Weekend in Ratagan June 2004 - Photo Gallery

The forecast for Saturday is bad or worse, the eight hour drive up to Ratagan via the Lake District is in brilliant weather. When I got to the Youth Hostel at 5pm the other early arrivers were waiting for me to start an evening walk up the Corbett directly across Loch Duich from the Hostel.

A short drive took us over the causeway across the wetlands at the head of Loch Duich to a car park in Strath Croe, it is the site of a warriors burial ground whose name I should have made a note of. From the back of the car park is a very civilised track that zig zags upwards at a most enjoyable gradient. I couldn't believe how sunny and warm it was, I was beginning to wonder if I should have left my hat and Factor 15 in the car.

After a very pleasant climb you get to a wide plateau, the path having got you there suddenly deserts you and leaves you to get across the peaty bog by yourself. Having got across the plateau with your feet in the wet and your head in the sun you suddenly have some work to do. The steepness isn't too bad, there are footsteps worn in the grass and boulders become more numerous as you get higher until you reach the rocky summit.

It is quarter past eight in the evening in the north west of Scotland and it is wonderfully sunny and warm. The views are stunning, Skye and the other islands under the not setting sun and mountains in every other direction. I saw a patch of snow on Ben Nevis as I passed through Fort William earlier and I can see that same patch of snow from here over fifty miles away.

Back down the same way, much quicker this way down the easy path, the evening sun really shows the details of the nearby mountains. Back at the hostel just before 10pm, how can you fail to enjoy the company of Scottish people in Scotland.

Saturday morning was cloudy but warm but not nearly as bad as the forecast. There were a dozen of us today as we parked at Achnagart in Glen Shiel and climbed another civilised path up towards the Graham (a hill between 2000 and 2500 feet high) Biod An Fhithich. We got to a col (bealach in Scotland) before we had some work to do to get to the first summit cairn of the day.

After the steep descent back to the bealach there is an easy traverse to the start of the Forcan Ridge, a very interesting challenge that I had been looking forward to but the wind was very strong. Common sense overcame ambition and we decided not to attempt the ridge, instead we followed the roughly built wall around to the back of the hill. The ascent here is rough and steep, over wet ground and then boulder hopping it is by no means an easy alternative.

Close to the summit a sheltered lochan contains a big lump of snow, it is a short rough walk over boulders to the trig point. The walk across an airy ridge to the rocky summit peak is exhilarating enough but the wind makes it just that bit more interesting. Back at the trig point it started to rain enough for waterproofs as we retraced our steps back to a muddy bealach before the second Munro of the day. Sgurr na Sgine (good luck with the pronunciation) is a big green lump, steep and green turning to steep and boulders.

From the summit of Sgurr na Sgine we could see the Corbett called Sgurr a Bhac Chaolais but couldn't see a sensible way to get to it. We went to the right and found a ridge of sorts, the wind was very strong, enough to stop you in your tracks, quite a challenge on a very steep slope. After the awkwardly steep grass you reach a wall, pick your route either side of a wall until you reach another bealach.

Maria leading the walk is very confident of the route uphill but it is very steep, about as steep a grassy slope as I have ever climbed. For the third steep climb of the day it could be quite demoralising but we are enjoying ourselves aren't we? At the summit it looks like the weather is really closing in, there are angry clouds in the valleys and on the tops of the hills. The descent is long, these Scottish hills are a long way from the bottom.

Even the Scots get tired and bed time was much sooner than the night before, I decided not to walk Sunday's wee Corbett, seven hours is a long enough drive home without a good walk beforehand. It did however give me chance to stop and look at Glen Coe, an impressive place with big and interesting looking hills rising directly from the road side

Andy Wallace 27th June 2004