Outside Edge donate new Haglofs Jacket for Testing!

Me wearing the Endo Jacket

last weekend

Thank you VERY much to Dave Bleazard at Outside Edge, Oban for donating a sample of the new Endo Jacket from Haglofs for testing during the UK Big 3 Challenge.

  

Outside Edge is a little fantastic outdoor store and the only one in Oban town! It is the perfect place to stock up on walking/running, climbing, paddling and camping kit before hitting any of the Western Isles from Oban. Call: 01631 566617 or visit http://www.outsideedgeoban.com/

My Endo Jacket is stealth black (instead of the green pictured here). It is stylish and light (320g for a size L) and has no double-fabric areas at all. The single chest pocket you can see in the picture is made from a strech soft-shell to maximise breathability. There are also very snazzy stretch fabric cuffs, designed to work with trekking poles. The zips are new, lightweight, YKK items and the hood is the familar LIM design with the shock-cord on the outside of the hood. The Active Shell is far more breathable than other types of Goretex, making it a lot more comfortable to wear for extended periods. Apparently the Endo will retail for about £220 when it appears in September 2011 (get yours in Outside Edge!) and it should be spot on for a mix of lightweight walking, running, biking and climbing (although the hood isn't technically 'helmet compatible', it takes my helmet anyway).

The jacket has arrived in good time for final training days (only two weekends to go!) and for the challenge itself. Feedback and product review to follow, so watch this space.

More Haglöfs info at http://www.haglofs.se/.

Paddy Buckley recce (with Dad!)

Friday 22nd: My dad and I arrived in Llanberis, with gorgeous sunshine and clear skies. It felt a bit of a shame to be heading up into the disused slate quarries, only to recce the route up onto Eilidir Fach (795m). It felt even more of a shame to be testing out various possible inclines, tracks and pathways through the piles of old slate instead of climbing any of the classic slate routes (all of which were heaving with happy climbers)! Nevertheless, we had a job to do and it went relatively well.


Thanks Dad!

We found a reasonable route through, avoiding any areas of dodgy rockfall and pulling out onto the open hillside at about 600m. The route up to the summit was easy enough, from which the views over Leg 1 (Moel Eilio hills) looked very green and runnable. It felt nerve-wracking to think that'd this would be part of my first day of the challenge in three week's time!


Saturday 23rd: Having been promised glorious sunshine, we were most disappointed to find oursevles on a recce of the Eifdnydd leg in low cloud, wind and drizzle! The first hill on this leg is Bryn Banog at 519m (unhelpfully marked with the wrong height on my new PBR map)! Getting to it was the major difficulty: 3km of trees, bog, marsh, walls and fences, with a steep finish.


Moel Hebog trig point

From the nothern end we dropped to a boggy col, littered with small rocky knolls (which looked like mountains themselves in the gloom). Our bearing brought us to the steep easterm slopes of Moel Hebog (782m). Having picked a good line, we ascended the slopes safely, to the south of the crags. It was very hard-going due to the steepness and bands of chunky scree (hands-on-heather rather than hands-on-knees tupe stuff!) Once we had gained the ridge, the angle eased and the cairn-marked walk to the summit was pleasant in comparison.

The route then veered steeply NW, following a wall first downhill, then uphill and through a creepy gap in some crags (a bit like a tunnel) to the summit of Moel yr Orgof (655m), followed by Moel Lefn (638m). These tops are rocky outcrops amidst a sea of shin-shredding blaeberry and heather. They have no summit cairns and there isn't much sign of recent traffic (of the fell-running variety). In low visibility, they are tricky (and rather unrewarding) to locate. After dropping off Moel Lefn, we dipped below the cloud level for a time and could see the Beddgelert Forest unfold below us, revealing what would eventually be our track out on to the A4085.


Wall leading up Y Gryn

Picking up the wall at Bwlch Cwm-Trwsgl, we used it as a handrail to the summit of Y Gryn. Still the terrain was difficult underfoot and would be very difficult to run (mostly rock outcrops, blaeberry bushes, heather and bogs!!) From Y Gryn (452m) we skirted above the old quarry workings and ascended Mynydd y Ddwy Elor. This top is one of several little knolls on a small ridge, again without a summit cairn.

On the ascent of Trum Y Ddysgyl (709m), I started to get the feeling we were heading up a REAL mountain at last. The top was a long narrow plateau, with a steep cliff at the the NE end. At first it seemed we would have nowhere to go except to descend the NW ridge (not the route!) but on closer inspection, there was a small track dropping off the very NE tip, which skirts the cliff-edged cwm. In the clag we didn't have any sense of the potential exposure which might otherwise have been apparent to our left.

At this stage, the route gradually became a scramble with great interest. We made our way up and down rocky piles along the rising ridge until we reached Mynydd Drwys-y-Coed on the very lip of the cwm. On these seemingly more popular hills, we started to pass other walkers in the gloom (with whom we shared our disappointment over the vagaries of the Snowdonia weather forceast).


Y Garn summit

The last summit on this stretch was Y Garn (633m), which is marked by two huge piles of stones (created through clearing the surrounding pasture for farming, rather than to mark the way for confused hillwalkers). After following the main track SE from the summit, we beagn to peel off in a southerly direction, across the steep grassy face to cross the river in Cwm Marchnad and meet the track leading into Beddgelert Forest.

A gentle jog through forest tracks brought us to the railway line next to the A4085 and to our (main) lunch stop for the day! Our stopping place stood at only 190m, so we were not looking forward to trogging up to 587m straight after eating. Behind the dishevelled farmhouse of Wernlas-deg, the higher slopes of Craig Wen are broken by rocky terraces, which impede a driect line. Luckliy, we spied a pair of Eyryri Harriers fell-runners, also doing a PBR recce that day. Needless to say, we shamelessly followed them, as they knew a cunning little line which circumvented the difficulties and led nicely to the top. With our penultimate top ticked, we pressed on upwards to the summit of Yr Aran (747m); neighbour of Snowdon.


Last summit of the day; Yr Aran

A quick snap and some jelly babies later and we were descending northward to meet the main tourist track leading from Bwlch-Cwn-Llan to our finishing point (and taxi) at NantGwynant. With only 90 minutes to our taxi (when at the summit of Yr Aran), we rushed downhill. However, it turned out that we needn't have worried: not only were we down with 30 minutes to spare but the taxi never turned up!!! Thankfully, a very kind couple who were passing through gave us a lift back to the Pen-Y-Gwryd hotel.

Cerrig Cochion towards Snowdon

Sunday 24th: Easter Sunday dawned sunny and fresh. A perfect day to negotiate my way through the notoriously tricky and boggy Moelwyns (bring ya wellies!!) Having caught a taxi to the footpath leading up to Bwlch Rhediad from the A498 (Capel to Beddgelert road), it took next to no time, on a good track, to reach the heathery col. From here I could see Cerrig Cochion, a jumble of pale rocky outcrops in the distance. The height gain was minimal but the ground underfoot was boggy - over the knee in places! I wondered if it was possible for a lone walker to get stuck in one of these swamps and took comfort from having poles to help lever me out! Cerrig Cochion is just off the track running by the side of the fence, so relatively easy to find. From here, the second top stood grand on the skyline ahead; Moel Meirch. A few man-eating bogs later and I arrived at this craggy top, by way of a lovely wee scramble (which I later found was avoidable round the back!)


Llyn Edno

The next section was really very stunning in the sunshine. The peaceful Llyn Edno was perfectly still, reflecting the surrounding hills on its surface. The route circumnavigates the loch and acsends the broad ridge of Ysgafell Wen from the water's southern tip. From this point, the route essentially follows the fence line, with summits Mynydd Llynau yr Cwn  and the 'Unamed Top' passing quickly due to their close proximity and minimal height difference. The ground here is runnable and far less boggy. I was beginning to really like this leg! 

I walked passed several little lochs, which added picturesque character to the surrounding landscape. Moel Druman (676m) looks over Llyn Conglog, which you pass the first time on the route to Allt Fawr (698m). This mountain has steep cliffs on its E/SE aspect, which give impressive views of the Ffestiniog Slate Quarry. The workings looked calm in the sunshine, yet quite formidable (I imagine they could seem rather depressing in different weather)!

From Allt Fawr, the route leads back towards Llyn Conglog and across its outflow. Here I saw a lone man fishing, miles from anywhere. It seemed a somewhat preferable hobby as I squelched by!

Crags below Llyn clogwyn-brith 

I skirted the plateau and dropped easily towards Llyn clogwyn-brith. This little lake is followed by a steep face of crags, which makes for an intimidating drop to the disused quarry below.  Dropping off to your left (east) is apparently the best option, although I still found myself down-climbing a few rocky steps to reach the wall below. It might be hard to find a good line here in poor visibility!

The disused mine marks the start of a loop of 5 summits, ending back at this point again. With the final mountain (Cnicht) so close by, it is difficult not to be tempted into cutting off this next section. This would be a mistake however, as in my view the leg changes character at this point (for the better). 

L to R: Moelwyn Bach, Craigysgafn, Moelwyn Mawr  

I passed through some old mine buildings and up a ridge at their back, before I reached the foot of Moel Ddu (Foel Ddu). A short but steep pull up about 50m brings you to the summit. Its bigger brother, Moel yr Hydd (648m) lies at the top of a sweeping flank from a col at 560m. The jog down from this summit ends at a gate with a sign warning of a 'dangerous and unmaintained' path skirting above the reservoir (Llyn Stwlan). The start of this terrace/track is marked with a large cairn. The cut-through deposits you in Bwlch Stwan, right at the foot of the impressive Moelwyn Bach (710m).

View from Moelwyn Bach

A well-travelled but steep track weaves up through steep scree, onto the shoulder and then finally to the summit of  Moelwyn Bach. I was lucky enough to have such amazing weather that I could see the beach and the sea as I looked out.

Not far to go now, I dropped back down the way I had come up and began my scramble up the peak on the opposite side of Bwlch Stwan (Craigysgafn, 689m). This is a rocky bluff comprised in part by bright white quartzite, in stark contrast the main rock type here.

Moelwyn Mawr from Cnicht

There isn't much of a drop after this top but there is nevertheless a steep pull up onto the summit of the more major peak, Moelwyn Mawr at 770m. At the trig point I exchanged Easter greetings with a number of walkers, all of whom had come up to this point by different routes/sides of the mountain.

Following the yellow line on my map, I dropped off the summit northwards, down a VERY steep and loose slate ridge before traversing right across slate scree to join the E/NE ridge. I took a few little slips here, sending stones skidding down the slope as I made a mental note to myself NOT to come this way again!!!


Cnicht in the distance

I jogged back down to the disused quarry, and at the start of my 'loop' took a east along a huge track. Near to boggy ground I jumped off the path and trogged uphill until I stumbled (quite literally) across two small lakes. The second, Llyn Cwm-y-foel has a dam at its south end, which I walked along to gain the lower slopes of my final mountain for the day, Cnicht (689m). Fearing the scree towards the summit, I followed the wall upwards and theopted for a VERY steep but grassy gully (relying on my MudClaws to keep me safe!!!) In the hot sun (and with only a bottle of nasty-tasting water) this final push felt like very hard work. When I popped up onto the summit ridge it was teeming with people!!!

I pretty much had to queue to scramble off the summit and join the track heading out to Croesor and eventualy the Aberglaslyn carpark at Nantmor (a very pleasant trail run, followed by road; about 6km in total). The whole leg took just 7h and 35mins, so I went back to the hotel tired but happy (and more than a little bit sunburned!)  

Thanks Dad, for all your help and support!!!!

Fisherfield 6 and the Mountains of Terror!

Friday night 15th: 7.35km (4.6 miles) and 384m ascent
Saturday 16th: 25km (15.6 miles) and 2343m ascent.
Sunday 17th: 22km (14 miles) and 1606m of ascent.

Shenavall bothy and Beinn Dearg Mor

FRIDAY: This weekend, I went to explore the Fisherfield Hills with LAC runners Linda and Nancy. We headed up NW after work (stopping for chips at Beauly obviously!) and arrived at Corrie Hallie on the A382 at 8:45pm. Donning our massive packs, we began the walk to Shenavall bothy. Although only a meagre 4.6 miles, the leg became increasingly troublesome as the rain started, darkness set in and we lost the path! After some initial concern, we found the re-entrant north of Meall a' Chlaiginn and followed the river steeply down to the bothy, arriving at 11:15pm. Phew!

Beinn a' Chlaidheimh

SATURDAY: The day began with a cold river crossing, clag, drizzle and a very sharp pull up our first munro Beinn a' Chlaidheimh (916m). How bog manages to hold on to so much water on such a steep slope was a mystery to us all. As we reached about 550m, we found a trod which wove its way up rockey steps and around crags to deposit us on the summit ridge.

A fairly narrow ridge (albeit with no veiws in the clag) brought us finally to our first summit; 2h after starting out.

Sgurr Ban

As we headed south, I was confused by unmapped lochans at grid ref [060771]. I hoped that we had descended super-fast to Am Briseadh and the minor 815m peak ahead was Sgurr Ban! This hope was quashed however, as we reached the lochans marked on the 1:50,000 map at 650m and saw the true Sgurr Ban (989m) looming ahead: a HUGE mountain of boulders rising into cloud.

Climbing the NE flank of this mountain seemed to take forever. The summit was marked by a lone cairn in the middle of a broad plateau. It was only the second munro of the day but the last leg had been a long one and time was passing worryingly quickly.

Mullach Coire Mhic Fhearchair

Fortunately the drop from Sgurr Ban was short and sharp, as was the steep scree path rising up the north face of our biggest munro of the day; Mullach Coire Mhic Fhearchair (1019m). Coming up from 817m, this summit was won easily and became our favourite of the day!


After we had descended the bouldery south slope, we were happy to be traversing round Meall Garbh, enroute to a col called Bealach Odhar, at the foot of the next munro:


Beinn Tarsuinn

Beinn Tarsuinn is a brilliant mountain with a huge flat platform (the so-called Tennis Court) at the summit (937m). Suddenly, the weather improved and sunshine dappled the surrounding hills. Situated at the head of the valley (Gleann na Muice), the views were spectacular.


The first 3 summits from Beinn Tasuinn

Now we were ticking summits quickly and my motivation soared as I scrambled off westward along the pinnacled ridge. Caught up in some nice scrambling, it took me a while before I realised that actually we should be dropping off the left of the ridge towards the boggy col at 525m. Being up on the ridge, we had missed the downturn in the path, so we descended a steep grassy gully instead (where we nearly lost Nancy altogether in a sudden and unintentional bum-slide)! Arresting her own tumble, we pressed on to the low point of our day (in height only!!)


View north from A'Mhaighdean

From here began the long slow slog up the grassy slopes of A'Mhaighdean (967m). The summit is too far back to be visible initially and the top just seems to keep getting further away. The angle is acceptable though, so you just have to put your head down and get on with it (good advice, thanks Linda!)

At last the grassy bank levelled off and we were presented with an almighty view. Possibly the best view anywhere in the country! This is the most remote Munro and the view includes An Teallach, Slioch, Beinn Eighe, all the Fisherfield hills, Dubh Loch, Fionn Loch and a plethera of other lochans in every direction, right out to the sea beyond. The north face and surrounding ridges of this mountain are made up of steep sandstone cliffs with very impressive character.

Ruadh Stac Mor

From here we turned east and dropped round to another col, this time at 755m, where we found an emergency shelter made of rocks. From further back, the route up Ruadh Stac Mor (918m) looked improbable and loose. Fortunately though, on approach, its angle seemed to improve and it was quite do-able (albeit with one rock step about a third of the way up). We scrabbled up a jumble of red boulders to the summit. It was a massive relief to have completed the full 6 and to have seen some amazing views (I had promised Nancy!!)


Runnable track back to the bothy

Annoyingly, the descent to Lochan a' Bhraghad involved lots of small boulders and rocks, interpersed with slipppy bog patches. Therefore it took longer than expected. Fortunately though, the rest of the return leg was a pleasure. Now in the sunshine, we jogged along the Gleann na Muice Beag, picking up the track which followed the river. A perfectly angled track for running, it deposited us at Larachantivore.


Bothy nights!!

A short river crossing and some legendary bog later, we were back at the bothy, a mere 10h after leaving it earlier that day.



Bein Dearg Mor and Bheag (right)


SUNDAY: After a few glasses (plastic cups) of wine on Saturday night, I woke feeling anything but enthusiastic about heading up another set of hills. Nonetheless, Linda and I ate breakfast and headed out into a fabulous morning. Our route was a rising traverse up the rocky and scree-covered SE facing slope of Beinn Deag Mor. At 910m, this mountain is a jealous corbett, falling short of munro classification by just 4 metres! The mountain is rather evil looking and towers over Shenevall bothy, omnipresent and intimidating. After much effort, we traversed horizintally into the SE facing hanging corrie at 580m. Here the ground levels off and there is a narrow but deep gorge cleft into the bedrock. It is very beautiful, with a waterfall spraying into its depths.


Looking from Beinn Dearg Mor to Bheag

Happily, the slope up the back of the corrie is much more gentle and we made our way more easily to the summit ridge. Looking from the bothy or from An Teallach, Beinn Dearg Mor has a trident shape with 3 prongs/summits. The actual summit is the middle peak, which is marked by a large cairn on a promontary of rock, with steep drops on either side. Deciding to continue with our plan, we dropped down the inside of the NW ridge (path marked at the top by a small cairn) and clambered down the steep slope above Loch Toll an Lochain. This a truly stunning loch in a hanging corrie. The col between Beinn Dearg Mor and Bheag is at 590m. The slopes of Beinn Dearg Bheag are made up of large boulders but it doesn't take long to make the top.

A Tellach Pinnacles

I had an idea to descend the Bheag's N/NW ridge but this turned out to be impossible, as it is riven into sandstone stacks with steep drops and in places loose rock. For safety, we aborted the ridge and descended a steep heather slope on the western flank, making our way round to the northern slabby ridge of the hanging corrie.

Great views of the back of An Teallach from here!

Next, we simply followed the river down to the shores of Loch na Sealga and jogged back to the bothy.

After a cup of tea and a wee tidy round, we left the bothy to walk the 5 miles back to the car. Carrying an 80L pack after two big hill days was hard work but we pressed on. We had no choice really! Neadless to say, the walk out was much more pleasant than the walk in. We made the car in good time and called in for chips and a celebratory pint in Beauly on the way home.

Another excellent training weekend (and excellent company!!)



LAC ladies!!



A newspaper article on the wall of the bothy,

which made us a bit apprehensive!!

Popping up the Pap (again!)

Another trip up the Pap pf Glencoe before work this morning; pretty much a walk-up, jog-down type of affair!

The highest mountains in Glencoe were claggy in the early hours but the top of the pap was free of cloud. Sheets of light rain passed through and it was breezy but not too windy. In general, it felt warmer than yesterday and there had been no fresh snow overnight.

I have been up the Pap in training lots of times now but I felt that today passed much more quickly than usual due to the help of an audiobook on my ipod. A useful tactic for staving off boredom!!

Morning jogging

Loch Creran, Argyll

A nice gentle 10K road run around Loch Creran this morning before work. This is a cracking little lap, surrounded by great hills.

A dusting of snow on the tops today!!!

Climbing and CRR Leg 2!

Fools Paradise, Gowder Crag

SATURDAY: I couldn't miss the opportunity to get out climbing while it was hot and sunny this weekend:

Sunny view of Skiddaw from Gowder Crag

SUNDAY: Back in Scotland, the route was 36.2km (23 miles) with 2443m of ascent. I took me exactly 9 hours to complete in good weather (with little bit of jogging along the tracks)! Sadly I forgot my camera though! 

My training route for CRR leg 2

My day started at Corrour Station, from where I headed up munro Beinn na Lap (935m). This hill succumbs easily to some determined plodding and I was soon stood at the summit cairn (further than you think), wondering which way to tackle the next summit. In the end, I decided to head down the north ridge slightly, before dropping down steep grass (nearly vertical in places!) to the river Allt Feith Thuill in the glen below. Here I rolled up my trousers and commited to crossing the cold water (it is shallow but fairly wide in places). There is a stunning view NW down Strath Ossian, with Loch Ghuilbinn glinting in the distance.

From the top of Beinn na Lap the route I would take up the flanks of the mountain opposite (towards the col between Garbh Bheinn-Meall Garbh) looked far too steep and highly improbable. But from the river, it was easy enough to see a line up the now not-so-steep slope, weaving through rocky outcrops. Once on the ridge you simply have to push on, over Meall Garbh before the round mass of Chno Dearg finally appears (1046m).

It doesn't take long though to pull up to the top of this mountain. You are well compensated with a lovely jog down runnable terrain across the col and NW towards the ridge rising to third munro, Stob Corie Sgriodain. This ridge rises gradually but makes for quite slow progress because it is broken and rocky ground. In places, striking patches of white quartzite protrude from the darker rock, where they have bee shattered into small pieces on the surface.

From the summit of Stob Corie Sgriodain at 979m, you get a panoramic view over Loch Trieg and over the forestry of Glen Spean. From here I made the mistake of dropping off the ridge to the east at about 860m in favour of crossing, what I thought, would be relatively easy terrain alongside the river Allt Fhearghais. Instead, this ground ended up to be water-logged and tussocky, with hunderds of tiny streams to negogiate. I felt like it took me far too long and I planned to follow the ridge down as far as possible instead next time! I guess this is what recces are for!!

At the edge of the forest I met with a fence and a barricade of densely packed wirey and sratchy trees. Fortunately I only had to plough through about 100m of them before I hit the track alongside the railway. I wasted more time here walking up and down trying to find a way down and across the railway line. In the end I just hopped over the fence any-old-where, ran across the line and pushed on down to dam of Loch Trieg. I scampered over this to the other side, saving time by not going all the way back to Fersit!

Approach to Stob a Choire Mheadhoin (winter 2009)

Instead of heading straight uphill, I followed the service track along the north shore of Loch Trieg until it forked [Grid Ref at 342764]. I then trudged up onto the broad ridge above, aiming for some sort of trig point/marker on the skyline. Here I met a more defined path leading up the ridge and took this up Meall Cian Dearg. I must have started flagging at this point because the broad ridge to the summit of Stob a Choire Mheadhoin (1105m) seemed to go on FOREVER.... It is actually 4km in distance!

Fortunately the dip down to the col and back up Stob Coire Easain (1115m) is short and sweet. This mountain has some incredible rock architecture and geology, which can be seen from the col. Well worth a visit! This is the last top (and munro) of the day, making it just big 5 summits in total.

Stob Coire Easain (winter 2009)

I took the NW ridge of Stob Coire Easain down through steep scree, on a faint weaving path. This depositied me on flatter boggy ground where I veered west to meet the Lairig Leacach. This track brings you to a ford, just north of the bothy. The ford joins with the huge landrover track (the Lairig) to Corriechoille, which makes for a good downhill jog if you want to speed up this long walk-out. A long day but a well worth while venture....

Energy and Nutrition

Today I splurged on some energy and nutritional supplements for the UK Big 3 Challenge in May:

I have bought High 5 Iso energy gels (citrus); one for each day spent on the hill. I decided to go for just one per day because if I gulp down any more than this, it is likely to make me queasy (especially after 11 days!!) I've already tried lots of different energy gels in road and fell races past, prefering the more liquidy and less fluorescent looking ones. I plan to save my one gel for the 'low point' of each day and supplement it with good old fashioned jelly babies (and Haribo Tangfastics - my personal favourite!!)

For hydration I am going to stick with diluted pure orange juice (tried and tested).

For general sustinence I will probably just make a basic packed lunch (something like jam sandwiches, pepperamis and flapjacks etc...) Something vaguley filling.

Finally, after each day on the hill I am going to drink a For Goodness Shakes (chocolate flavour!) to aid post-exercise recovery. I haven't tried these before but they come highly recommended and apparently help you to keep going day after day...

In the evenings I will do my best to replenish my energy levels by eating LOADS AND LOADS!!! Certainly plenty of carbohydrate to rebuild glycogen stores and protein for recovery.

I am looking forward to this bit!!!!!
 :0)

BMC news (and yet more training runs)...

As a British Mountaineering Club member (and annual insurance holder), I have let the BMC know what i'm going to be up to in the hills this May. Check out the following link for their brief article on the UK Big 3 Challenge: http://www.thebmc.co.uk/News.aspx?id=4125 

Alternatively, check out Go Outdoors, who have also picked up on the challenge: http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/news/mountain-challenger-to-climb-83-000-ft-800487467

This morning I got up early to run an 8 mile hill circuit (with 690m ascent) near to my work place in Oban. The route takes in the 308m hill Beinn Lora in Benderloch.

Beinn Lora (appreciation society's) long run
(approximately!!!!)

Find out more about this odd little hill from the eccentric Beinn Lora Appreciation Society's Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=118648684815568 



The Two Lairigs (and Stob Dubh)

This weekend training became a secondary priority as I moved house from Glencoe to Inchree (a few miles down the road). After a good training run up to 902m on Friday, I spent Saturday just packing boxes! However, I decided that I needed to contribute 'something' over the weekend towards my training for the UK big 3....

SUNDAY: I got up a 6am and decided to squeeze in a long hill run before tackling the move! I settled on the Two Lairings, following the historic coffin trail (plus Stob Dubh), which amounted to 17.7km (11 miles) and 1183m ascent.

I started at the Buachaille Etive Beag carpark (the one by the beehive cairn) and headed up to the col that I visited with Arlene earlier in the week (745m). From here I headed SW over a subsidiary top at 902m and then continued along the ridge to Stob Dubh, the second munro on Buachaille Etive Beag (958m).

The weather was pretty disgusting (and a lot worse that I had optimistically hoped for after some bursts of spring sunshine on Saturday afternoon). The rain was heavy and turned to wet snow and hail at times over 800m. It was also quite blustery; a remnant left over from the upland gales which hampered efforts towards the end of last week.



Track along the ridge to stob Dubh









Allt Lairig Eilde

From Stob Dubh, I dropped back to the col before taking a traversing westerly line down towards the river Allt Lairig Eilde. After crossing the river, I joined the Lairig Eilde, a brilliant track running the length of the glen between Beinn Fhada and Buachaille Etive Beag. From the col at the head of the valley (490m) the track makes for excellent running alongside the river towards Glen Etive.

The key here is not to drop too far down this track and instead pull off early and contour the slopes of Stob Dubh to join the river Allt Gartain as high as possible. This reduces the pull up towards the col at 490m between Buachaille Etive Beag and Buachaille Etive Mor. The views looking back towards Glen Etive from here are fabulous!

The best bit of this run begins at this col. A relatively new track (the Lairig Gartain) runs all the way down the glen, alongside the river and down to join the A82.  It is an excellent 5km descent!!

From the layby on the A82 I returned to my car by taking the small track just north of the road (which incidentally is a total bog-fest...knee deep in places!!)

Feeling quite sad to be leaving Glencoe and will miss seeing the Pap out of my window! Goodbye.... 

Pap of Glencoe Saturday afternoon