(Entry by Shona)
Ullapool – 15 August 2011 to 18 August 2011
Monday 15 August
After a long morning or sorting out our gear and camping things, we start our long drive up the country towards Ullapool and the enticing mountains of An Teallach. We take a slight detour through Inverness and end up driving towards the West coast as dusk falls. Not a bad time to be driving as the mountains and surrounding hills look quite spectacular.
As we make our way along the A835, we catch our first glimpse of An Teallach. Wow. Jagged peaks rising from nearly nothing, the evening sun behind, casting them in dark shadow. We take some pictures from a distance and trundle onwards. As the road curves to the south, we are now within a mile or so of An Teallach and they feel as though they are looming above us, tempting us ever closer.
We turn off and head 7 miles along a single track road to the campsite at Badrallach.
We choose a small spot at the end of the site so that the dogs don’t disturb anyone, however we end up next to a family with 2 young children……..and I thought Bracken cried a lot!
We pitch the tent with near military precision and get our gear inside. The midges’ arent too bad but they are out there! We take the dogs down the path to the waters edge and admire the view across the water towards Dundonell. After a wee bite to eat we decide to have a whisky and get our heads down. Busy few days ahead.
Tuesday 16 August
We wake to rain and low cloud cover, so we have a lie in before we head up to Ullapool for the day. We drive leisurely along the roads and take in the scenery until we reach Ullapool. We walk round the town with the dogs and take a peek in all the wee shops. I still can’t seem to find the antlers that I want but Eric finds a nice Mammut hat.
We fill our tummies with some chips and have a drink in the terrace bar before we walk back to the car.Long drive back to Dundonnell where we head up past the other campsite at Badcaul. We both agree that the site we are on is better, even though it is a bit out of the way. Another fairly early night as we rest before our hike up to An Teallach tomorrow.
Wednesday 17 August
Up early, some noodles and hot dogs for breakfast. A hearty meal for any hiker and we pack up the car, dismantle the tent and drive round to the Corrie Hallie lay-by where we gear up, jump the stile and join the boggy path. We follow the stream on it's east side and head further up Coir' a' Ghiubhsachain onto the rocky outcrops which stretch out at the base of the An Teallach range. Little cairns mark the way as the path isn’t always clear. I can imagine how desolate it would be in winter.
As we hike further along towards Glas Mheall Liath, we plan which way we are going to head up and then we catch our first sight of Loch Toll an Lochain. Beautiful teal blue water glistens in the sunlight and we watch as two deer dart along the mountain slightly higher than we are. We are now in a mix of boulderfield and scree and we make our way up the steep side, stopping for pictures and to enjoy the surrounding views. The midges make sure we don’t stand still for long though and before we know it we have reached the summit cairn of the first of the days peaks.
From here we head south towards Bidein a' Ghlas Thuill (1062m), the first of 2 Munros on the range. We walk over what we think are slight mounds of rocks but they end suddenly and have massive drop offs. Could be very dangerous in mist or snow or just general cloud cover. After a few detours to avoid the rocky outcrops, we ascend up to the summit, We don’t see much as we are now inside a cloud.
Quick snack before we ‘glove up’ and start the descent. We drop down below the clouds and onto the ridge between Bidein a' Ghlas Thuill and Sgurr Fiona 1060m, the second Munro on the range. As we get out of the clouds, we can see along to the coast and see all the little islands. Pictures just can’t pick up the same detail. It is amazing.
We pass a few people on the ridge, who don’t say much and look pretty tired.
From this part of the ridge, we can look right down into the corrie and take in the full size of the lochan below. The whole corrie is made of steep slopes with triangular peaks and zigzags cut into the rock. It’s like the Cuillin on Skye but with more greenery!
The best corrie and lochan in Britain? I can see why. It’s breathtaking up here.
We push on and wind our way up and around the peak of Sgurr Fiona and spot a few sheep grazing, just above is shrouded in cloud. Not a sight I expected, I have to say. Eventually we find the summit cairn. Back up in the clouds again.
We drop off the north east side of Sgurr Fiona and head towards the Corrag Bhuidhe.
From here, the path skirts the edge of the ridge with sheer cliffs which fall right down to the lochan below. We look out over Fisherfields and the surrounding mountains that stretch for miles.
As we take pictures of the huge jagged peaks of Lord Berkeley’s Seat, we see a man right at the top. Eric shouts up to him and takes his picture. But it’s hard to get the full scale of the drop into the picture.
We circle round the lower part and meet the guy and have a chat. Eric sends him the picture to his mobile. After a pleasant chat we bid each other farewell.
From here the terrain changes and we are on a very steep and narrow path with slight climbing to be done. We take our time and make sure the dogs are okay and then we catch our first glimpse of the wild mountain goats. They have the most beautiful coats and we watch as two young males tap horns right on the edge of the rocks. Hardy little blighters. They’d have to be in this place! They decide that we are too close and they skip off further up the mountain where they stand and watch us from a distance.
The last two peaks are easy climbs and we make good time on these. We decide to head off the end of Sail Liath, which is boulderfield and soggy heather. The rain has found us and we go slowly. These boulders are ankle breakers. Each stone varies between the size of a small tv and a small family car! We make it down off the boulders and are soon being attacked by the ever present midges. Argh!
We still have a way to go before we pick up the path to Corrie Halle and we trudge on.
I slip on some slimy rocks and end up with a hand full of mud! I shout back to Eric to take care on the rocks, but he has the same spill as me and ends up with peaty mud all up his sleeve! Ooooops. We stop at a wee stream so that the dogs can have a well deserved drink and Eric cleans off his jacket.
We trudge across the path and look back over the peaks of An Teallach, which is now my favourite place and favourite hike yet! We pick up the old military track and follow it for what seems like an eternity but we have good pace and make good time. As we walk through the forest of birch trees, a small flock of sheep appear from the bracken and bolt across the path. Eek! We finally reach the road, lead up the dogs and walk back towards the lay-by, where the car is parked. Dogs in the back and gear off, we drive round to Ullapool for the night.
We pitch on the shoreline right at the end of the Broomfield Caravan Park and walk back into town. We try to eat our dinner and enjoy the evening but the midges are relentless! I give myself bad indigestion and end up a little green around the gills. We walk along to the Ferry Boat Inn and they say that we can bring the dogs in after meals have ended in 20 mins, so we do a couple of circuits of the lower part of town before enjoying out post walk pint and a look through the photos.
Eric has taken some amazing pictures. More than he normally does, which is a good thing though as my BB got a drenching on Glen Shiel Ridge last week and my spare phone ran out of battery after the first mountain on An Teallach. We finish our drinks and walk back to the tent. We fall asleep listening to the water lap the shore.
Thursday 18 August
Up early and we pack up the tent and head through Ullapool and back down towards Drumnadrochit. We decide to stop a little further down in Fort Augustus for lunch and a stretch of the legs. I take over the driving and batter down the road. As we head through Glen Coe, a fighter jet rips through the sky line with an almighty woosh.
We make good time and are back at Eric's before we know it. Eric spends the evening sorting through the pictures and getting them all cleared up. We enjoy looking back through them and both agree that An Teallach is one of the best hikes we have done. I enjoyed every second of it and would like to go back but maybe to do the mountains of Fisherfield with a wild camp next to the loch on the east side of An Teallach… …see the range from another angle.
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