Beinn Dearg Loop

This is a hazy account of a superb day's hill walking I did near Ullapool back in October 2003. At the time I was working in Thurso, in the far North of Scotland. Whilst up there I took the chance to bag the Munros up that way.

A mega early drive down to Ullapool saw me crossing to the West coast just as the sun was rising, burning off the overnight mist and casting a red glow on the hills ahead. In Ullapool I had to wait for the map shop to open. I took this opportunity to scoff bacon rolls.

With my shopping and feeding complete I continued a short distance further on the A835 to the trail head at Inverlael.

An early morning chill was soon forgotten as I started the steady ascent, at first through a forest, and then on the path alongside the River Lael. As the sides of the valley opened out I got a first glimpse of the hills that were today's objective.

The last haul up to Beinn Dearg was a steepish scramble through some low cloud. However all of the hard work was worth it when I finally emerged on the summit, above the cloud level. This was my first (and only) cloud inversion, a phenomenon where the peaks of the mountains rise above a sea of cloud. There was not even a breath of wind at the top, and I sat there in my T shirt, for a good half an hour enjoying the spectacle.

The cloud inversion from Beinn Dearg

As I descended to the col the cloud lifted and, as a result the next Munro, Ceann Garbh,was a bit of a disappointment. I was well ahead of schedule and spirits still high, so I decided to bag Eididh nan Clach Geala as a bonus. It was not far out of my way. A little care was needed descending to the west but I was soon bounding down the heathery slopes.

Shortly before I joined the path alongside the Lael I fell in with a guy called Norman who I had bumped into a couple of times during the day (the only person I saw). He was a nice chap and we chatted about what a great day it was. It turned out that he was also staying in Ullapool Youth Hostel, and when we got there, the same dorm. As a pair of lost souls, we went for a bite to eat together and he soon had me trying the many beers from the Skye brewery. An Indie band from Glasgow (Cosmic Rough Riders) were playing that night so we gave that a go as well. The band weren't bad, but by the time we got back to the hostel the door was locked. Fortunately a window was open to the ground floor ladies toilets so we managed to break in that way.

The next day I bagged a couple more hills on my way back up north but a change in the weather and a stinking hangover made for a perilous slither along a very icy ridge in a raging blizzard.

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