us at the bar, as often happens on hearing the accent got to talking and we walked away with good cheers but also a hot lead on a superb diner in Portland to grab breakfast!
The Portland MashTun , amazing beers, folks and food !
After a 2nd night in Boston (one that went on very late and may have involved a few “lemonades” and the crashing of a wedding… ), and following our trip down cape cod and to Plymouth (previous post) we were now setting off on the main body of the trip that would take us initially up the coast Northeast through Maine, then West into Vermont and finally south again down through Connecticut and end in NYC.
The plan (roughly as you need to stay flexible on big roads trips ) was to weave our way up the coast stopping at Salem for some Witch related tourist stuff (I’m a massive horror/supernatural fan .. but more on this later.. and the sobering aspect ), continue onto Kittery Outlets as my wife fancied some retail therapy at great US prices (cant blame her), take in some New England roadside seafood on the way , visit some landmarks and then end up in our next port of stay – Portland, ME.
After navigating the “bus” as I was coming to call our giant SUV out of Boston (not recommended if you are at all stressed by impatient drivers, tight confusing streets or are driving on the wrong side for the first time – as we came to find every other state says NEVER drive in Boston 😀 ) and onto the the I295 heading for Salem.
So, anyone who’s watched TV, knows horror or even has a passing awareness of Witch trials/”witches” in general has heard of Salem. Salem city as is today was founded in the early 1600’s on land previously known as Naumkeag by the native peoples at the time the Europeans began to settle. Its famous of course for the persecution of so called witches and one local wealthy merchant , John Hathorne, became known as the key judge (and the hanging Judge) in such trials which saw the hanging of 19 people (the vast majority women) and the pressing to death of one man – the trials only coming to and end when a member of his immediate family was accused of witchcraft (convenient).
The Witch House – Home of John Hathorne, Witch trial judge
Fun fact though…there were two Salems back then – the city that remains and is well known but also Salem Village, now called Danvers further south. Many of those arrested and “convicted” of Witchcraft (falsely of course !) hailed from Salem Village (now Danvers) including Rebecca Nurse, a 71 year old who despite there being no real evidence was hanged mostly due to one mans accusation and others who had quarrel with her claiming she had cursed them. Like the others he was Hanged and then finally 19 years later was fully acquitted. This is where the sobering part comes in.
Artifacts and items from the trials eraHouse interiorHouse InteriorHathorns daughters in portrait
Touring Hathorne’s house (now a museum known as Witch House – and fascinating to visit) the horrific reality of the trials quickly dispels the fascination with “Witches ” in the Hollywood sense. This was an abhorrent period not only in the US but also sadly prolific in Scotland under James I (of England – VI of Scotland) . The town of course is awash with tourist elements and relies heavily on tat for trade and marketing – understandable in the modern age, but sad once you realise the underlying reality.
A very interesting place nevertheless to visit , and to learn of the real stories of the famous Witch Trial , and to give a moment to recognise those poor peoples plight.
“Sam” the witch from the TV show Bewitched in downtown Salem, a short walk from the Witch House
Heading out of Salem we continued up 295 hitting the Kittery outlets but more importantly grabbing our first New England chowder at a small roadside cabin type place , super busy , bustling and the food was amazing and fueled the wander round the stores! Prior to travelling, everyone we mentioned the road trip to had said we must try lobster rolls but honestly … lobster in a roll I don’t get so chowder was the go to – sorry New Englanders!
All shopped out the next stop was for bed and food – Portland Maine . We arrived pretty late and couldn’t really find much (more of that in alter report) so pizza and beer was the order of the day and feet up and sleep came pretty soon after !
Our next report covers our trip to Bangor Me, one of my favorite authors,Stephen King’s house and the most photographed lighthouse in America (I’m sure i read that)
While normally I focus on mountains, hiking and exploring more remote areas this is a road trip report that covers diverse experiences around New England. Hope you enjoy and maybe get some ideas and inspiration !
Some locations discussed are lands of original peoples or discuss political activity as they fought for rights – I have hopefully been sensitive in what I write and do apologise unreservedly in advance if I write anything incorrect or by error offensive and would encourage anyone with corrections to reach out to me via my contact details so I can rectify the piece. As a Scot, with a deep love of history I have a vested interest in representing original cultures, peoples and their rights accurately – and where able to celebrate them.
For anyone following we visited a number of US states and National parks before the world was transformed through the pandemic of then last couple of years, so once an element of “normality” had returned to travel, and after a great ski trip to Les2Alps in late winter we decided to get another US Road Trip under our belts.
Driving the US is for me by far the best way to experience the people, places and culture . Its built for driving – the infrastructure be it roads, gas stations, attractions and places to stay along the way are second to none and putting the environmental impact aside we love it – granted the impact now is something we need to seriously consider so I suspect electric travel will factor in our next one!
Having explored 5 states, 6 national parks and covering 3000 miles plus across The Rockies, Utah and Moab last time out we decided this time to do East coast – New England. Between is history, connection to the US, its diversity of landscape and people and (importantly to me !) its connection to all things spooky and horror related it was a no brainer.
Plan then … land Boston (a city I’ve only briefly visited on business), head down to Cape Cod (of Splash fame!), loop back up through witch central (Salem) , along the Eastern seaboard to Bangor in Maine (Stephen King country), head across to the mountains of Vermont and wind our way south again to finish up with a couple of days and a show in NYC .2500 miles , 6 states and 10 days – here we go!
Using the Roadtrippers app to plan (amazing find and well worth the small subscription – I will share the full route at the end of the series so stay tuned) I was able to plot a detailed route, places to stay, sites to sea and even judge times and “gas” costs ! This is both a desktop and mobile app so great for planning when you are at home or in your hotel and then handy to use on the road as GPS / navigation aid. Using the stack of hotel points my wife has accrued we also grabbed a bunch of free night stays along the way so managed to keep costs down. As it was June the temps between states would vary a little but not as much as the ice and snow to desert backing swing we got last time so packing was a little easier (and lighter). Also with no bear presence we could forego bear spray this time!
So after a hop from Glasgow to London we flew to Boston Logan , picked up the hire car (FAR too big for what I needed or asked for! ) loaded up and headed to our first hotel where we would stay for 2 night, letting us hit Boston city and also get down to Cape Cod. Checked in (US service always impresses me – lovely folks who cant do enough for you) we had a view across Boston harbour to the city and discovered we could get the water Taxi to cross and explore the town. A short but really fun trip later we arrived at the wharf of Boston and headed into the city to explore ahead of visiting my previous find on a business trip Daryll’s Kitchen – quite simply the best place in Boston for welcome, food and importantly Jazz ! Each night you have bands from the nearby home of Jazz schools Berklee perform to a small , intimate and packed but very welcoming crowd. Get a table booked, get in early and enjoy the AMAZING food while listening – perfect !
Next day was a trip down to Cape Cod to visit the historic “pilgrim” village of Plymouth , see the Mayflower 2 and enjoy the drive – this latter bit questionable as day 1 driving in then US on very busy roads, out of Boston (most stressful place I’ve ever driven ) and on a Saturday was a bit of a trial by fire.. think I still have white knuckles from the steering wheel..
The Plimouth Patuxet Plantation living museum
Setting of early we had only a loose plan but pone key stop was Plimouth Patuxet Plantation includes a fully recreated 17th century pilgrim village on Plymouth coast, with live action role players living and working in the village. Touring around it you not only get to see how the village was laid out , can enter each to see how people lived after the voyages from England but you can (and often do) interact with the “villagers” who are fully in character as they go about their daily chores. Should you speak to one you will quickly find you are having a conversation of the time ! A great place for education as well as enjoyment, it includes the village, a fort and – for us very important – retains a first peoples site nearby.
This site on the Eel river , known as Historic Patuxet is where, through local contemporary interpreters, you can learn about those who have been here for the last 12,000 years (spoiler alert – Columbus did not “Discover America”.) Sitting on deep fur convered benches in a wetu (house) listening to one young lady of the Wampanoag people talk about daily community life was completely fascinating and is something anyone visiting New England should experience – to remind us all of the history , culture and civilisation of the region, BEFORE the Europeans invaded. Touring the areas you can see examples of crops, cooking and of dug out canoes (mishoon) – a great and unexpected experience .
From Plimouth village and after speaking to a lovely lady at the visitor centre we headed to Plymouth and to see the Mayflower II. Arriving for lunch we parked up, found a [place to eat on main street and chilled watching the world go by and settling into the US way of life. A short walk to the harbour , sunny but breezy, we arrived at the impressive Mayflower II. The Mayflower II is a faithful (mostly) reproduction of the famous ship that carried the “Pilgrims” across the Atlantic to land in what’s now known as New England. Wandering around the massive ship , seeing how deep it went and how large the hold was , how tall the sails are – it really was impressive. Then talking to the lovely folks on board we were amazed to discover the ship is fully seagoing, and had to be for modern requirements, its at times sailed up the coast or out of the harbour for shows, events and the like – that really would be something to see.
Our tour wrapped up and the day getting later we jumped back in the car and headed back for Boston (still finding driving the “bus” way too stressful in heavy NE traffic).
Wandering downtown Boston, exploring the streets, old building cheek and jowel with new gleaming ones, wandering the park up to the capitol building we were sad not to have longer to explore and definitely felt it was city we would like to spend longer in. Dinner spot found we got our fill , had a beer and then headed back to then hotel for what turned out to be a fun filled one where we ended up talking to (entertaining) a whole bunch of folk at the bar and stayed up WAY longer than we should have – good times !
Boston harbourView to Boston from across the harbour, water taxi coming in
Check out the next report for where we went next, spoilers it involves witches!
Up at 5.40am on a Saturday , quick bowl of cereal and flask packed .
Drive to Callander and a bit more and arrive at the Ben A’an car park nice an early , already a few cars . Paid my toll and off I stroll.
It’s steeper than I remember ( I say this every time) , the paths been developed – kudos to the teams who do this so us who wander can.
Up past what used to be the forest, a few years felled now , used to it despite its baldness. Blue skies for days and heat already rising .
Up through the river way , up through the trees standing and fallen, up to below the buttress of the best wee peak in Scotland ( on earth?)
Up the final rocky summit line , like an alpine top in miniature. Arrive at the rocky pointy summit with those sublime views.
Find my seat, pad out and on the ground , find a nook and recline fee dangling .
Coffee out , mini pork pie in hand – and … breathe. Breakfast of the gods in view terms at least. An 8am coffee never tasted so good. Just sit, relax, sip and munch , heaven.
Back down in smart time , down the road and back to the city for a day with loved ones. Already feel the pull back to the hills , the city pulling me back in , bringing me back to earth.
Any readers of my recent posts will know my niece Kaitlin has been spending more time with me at the gym and out on a wee hike recently around Glencoe. The plan then this weekend with the great forecast (and the early spring cool air promising to keep the midges away) was to do a “proper hill”.
Kaitlin (my own “wee bookil”) continually impresses me with her focus in the gym and her achievements at Uni and now her new career, and I knew she would have no problem with a Munro. Getting her up at 7.45am on a Saturday was probably going to be the bigger challenge but the promise of a roll and sausage and her being able to sleep for the 2 odd hour drive were enough to seal the deal.
Out the car and off up the path
Pickup at her flat in Glasgow, with roll and square in hand achieved, we set off for Glencoe and Buachaille Etive Beag (the little herdsman of Etive) or as most of us know it… the wee bookil.
Kaitlin didn’t end up sleeping – instead her, my wife and I chatted the whole road up past Loch Lomond and Tyndrum, up past the Bridge of Orchy and towards Glencoe. The march sun already up, skies blue and excitement all round to get out on a hill on a rare ultra-sunny day.
We parked up and off we set, up the well constructed path to the lower slopes of the wee bookil with the 3 sisters on our right, the Bein Fhada ridge flanking us as we rose.
The start of the steps
Out of the sun and in the lee of the hill, it was still very cool on this early spring day so we moved at pace until reaching the large rocky steps which make their way steadily up to the bealach , small snow patches remining at 600m or so. Sun climbing, giving us heat and energy to push on and up.
Taking in the views and a class bit of “Person” Legging by Kaitlin
As usual we stopped for a pre summit lunch (its only 11.30 but hey…) in some sheltered rocks just below the bealach, enjoying the views and chat )Kailtin has a sharp and wicked sense of humour it seems.. a family trait !) and considered our next move – North summit or South.. today only 1 was the plan.
A few guides were out with groups doing winter skills training like walking in crampons, ice axe arrest on the slops of Stob Dubh – essential for winter walking, or for bigger objectives like the alps and something you really MUST do to be safe , and keep your party safe in the mountains.
On reaching the bealach and seeing that the north summit (Stob Coire Reanach) was dry and snow free while its southerly neighbor Stob Dubh was covered from the bealach up , and it being Kaitlin’s first Munro we elected for the quicker, easier North. (its my 5th time up BEB and can confirm the South West ridge to the summit is a superb walk in all seasons , so we will be back!)
Bellies full and energy renewed we made for the rocky path to the summit , stopping to take in the breathtaking views across to Buachaille Etive Mor , its 3 peaks (only 2 counting as a Munro!) and long spine a rarer sight for many than its iconic pyramidal North face seen from the A82 through Glencoe and on many a mountain calendar and photo wall.
Haglofs future model? Lunch time smiles and a 1st Munro summit ahead
the spine of Buachaille Etive Mor from the Bealach (above image and below)
Its a steep final push to the top of Stob Coire Reanach (958m) , the path less distinct and rockier than the lower slopes, but soon the summit is reached and the whole of Glencoe and Rannoch Moor are revealed in all their glory.
Looking North from the bealach to the summit of Stob Coire Reanach Looking back to Stob Dubh from the North summit riseViews from the summit path to the Big BookilMunro bagged ! 958m – the tallest Kaitlin has ever been 😉 – only 281 to go.
All you can do is sit on one of the many flat topped boulders and outcrops to drink it all in, from The Big Bookil directly east to Bidean nam Bian west of us , and even north west across the tops and Aonach Eagach to the mighty Ben (Ben Nevis 1344m), today completely banked in snow in a great arc from Carn Mor Dearg summit and along the CMD arete (another spectacular and challenging route) to the Ben summit plateau.
The skies above are blue and the sun is glinting off snow dusted mountain summits all around, there are very few sights more beautiful than Scotland’s mountains, in spring, on a blue sky day with winters snsow hanging on for one final hurrah! ( in my humble opinion ) – and I look forward to many, many more – hopefully with Kaitlin at my side to enjoy them.
The Big and Wee Bookils 😉 Looking from the summit to Bidean nam BianSummit views across the Big Bookil (the summit of Stob Dearg ) to Rannoch Moor
Quick descent down the path and carefully across the snow patches to meet Sam my wife who due to a minor surgery on her toes had been chilling in the valley before coming back up to about 500m to meet us.
Car park reached , boots off, comfy trainers on we headed into Glencoe village for the customary and always delightful coffee and cake at Crafts & Things (if you haven’t been make sure you do !) before heading back to Glasgow and a feet up and movie night – best of times!
Celebrating 4 of the most important people in my life . Funny , smart, passionate , brave , caring, creative , ambitious and unstoppable ! And I love every one them. ( clockwise from Left top- My mum, wife , niece Lauren and Niece Kaitlin)
I don’t know about you but something we find ourselves saying (sometimes joking, many times … not) is .. “the hardest part of any route is finding the start”.
I don’t know how many times we’ve driven around trying to find the right starting point, or looked at a mountain trying to pick out the start o a route .. and North Buttress on Buachaille Etive Mor is no exception.. in fact its like my route start nemesis…
I should point out I’ve climbed it twice! But ..well.. I’m usually happily toddling along behind my good climbing buddy , the indomitable Fraser Brown.. so.. well.. I get lazy !
Anyhoo… for last couple of years (i.e. lockdown and beyond) ive been passing the Big Bookil and have made numerous failed attempts to pick out even the right buttress never mind the start point…
Side slip into.. I have a day to myself as Mrs McLovin is off out with pals so I decide to get out on the hill and decide to call on my niece Kaitlin to join me . Kaitlin has become my regular wee gym buddy, a recent grad, super smart and getting into her stride career wise and we’ve been talking about hiking/hillwalking for a while as like me she needs to be busy/active or gets bored and antsy . Hills and walks are something she used to do with her dad Michael who very sadly passed recently and since we have been spending a lot more time together (which I love!) it was a great chance to get up to Glencoe , where she hadn’t been yet and on to some bigger terrain… I could also scope our that elusive North Buttress start! Throughout our drive and walk she talked often about days out with Michael to Ben A’an, Ben Ledi and others so I was grateful to be able to help her continue her journey and adventures in the mountains.
Early(ish) start our first call was to Tiso in Glasgow to get Kaits kitted out in boots and socks (she had most other bits) . We settled on a great pair of Salewa mid ankle boots (exact model is MTN Trainer Mid GTX) with superb trail soles but a lot of flex for comfort… when we hit winter we can look at the next pair ! Look out for a review from Kaits end of the season…
Next we weaved our way through far too many diversions and road works trying to get out of Glasgow before getting on the road proper. The plan was not a full day on the hill so time wasn’t critical meaning getting to Glencoe around 11.30am was no biggie. It was a stunning day – blue bird skies, cold and crisp , the sun glinting off snowy tops and warm enough not to need gloves and loads of layers . We wound up past Loch Lomond and towards Rannoch moor and up into the Glen proper. So great to be out the city and among the mountains on days like this and having the wee yin along for the ride was a bonus.
Buacchaile Etive Mor , looking from the start of the of the walk in path to the “tourist trail” through the obvious scooped, snowy coire. Beware, in winter this can be an avalanche hazard , always check SAIS and understand the risk, options to avoid.
We parked as usual at the (not too busy for once) layby near the foot of the big bookil, got our kit sorted and headed along the path and past the Lagangarbh Hut (must be one of the most famous wee white cottages in Scotland) with me pointing out various hills. Along the path , sun shining , views for miles and usual chat we headed with the goal being the water slab and getting a handle on the route starts of some ridges around the mountain.
Heading along the rough (my favorite) but currently being updated path we passed a herd of deer on the upper slopes , maybe 9 or 10 beasts , antlers showing their ages to be fairly young , maybe 3 or 4 years (I could be wrong so please tell me if I am and correct me, Id like to get better at spotting it) .This same herd had descended to much closer to the path by the time we had returned so we got a much better view .. even if the photos sucked.(see later)
A great road trip to Glencoe with a “short” walk was the plan, get boots on ground, have a nice day in the outdoors , see Glencoe .. so we wandered up along the path to around 450m before plonking down to eat our Green Welly bought sandwiches and take in the views across the valley and out to Rannoch Moor.
It was exactly what I needed – not a summit and always some pang of “missing out” with that, but.. the plan was always “not a summit” so I could be very content and having Kaits along more than made up for it. (Not sure she’d say the same of course)
Out of the house, fresh air, boots on path, mountains and nature all around, great company and the cold invigorating air of a Scottish winter – heaven! #MentalHealth in one package!
The “Big and Wee shepherds” , Beinn Beag and Rannoch moor behind (from slopes of Buachaille Etive Mor)
Outcome was that I spent an hour looking at ridge after ridge and buttress after buttress still not 100% sure of the start of North Buttress until posting a pic on Facebook of Kaitlin a good mate Bobby Motherwell (the mastermind behind the Big Hex climbing challenge ( of which we are still the official record holders at 34hrs and 45mins – Brown, Mcintosh, Hastie) – pointed out that I was basically blind and Kaits was standing right next to it !
North Buttress hiding in plain sight right behind Kaits ! (Note new Salewa boots)
Instantly it made sense and I could see it.. just shows your memory of a route can often be very different from reality !
The (not) elusive North Buttress. Mid/Right of photo (Photo from Big Hex website)
North Buttress is a superb Mod rated climb (slightly above scramble grade – in Summer) and definitely one I want to do again – stepped structure and hand holds for fun, at least one chimney to drag yourself through but exposure for days – and one for winter at some point in the future – so getting eyes on it now saves me a tonne of time!
Throwback to 2015 , North Buttress climb (preparing for the Big Hex challenge)Throwback 2015 – a very wet upper section of North Buttress
After a nice seat with the best of views, watching the tiny ants of hillwalkers on distant routes and summits and a lunch munch Kaits leading this time, getting used to her new boots and the type of terrain we will cover on bigger days – she didn’t seem to hate it so that a bonus lol
What a view for Lunch… can you spot Kaitlin?
A superb day out, finished off with a nice tea and coffee in Glencoe village at Crafts and Things (a regular stop on Glencoe trips for food, coffee and a browse of their excellent books and artwork) then we had a drive back , the afternoon light giving way to early evening golden fire on the tops as we wound down through Rannoch Moor, Bridge of Orchy and past Loch Lomond.
The herd of hungry deer – anyone tell me the ages?
For a road trip the drive from Glasgow to Glencoe for me always delivers – next time… a summit and the Wee yins first munro completed- onwards and upwards.
From right below North Buttress (right prominent feature)2015 – BigHex – even made it into the magazines ! (Note its Robert Hastie… typo by the mag)
I’m not really one for taking anyone on the hill that isn’t essential – fundamentally I hate carrying wasted weight – light and (not so) fast is the aim .
I don’t sacrifice essential safety kit such as torch, layers, first aid kit, blanket etc but Flasks of coffee tend not to be something I pack.
That said – both my wife Sam ( my main hill partner) and my regular climbing buddy Fraser both love a coffee on a hill and I can’t say I don’t love the boost it gives you on a cold day, so when Sam and I headed to Schiehallion a few weeks ago we did take a coffee and had a chance to try out a thermo flask Sigg had sent me ( a sort of reward for posting #siggstories through the years I guess) .
We were up at 6am so poured the coffee into the flask ( 1 sugar and a little milk if you’re interested) at 6.30 and it went in the pack .
The flask is the Sigg 750ml Thermo Flask ( a link to it’s s here ) so pretty compact and certainly easy enough to get in a normal or even small 25L day pack ( what I used in this case) . Construction is pretty light and it’s got the usual screw down thermos cap and also a lid that double as a good sized cup . The cup had a couple of ridges on it which adds just enough grip if needed .
When we got to the Schiehallion car park it was -5c , foggy but dry so off we set along and up the well made path.
In total we stopped for coffee twice – once on ascent and once at the summit – both times the coffee was still hot and finally arrived back at the car close to 8 hours ( 7hr 40mins to be more precise) later and when we had the last cup it was still hot , not tepid or lukewarm but actually still hot – frankly amazing to me.
I’ve tried a few flasks over the years and tbh usually they aren’t great after a few hours so this impressed me .
All in all it’s a strong solution – compact but big enough for a few cups , robust and light , has a cup for a lid and ( most importantly) has around an 8hr heat life ( it may go longer but this is as long as I tried it for) – for £29.99 ( RRp) it’s not a cheap option but as with all kit of its cheap but fails it’s not cheap ! If it performs then it’s worth the cost . Simples.
Some idiotic mistake .. something we forget .. well today was my turn .
With VERY unseasonably warm temperatures for Dec 30th ( 10C !) Fraser and had planned to head into Coire an t’Sneachdea to primarily just “get out” on the hill ( always better than sitting on the sofa) but ideally if anything would go, to get a route in – even if just soloing up one of the grade I’s.
Left the house at 6 , met Fraser at the new services at the Doune roundabout and together we headed in my car to Aviemore . Great chat as always and once we arrived in an almost empty car park, having surveyed glumly the lack of snow on the drive we decided to leave the climbing gear abs just walk in to see what we could do ( ropes and gear would not be needed today ! )
It’s a fairly short , easy walk in to the North Corries ( one of its attractions to me!) and the heat soon meant mid layers were off and in the bag – the wind acting as much needed air con!
We arrived at the coire – clear that very little snow was left but Alladins couloir, mirror and Jacobs would be an easy “steep walk” so we decided to make for Alladins couloir ( an easy Grade 1, steep enough to not be holding much avalanche risk and well within our ability to ascend without any ropes.
Picked our way across the large coire boulders ( much easier when banked in snow!) and made our way up to the snow line planning to grab a bite to eat and get our crampons on and axes in hand.
Bum on rock, axes freed and a protein bar later I’m rummaging around for my crampons which I had dutifully checked for fit and condition the night before. I got the bottom of my bag… but no crampons .. rummaged some more .. still no crampons …
The moment of dawning
Douh!
While packing the night before I thought I’d be clever and leave the pit the bag til last so they were first out , on arrival at the car park and with us dumping kit I’d forgotten to actually take the. out my gear bag and put them in my rucksack .. eejit!
What to do?
Alladins Couloir (mid right rising up left of the main black buttress) Alladins mirror to its right . Jacobs ladder just right of black high buttress on left hand face
“Lets go old skool and cut steps “ .. tried for a bit – wind was howling now and making ta hard to stand at times, drizzly rain was coming in and as we climbed hover the snow pack was getting g harder and harder so sense prevailed and we bailed…
It was daft to do anything but . Frustrating but we always laugh when we are out , one of the reasons I love being out on the hill with Fraser – always positive . On our walk back out we bumped into Heather Morning and a friend doing the (important and very much appreciated) Scottish Avalanche Information Service ( SAIS) forecasts – nice to chat for a bit on all things mountains including the state of the outdoor community today during/post lockdown and the positives and negatives to be seen and considers .. that’s for another time though.
So – no routes today , no summits but .. and this is important we got out , got a walk , got the views , route planned, assessed conditions and made decisions – all worthwhile in this game and good prep for the real winter ( coming soon I hear !) ..
But from now on my kit stays in my bag ! no “being clever” for me !
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