Pronunciation/Translation: Ben Laoigh - byn loo-yee (hill of the calf), Beinn a' Chleibh - byn a chlayv (hill of the chest)
(Entry by Shona)
Well, today saw us heading up beyond Tyndrum and along to the car park on the A85 at Glen Lochy.
Arriving at around 4pm, we knew that once again we were pushing it for daylight, but I don't mind hiking in the dark. May as well get used to it before the winter months.
A short walk along the River Lochy leads us to where we are supposed to cross over towards the rail track. Guidebooks say there are stepping stones, but the water is slightly too high for that, so off with the gaiters and boots, trousers are rolled up above the knees as we head into the cold water. Bare feet struggling for grip on the smooth rocks mean we splash around and end up with wet trousers anyway. We make it to the opposite side only to look back and see Alfie still sitting on the river bank looking slightly scared and sad that we have left him behind.
After being dragged into the river, Alfie starts to swim and Eric drops his leash halfway across so that he isn't being pulled along.
Quick dry and re-booted, we skip over the rail tracks and head into the forest.
Soggy just doesn't describe the ground here. Every few steps see us up to our ankles in mud and sludge. After a while, we don't care about it anymore and just step where we want.
We cross another smaller river and head up through thicker forest. Eric ends up knee deep in sludge and has a wee moment where he thinks he can't get out but then realises that he is standing on his own foot. Hee hee.
Steep climbing needed to get level with the deer fence. No stile in sight, so we climb it army style!
We follow the fence up and then head towards the bealach. More soggy hiking and river jumping before we reach the ridge. The views are breathtaking! To the east we have Ben Lui and west is Beinn a' Chleibh. We decide to head up Ben Lui, (which takes the best part of an hour to summit and return to the bealach). The going is really hard. So steep and very rocky. Another summit reached in cloud cover, so no views.
We take a couple of quick snaps and head back down. Descent is quicker but still hard going and by the time we get back to the ridge it's around 6.30pm. Light is fading now, but we have bagged Ben Lui so we may as well do Beinn a' Chleibh while we are here.
This doesn't take us as long, but I find the going very hard. A lot of encouragement given by Eric, which I appreciate a lot as I don't want to give up and we summit, but don't hang around for long.
We return again to the ridge and start heading down towards the forest. Eric has a few slips which get him covered in mud but he is okay and we try to keep the pace up so that we catch as much light as we can. Hard to keep a fast pace when the ground is so uneven and slippery but we make it back to the deer fence and (not so gracefully) climb back over.
Heading back into the forest means we lose all light and torches are now out and in full use. Eric leads with his head torch and I follow with the dynamo light, which decides to pack in just when I need it the most.
We manage to find our way back to the stream, more by luck than judgement as we certainly didn't follow the same path, and we cross to the other side.
The going is tough as I try to follow Eric as closely as possible but have no light at all and have no idea what I'm stepping on, so it's my turn to stumble around like some drunken crazy forest ogre. A few sharp steps where the ground drops from under me mean I'm now feeling pain in my shoulder and knee, but can't stop now!
We slowly follow the path until it takes us through the forest to the rail tracks.
We return to the wide river. This time we decide to just wear our gear and get over it as quickly as possible. Alfie back on the leash and Eric takes the first step in, closely followed by Alfie and I.
Cold water seeps into our gaiters and boots as we splash our way across. I've no idea why, but I stumble and know that I'm going to dive into the current, so put my hands out to stop myself. I punch the rocks and make a big splash. Water up to my chin, but surprisingly it's not as cold as I thought it would be.
Eric turns around to see what the commotion is and shows some concern for me, but I'm okay and manage to get to the other side before I burst out laughing! Which makes Eric laugh too (I think he was trying not to!).
A short, soggy and squelchy walk back to the car so we can get into clean and dry clothes before we head to the Drovers for a drink and a warm dinner.
Had a great day with plenty of adventure, but Alfie still wasn't tired!
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