Over The Hill

Last week on Beinn Fhionnlaidh we had struggled to find a sheltered spot in which to take a break and get some sustenance on board. Today, hopefully, lunch would be taken in the relative comfort of Gorton Bothy, so much so, that Jimmy had ditched his crampons, so necessary on Beinn Fhionnlaidh, and replaced them in his rucksack with a pile of kindling wood to ensure we had the makings of a fire once we reached the bothy.

It was a wet and damp start as we booted up and set off from the car park just off the A82 and headed along the track to Achallader Farm and the standing remains of the 16th Century Achallader Castle. Passing through the boundary gate and leaving Achallader behind we made our way over the flat grasslands to the south of Water of Tulla, a wet area fueled by numerous small streams and the overflow from the Water of Tulla and the Allt Ur; the latter of which we had to wade through for a short distance, the water levels being above any standing rocks.

On crossing the Allt na Crannaich we left the river bank and headed uphill through the old forest area to cross the West Highland Railway by an arching footbridge before turning to follow the line of the WHR as we made our way through an area of managed woodland where high fences, and equally high stiles, have been erected to keep out the sheep and deer in an effort to help and regenerate the natural woodlands, once so prolific in this area.

From what we could see, it would appear that the regeneration is having some success, as this was a beautiful area to walk through, and distinctly different to the hillside outside of the fenced enclosures. There seemed to be an abundance of small shrubs and trees all of which looked very healthy and sturdy. And then there were the Scots pines, quite a few scattered around the hillside, obviously much older than the surrounding shrubs and trees, and standing quite magnificent in this environment. It all helped to paint a picture of what this landscape must have looked like when these forests dominated the area. Quite magnificent I should think.

A number of high fences and countless small streams later we were making our way under the lowest of sheep creeps to re-cross the WHR and heading towards one of only two bridges now spanning the Water of Tulla as we picked up the ATV track for the final few hundred metres to Gorton Bothy.

And a welcome sight it was, as apart from one small interlude, it had rained incessantly since starting the walk and we were all ready for a break and the comfort of a dry shelter for our lunch. Jimmy was first through the door, and had the fire up and going almost before the last of us was in the small, and cosy "front room" of the bothy. And it transpired that Jimmy wasn't the only one to ditch the crampons for the day, Alan had done likewise and produced a large box of Lemon cakes, which he distributed around, all part of the bothy "hospitality" package.

Needless to say, it was not easy to leave a roaring fire behind and take to the wet track once again as we departed the bothy and headed along the undulating ATV track back towards Achallader, with the rain seeming to get heavier with each step we took.

We made good progress along the track, with only one slight diversion as we passed by Dun Aigheannach to check out the footbridge which spans the Water of Tulla at this point and is a main access/return point for those heading to or returning from Beinn a'Chreachain and which a number of websites were reporting as being "down". And down it is. It looks like some mighty force of water has caught it, flipped it 180 degrees and tossed it 2 metres along the rocks from its original position. All that remains is the spanning girders and a few planks of wood from the walkway. A point to remember for anyone planning on climbing Beinn a'Chreachain.

Our final hurdle for the day was re-crossing the Allt Ur, which seemed to be even deeper than earlier in the day, as we waded back across and then made our way along the farm track to our parked cars.

Great day - Thanks Alan (for the cakes), and Jimmy (for the warm fire)