Over The Hill

At the end of last year we promised ourselves we would start our 2022 list of Corbetts with a trip down that long 14 mile single track road along Loch Arkaig to the head of Glendessarry and it would be for the last time. Fortunately it was an uneventful journey and there were only three campervans and a couple of cars so plenty of room at the carpark. We set off from the car at 10.30, having taken a few photos of the deer which were quite close, so I imagine they are fed as they were unafraid.

We set off on the track and soon had a good view of our hill which we were going to climb anti-clockwise to traverse the whole ridge and pass the prominent little pinnacle called a’Chioch which is half way along. As we climbed we had good views south west to the Munros of the Corryhully Horseshoe which are normally climbed from Glenfinnan. At about 1pm we reached the first top, Druim a’ Chuirn, and had a lovely surprise of a great view of Rum in the distance. The light was a bit flat for good photos but the weather was dry with a cold wind from the northeast. From here there is a line of old fenceposts and an old wall which would aid navigation should it be required. We got a good view of our route and in the distance we could see Loch Morar and the island of Eigg, with the twin peaks of our last Corbett, Bidean a’ Chabair and its outlier Sgurr na h-Aide. Looking back east we saw Ben Nevis still with snow patches. A’Chioch is a jumble of large rocks perched on the ridge. The steep sided north side of the ridge has interesting split rock formations.

Just after 2pm we reached the top but almost missed it as the cairn was just a small pile of stones. We had lunch sheltering from the cold wind and noticed smoke in the far distance, from two wild fires, and then we could smell the burning. It must have been 10k away, and how it reached us from the west when the prevailing wind was a north easterly, I don’t know.

From the top we decided to head more directly southeast to the track between Upper Glendessarry and the Lodge further east. It was steep but not difficult, and further down we were amazed by the abundance of wild flowers - primroses, violets, wood anenomes, sorrel, celandines and pink lousewort. We had spotted two ptarmigans near the top, and noisy stonechats not on a rock but on the telephone wire near the Lodge. We got back to the car at 4.30pm, so plenty of time to get back home in daylight. We had a lovely day.