The Windermere Way

20th June
After a decent kip in the bothy we awoke to find that the rain had almost cleared overnight and it was now merely showery. I resolved to continue where I had left off and made an early start for Luinne Bheinn, minus all the camping paraphernalia which I’d left in the bothy.


Barrisdale


The approach to Luinne Bheinn

Not being too impressed with the state of the path coming down from Mam Barrisdale I thought I’d try the other side up Gleann Unndalain and a few minutes after leaving the bothy came almost face to face with this magnificent beast.



I was walking quietly up beside the burn which was in full flow and as I came out from behind a tree there he was. I have a feeling that he might have been slightly domesticated as there were a few deer hanging around the bothy the night before and he might have been one of those. Nevertheless, once the scent of sweat and midge spray reached him across the burn, he was off.

The path is really good up as far as the bealach then it’s make it up as you go for a while till things improve a the ridge narrows. The showers returned, this time hail, in June, I ask you. I sat one out then made a push for the top. Once there the mist came down again and I was just about to descent when I realised the the top might be a little further on.


Loch Hourn from the top of Luinne Bheinn

Two more ‘tops’ were surmounted in due course and at last the cloud lifted sufficiently to give a decent view of the source of yesterdays’ tribulations, Ladhar Bheinn.


Ladhar Bheinn

Another shower hurried me on my way to Meall Bhuide. I could not believe how cold it was for June. Every spare bit of clothing was put on but as I was travelling light, items such as warm hats and gloves were left at home. Need a rethink if I do this again.


Meall Bhuide from Luinne Bheinn

The summit of Meall Bhuide was just as bad as Luinne Bheinn. Freezing winds and intermittent showers, so seven minutes after arriving, I was off again, retracing my steps back to Luinne Bheinn and on to Barrisdale, knowing that at least this night was going to be dry.

About 10:45, three of us left the bothy for a short walk along the foreshore. A shower had just passed over leaving a magnificent rainbow and clear evening light. We didn’t return till nearly midnight and it was still light enough to read by. Summer in Scotland just does not get any better than this.

Just got back from a week in Knoydart. My plan was to wild camp where possible but deteriorating weather conditions influenced a change to the overall plan.

Day One
As the overall plan was to walk across Knoydart, taking the car, just to leave it parked for a week seemed a little extreme so I did my bit for global warming and took the train, saving about fifty quid in fuel costs along he way. Left Windermere on the 8:10 train, then after changes at Oxenholme and Glasgow, arrived Mallaig late afternoon. Finding absolutely nowhere to stay I got back on the train and returned as far as Arisaig where there's a superbly situated campsite, right on the beach at Invercaimbe that I visited many years ago.


Invercaimbe Beach

Back in Mallaig the following morning, I boarded the Western Isles for the trip across to Inverie.


The Western Isles

Resisting the temptations of the Old Forge Pub I set off for Ladhar Bheinn. The first part is on easy land rover tracks but once these end, the climb begins in earnest over featureless saturated bog. All the guide books suggest climbing Ladhar Bheinn from the opposite site and I have to agree, there’s not too much of interest on the west. If I’d known what the weather had in store for that afternoon I would probably have changed my plans and approached this one later. As it was I arrived on top in a buffeting wind, low cloud and rain which just increased as I progressed along the ridge.


Ladhar Bheinn Summit

Abandoning all thoughts of a high camp for the night, all I wanted to do was get off the mountain and out of the appalling weather. I dropped down to Barrisdale and sought refuge in the bothy. Never having stayed in a bothy before I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I was met at the door and welcomed in by a Swedish guy who was staying there with his wife. They were walking from Fort William to Cape Wrath and staying in bothies were possible and had arrived earlier from Sourlies.



Barrisdale Bothy

Being adjacent to a small croft, the bothy was well maintained with running water and surprise, surprise, electricity courtesy of a small hydro generator that produced power for the croft. Luxury indeed. Later that evening we were joined by three guys who had motored up from London, then walked in from Kinloch Hourn and were drenched.