21D - GLENSHEE WEST
From Carn a' Gheoidh ridge looking across the A93 to Creag Leacach, views that neither Eddie nor Graeme had. Photo tms.nickbramhall.com
14.5 miles 1530 metres
Start Saturday 02.25
Beinn Iutharn Mhor 02.48
Carn Bhac 03.33
An Socach 04.27
Carn a' Gheoidh 05.13
The Cairnwell 05.41
Carn Aosda 06.02
Finish 06.08
Squares: yellow - changeover, red - finish. Circles summits: green - this leg. Map Colin Matheson
Time: Estimated 4.11 Actual 3.43
After Meall Ghaordaidh I had enjoyed the unaccustomed sunshine instead of getting some much needed kip. We arrived at Spittal of Glenshee in the evening and I had to set off almost immediately. Paul Driver was going to accompany me on this leg but was going to eat before following me on his bike.
The 5 miles of bike ride up the glen were undoubtedly the low of the trip so far. Despite seeing the clouds move across at a healthy speed from the east, down here the wind blew at gale force straight down the glen, almost exactly in the opposite direction, and as the glen unfolded the wind remained adamantly contrary.
It was with enormous relief that I decided to leave the bike and walk. Paul was with me by now and more than once put out a hand to stop me falling. I felt completely exhausted and wobbled my way up the next steep section to our camp. The whole journey took just over 2 hours.
At first I tied my cagoule to a fence post as a flag, but it looked as though it would rip to shreds so I tied it to the tent roof instead. I had reckoned that 2.30 was the earliest realistic time of Mark's arrival, and before 3 was unlikely. I had intended to set my alarm for 2.10 to ensure I was awake, but somehow the sleep seemed more important just now. Paul set his alarm for 2.50, and I mine for 3.05.
The next thing I knew was this loud bawling noise at my ear – Christ it's Mark already – still dark outside. “What can I do for you?” he said.
“Wake Paul,” I answered.
2 minutes later I was off up round Beinn Iutharn Mhor's subsidiary southern top. 20 minutes later as I looked back and saw Paul's torch contouring round it some quarter of an hour adrift – right there's a challenge don't let him see me again. I flashed a greeting at him.
I could see that the east wind was bringing poor weather to the eastern hills. To the west all was clear, but I was right on the border and hit the summit in thin cloud.
Tony did this leg in reverse in 1990 and his utter disgust with it combined with somewhere that I had read “nobody does these hills twice” had made me doubt my earlier view that they are pleasant lonely hills. The map shows massive scree slopes off Beinn Iutharn Mhor, and Tony had talked about this with horror, so I approached the slope in the dark and cloud with caution. Somehow it was not that bad.
I got a brief view from the col, enough to see how much worse it was further east, before the diagonal ascent to a much colder, thicker Carn Bhac. Descending the vague south east spur I didn't come out of the cloud until well below the previous col, but thoroughly enjoyed the heathery crossing to the foot of An Socach.
This is another hill with scree marked on the map. This was on my descent route. In the event the climb was nasty heather and boulder mix, whilst I scarcely saw a stone descending the mapped rock! It was however deep heather until I got in a stream bed and sped happily down the short grass. I should probably have stayed in it, but I contoured round the lower slopes and set off up Carn a' Gheoidh from an unknown point. The ridges here are so vague that I was half way up before I was sure that I was on the ridge that I had hoped.
The weather up here was distinctly worse, I had the feeling that the temperature was dropping a degree for each mile eastwards, and it was really pretty wet here.
The skiing paraphanalia on the last two tops totally detracts from from any interest they might have with no views, and the huge cairns built for tourists to find the 100 yards from the top of the chairlift to the building site on top of the Cairnwell nearly caused an accident. The wind was very strong but absolutely steady, so I was not prepared for the sudden lull as I ran down into the lee of one of these – it was all I could do not to go head first straight into it.
With signposts to Carn Aosda and the map showing a road right to the top, I was surprised to realise that neither path nor bulldozed track was going to take me there, (I'd only been here before in snow.) I cut up left and wasn't sure on the flat top whether to turn left or right, but guessed correctly that I had overshot it.
The descent was a 6 minute heel and knee jarring attempt on the fastest descent, quite forgetting that I would have an easier opportunity the next morning.
I got into the waiting car and drove Graeme down past the Devil's Elbow to his start before carrying on to Spittal of Glenshee where Ross was supposed to be asleep in the van for me to drive him round to Glen Clova. I suppressed my anger when told that I had to go to the hotel reception and ring his room number to get him out of bed.
Once in Glen Clova, instead of getting much needed sleep, I spent the rest of the morning trying to raise his spirits before his next run.
Peaks done 131 Hours elapsed 143 Peaks to do 146
There is no charge for reading this account but please consider donating to the RNIB, the charity we ran for.
Share this page