KYQ4: Buidhe Bheinn

Loch Hourn and Ladhar Bheinn from the southwest top of Buidhe Beinn

There are some hills that you resent climbing. In this case, it was the surveyors who were to blame, they had reclassified Buidhe Bheinn as the Corbett rather than its twin peak, Sgurr a' Bhac Chaolais. I had climbed the latter three times during walks along the South Cluanie ridge. On the last of these occasions, I had camped just below the summit of Sgurr a' Bhac Chaolais and could easily have popped over to Buidhe Bheinn, before climbing Sgurr na Sgine and the Saddle on a glorious morning. I was back in Glenshiel by 11am and caught the morning bus back to Fort William, it was the waste of a good day.

With only five Corbetts left, I had decided to take advantage of the good weather for the week and take my bike to this area to climb Aonach Buidhe by Iron Lodge and Beinn Dronaig, deep in the Attadale Forest. My car developed a fault and it was difficult to book a garage appointment so I lost the 2 days I had planned. I decided to use the one day I had free to tackle Buidhe Bheinn. It was a 300-mile round trip with a 5am start so that I could be home for a meeting at 8pm.

Wednesday, 21 July 2021

Ascent: 1659 metres
Distance: 23 kilometres
Time: 8 hours 14 minutes

Sgurr a' Bhac Chaolais 885m 2hrs 21mins
Buidhe Bhenn 885m 3hrs 22mins
Buidhe Bheinn SW top 879m 3hrs 50mins
Sgurr na Sgine 945m 6hrs 24mins
Sgurr na Sgine NW top 944m 6hrs 36mins
Faochag 900m 7hrs 6mins

I packed the night before, the only weight in the rucksack being the 2 litres of water, the forecast was so positive that there was little need for any spare clothing apart from a waterproof. Sun cream, sunglasses and a peaked cap were the essentials and no chocolate because of the heat.

There was low cloud at 5am and driving through Rannoch Moor required headlights in the murky morning gloom. Only as I began the descent into Glencoe did the visibility improve but the clouds were still enveloping the mountains. There was little traffic at this time of day so the journey was relatively quick, even Fort William was quiet before 7am. I arrived at Glenshiel by 8am and parked by the footpath that climbs precariously over to Glen Quoich.

It was cool, the cloud level was down to 300 metres, and I was relieved that the ascent in these conditions would not be too exhausting. The normally wet boggy path to the Allt Mhalagain was almost dry and the river crossing an easy hop, step and jump before beginning on the narrow path that follows a burn as it twists its way to Bealach Duibh Leac. I was not walking well, maybe the lack of sleep or the three-hour drive had drained my energy. It took an hour to reach 400 metres, by which time I was sweating in the humid conditions. I had spotted a walker about ten minutes ahead and he provided a target so that I could muster a reasonable pace to the bealach. I had almost caught him but he went left towards the South Cluanie ridge and I turned right to head up alongside the wall towards Sgurr a' Bhac Chaolais.

The sun was now the sole occupant of the azure blue sky but there was a light breeze to make walking conditions enjoyable. The views from the centre of OS sheet 33. my favourite map, were perfect. I had not intended to climb Sgurr a' Bhac Chaolais but it was too tempting and it would provide me with a view of the surveyors' teasing alternative summit. To be fair it is a fine summit with exceptional views in all directions. I stopped for my first drink, took some photos and dealt with some emails and messages.

I was feeling fresh and frisky as I began the walk along the so-called ridge to Buidhe Bheinn. In practice, it is a series of rocky hills that straddle the arc of a circle that is dotted with several lochans. It's not a walk to speed along although it took just an hour to the summit of Buidhe Bheinn, slightly ahead of my hoped-for time. This had consequences as I decided to walk over to the southwest top that bears the name of Buidhe Bheinn but is 6 metres lower. It is a fine vantage point as I discovered when Loch Hourn and Knoydart were revealed in their naked sunbaked summer plumage.

I tramped back over to Buidhe Bheinn, energy drained by the midday heat and filled up with water, I had hoped to climb Sgurr na Sgine and the Saddle but the visit to the southwest top had taken over an hour with the photos and after lunch stop at the summit, it was now almost 1pm. I decided that I would just climb Sgurr na Sgine and descend to Glenshiel via the steep path down Faochag. I made a bad route choice that I have made many times, instead of following the tops of the five hills between the two ends of the twin Corbetts, I undercut them and made for Bealach Toiteil. It saved some climbing but a long contour amongst the crags is never easy and hard on the feet. The consolation was a burn dispensing cool water and a herd of deer in Coire Reidh who scattered as I entered their domain. I arrived at the bealach well exhausted from the heat.

I did think about heading straight down to Glenshiel but my pride wouldn't let me so I aimed for the wall south of Sgurr na Sgine, followed it until the end and then climbed the ramp to the summit. Surprisingly, the climb was not nearly as tiring as the previous contouring. I wasted little time at the summit, walked over to the nearby top and then followed the ridge around to the impressive Faochag. It is just not high enough to be a Munro and does not have a 500-foot drop to justify Corbett status. I knew from previous experience that the path down was relentlessly steep as it twisted and twirled through the rocks. I had chased Mark and Gregor down the path during a ridiculously quick 40-minute descent in 2005 on a day trip to climb the Saddle and Sgurr na Sgine.

Today, it took over an hour to make the descent, it is a path that I never want to descend again. My thoughts were echoed by another walker who had decided to give it a break about halfway down. I continued but each step was an assault on the feet and ankles and my shoes had decided to transfer the agony to me. It was after 4:30pm. It took an age to change shoes, rehydrate, and prepare for the drive home. I stopped at Spean Bridge to buy a bottle of lime and lemon sparkling water to quench my thirst. The traffic was lighter than expected to Fort William although a car towing a caravan pulled out in front of me adding at least 10 minutes to the journey home before it pulled off at Ballachulish. I arrived home in time to join at the start of the Zoom meeting that had been postponed by 15 minutes. Only four Corbetts to go.