Over The Hill

Finding a parking spot on the narrow lochside road at Ardvorlich House is always difficult as the popularity of Ben Vorlich means that this mountain is busy irrespective of the weather or time of year; and today it was evident Ben Vorlich was going to be a busy mountain; fortunately we were destined for the less popular Meall na Fearna, the Corbett which lies to the east of Ben Vorlich on the opposite side of Glen Vorlich. Sure enough, a kilometre or so further up the glen, as we swung left to follow the line of the Ardvorlich Burn deep into Glen Vorlich, we had the glen to ourselves as everyone else branched right to begin their ascent of Ben Vorlich.

Initially, a good ATV track leads into the glen, heading for Bealach Gliogarsnaich, the 550m high bealach which separates Ben Vorlich and Meall na Fearna at the head of the pass leading south into Glen Artney; however, as you progress towards the bealach, the path becomes less distinct and deteriorates to a single, grassy line; at which point we left the path and took to the open hillside, heading up the heather clad southern slopes of Beinn Domhnuill. Although is was a little cool, the sun was making a regular appearance through scattered clouds, and a solitary large rock on the upper reaches of Beinn Domhnuill offered just t0o good an opportunity to stop, enjoy the hillside, take in the views and have a little refreshment for our efforts so far.

Break over, we skirted around the eastern side of Beinn Domhnuill, not quite crossing the summit, and headed south to cross the shallow bealach between Beinn Domhnuill and the un-named 717m top, an area littered with quite large peat hags, which thankfully, and quite surprisingly, were dryer than we expected and crossed without too much difficulty. On more solid ground once again, we made our ascent up the short north west ridge towards the 809m summit of Meall na Fearna, stopping en-route to watch as a fairly large herd of deer appeared on the ridgeline some distance away and created quite a sight silhouetted against the skyline. A cool breeze blew across the summit, but a well placed rock scar provided the ideal shelter as we enjoyed the pleasant autumnal weather and settled down for a well deserved lunch.

Leaving the summit, we took a direct line northwest contouring around the north side of the 717m top and down the heathery slopes to rejoin the faint path alongside the Ardvorlich Burn for a leisurely return to the shores of Loch Earn.

A great walk in fine company - Thanks Ian.