Creag nan Gabhar

22 August 2011

Participants - Neil and Ben
Where - Creag nan Gabhar, 834m/2,736', Corbett, Map 43, NO 154841, time taken, 3 hours and 45 minutes

According to the forecast, this was going to be the best day of the week so off we went again, this time heading north to get in a highland hill before the deer stalking season started in earnest. Carn nan Gabhar rises steeply from Glenshee; it can be approached from the south using a path that goes over to Lochcallater Lodge. I've done this route once- it is the short way up but I think that that is its only merit. The route is shut in for most of the way, the hillside is rough and there is a boggy area just before the final rise to the summit. I much prefer the route from the north from the car park opposite Auchallater farm and that's the way that we went today. The parking area had been improved since my last visit and there is now a fee of £2.50 which a sign said went to path upkeep; however, the machine was not working today!

There was a good view of the hill from the main track, the summit, as is usually the case, is at the furthest away point.....

and from around the same spot, there was a view of the Munro, Carn an Tuirc to the south.....

We left the main Glen Callater track after about a mile to take another track that zig-zaggged up Sron Dubh, the northern top of the Corbett. This actually continued well up the ridge, turned into a path higher up and continued to the summit. It would be difficult to get lost on this hill! It was really easy walking over dry ground with some stones higher up.....

You really are in the middle of the hills here- Munros and Corbetts are all around- and there is nothing like a good ridge walk to take in all the views. And this is a good ridge walk. This is looking back down the ridge from near the top with two of the Cairngorm 4,000'ers- Beinn a' Bhuird and Beinn Avon on the horizon.....

There were a few cairns at the top, the biggest of these appeared to be the true summit. This is it with the Cairnwell Munros in the background.....

and another look to Beinn a'Bhuird and Beinn Avon......

and down to Loch Callater with the lodge and the bothy at its west end and the Lochnagar hills beyond....

It was a pity that the sky was cloudy but at least the summits were clear! I now had a choice, go back the way we had come or drop down to the bothy and walk back along the main track in Glen Callater. There seemed to be a lot of estate activity down at the lodge and a few vehicles on the track- no doubt preparations were in full swing for the shooting season which apparently starts on 1 September in this area. So I decided that it was a day to stay high and we went back the same way. The estate workers were out replenishing the grit boxes for the grouse and I watched this ATV for a bit. It seems to be able to cope with all sorts of rough ground, something to save up for when I'm too old to get up a hill under my own steam maybe!

There were certainly a lot of grouse about and I don't remember seeing the stone shooting shelters on the hillside the last time that I was here either. Back down the hill, Ben went for a dip in the Callater Burn......

I preferred a dip into the Cairnwell cafe before the main drive home!