In June 2013 & again in 2014 I visited Glen Affric via Glen Lichd & the Grannda Paas from Morvich in the west. Here you can read my diary of those adventures. I took lots of photos & I will add some of them here in due course.
Thursday 6th June, 2013
After parking at the National Trust for Scotland Morvich Countryside Centre, I headed along the road turning right onto a track where a public footpath sign directs to Glen Affric by way of Gleann Lichd. After going through a pedestrian gate the track passes farm buildings on the right. Over to the left of the track in the distance is Gleann Choinnachain where the path comes down from the Bealach na Sgairne at the end of the circuit round Beinn Fhada.
The vehicle track goes up the four miles to Glen Lichd House at the head of the glen, following the River Croe up a wild & near treeless glen twisting & turning between steep mountain sides with Beinn Fhada on the North & the Five Sisters of Kintail the South as well as rising a little, but is interrupted in a number of places by several fords. Even a heavy shower on the South side of the Five Sisters is enough to raise the level of the fords, covering many of the stepping-stones which enable one to make a crossing with dry boots. On the way up the glen I made a point of taking photos of the fords which I would reassess after reaching Glen Lichd House before continuing onto the path leading to the pass. As there was to be a continuation of the dry weather, the water level in the fords was more likely to go down, so after having something to eat I continued on the clear path beyond the house. The path continues a short way past a ruined house before it crosses a suspension bridge over the Allt an Lapain. After crossing an intervening hillock another bridge spans the gorge of the Allt Grannda. The path now starts climbing in earnest as it traverses the slopes high above the river way below. The path has been well constructed on the very rocky & steep terrain, but with the aid of well-adjusted walking poles the ascent was achieved with little difficulty. Higher up this section of the path follows the course of the gorge as it bends round to the left and so I stopped on numerous occasions to take photos & to assess the route ahead. Several burns have to be safely negotiated close to the edge of the deep basin far below as the path continues to climb. Fortunately crossing the burns was relatively easy due to the dry tops of the stepping-stones, but with more water in the burns it would have been treacherous & forced me to turn back. There had been only a light & variable breeze as I walked up Glen Lichd, but with no trees to provide any shelter the wind became more noticeable as I gained altitude & neared the best place to take a few photos of the waterfall.
The waterfall is some distance away on the other side of the deep gorge & was quite difficult to film even with the aid of my video camera’s optical zoom. Without a tripod I had to keep the zoom to a minimum to avoid camera shake even although it is fitted with an optical stabiliser. Taking stills was a bit easier, but as the path comes very close to the edge in many places with a sheer drop to the deep basin below I had to exercise extra care & keep the video clips relatively short. Had the wind been any stronger it would have been too dangerous to venture on & continue over the pass. In several places not long after the start of the ascent, the sound of running water was occasionally replaced by the noise of traffic on the A87 in Glen Shiel being carried by the light breeze blowing between a few gaps in the mountains, the Five Sisters of Kintail to the south of the pass. With breathtaking & beautiful scenery all around I had hoped to see a Golden Eagle during my walk over the pass, but as I neared the top of the pass I was lucky enough to hear its call high above, but hidden by the sheer slope of the mountain side rising several hundred feet in the air to my left as the path contoured round the mountain.
After crossing the watershed the path goes on undulating up as it twists & turns crossing several burns as it traverses along the contours of Beinn Fhada (Ben Attow) towards the bothy at Camban. As I rounded a blind corner in the path about half a mile further on I heard the thunder of hoofs. A few minutes later I spotted two mature female red deer bounding away into the distance. They stopped briefly & turned looking towards me as I rounded a corner & came into view. I just managed to get a photo shortly before they bounded off again disappearing into a dip in the terrain.
There had been only a light & variable breeze as I made my way over the pass, but now it had been replaced by an absolute stillness only broken by the rhythmic sound of my walking poles striking the ground as I powered on towards the bothy with dusk fast approaching. I stopped to take a photo of my surroundings which were now becoming more featureless as light levels dropped after sunset.
As I rounded a corner the gable end of the Camban bothy came into view directly ahead a few minutes before 11pm. It seemed an ideal spot to stop, so I took off my rucksack & got out my head-torch. After checking the bothy door latches to find out how they worked, I entered & had a look around before bringing in my rucksack. Nobody else was staying there so I had the place to myself. After laying out my air-bed & sleeping bag I lit the candle in the centre of the table as my head-torch was attracting quite a number of midges. The candle still produced sufficient light for me to sit down at the table & have something to eat & drink before getting into my sleeping bag for a good sleep after the 8.81 miles I had walked since leaving Morvich.
Friday 7th June, 2013
After a good night’s sleep I was up bright & early by 5.30am. I went outside & was presented with a glorious morning with a clear blue sky & some mist following the course of the burn, Allt Cam-ban flowing in the dip between the mountains & me. It was flat calm with the silence only broken momentarily by a few swallows feeding on insects in flight at fairly low altitude quite close to the bothy. In this idyllic location I experienced the real sound of silence. A breathtaking & unique experience with absolutely no sense of being on my own, I had the feeling of peace & tranquility which brought back memories of a poem I had learned by heart during my schooldays called Leisure by William Henry Davies (1871-1940). The first few lines from memory go like this...........
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand & stare,
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass,
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night....
In this peaceful place I did take time to stand & stare, but as usual time got in the way & was soon beckoning me to continue my walk onto Alltbeithe Youth Hostel. There I would be able to replenish my supply of fresh water, which was running low, before returning to Morvich by way of the Bealach na Sgairne pass. It was a most uplifting experience here at Camban, something I will treasure for the rest of my life. I returned to the bothy & connected my excellent wee gas cooker to make my breakfast, oatmeal porridge an ideal slow release source of energy. Then it was time to pack my rucksack & get ready to leave the bothy & head for the hostel.
But I had a visitor as I was strapping on my sleeping bag & air-bed to my rucksack and having left the bothy & room doors both open to freshen up the air inside when I got up one of the swallows I had seen earlier flew into the room I had been staying in overnight. After entering via the front door it had had to make a sharp 90-degree right turn to enter my room. Unlike the outside door, my room door opened inwards. The bird flew several times round & round close to the ceiling before perching on top of the open door. I found myself looking at the wee bird which showed no signs of panic. I had no intentions of leaving with the swallow trapped inside the bothy, so I continued with my preparations. The next time I looked towards the door it had gone, so I shut my room door. Before closing up the bothy I wrote a paragraph which reflected my thoughts on the experience in the visitors’ book before going outside to take a photo of the gable end of the bothy from the direction I had arrived late in the evening. Then making use of the table I got my rucksack on my back & fastened all the straps, picked up my walking poles & securing the outer door latches & headed off on the path to the hostel.
I duly arrived at the hostel shortly after 9.30am. I stopped a few times on the way to take a few more photos. As well as the metal suspension bridge across the burn, Allt Gleann Gniomhaidh, there is a new bridge close by which removes the need to make a detour to the old bridge to cross the burn. After crossing the bridge the path continues on towards the hostel, a short distance from which one leaves the main path to turn left for a short distance before crossing another wooden bridge close to the hostel. I had a brief chat with Audrey the warden before filling up my rucksack water container to its near maximum capacity of 2 liters. I took a few photos & then headed off back the way I came with the intention of rejoining the path which would take me back to Morvich via the Bealach na Sgairne. Remembering what the warden had told me about keeping the river on my left & that the start of the path was close to a bridge with a tilt, I made my way back to the suspension bridge, totally ignoring a third smaller bridge with ‘no side rails’ which bridged the Allt Beithe Garbh. After reaching the suspension bridge I crossed & found the GPS waymarker I had noted earlier on the way to the hostel. Crossing the bridge again, I did continue on in the right direction, only to find after a short distance that my GPS receiver told me I was heading in the wrong direction. I retraced my steps, back over the bridge & started again! Remembering what I had been told about keeping the river on my left I attempted to follow the bank of the so called river for about 50 yds, but had to stop as the way ahead was very marshy with no reliable footpath to be seen. I returned to the suspension bridge yet again & tried moving away from the burn, still keeping it on my left & looking for a way forward over the reed bed. Before long it became very marshy again & my left foot sank, with water coming up quite close to the top of my boot. I subsequently lost my balance & went down. To avoid breaking any bones I remembered to keep my arms up & leaned slightly backwards so that my rucksack would act as a cushion when I hit the reed bed. I landed quite gently. Nothing was broken by the fall as far as I could tell. I didn’t move for a few minutes as I gathered my thoughts together as to what I would do next. Looking at my watch I quickly realized that even when I got myself back on my feet & found the path there was no way I could meet my prearranged ETA at Morvich. I decided there & then, to head back to the hostel to ascertain where I was going wrong & to continue the walk early on Saturday 8th June. I had put safety at top of my checklist & wasn’t going to disregard it now & take chances despite the perfect walking weather. Using my trusty walking poles I was soon back on my feet & heading at a leisurely pace back to the hostel. When I arrived I met up with several fellow hostellers waiting for the hostel to open at 5pm.
By 4.35pm Audrey, the warden arrived after her walk out to the Cluanie Inn earlier in the day. She was really pleased to see me again as I’ve a feeling she was a bit concerned about the weight of my rucksack. She said she would help me to return to Morvich on Saturday by my planned route. After we went inside she asked if I had informed anybody as to when I would return after my walk. I told her that I had informed friends in Invermoriston & just prior to starting my walk also a lady, Ruth (unknown to me at the time, employed by the National Trust for Scotland at Morvich as Safety, Health & Environment Adviser) whom I had met by chance & told her that I would be back on Friday evening, with an ETA at Morvich of 5pm. As Audrey, the warden had access to a satellite phone, she was able to call the Invermoriston number & put their minds at rest, but I didn’t have a number for the NTS at Morvich apart from 0844.... At that time little did we think that my non-appearance at 5pm would initiate a rescue by the Kintail Mountain Rescue Team! However, I had mentioned to Ruth that my walk had been postponed from 2012 as the result of suffering a heart attack prior to my intended departure for the area around the same time last year. Ruth did exactly as I would have done in her position.
At present I do not have any names I can remember of those I met at the hostel during Friday evening apart from Audrey, the warden who kindly cooked me an evening meal & several of the others kept me well supplied with mugs of tea. To all I’m greatly indebted for their kindness & help at the idyllic hostel. Hopefully I will be able to thank them in due course. Everyone had an enjoyable evening. Close to midnight we headed for bed. The plan for Saturday was however soon to change..................
Saturday 8th June, 2013
At about 5.30am I was wakened by another hosteller who told me to get dressed & head over to the main hostel building as two men in the kitchen wanted to have a chat with me. I had had many chats during Friday evening with questions about my walk into Glen Affric by the Grannda pass, so I thought perhaps they wanted to learn a bit more about the pass as I had taken many photos on my way over. On reaching the kitchen & opening the door my jaw dropped when I saw two of the Kintail Mountain Rescue Team sitting at one of the tables! They told me that the woman I had spoken to on the Thursday who had my details was very concerned & set in motion a search for me. The two I met first followed the route I had taken on Thursday calling in past the Camban bothy on the way & read my entry in the visitors’ book. On arrival they immediately found out I was there & wanted to discuss my return to Morvich. Audrey said it was out of her hands & that the Mountain Rescue Team would decide the route out of Glen Affric. Audrey again looked after me & provided me with a welcome bowl of oatmeal porridge & a mug of tea. After breakfast I got all my things together & packed up my rucksack ready to depart.
Some time later I was informed that when the other two members of the rescue team arrived from Cluanie that the team of four with me would head out by way of the Cluanie path & meet up with a Landrover which was able to drive part way in from the Cluanie side. Some time later the plan was changed. A helicopter would land on the reed bed in front of the hostel & fly the Kintail Mountain Rescue team of four, Rule, Paul, Mark & Matt, & me out of Glen Affric. It would land at Morvich with the team getting off, but I would be continuing on to Broadford for a checkup at the hospital. Just before 9am the helicopter appeared out of the early morning mist from the direction of the pass I had crossed on Thursday & landed in front of the hostel. After being briefed about the routine for departure, which was followed with military precision, we boarded the helicopter & took off first for Morvich. Everything happened so quickly there was sadly no time for goodbyes. I was encouraged to take as many photos as I wished during the flight. After having my safety belt fitted & ear defenders placed over my ears we soon took off. Constrained with the remaining power in my camera battery I did manage to take quite a number of photos during the flight.
After a checkup at the hospital, I got the opportunity to take a few more photos from the grounds of the hospital looking across Broadford Bay on a beautiful summer’s day. At 4pm I took a bus back to Morvich getting off after crossing the causeway then walked just over a mile back to Morvich to collect my car. Before I left I made a point of ringing the doorbell of a house on the opposite side from the car park at Morvich to say that I had returned from Broadford. No reply, but in a few minutes a Landrover drew in towing a trailer loaded with canoes. I went over & spoke to the driver, Willie Fraser, who knew all about my adventure. Thanking him, I then departed driving the 37 miles back to Invermoriston for a few days rest after the walk that had turned into something quite different from my original plan. I completed about 65% of the walk before it came to an abrupt end. On reflection I didn’t give myself sufficient time to complete the walk at a pace where I could stop often to take photos of anything of interest on the way. Despite everything I’m pleased with what I managed to achieve which turned into an uplifting experience that I will treasure for the rest of my life. I can truly say that I really did experience the true ‘Sound of Silence’ in Glen Affric. Would I like to complete the entire walk round Beinn Fhada? Yes is the answer, but only after a complete review of what I carry in my rucksack to enable me to reduce the weight down from 28 lbs & adding in at least one rest day at the hostel midway through the walk.
My thanks go to everybody I met during my Glen Affric walk for making it a memorable experience. Thanks go to Ruth at Morvich, Audrey at Glen Affric Youth Hostel, Rule, Paul, Mark, Matt & Willie, members of the Kintail Mountain Rescue team as well as the crew of the Coast Guard helicopter, & the staff of Broadford Hospital.
Thanks also to the staff of Tiso (Aberdeen) for all their advice & help they gave me when choosing clothing & gear for this long walk.
I returned to Glen Affric on 18th June, 2014 to continue my adventure. No dramatic rescues this time, but not the best of weather.
Despite having a GPS positioning receiver, I always take a compass & the OS Explorer Map (1:25 000), for the area to be walked. For this walk I used map OS Explorer 414. My short visit to Broadford on Skye via the Glenelg ferry is covered by OS Explorer 413.
For my return walk into Glen Affric I decided to make my base the SYHA Youth Hostel at Ratagan which is about 3 miles from Morvich. This avoided a 37 mile journey from Invermoriston like last year & for a much earlier start on the long walk on Wednesday morning.
I stopped a few times at the head of Glen Moriston to take photos of the Cluanie dam & the mountains towards Glen Shiel. It was a beautiful late afternoon when I reached this point in my journey after a late start from Aberdeen. I arrived at the Ratagan Youth Hostel around 5.30 pm.
I first visited the Ratagan hostel in May 1960 when I cycled up from my then home near Kintore, Aberdeenshire. Back then the road up from Invermoriston was single track with passing places. Work had just started on a new road up through Glen Shiel to Cluanie Inn from Shiel Bridge. I could hear the blasting going on when I reached the top of Glen Shiel prior to the long twisting 10 mile descent via several hairpin bends to Shiel Bridge. The only part of the road still in single track is a short stretch of road before the crossing of the River Moriston at the Torgyle Bridge & part of the road from Shiel Bridge to the hostel. Lots of changes have been made to the hostel during the intervening years since I last stayed there. More about this later.
After signing in & being allocated a bed in a nice comfortable dormitory, I made use of the excellent kitchen facilities to make my evening meal. I had my meal in the spacious eating area & made friends with a first time visitor to Scotland, Dieter from near Frankfurt. I had told Dieter of my plan for the walk into Glen Affric via Glen Lichd & the Grannda Pass. He asked if he could join me on the walk up Glen Lichd on the north side of the Five Sisters of Kintail to which I said he was very welcome as it would be good to have some company for part of the long walk. It was such a lovely evening I decided to take a few photos of the Five Sisters of Kintail bathed in the evening sunshine. To save time in the morning Dieter gave me a hand to sort out some of the things I needed to take with me for my walk into Glen Affric, despite both of us being plagued by clouds of midges. He was heading for Broadford on Skye, but he would come up Glen Lichd to the point where the path begins the long climb to the Grannda pass. We planned to leave the hostel soon after 9 am & drive over to Morvich. An early night was called for so we turned in just after 10 pm.
Wednesday 18th June, 2014
We were both up bright & early. Looking out we got quite a surprise to find that the clear blue sky & sunshine of the previous evening had been replaced by fog & low cloud obscuring the mountains around Loch Duich. After breakfast I made final preparations for my long walk. Everything seemed in order until I misplaced a bag of oatmeal I was taking with me to the Glen Affric hostel. I searched high & low with no success in the kitchen & dormitory as well in my car, but not forgetting my rucksack. Returning to the kitchen for a another look one of the teachers with a party of school children, gave me several individual packets of porridge oats to enable me to get away. By this time Dieter was patiently waiting in his hire car beside the hostel. I had one last look in the dormitory for the bag of oatmeal & actually found it underneath the duvet I had been using during the night. I returned to my car, speaking briefly to Dieter on the way, before we drove off with me leading the way over to Morvich. Bartosz, the warden at Ratagan had said to call in past the Rangers at the Morvich Countryside Centre to let them know I was heading for the hostel in Glen Affric. via the Grannda Pass.
By the time we arrived at the car park beside the Countryside Centre, the fog had cleared & most of the cloud cover dispersed leaving a clear sky & beautiful morning sunshine. On arrival, I went over to the office to let the Rangers know about about my planned walk. First I met Rule who I had met several times before, most recently when he & other rangers arrived at the Glen Affric hostel in June 2013 after I was overdue at Morvich when I walked in last year. I told Rule my plan was to do the walk again, but this time I was going to stay at the hostel for two nights before returning to Morvich via the Bealach na Sgairne. He wasn’t too keen on my plan of returning via that pass despite me cutting down the weight of my rucksack & said we should first talk to the head Ranger, Willie about it. We went outside & soon met up with Willie. Rule told him about my plan & his advice about returning to Morvich via the Grannda Pass instead of the Bealach na Sgairne. Willie agreed with Rule, telling me that the Bealach na Sgairne was very steep with lots of loose rocks & dangerous to tackle on my own. I took their advice & said that I would return to Morvich via the Grannda Pass on Friday. Before parting I took a couple of photos of them both.
By this time Dieter was all ready to go. I returned to my car & got myself ready for the long walk. After putting on my hill walking boots, I got my rucksack out of the car & did a final check to see that I had packed everything I needed for the long walk. Although I had indeed cut down the weight of my rucksack, some of the reduction was negated by the additional weight of the hi-tech video gear I was taking with me to record my adventure into this remote part of the North-West Highlands. I mounted my new camera on it’s base attached to my right hand rucksack shoulder strap & switched it on. I enabled the Bluetooth wireless connection between my Fenix 2✴ watch & the Garmin Virb camera✴. Next to setup was my audio diary ! I fitted the rechargeable batteries to my solid state recorder & associated external microphone preamplifier. After plugging in the microphone, I switched on the recorder in ‘Record’ mode & moved the Hold switch to ‘On’. I didn’t want a repeat of last year when I accidentally switched off the recorder when the ‘Stop’ button had been pressed in my pocket when I had bend down at some point during my walk over the pass. I had taken two hats with me, my Tilley hat & an Australian leather one. When wondering which one to wear, Dieter advised me to wear the Australian hat as it was more able to cope with rain if I ran into bad weather during my long walk. His advice was to be proved correct as I did encounter rain on my return journey. After final checks, I locked my car & picked up my walking poles. Now I was ready for the near 12 mile walk to the Glen Affric hostel.
We started walking at 11 am. The first part of the walk is along a tarmac road past the caravan park until the signposted turnoff for Glen Lichd. There is a padlocked gate across the access track to the glen with a pedestrian gate for walkers. The walk up Glen Lichd is on a vehicular track used by land-rovers or similar vehicles. Many of the fords I remembered from last year were dry, but a few required some care in negotiating just like last year. As we walked along at a steady pace, I pointed out many of the points of interest to Dieter. Willie had suggested that I should take off my waterproof jacket as it would be very warm in Glen Lichd. It was indeed hot in several places on the 4 mile walk up the glen, but as I had all the pockets filled it was easier to wear the jacket. About 2 miles, we met a fellow walker, Bill, who was staying in a mobile home at the Morvich Camping & Caravan site. I wondered if he had come over the pass, but he said no. He had been about half a mile further along the track before turning back to the campsite as his back was giving him a lot of discomfort. We had a nice chat with Bill before saying our goodbyes & heading on up Glen Lichd.
I pointed out to Dieter where the Grannda Pass is approximately located between the mountain peaks at the head of the glen. Glen Lichd House comes into view for the first time about 3 miles up the glen, & then disappears as the track moves away from the River Croe & comes close to the foot of the Five Sisters of Kintail. It only came into full view again as we reached the top of the final rise in the track a short distance from the house. As we passed Glen Lichd House to get onto the footpath leading to the pass. I was surprised to see that the porch was ’missing’ & the main entrance door only secured with a piece of blue nylon cord. The porch door padlock I remembered from 2013 was now lying on top of a wall stone. The window in the refuge built onto the east end of the house was broken & it’s door was held closed by a large boulder. At the time I didn’t notice the lack of the porch, but it can be seen in photos previous taken in 2011 & 2013. I have since learned that it was a winter storm which caused all the damage.
Deiter & I continued onto the path to the east of Glen Lichd House which heads for the Grannda Pass via two bridges, one over Allt na Lapain, followed by the second over Allt na Grannda after crossing the intervening hillock between the bridges. The two burns merge to become the River Croe which flows down Glen Lichd & into Loch Duich near the causeway.
A short distance along the path from Glen Lichd House we met up with a couple sitting on a rise to the south of the path enjoying the sunny day together with their family pet dog, a collie. We had a brief chat with them before continuing on to the bridge over Allt an Lapain burn. After crossing the second bridge over Allt na Grannda we stopped & had something to eat. Before parting company, we exchanged email addresses & took photos of each other. Dieter headed back down Glen Lichd & I started on the long climb to the Grannda Pass.
On the way up the path which zig zags as it gains height, I stopped to take a photo of a waterfall on the Allt an Lapain to replace my partly out of focus photo take near the same spot in 2013. This time I took more time in framing the view in the camera’s folding screen. I made a point of taking several more photos including one which gives a wide angle view of the beautiful scenery. Later this photo was to show a dry corrie on the top of a mountain. Putting away my camera I continued my ascent towards the Grannda waterfall. Unknown to me at the time, Dieter had stopped on his way back down the track & followed my progress through his binoculars as I made my way up towards the pass before I disappeared out of sight. Soon I met the couple Dieter & I had spoken to at the head of Glen Lichd. I had a brief chat with them as their collie dog led the way as they headed back down the path & along Glen Lichd to the caravan park. I continued on my way with the path ahead levelling out to some extent as it approaches the Grannda waterfalls. Before reaching the falls a burn had to be crossed. This was relatively easy with the numerous stepping stones allowing for a dry crossing. Before I reached the waterfall I stopped & took another photo looking back towards the Five Sisters of Kintail & another capturing the view along the course of the Allt an Lapain burn. Several more waterfalls could now be seen. On the way up the pass the warm sunshine experienced during the walk up Glen Lichd had been replaced by cloudy conditions with just brief sunny spells. Soon I reached the Grannda waterfall or perhaps more correctly waterfalls as the falling water encounters a series of rocky interruptions on the way down to foot of the gorge. As well as taking a still photo, I took a series of video clips making sure I didn’t advance the zoom too far. It was quite windy so I had to steady myself by leaning on a large boulder at the side of the path between me & the drop into the gorge below. Then I noticed another smaller waterfall further along the path as it goes round the edge of the gorge. I made a short video clip of it before continuing along the path to the next burn which turned out to be the source of the smaller waterfall.
This burn was trickier to cross with fewer stepping stones showing above the surface of the running water, but I did manage to get across with dry boots.
The path starts climbing steeply again. My walking poles helped enormously as I negotiated my way up the twisting path. At times I had to make a few detours as the direct route was just too steep & dangerous for me to tackle. After the gradient eased & the path levelled out somewhat, I spotted an unusual butterfly to the left of the path. It was struggling to open its wings against the moderate breeze funnelling up between the steep sides of the mountains. I stopped, stabilised myself with my walking poles & took a photo of the butterfly, which I would later identify as a Small Heath. I took a few more photos before continuing up yet another steep incline which leads to the top of the Grannda Pass & the watershed before continuing into West Glen Affric.
I crossed a few more burns before the path makes a series of curves or left hand loops along the side of Ben Attow as it heads towards the Camban bothy. At the start of each curve one can see the end of & the start of the next some away ahead. The path undulates up & down as it makes its way ahead with some steep rises & equally steep drops in elevation as one continues round to the start of the next loop. To my right I could see the Grannda burn way below, then a familiar landmark I had photographed last year to show the ruggedness of the terrain came into view. I didn’t take any more photos as I continued my long walk to the Alltbeithe youth hostel. I decided to take a few photos during my return walk to Morvich on Friday. With the bothy & eventually the hostel some way ahead I felt that it was better to keep up a steady pace with just a few stops as I was already estimating my arrival to be close to 20.00 or 8 pm.
Like last year the Camban bothy came into view as I was going round a high bank to the left of the path. This time however it was broad daylight when I first saw the bothy. It disappears again several times, obscured by the side of a hill close to the mountain side, until one is quite close to it. In fact, it finally loomed large in front of me about 20 metres ahead after rounding a high bank. This time I didn’t stop at the bothy & go inside. I did briefly glance into one of the windows & noticed several gas canisters, empty I presumed & left behind. From the bothy the hostel is about an hour & a quarter away. The path now a track continues twisting & turning, crossing several hillocks as it heads towards the new National Trust bridge lower down the glen. Before I reached the bridge I had to negotiate two flooded sections of the track. I stopped & assessed the way ahead very carefully, checking with my walking poles to see if the boggy ground would support me. I did think about continuing straight ahead through the water, but on checking the depth with one of my walking poles I found that it would have reached my knees! At this stage in my walk the last thing I needed was to walk in wet foot-wear Having successfully found a way past the two flooded areas by slowly picking my way round the edges above the water line I continued towards the bridge which can be seen some way off as is the hostel & it’s wind turbine in the distance. Some repairs had been carried out to the track as I reached the first burn, Allt Gleann Gniomhaidh & the NTS bridge. I inadvertently continued on a bit too far & ended up at the ford crossing. I back tracked a short distance to where there is the hint of a path leading over to the new bridge. The old chain bridge a short distance from the new bridge had been removed since last year. With the bridge crossed, the path, barely visible now follows the burn down stream across a wet reed bed towards the River Affric. After walking along a stretch of low grass with the path (barely visible) running parallel to the River Affric I reached another burn, Allt Beithe Garbh, which is crossed by a small wooden bridge with no side rails. The path becomes a track again & continues to follow the the course of the River Affric, rising & falling as it follows the contours of the terrain. Before long the hostel comes into view & a junction is reached where a track leads off to the left & up to the hostel. Another wooden bridge has to be crossed close to the hostel. I reached the hostel at 19.50 after completing the near 12 mile walk from Morvich.
On entering the hostel porch I removing my walking boots & took off my rucksack. I was welcomed by the Relief Warden, Paul who asked me to sign in for my stay.
Thursday 19th June, 2014
Today, I had planned to explore the area near the hostel & to find out where I went wrong last year when I missed the path to take me round the north side of Ben Attow & back to Morvich via the Bealach na Sgairne pass. I had a long discussion with Paul after breakfast. After looking at the map, Paul was kind enough to give me some training in ‘pacing’ before heading for the start of the path. To begin with we counted the strides required to cover 100 metres, which was the distance from the bridge beside the hostel to where the track turns sharp right & follows the River Affric for another 500 metres to the bridge over the Allt Beithe Garbh which I crossed yesterday on my way to the hostel. After completing the first 100 metres, I repeated counting up to 84, the number of paces I had used to reach the first 100 metres. Doing the same for another five times we reached the bridge where I went wrong in 2013. This way of measuring is surprisingly accurate & would be used it to estimate distance during the remainder of my time in Glen Affric. We crossed the small bridge over the Allt Beithe Garbh, where there is the trace of a path leading off at about 45 degrees from the nearly obscure path leading to the new NTS bridge over the Allt Gleann Gniomhaidh. Paul told me to follow the path heading off towards the reed bed at 45 degrees. This I did & it appeared to go nowhere, but stopped abruptly at the edge of a reed bed which looked quite boggy. Paul told me to continue forward without deviating left or right into the reed bed. After about 20 metres & near the centre of the reed bed, he told me to look ahead & to my right for a path close to the burn we had just crossed a few minutes earlier. This I did & spotted a path following the course of the burn disappearing into the distance. Paul headed back to the hostel & I continued on through the reed bed to the path which takes one round the north side of Ben Attow. This route through the reed bed was dry despite lots of wet areas on either side.
I had intended to continue on this path as far as a loch (Loch a’ Bhealaich), about five miles from the hostel, before returning to the hostel. This I had discussed with Paul before we left the hostel earlier. He said he would keep an eye out for me & we fixed an approximate return time for me to be back at the hostel, before Paul would come looking for me. The weather was dry, but overcast with just a few blinks of the sun. There was a light to moderate breeze blowing from a westerly direction which was very noticeable at the top of any ridges the path crossed as it made its way up Gleann Gniomhaidh. I stopped on numerous occasions to take photos as I made my way along the path. On any high points I could see the hostel & its wind turbine to the east as well as the glen (An Caorann Mor) leading to Cluanie Inn to the south. After seeing the Allt Gleann Gniomhaidh it disappears for some time & only came into view again when I reached a higher piece of ground. By then the burn is quite a bit lower in elevation than the path I was following. The burn looks more like a river in places as it meanders down the glen to become part of the River Affric. About an hour into my walk I was lucky enough to see a Golden Eagle flying parallel to Ben Attow & the burn. Unfortunately the magnificent bird was just too far away to get a photo. However I stood in awe watching the enormous bird with its slow & rythmic wing motion as it made its way up the glen against the the wind before turning & heading towards Ben Attow & perhaps the location of its nest. At that point I lost sight of the golden eagle. I must admit to having some doubts in my mind about what I had just seen, because of some white wing feathers in its wings. Everything else looked fine, but I was beginning to doubt that I had in fact seen a golden eagle. Since my walk I’ve had the opportunity to see a Golden Eagle of a similar age, close up, in the University of Aberdeen’s Zoology Museum.
I continued on my way along the winding path. Eventually the path turns slowly & heads towards the burn way below. In the next mile the path descends & comes very close to the burn. I stopped many times to take more photos of the beautiful scenery. By the time I had walked about 3 miles, I made up my mind to turn back as I had a near 12 mile walk to do on the Friday when I made my return walk back to Morvich via Camban & the Grannda Pass.
I stopped often taking photos of the many wild flowers on both sides of the path. Another highlight of this part of the walk was when I spotted what I initially thought was a dragonfly. It darted back & forth across the path as I stood watching it, then it landed quite close to me at the side of the path on the long grass stems. I wondered if I could get a photo before it flew off again. I got out my camera & with the insect nicely framed in the wee screen I took one photo then adjusted the camera’s zoom to get a closeup shot. I was lucky enough to get good photos, despite part of the insect’s head being obscured by a blade of grass. I made my way slowly along the path stopping periodically to take photos. After close to 3 miles I turned & made my way slowly back to the hostel. There is such a variety of wild flowers to be seen along the way. I took a photo of a pond skater, not particularly unusual to see on stagnant water, but this individual was on what looked like an ‘oil spill’. This species I hadn’t seen before. I continued walking back towards the hostel, taking more photos of wild flowers which caught my eye. In the distance I saw Paul with his dog some distance away coming along the path towards me. Some time later Paul & I met up & had a chat. He said he would continue on a bit further to give his dog some exercise, before returning to the hostel. I continued walking back & took a few more photos, including a few shots where the path started & headed for the reed bed ! From there I walked back the last 600 metres to the hostel. It had been a very interesting walk. The sighting of the golden eagle was the highlight of my day. I would have liked to have reached the loch, but it made sense to turn when I did with a much longer walk to undertake the following day.
Before long Paul had returned to the hostel. There were quite a few new arrivals, including one, a lady, who had walked in from Cluanie Inn ! After having some refreshments with Paul, I prepared my evening meal. A couple of packs of dehydrated food which was something new for me to try. After cutting open the packs & adding boiling water there was a short wait until the food was ready to consume. I must admit that the food was quite tasty. During the evening I went out & took more photos. There is a suspension bridge across the River Affric which is a great landmark seen from all directions. I walked across the reed bed where the helicopter landed last year & airlifted me & the rangers out of the glen. The ground is quite boggy & the path rather indistinct. After crossing I saw little trace of any path heading towards Cluanie Inn. I didn’t spend any time exploring the start of the path to Cluanie Inn as there was a hint of showers heading towards Alltbeithe from the west. I got on with taking photos of the river, bridge & surrounding mountains before returning to the hostel. Before I went inside I took a few photos of the few trees beside the hostel. After taking the photos it was time togo back inside & prepare for an early departure in the morning. I packed my rucksack with most things, so that I wouldn’t have to do very much in the morning. I changed the batteries in my GPS receiver & cameras. I changed the battery in my new shoulder mounted camera as the one I used walking in on Wednesday was flat. I charged the battery in my watch from my portable supply.
Paul offered to charge my flat camera battery via his laptop. Good idea, but I made the mistake of leaving the charged battery in the camera when we connected the camera to the computer. I went & got the flat battery & we swapped them over, but didn’t disconnect from the computer. I had hoped to record the descent from the top of the Grannda Pass to the head of Glen Lichd. I only found out that the memory card in the camera had been damaged when I arrival back at the Ratagan hostel as at the top of the pass I had just switched the camera on auto by moving a slide switch on the side of the camera forward whilst the camera was still mounted on my shoulder. I had an early night so that I could be up & away from the hostel by 9 am.
Friday 20th June, 2014
I got up around 6.30 am & had a wash before heading for the kitchen to make my oatmeal porridge breakfast. Paul was already busy getting the wood burning stove going. After breakfast I returned to my room & strapped on my sleeping bag after checking that all my things were back in my rucksack. Looking out towards the south-west the weather didn’t look too good with slow moving showers obscuring the surrounding mountains, visible again only for a short time before another shower arrived. Paul suggested that I made use of a waterproof cover stowed away in a zipped up pocket at the top of my rucksack. Being for the most part a fair weather walker, I had never used the cover before. After deploying the cover & securing it, I moved my rucksack through to the hostel porch ready for departure. I collected my walking poles from the comfortable room I had had for my of two night stay before heading into the kitchen to say my fair-wells to the other hostellers. Then I went through to the porch I got my rucksack onto my back. I connected up my audio recording gear & mounting the camera on its shoulder mount. With everything checked, I said fair-well to Paul & left the hostel at my planned departure time of 9 am.
The showery activity continued from the direction of Camban & beyond towards the Grannda Pass. From the sketch map (Walk map), one can follow the route back to Morvich. Heading in a south-westerly direction, Mullach Fraoch-choire is the mountain to the south. The next mountain peak to the south-south-west is Ciste Dubh followed by Sgurr a’ Bheallaich Dheirg. To the west is Beinn Fhada (Ben Attow). It is quite an easy walk for the near 700 metres to the NTS bridge. Part of the walk is along a vehicle track with some grass growing in the centre. It follows closely to the course the River Affric before veering off to the right towards to the new bridge & the meeting of the three burns which form the River Affric. The track heads down to a ford across the Allt Gleann Gniomhaidh with the path following the bank of the Allt Gleann Gniomhaidh burn, rather unclear at times as it crosses marshy ground to reach the bridge. Once across the bridge the path barely visible at times veers to the left & crosses a reed bed to meet up the the vehicle track coming from this west side of the ford. Quite a bit of work had been done on the track by adding new hardcore since last year. At the junction with the path I headed south-west along the track towards the bothy, about an hour’s walk from the bridge. From now on the ground rises as the track makes its way towards the Camban bothy. I stopped & took a few photos looking back from a few good view points towards the bridge & the hostel in the distance. With the showery activity since day break I was thinking about the two flooded areas I had encountered on my way in on Wednesday. With the showery activity there would be even more water to negotiate a way past. As I rounded a blind corner towards the first flooded area I was pleasantly surprised to find that most of the flooding had cleared as the result of new ditches having been dug since I passed on Wednesday. The work had been done in preparation for a race taking place on Saturday 21st June. The second flooded section was clear too as the result of new drainage ditches. The track continues nearly to the bothy, twisting & turning as well crossing several small hills. It was such a relief to find the track clear of flooding, as the showery activity would have added to the lying water, so the walk on towards Camban was fine. I stopped & took a few more photos of the mountain scenery. After about an hour & a quarter from the hostel I spotted the Camban bothy a short distance ahead.
I took a quick photo & continued on my way. I didn’t stop at the bothy on my way past as I still had several hours of walking ahead of me before reaching Morvich. A few relatively steep inclines with longer declines are encountered on the path after the bothy as the path makes three quite distinct loops towards Ben Attow as it heads towards the pass. There is a clear view of the end of each loop some way ahead from the starting point before going down yet another decline. Using what I had learned about ‘pacing’ I was able to estimate that it would take about an hour to reach the end of each loop & the start of the next. The showers kept coming & obscuring the mountains around me. However I was still able to take a few photos between the showers.
I stopped & took a photo of a waterfall on the Grannda burn seen on my way in on Wednesday which comes into view before the start of the descent to the watershed at the head of the pass. The view towards the pass was obscured for a short time by yet another shower. Thankfully it did clear by the time I reached the watershed & the downhill path towards the pass & waterfall. I stopped briefly to switch on my shoulder mounted camera. From now on my progress would be slow on the steep descent of the twisting path. I had to stop & assess the best way ahead as it wasn’t always safe to attempt the shortest route. Loosing my footing & falling here had to be avoided at all costs, especially where the path comes very close to the edge of the deep gorge. I didn’t take any more still photos during the descent as I was being kept busy using my walking poles to slow my descent on the steepest parts of the path. My shoulder mounted camera would record the descent. Before long I reached the first burn which is located closest to one of the best view points of the Grannda waterfall. The crossing was quite easy, despite the increased water level from the showery activity. I stopped briefly to view the falls before continuing on to the next burn crossing. The path levels out for a bit before it reaches the next burn. This time I stood for some time accessing the best way to cross as most of the bare stepping stones that I had used on Wednesday were covered with water. There was now only one dry stone visible above the running water. I would have to select the shallowest route across to the other side, but keeping in mind that the stones on the bottom of the burn may be quite slippery. The shallowest water was very close to the steep drop into the gorge way below, so extra care would be needed. Half way across I felt my right boot slip, but thankfully I managed to counteract the slippage with my walking poles & get safely across to the other side. From now on the descent was relatively straight forward as the path veers away from the gorge. It wasn’t too long before the bridge over the Allt an Lapain burn came into view. I stopped & took a photo, before making my way the final descent to the bridge over the Grannda burn. I stopped briefly to take another photo of the bridge. Looking down Glen Lichd another shower obscured the mountains at the start of the glen at Morvich. I took a photo before I crossed the bridge. As I crossed the bridge it started to rain quite heavily. I felt my boots slipping slightly on the wet gravel path as I made my way along the path over the intervening hillock leading to the bridge over the Allt na Lapain. Thankfully my walking poles kept me upright. By the time I had crossed the second bridge, the rain had eased. When I reached the end of the path at Glen Lichd House, the rain had cleared & I was able to see towards Morvich & the surrounding mountains again. Now I was back on the vehicle track leading down Glen Lichd to Morvich. That was such a relief as coming down the pass was much harder than the ascent. On the descent I had to use my walking poles to slow my descent to a crawl as the weight of my loaded rucksack was pushing me forward. On the ascent one actually leans forward into the slope using the walking poles for stability & additional contact with the ground like a mountain goat. I didn’t spend time stopping to take any more photos on my way down the glen, except to take one of a waterfall I had spotted during the walk up Glen Lichd on Wednesday. About a mile from Glen Lichd House I met a young man with a heavily laden mountain bike who was heading for the Camban bothy. After a chat we went our separate ways & I soon reached the best place on the track to take the photo of the waterfall flowing down the north side of the Five Sisters.
About a quarter of a mile from the entrance gate I met up with a couple who were staying at the Caravan Park. We chatted during the short walk, stopping only for me to take a couple of photos near the entrance gate. Soon we reached the tarmac road & the way back towards Caravan Park site & the car park where I had left my car. We said our goodbyes & I continued back to the Countryside Centre car park. Before I returned to my car I rang the doorbell of the house where Willie, the head ranger lives, to let him know I had returned safely after my walk into Glen Affric. He wasn’t at home, so I asked his daughter who opened the door to let him know I was back.
I then headed for my car. I switched off my audio diary recorder & disconnected the preamplifier & microphone attached to my chest strap. This done I was able to take off my rucksack & put it on the back seat of my car. After changing out of my walking boots & into my shoes, I drove back to the Ratagan hostel.
I arrived back at the hostel just after 6 pm & booked in for my 3 night stay. I was back in the same room, but could only find an upper bunk available. After speaking to Bartosz, the warden he arranged for me to get a lower bunk by exchanging with another hosteller. With that done I headed for the kitchen & started preparing my evening meal. I had left food in one of the fridges whilst I had been away to Glen Affric & I had plenty more non perishable food in the boot of my car for the rest of my stay. As I was busy cutting up some vegetables & chatting with fellow hostellers I fainted ! No helicopter airlift this year out of Glen Affric, but a wee drama in the Ratagan youth hostel. Luckily a man I had been chatting to about my walk into Glen Affric spotted what was happening in front of his eyes & as my legs gave way, he caught me on the way down to the floor. When I came to I was on my knees with the man supporting my back. As I opened my eyes I was quickly made aware of what had happened. It couldn’t have happened in a better place. There was a sea of faces including the warden who had been quickly on the scene. I was quickly told that the reason I had fainted was that I had run out of energy after the long walk. After a short time I was helped up onto a chair & given a mug of sweet tea. Not long after I was able to move through to the eating area & sit down whilst other hostellers prepared some food for me to raise my energy levels. Feeling more like myself again I thanked everyone for their kindness. It was suggested that I should abandon any plans I had for Saturday & Bartosz, the warden told me to take things easy & stay in the hostel all day. I had intended to do a walk to the Bealach na Sgairne & then return by the same route, but it made sense to take things easy after my long walk into Glen Affric. I spent the evening chatting to the hostellers who helped me before having an early night.
Saturday 21st June, 2014
My original plan for Saturday had been to walk up to the Bealach na Sgairne taking photos along the path to the high pass before returning back to Morvich. Instead of going on that walk, today became a rest day to fully recover from the exhausting return walk against a moderate breeze from Glen Affric hostel to the head of the Grannda pass.
After breakfast I set about recharging batteries. I replaced the flat battery in my shoulder camera in order to view what had been recorded during my long walk & especially what had been recorded coming down the Grannda Pass. I was taken aback when I saw a flashing message on the camera’s screen telling me to check the micro SD card. I wasn’t able to get anything from the card, so I decided to replace the card with a spare card I had taken with me in case I ran out of recording space. Switching on the camera with the new card everything functioned perfectly. I decided to test the camera on Sunday with my planned drive to Glenelg then to Braodford on Skye after taking the ferry across the sound. I was hoping that I might get the chance to film the white tailed sea eagles often seen by passengers during ferry crossings.
I did briefly go outside the hostel to take a few photos. I took several photos of the hostel from the outside as well as some inside to show the excellent facilities & accommodation which has transformed this hostel since I was last here in 1960. The changes are quite breathtaking. A fully fitted kitchen with gas cookers & fridges, an excellent & spacious eating area, showers & a lovely common room Back in 1960 it was really a basic hostel, but nevertheless a friendly & comfortable place to stay during my first visit to the west coast of Scotland. One thing which sticks in my mind was the ladder access to the dormitories below the roof couples with a thick rope to hang onto during any ascent or decent. The cooker were coal burning stove & I remember one of the duties during that first stay was along with the other hostellers to keep the buckets filled with coal. All the roads around Ratagan in 1960 were single track with passing bays. I remember the warden warning me about the road to the Kyle of Lochalsh where I was to catch the then ferry to Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis (The Loch Seaforth). The road was fairly flat from Ratagan round loch Duich to Inverinate via Morvich (no causeway bypass back then) after which I would have to get off my bicycle & push it up the steep & twisting road over Carr Brae. For a short section near the top I would be able to get back onto my bicycle before being forced to get off again & walk down the steep gradient with lots of hairpin bends on the descent towards Dornie. From Dornie to Balmacara it would be easy along a fairly flat road until I left Balmacara where the road would climb again before levelling off & turning south to the Kyle of Lochalsh.
Sunday 22nd June, 2014
After having another good night’s sleep, I decided to drive over to Broadford on Skye. I was keen to test my shoulder mounted camera with my spare micro SD card. I would drive over Mam Ratagan & take the Glenelg Ferry to Skye in the hope that I might get the chance to film the White Tailed Sea Eagles on Skye. I wanted to buy some more food in Broadford before I returning to the hostel via the Skye Bridge. The weather was dry, but with a low cloud cover shrouding most of the mountain peaks. I was on my way by 9.30 am. Before I left the hostel I had switched on my audio diary.
On my way up Mam Ratagan I got a brief glimpse of a Sparrow Hawk flying across the road in front of the car. The road climbs through a forested area with pine trees on both sides. The road has been improved over the year & many of the hairpin bends widened, but it is still a long climb in a low gear up to the excellent viewpoint near the highest point of the road which I’ve visited on previous occasions. After parking in the car park which used to be part of the old road, I crossed the new road to the viewpoint. Here there is a low, flat information panel showing the positions & names of all the mountain peaks in the panoramic view across Loch Duich. I made a short test video with my new camera. Everything appeared to be working correctly. I continued my drive over Mam Ratagan & down the south side & onwards to Glenelg. I stopped in a lay-by about half way down the narrow road after seeing a group of cyclists heading uphill towards me. I waited until they all passed, receiving a wave of gratitude from each of them as they made their way up the long hill climb to the top. Soon I was on my way again.
The weather had brightened somewhat with a few glimpses of the sun through the low cloud base. I soon reached the ferry terminal at Glenelg & as I drove slowly down the slipway, was waved onto the waiting ferry. No sooner had I driven onto the turntable deck, the ramps behind me were raised & the ferry started on it’s crossing to Skye. Everything happened so quickly ! I got out of my car, removed the camera from the shoulder mount & started filming the crossing holding the camera in my hands as there was no time to waste. Not planned or as ideal as I would have liked, but I did manage to record the crossing. As I had earlier switched off the camera’s own microphone I would have to add a sound track from my audio diary during editing. With little wind the crossing was smooth apart from the strong currents occasionally buffeting the wee ferry. In the centre of the channel the currents create whirl pools caused by the tidal flow around the rugged underwater terrain. The crossing on the Glenachulish lasts just over 5 minutes before it reaches the Kylerhea jetty. I was a bit disappointed that I hadn’t seen any White Tailed Sea Eagles during the crossing, just a few herring gulls on this occasion ! A good reason to return here in the future. Here is a link to the video: Glenelg ferry
At the Kylerhea jetty the road climbs quickly & narrows almost immediately to a single track road with lay-bys before it widens again just before joining the A87 to the east of Broadford. I stopped several times to take photos on my way to Broadford. As the road rises quite quickly after leaving the ferry terminal, it wasn’t long before I found somewhere to stop & take photos. There was a good view towards the Sound of Sleat. The road continues climbing, quite steeply at times as it makes its way up Kylerhea Glen towards the Bealach Udal before starting the descent down Glen Arroch to Broadford. I stopped & took photos looking towards Broadford & across Broadford Bay. I’m sure the view across the bay would be breathtaking in good weather, but even with the low cloud shrouding the mountains the scene ahead of me was quite atmospheric leaving one guessing as the clouds momentarily gave one a very brief view of what they were concealing. On reflection I should have returned by the same route, but I had made up my mind on the ferry to return to Ratagan from Broadford via the Skye bridge.
At Broadford, I stopped at the Coop supermarket & bought some food to supplement what I had back at the hostel & to take home with me on Monday 23rd June. Had the weather been good I would have returned from Ratagan & made my way to Elgol for a few coastal walks & the possibility of seeing the white tailed sea eagles. I had planned to take a boat trip to Loch Coruisk which would allow me to take photos of the mountainous scenery from the sea.
The supermarket car park is quite close to the small harbour at Broadford. After returning to my car with my shopping, I climbed onto a bank nearby which gave me a good view across Broadford Bay. There was quite a drop from the bank down to the rocky shore. From this view point I could see across to the mainland & was able to pick out quite a number of the land mark including the mountains around Applecross & the Kyle of Lochalsh. There was a good view of the harbour & a few inshore boats tied up made it an ideal subject for more photos. I returned to my car & had a light lunch before driving to Kyleakin. Rather than driving across the bridge I came off the roundabout to the west of the bridge & drove down into Kyleakin & parked close to the old ferry slipway. From there one can take good photos of the bridge with a backdrop of a few of Skye’s mountains. Looking east along Lochash the mountains of Kintail can be seen, although on this occasion the Five Sisters of Kintail & Mam Ratagan were barely visible through the low clouds. With the numbers of lobster pots on the quay, Kyleakin appears to have quite a number of lobster fishermen. In fact when I was there a van arrived & a newly arrived fishing boat started unloading its catch. As well as lots of lobster pots I spotted some diving equipment, a rubber boat with outboard motor together with air bottles & other associated gear waiting to be used. It wasn’t long before several men clad in wetsuits emerged from a large mobile home on the quay & headed over the low barrier fence towards the rubber boat. They got themselves organised fairly quickly, loading their equipment into the rubber boat, started up the outboard motor before speeded away along Loch Alsh (from the Scottish Gaelic Loch Aillise, "foaming lake"). I got back into my car just as it started rain. I drover the the Skye bridge to Kyle of Lochalsh & back to Ratagan. On reaching the hostel, I took a few more photos around the hostel as well as a few inside. The photos give a glimpse of the excellent facilities the hostel has to offer which makes an ideal base for exploring the surrounding area.
Monday 23rd June, 2014
With no improvement in the weather & the mountains still shrouded in low cloud, I made preparations to return home. After loading up my car & taking a few more photos I said my goodbye to Bartosz, the warden. I decided to stop at several lay-bys between Shiel Bridge & Cluanie Inn to take a some photos of the Glen & possible views of where the old road used to be back in 1960. The road is very busy, so the only safe places to stop are the lay-bys, some of which are sections of the old road. It was a pity that the cloud cover was so low as the scenery in the glen is breathtaking. I intend recording some video the next time I’m in the glen with a camera mounted to passenger headrest. I concluded my photo diary for this visit beside the Cluanie Inn Hotel.
Despite having to modify my planned return to Glen Affric, I am very pleased with what I managed to achieve during the long walk. It was a pity that the weather didn’t match what I had experience in June 2013, but seeing a golden eagle in flight & the great variety of wildflowers to the north of Ben Attow made my time in the glen most memorable. I would have liked to have returned to Morvich via the Belleach na Sgairne, but after listening to the concerns about that route from the rangers, Wille & Rule, I was happy to return to Morvich via the Grannda Pass. Safety has to be a top priority when visiting this remote part of the North-West Highlands. Unless one is equipped with a satellite phone there is no easy way to communicate with the outside world. As I found out the weather can change in the glen very quickly. On my return walk I had to contend with a strong head wind & a succession of showers, some heavy, before I reached Glen Lichd House at the foot of the Grannda Pass. Even without taking photos it is a long walk where care has to be taken every step of the way. I saw nobody on my way in on the Wednesday after Glen Lichd House until I reached the Alltbeithe Youth Hostel. On my return walk I didn’t meet anybody until I was part way down Glen Lichd.
My thanks go to Bartosz, the warden at Ratagan, the rangers Willie & Rule at Morvich & Paul, the relief warden at Alltbeithe. I mustn’t forget all those hostellers who helped me at the Ratagan hosten when I fainted ! I haven’t heard from any of them so far, but it is early days yet remembering the photos I received a few months ago from a couple I had met at Alltbeithe at the time of my ‘rescue’ in 2013.
Thanks to Dr. Page, I was able to get names for all, but two of the wild flowers. I still don’t have any information for the unusual pond skater I photographed. I plan to return to Glen Affric in 2015 & having map the coordinates for the locations of the two wild flowers I intend taking close-up photos of them both together with perhaps specimens to help with the identification. The best time to visit Glen Affric is from early May until the middle of June. A minimum of 9 hours is required for a leisurely walk into Glen Affric from Morvich & another couple of hours wouldn’t go amiss as there is so much to see. I’m currently planning to make two visits to Glen Affric in 2015, & perhaps linking them to visits to Elgol on the Isle of Skye. The SYHA Youth Hostel at Ratagan is an ideal base for exploring the area. In 2014 I had to wait until the week of the longest day before the weather was suitable for the long walk, but unfortunately it changed by the time I started on my return walk. However, by adding stops for regular rest & food breaks I should be able to avoid running out of energy as in 2014.
My thanks to all those who have contacted me to say they enjoyed visiting the site. I still have to add a page with details of my high-tech gear which is currently in preparation.
For 2015, I planned for two visits to Glen Affric to add to my knowledge of the area. In 2014 I had to wait until the middle of June for a break in the weather. The best time to visit the area is from the beginning of May until the end of June. Ideally I want visit the area on two occasions during this period about a month apart in order to get photos of photos of both the flora & fauna which go through big changes during the advance of spring into early summer. My planned trips never took place for various reasons.
July 2020 update
However I am still keen to go back & gather more data & this I now hope to due in 2021.