Schiehallion, Tay Forest Park Perthshire - Wednesday 23rd Nov 2011

Pronunciation/Translation: Schiehallion - shee haal yan (fairy hill of the Caledonians).


As it was Barry's birthday from the GWHC, he had arranged for the club to meet and climb  Schiehallion in Perthshire. We all met up at the Weem Hotel just outside Aberfeldy then drove as a convoy up to the Braes of Foss parking area at the start of the route. The rain had been constant all morning and for most of the previous night i'd guess judging from the amount of surface water on the roads. There were quite a few members attending this meet today, so as usual as soon as we set off I took Alfie to the front to avoid him getting under anyones hiking boots.

For most of the route except for the rocky area near the summit there is a very well maintained path. This meant that although the ground surrounding us was really boggy and wet, we were still able to make a good pace up the path. A few of the group were struggling with the ascent. Because of the heavy rain, some had decided on wearing full, heavy waterproof regalia and unfortunately were overheating.

There was quite alot of waiting around for us up at the front, and two of those struggling decided to turn back for the car park. This was probably a wise decision, if they were finding it tough on the lower part of the hill then things could get far more serious higher up for them.

As it turned out, things did get much worse the higher we went. Rain began to turn to sleet and as we moved out of the shelter of the hillside the wind really picked up. At the 850m mark the group bunched up and Barry made a decision to call off the ascent. There were several people worried about the strong winds and their ability to stay on their feet.

Kenny, Martin and I decided to continue to the summit. Yes it was windy, but not to the extent that I had any great concerns regarding my own personal safety. The route ahead was on rocky ground, but there were no knife edge ridges to worry about.

I led the way and very soon Alfie as always was standing up on the rocky summit (1083m) looking back down on me trying to climb my way over wet rocks in the near gael-force winds. I got to the top and took a few snaps of Alfie and I looking rather wet then wasted no time in heading back down to lower ground. I passed Martin and Kenny still ascending and they were pleased to know that the summit was not far off. Once I had made my way to the path I waited for the guys to catch up, then we strolled down the hill and at places began to jog where the path was more level.

It was good to get to lower ground and feel the benefit of the shelter from the mountainside. The sun even made an attempt to break through the clouds, but that was short lived. We made ground fast and were soon back down by our cars at Braes of Foss. The others had made their way back to the Weem Hotel where a few drinks were being knocked back in Barry's honour. We served up a cake for him and the manageress of the hotel was great and gave us all little side plates to serve everyone a slice.

All in all it was quite an enjoyable day despite the rotten conditions, it was good to get Schiehallion done and dusted. It's a long drive to go for a walk along a well kempt path.


some of the photos courtesy of Martin, GWHC.