Over The Hill

Easter Sunday and the forecast was for freezing temperatures but with a high pressure area which would give clear skies and excellent visibility, with the additional bonus that the high winds of the previous days were to subside to a mere light breeze; sounds like a good day for a recce. And Lawrie had the answer, Beinn Chorranach and Beinn Ime.

We were parked up and departing Butterbridge by 10:00 and heading off along the estate track into Glen Kinglas, heading for the isolated, single dwelling at Abyssinia, a nice easy walking-in to the start of the north ridge of Beinn Chorranach, our first objective for the day. We had no difficulty in crossing Kinglas Water on the approach to Abyssinia, the water level being extremely low, and in some areas, completely frozen over. From Abyssinia, we took stock of the ridge ahead and decided on a fairly direct approach, using the stream and gully as our guide around the crags and rocks which are fairly prominent along the ridge line.

The appearance of some rather large icicles hanging from the crags as we passed by was a reminder to us of just how cold the weather has been over the past few weeks, and a forewarning of what might lie ahead as we approached the snow line at the end of a fairly uneventful climb to the start of the ridge line. Uneventful, except for one very large deer fence shortly after leaving Abyssinia which required a bit of deft footwork and balance to get over.

We reached the snow line around the 500m height, and, as expected, it proved to be a crisp hard surface which, although frozen, was good to walk on, and we made steady progress as the ridge rose in a relatively easy gradient over the minor top at 729m before heading on towards the 888m summit of Beinn Chorranach. Although well within the minimum Corbett height, this summit fails to gain Corbett status due to the fact that the descent on its north side into Glas Bhealach is 138m, some 14m short of the required "drop" between hills; a pity, for this top was quite impressive, with some great views and well worth a visit.

From the summit, we had a clear view of the task ahead, of our descent into Glas Bhealach, and of a daunting looking climb up the north ridge of Beinn Ime. And so, it was crampons on and ice axes in hand as we set off down the 138m descent into Glas Bhealach, where, on arrival, we did, just for a fleeting moment, discuss whether we should take the escape route and continue to descend the Allt Beinn Ime and leave Beinn Ime for another day. But the moment passed, and next thing I knew we were already on the steep uphill climb towards Beinn Ime.

This steep, north facing slope was well covered in snow and ice, and it was with considerable care that we traversed some very awkward areas, but nevertheless, made very good progress, and when two figures appeared peering down at us from the ridge above we knew we were very near to the summit. I had checked my watch as we left the bealach and thought "45 maybe 50 minutes to the top", so it was a pleasant surprise to find we had made it in around 35 minutes.

Safely on our second top of the day, we settled down for a welcome break and to take in the views The weather had remained pretty much as forecast, maybe a little cloudier than expected, but the cloud ceiling was high enough not to obscure the view, and maybe the wind was a touch above a breeze, but it was certainly a great day for the hills. And more to come!

We departed the summit, and almost immediately dropped off south, making a bee-line for Bealach a'Mhargaidh nestled some 350m below us. It was a steep descent over much finer and deeper snow, no icing on this side of the mountain, and so we picked our way very carefully down towards the bealach where-upon I heard those dreaded words "committee meeting". So says Lawrie "Ach being as we're here, might as well do Beinn Luibhean as well, any objections. Shall we take a vote?" and off he walks, onwards towards Beinn Luibhean. And so, very democratically, off we go.

Some 35 minutes later we found ourselves on our third top of the day, Beinn Luibhean. But it was worth the effort, for again the views were fantastic. A reversal of our route soon saw us back at the head of Bealach a'Mhargaidh and onto our original intended descent north west, tracking just north of the river course as if flows towards Kinglas Water and our return to Butterbridge.

As recce's go, this was a great day of winter walking on what was a great route. Nice to see this in the next programme!