Meall Chuaich

Heading up the track next to the hydro scheme canal

Summit

More Munro baggers

A wide expansive view from the summit

Low flow in the canal

Sunday, 2 August 2009

Ascent:
Distance:  
Time:        2 hours 52 minutes

Meall Chuaich       951m    1 hr 32mins

Having finally recovered my fitness, it seemed timely to head north with Gregor and climb a few hills. We left home at 10:20 a.m. and the first stop on the A9 was the lone Munro, Meall Chuaich, just beyond Dalwhinnie. We had climbed this together when Gregor was just 8 years old and he had spotted a Fieldfare in the copse of trees adjacent to the house on the track that leads along the canal to the foot of the hill. I was uncertain but checked it on returning home and he was right. Today we were in more of a rush and it was a fairly benign day. It enabled an easy walk before heading up towards Ullapool where we intended to walk into the heart of the Inverlael forest and camp below Seanna Braigh before climbing the five munros in the Beinn Dearg group tomorrow.

We parked at the end of the track where the canal brings water down as part of a long-established hydro scheme and walked alongside the canal to the empty house and then to the ruin where you cross a burn and begin the steep ascent of the hill. There is an easily discernable path although it can become quite boggy in places. There is nothing difficult about the ascent and there were no Ptarmigan as on previous visits and no wildlife to enliven the walk. 

We had made good time, although I was surprised when I checked my log of the first visit that we had made the climb to the summit in less than 2 hours when Gregor was only 8 years old. We took a few minutes to eat lunch at the cairn. Although the skies were grey there was good visibility over towards Loch Ericht and Ben Alder. We skipped down the hill and then along the track, although Gregor took to walking along the inside of the concrete canal that was at low water and the evening surge to generate power was some hours away.