22,21,20: the Conbhairean group

Carn Ghluasaid, Sgurr nan Conbhairean and Sail Chaorainn,   23rd July 2010


After 7 Munros yesterday, a rest day might have been in order.  However, the weather dictated otherwise!  It's not often you get two blue-sky days in a row up the west coast, and when the opportunity comes along ...


We parked at Lundie on the shores of Loch Cluanie at 10am.  We started up the old road as far as a communication mast, then off it on to an excellent stalkers' path which climbed steadily up the hillside avoiding the worst boggy bits.


To our left, a marvellous view of yesterday's hills opened up across the loch.

Carn a'Mhaim and Druim Shionnach across Loch Cluanie

We followed the path across a shallow coire, then up a series of wide zig-zags on to Carn Ghluasaid's SW ridge.

on the way up Carn Ghluasaid

The zig-zags opened out on to a broadening shoulder of rocky outcrops, leading up to Carn Ghluasaid's remarkable flat summit plateau.  A couple of hundred metres across to the far side, a large cairn marked the summit - only 2 hours from leaving the car at the lochside.  Carn Ghluasaid means (possibly) "hill of movement", but there was nothing moving up there except for us!

on the summit of Carn Ghluasaid, with Sgurr nan Conbhairean behind

the summit plateau of Carn Ghluasaid

It was a bit early for lunch, but a grassy ledge behind the cairn, overlooking the deep coire Toll Creagach Beag, proved irresistible.  We sat there for half and hour, enjoying the dramatic view spread out before and below us, before heading off towards the next Munro, Sgurr nan Conbhairean.


This took exactly one hour:  a short, gentle descent from the plateau, then round the edge of the coire, then up on to the intervening top, Creag a' Chaorainn (Anne by-passed the top by cutting across to the left).

Sgurr nan Conbhairean from Creag a' Chaorainn

Another slight descent around the rim of the next coire to Glas Bealach (above, left), then 140m of steady climbing, up a series of grassy solifluxion lobes, to Sgurr nan Conbhairean's impressive summit cairn.

Anne looks happy to be on the summit of Conbhairean!

We'd already had some lunch, but it was a nice spot, so we sat a while to admire the view.  Despite the blue sky, we had to sit behind the cairn to get some shelter from the cool breeze.


After half an hour or so, we decided it was time to make for Sail Chaorainn, the third Munro.

Sail Chaorainn from summit of Conbhairean

From Conbhairean, Sail Chaorainn was an easy 2km walk - down the broad ridge from the summit around the tops of two further deep coires (above) to a bealach at 913m, then a short rise to Sail Chaorainn's broad whaleback ridge, with the summit a rocky outcrop at the far end.  45 minutes and we were there.

view from Conbhairean across A'Chioch to Mullach Fraoch-choire and Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan

Anne waited patiently on Sail Chaorainn for half and hour, while I made a quick detour out to Carn na Coire Mheadhoin, Sail Chaorainn's north top (and only 1m lower than the main top).  This proved to be a great viewpoint - into Glen Affric, and as far as Torridon to the north and the Moray Firth to the east.

on Carn na Coire Mheadhoin (looking worried that the camera might fall off its perch!)

There is another top, Tigh Mor na Seilge ("the big house of the hunt") another mile beyond.  Despite its intriguing name, I decided that I had gone far enough for the day, so headed back towards Sail Choarainn.  Will I ever get to that outlying top, I wonder?

looking back from the north top to Sail Choarainn (rocky top of green lump in middle distance), Sgurr nan Conbhairean's pyramidal summit (centre),  Carn Ghluasaid's flat top (left), and Drochaid an Tuill Easach (just off to the right)

Back at Sail Chaorainn, Anne was feeling a bit chilly, so we quickly set off back towards Conbhairean.  Part way up its north ridge, we struck off to the right and contoured across the west flank to join the path leading down the SW shoulder, saving ourselves 100m or so of climbing.    Another short descent and ascent, and we were on the final top of the day, Drochaid an Tuill Easach ("the bridge of the watery hollow").  Two ravens were sitting on the cairn, looking like two old hags, but flew off as we approached.


It was cool and breezy on top, so we didn't linger there, but stopped for a final rest part way down the south ridge, overlooking Coire Lair.  Suitably refreshed, we pushed on down the ridge by an intermittent path, which brought us down to the road at the lochside at 6.10pm.


The car lay 2km away along the road, so I left Anne and my rucsac at the pretty little waterfall, while I made a quick march along to fetch the car.


Only 20 more to go - a productive two days!!


Summary:

3 Munros + 1 top

19 km walk

1300 m climb

8 hours 45 mins

Log:

left Lundie	09:55
Ghluasaid	12:00 - 12:30
Conbhairean	13:30 - 13:55
Chaorainn	14:40 - 14:45
north top	15:00
Chaorainn	15:15 - 15:20
Drochaid TE	16:25
road	18:10