Blundering about on Cruach nan Caorach

23 June 2015

Participants: Neil and Ben

Where: Cruach nan Caorach, 458m/1,503', Sub-2k Marilyn, Map 55, 991804

 

This was one of the few Cowal Marilyns that I still had to do. The direct frontal assault from the shores of Loch Ruel looked brutal with lots of crags so I drove to the high point of the Glendarual to Otter Ferry road which took most of the ascent out of  the equation. This is a view of the hill (left hand summit) from near to the start and again from a mile  or so in.....
 

 

There was a bit of forestry involved from this side and I faced the usual problem of  new tracks which were not shown on the map. I had taken the precaution however of taking advice as to the route. Initially, the track went downhill which was a bit of a bugger, especially on the way back. However, the weather was good and the route advice was proving to be excellent. Then it all went wrong. I was supposed to branch off a track on to what was said to be a rough 4WD path. However, my informant had failed to specify where exactly this point was and the heavy brigades of the Forestry Commission had been at work and had churned up the hillside alongside the track. So I missed the turn off, carried on along the track for further than I like to admit, and added about an hour and a half to the walk. The other problem of course was that I couldn't see the hill for the trees so had nothing to focus my bearings on.

 

Eventually I turned back and this time investigated the churned up area and found what might have been a path. It disappeared from time to time but at least I now knew where I was and could see the summit in the distance. On the horizon behind me, was an old friend- Jura.....
 

 

Next I came to a fence which I managed -just- to hold down far enough for Ben to jump over. On the way back, I found a gate. The summit area was not far away and I could see the trig.....

although there was a sting in the tail in the shape of a drop before a final steep climb to the trig. It was a good viewpoint looking down the Kyles of Bute.....

to Arran.....

 

across Loch Fyne and Kintyre to Jura.....
 

 

Ben was tired.....

 

but time was now getting on so we didn't linger. I reckoned that the path I wanted probably ran by the side of the fence and so it proved. Now I know the route exactly this would be quite an easy hill but that would take all the fun out of it!

Island Davaar

Participants: Just me

Where: Island Davaar, SIB, Map 68

I hadn't slept very well- lots of coughing and spluttering and I certainly wasn't feeling at my best. However, I felt a bit better when I hit the fresh air and as it was an absolutely glorious day, I decided to walk out to Island Davaar before setting off down the road. The island is at the entrance to Campbeltown Loch and is accessible 3 hours either side of low tide by walking across the Doirlinn, a narrow spit of shingle. There is a hill walkers list of islands- the SIBS, the Significant Islands of Britain- and Davaar is on it. It rises to a height of 115m.....

I was really lucky with my timing, low tide was at noon so the island was accessible from 9.00am. There is a parking area at the start of the Doirlinn and it seems to be a popular walk, although most people seem to stick to the shoreline rather than climb to the top. There is rock art in one of the caves. This is the island from the start of the Doirlinn.....

The island is grazed by sheep and goats. Here are the sheep with a nice background of the Arran hills.....

and here are the goats.....

There was a rough path up the grassy slopes and I was at the trig in an hour.....

What a great viewpoint! This is looking down on Campbeltown, Campbeltown Loch and the Doirlinn.....

the Arran hills from the summit.....

looking up the Kilbrannan Sound.....

and on the southern horizon, Ailsa Craig.....

A great way to spend a couple of hours or so.

Mull of Kintyre Marilyns- Cnoc Moy and Beinn na Lice

9 June 2015

 

Participants: Just me

Where: Cnoc Moy, 446m/1,464', Sub-2k Marilyn, Map 68, NR 611152 and Beinn na Lice, 428m/1,404', Sub-2k Marilyn, Map 68, NR 602085

 

I had only been down the Kintyre peninsula once before- with work on a dreich January day. So it was a part of the country that I was unfamiliar with- time to put that right. I drove down the east side so I got a good view of the Arran hills, this is from the harbour at Carradale.....

The weather on the following day was a bit hazy and there looked to be a bit of a sea mist around. I had been fighting a cold for a day or two so decided to do Cnoc Moy and then decide whether I was up for the other hill. I had spotted an approach from the south east following a forestry track and passing a farm at Gartnacopaig. A lot of the forest had been cut down and I soon got a view of my hill.....

I left the track before I got to some other buildings at Largiebaan and took to the grassy hillside; the going underfoot was good- miraculous compared to some of the other hills in the area! Looking back, I could see Sanda island.....
 

 

The haze made the views a bit disappointing, this is looking to Machrihanish beach from the trig.....

This is The Slate, another sub-2k and one that definitely wasn't on my list of hills to do, as well as being covered in trees it is apparently very rough, even by Kintyre standards.....
 

 

I could also see my next intended hill in the distance.....
 

 

Fortunately, I didn't have to reach it cross country. It was back to the car in what I thought was a very reasonable 3 hours 45 minutes. I didn't feel great but Beinn na Lice only takes about 40 minutes so I jumped in the car and headed to the Mull of Kintyre.

 

The sun shone all of the way until I got to within a few hundred yards of the road end. But I suppose that I shouldn't have expected anything else but mist rolling in off the sea!
 

 

Anyway, there were breaks so I did get a view from time to time. The hillside was very rough but no matter, the cairn and trig soon came into view.....

 

 

This is the radio mast on the nearby Torr Mor, with the coast of Northern Ireland just visible beyond.....

So a nice couple of hills, and easy. Driving back up the road on the west side of the peninsula the following day- a day of crystal clear visibility- I got a great view of Cnoc Mor from Machrihanish beach.....