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Andy Hyams: Despite a dry spell, I could not cross some deep burns immediately south of Loch an Fheoir. If descending that way (as recommended in Andrew Dempster's Grahams book), aim to meet the stalkers' track a good 500 metres south of the loch.
Andy Hyams: There is an electric fence crossing the NE shoulder of the hill, from the inlet of Loch Cuaich to Allt Garbh.
Andy Hyams: This is a perpetually contentious hill. When Andrew Dempster wrote 'The Grahams', he highlighted the 'Closed 1 July to 15 February' sign. This has now gone but there is a proposal to turn the Alladale estate into a reserve for wild non-native animals. I had a long chat with the cheerful keeper of the neighbouring Croick estate. On balance he favoured the proposal. Access to the hill was not amongst his concerns, but he was worried about extra traffic on the narrow Strathcarron lanes, and the possibility of animals escaping and taking his sheep. The latter seems unlikely as there is already a fearsome electric fence with outlying live strands that appears to enclose all the high ground from Carn Alladale to the sub-Graham Top of Carn Beag and back down the ridge to Leitir Riabhach. I understand there are many permissions that still have to be obtained and it is likely to be several years before any creatures are introduced. However, I advise you to bag this one while you can. Just watch out for that fence.
Brent Lynam: I scaled the notorious fence twice, not realising that it could have been avoided. Not wanting to park (and pay) at Sandyhills beach, I started from the minor road running NE to the E of the hill. There is room for a couple of cars at NX906571, just past the church. I crossed the break in the fence at the top of the drive to the church and followed round the side of the meadow down to the Back Burn, which wasn't difficult to cross. It's a bit tricky then for a bit, bearing left alongside the wall and ultimately aiming for the obvious firebreak up the hillside. A faint path then veers left and right of the burn, eventually emerging onto heather moor at the top, where you meet the monster fence. No need to cross it (as I did) - just keep it to your left and follow a faint path alongside for about 750 metres and then bear off to your right for the summit cairn. Quite heathery but not too bad all in all.
Peter Malone: Bainloch Hill must rate as one hill I would like to forget. The first attempt involved taking my dogs on what looked to be an easy forest track, to be faced with a huge deer farm, caged into the forest, with notice boards displaying many rules and regulations, including NO DOGS. Next day dawned with abysmal weather for my second attempt, and having entered the deer forest I found great difficulty in finding the right cairn in rain, mist and waist-deep heather. The return was worse. Trying to follow a deer track back to the main path, I fell off a small cliff, in deep bracken, to sustain knee ligament damage, putting me out of action until September. A hill to forget.
Paul Caban: The above photo could be called 'Sign of the Times'. It was taken a princely 20 metres from the road over the Hardknott Pass. My slightly uncharitable view might be to let people learn the hard way.
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