Apart from my 1000th Dumgoyne on 17 June, there was a mixed bag of summits during the year, the highlight being the visit to Carnan Cruithneachd (11A) on 11 March. The snow-plastered west ridge was an exhilarating scramble, with spectacular views all around, but especially down some 600 metres to Glen Elchaig. The subsequent visit to the Falls of Glomach and the Marilyn above, Meall Sguman, was a bit of an anti-climax. Next morning, in Ratagan, we awoke to find ourselves snowbound, but eventually skidded over Cluanie and crawled for 13 hours in deep snow, following a tortuous route via Oban and Stirling back to Glasgow. In contrast, just two weeks later, on a Marilyn raid in Appin (Ardsheal Hill, Beinn Sgluich and Beinn Lora) all snow had vanished, leaving swollen burns, ankle-deep mire, and the most dank, muggy, murky conditions imaginable; payback for hill rapine I suppose.
Our intention, on a quiet sultry day, was the Corbett An Sidhean (12A) from the Monar dam, but on the way back the walk somehow felt incomplete, so we went for the Graham Beinn na Muice from NW of Monar Lodge. It proved to be a splendid little hill, recommended on its own account, rather than as a coda to the Strathfarrar Munros. The craggy kilometre-long summit ridge has great views, particularly along Loch Monar to the remote hills around Lurg Mhor.
Beinn na Muice and Meall Innis an Loichel (photo: Alan Dawson)
