Stac Polly Conquest

So after the disappointment of Skye and a brief time back in Aberdeen, off again to the West coast and Assynt, much quieter here as was glad to find. I tried a new site over there, Clachtoll campsite and its idilic white beach, a real gem, even the drive up to it from the main road outside of Lochinver was a treat. Had a wild night as the remains of hurricane Bertha his us, tents blown down and the van rocking from side to side. In the morning the sky cleared and it became such a lovely day if still a little breezy, took a bike ride out onto the peninsula and played around with the video facility on my new camera.  
I didn't have much joy with the fishing around the camp site area itself but after a geocaching walk just outside Lochinver I tried my luck in the harbour, 18 mackerel in about 20 minutes and I nearly hooked a seal.
After a few days at that site I went over to my favourite site at Altandu, did some more exploring on my bike as well. No joy on the brown trout fishing, still after one of those little devils in the lochans above the campsite. After a few attempts over the year, this time a eventually made it through the maze of towers to the top of Stac Polly, a hairy scramble at times, I later celebrated at the Am Faran Bar.

Stac Polly

    

Altandhu and Skye, again.

Cul Mor from Stac Polly

The first two weeks of my summer break was spent on the Coigach peninsula and Skye, The Inverpoly area is stunning an area that warrants more exploration. I was staying at the Port A Bhaigh Campsite, Altandhu, the people who run the site also have the pub across the road and serves some fantastic food, its well onto the peninsula but well worth the drive. The site its self over looks the Summer Isles and is fairly basic but new and clean.
One of the climbs I wanted to do was Stac Pollaidh or Stac Polly for short a small hill with an intimidating looking top, It commands great views of the Inverpoly National Nature reserve, when you can get them, to that end I climbed it twice as the first time it had too much cloud on top.
The whole area is designated a Geopark due to is geology, I had a visit to the Inchnadamph Bone Caves, where bones, teeth and antler from a wide array of animals were found, such as the Northern Lynx, bones of arctic lemming, arctic fox, wolf and brown bear and it is thought a polar bear, as well as human. Once at the caves I managed to see a herd of deer and a Peregrine that was nesting above the caves.
The drive back to the campsite via Lochinver was not uneventful, with a storm over the area with thunder and lightening, so much so that it plunged a wide area into an electrical blackout, this proved a problem as I was in real need of fuel, in the end I had to chance the drive back to camp with the fuel light on, the was fuel close to Altandhu.
Then I moved on for a couple of nights at Poolewe, the the main reason to photograph and geocache at the foot of An Teallach, a great little walk and practise for my next visit and hopefully to tackle the mountain itself.
Skye and back to the Camping and caravan club site a great little site, I was going to go to the one at Glen Brittle for a couple of night but in the end just decided to stay here.
Early on I visited Portree and The Braes, It didn't look that great for being high on the hills, low cloud, so this kept me in the sun, did a few caches.
Finally got to walk on the Quiraing did a great circuit up around the top and returning through it, there is now a burger bar here, the noise of the genny kept with me for a good while, but people have to make a living.

The Fairy Pools.

Looking at the weather I decided that this was an ideal day for the type of images I was hoping to make around the fairy pools, in Glen Brittle. Went along to what I always thought were "The Fairy Pools", I had been before, stopping at a system of small falls and pools then decided to explore further up, it was then I discovered they weren't the actual "Pools", finding the real ones, a much more comprehensive and exciting system. 
On my last day on Skye I decided to have a go at a mountain called Sgurr nan Gilliean, I got up a little too late to really take this on, I worked out I was only about 300 meters from the top, when I gave up, but that was all scrambling and I haven't had a great deal of scrambling experience.  So for future reference, 1, need to get some scrambling done and 2. get up earlier when you plan a walk. I was so knackered the following day I set off home as I couldn't have got very far walking. And try to write this blog up at the end of each day.

Summer without the Motorhome

The Old man of Storr.

Just as the summer started the van went and blew its cylinder head, the problem I had getting anything done was unbelievable. I am not going to bore anyone with the details but apparently they believe this had happened twice to this engine before our ownership. Long and short of this is its now 600 mile away getting a reconditioned engine put in and once thats done I will be down to pick it up and drive it back, looking forward to being able to use it again.
The start of my 6 weeks of Summer hols and I decided to bag a couple of Munros, Mayar and Driesh could be done together. I had a walk from the car park at Glen Doll, up through the Corrie Fee Nature reserve and onto Mayar. Whilst I was up there I was lucky enough to spot a couple of White tailed Eagles, playing with a stick, one had it and the other was trying to get it. I watched them play and followed them for a while, got a little turned around and started to descend into the wrong glen, having realised this I managed to get back on course, i lost a good bit of time so decided to give Driesh a miss, I will go back before winter.
So without the camper I went out and got me a tent, a little low laying 2 man'er  a blowup sleeping mat and a gas stove, I retrieved the electric hookup from the van and got a socket converter, glamping of a sort.
I was hoping to go to Kinlochewe but this Caravan club site wont have tents so I went to Poolewe instead, I'v stayed there often. I had couple of days of longer walks the most memorable one being on the Bienn Eighe National Nature Reserve and a day of driving round doing easy caches.

Bienn Eighe

I really like it over at Wester Ross, the weather was great and the Poolewe Hotel has good ale if not good food, pub grub and chips with everything.

Back to Aberdeen for a few days before retuning to the west coast, Kintail then Isle of Skye. Stopped at Morvich CC site, a great place to stay and I will visit whenever possible, I wanted to do a bit of Munro bagging so had a go at Bienn Fhada, I had previously gained permission to place a geocache in the Kintail area so put it on top of this mountain. Had a great walk but again took a lot of time out taking photographs and fail in bagging a second hill close by. Next day off to Skye, stopped off at Kyle of Lochalsh, had fish and chips in the sun, lovely.
Skye, camping at the C&CC site I usually stay at, alternative days, long hill walks, with driving around exploring the Isle as before, for its size Skye is so diverse and interesting especially in it geology.
Highlights of this trip was getting up The Storr and find the sweet spot for capturing The Old Man. A boat trip to Loch Coruisk, the world famous loch painted by Turner and

written about by Sir Walter Scott, “Rarely human eye has known A scene so stern as that dread lake, With its dark ledge of barren stone...”, that was something special.

And I finally got to the top of one of the Cullin hills, always looking at them and wondering, how on earth do you get up those thing? With difficulty its almost shale.

View of the Black Cullins from the sea.

Also climbed The Storr itself, again would have loved to gone further and taken in another hill but time flew as I explored different views of The Old Man, the weather throughout was great. I enjoyed myself so much, so much so I was met at the campsite gate by one of the site managers "do you know you were supposed to leave today?", Hells bells I'd better ring the wife!

Fitness regime and a long weekend.

Kintail

Started a new fitness regimen, also decided to learn more about navigating with map and compass after my experiences during the summer, bought a great little book called The Ultimate Hiking Skills Manual by Chris Bagshaw. full of info on both subjects. Anyway along with the terrain 5 geocaches I have in my sights I also plan to do a bit of Corbett and Munroe bagging.

A long weekend off so we went over to the west coast, taking the road along Loch ness which I had never driven so far. We stopped at the CC site at Morvich, a truly stunning location surrounded by Corbett’s and Munroe’s, teaming with bird life, think I caught a glimpse of a Peregrine at one point, we will certain visit this site again.

On the Saturday we went to the palindromic village of Glenelg, one of the remotest places on mainland Britain. Visited a couple of Pictish broch’s around 2000 years old before moving on to Glen Shiel. Weather for this time of year was very good, autumn wasn’t as far along as I thought it might be, there were still swallows around.

Sunday I took a walk to the Falls Of Glomach which is Britain's tallest waterfall at 370 feet high, they are rather isolated and is a 10 miles walk, climbing up to 1700ft and a 7 hour round trip. 

We bought a new car, well new to us, will get me out onto the hills a the Jeep was unreliable.

Wet week on Skye

The Cuillin ridge.

With some of the north west of Britain suffering drought, other areas basking in the mid 20's, I chose the part of the west coast of Scotland where it never seems to stop raining.

I started my summer holidays off with a stop in Poolewe, where I hoped to climb a hill called An Teallach, the weather report was for 100 mph winds on mountain tops, even keep on the lower slopes it was hard sometimes keeping my feet. In the end I had to contend with a couple of pints of ale named after said hill. I maybe should have known as I had a puncture on the way there, foreboding.

I took the coastal road south to Applecross, a mecca for some people, mostly motor bikers for the Alpine pass approach to it, or exit as it was for me. I stopped for a couple of night and I did see a least one sunny half days here.

Then onto Skye, 3 nights at Glen Brittle, site is a bit basic but I do love it there. Again waited almost a year to come and climb the Cuillin ridge and again the weather beat me back. I expect doing this solo would have been a little foolhardy given the poor visibility. I did spot another route up, in fact it would have been my decent, but it looked better doing it that way round. again I got half way up and was able to do a bit of a recon, next year or maybe even autumn. 

After that Loch Gershornish, a great cc&cclub site with new and improved facilities. I did a lot of driving around, small walks, a few geocaches. This was all to culminate in a walk along The Quiraing, again the weather was atrocious, I had only done about 1/4 of my intended walk, I got as far as The Prisoner, then turned back soaked, not quite ti the skin but I would have been by the halfway. Besides all that I could hardly see a thing, the odd dark shape loomed out at me now and again, but I was missing most of what the place had to offer.

Off somewhere else in the coming weeks, surely the weather must be better.

Wester Ross & Skye

Loch Coire Mhic Fhearchair

Enjoyed a few days solo over on the West coast, at Wester Ross and the Isle of Skye. First stop was Laide, a place I was at a few years ago before moving on to Poolewe. Love this part of Scotland and if your lucky enough to get good weather it can be almost tropical. I did what I found to be quite a challenging walk up through the Coire Dudh Mo to Loch Coire Mhic Fhearchair in the Torridon area, not the highest I’d been but so hard on the legs.

Then off to the Isle of Skye, first staying at the Glen Brittle campsite, a bit basic but in one of the most fantastic settings I have ever been in, I shall return. Then too the C&CC site at Loch Greshornish a place we stayed at last year and great for exploring the North of the Island.

The Cuillin Ridge.

I have now done all the geocaches in the Northern half of Skye, which involved several short walks the best just a little way into the Cuillins, next time I will try to go further as they took me to some of the most pretty little places.

Managed to get a bit of sea fishing in as well, not to any degree of success.

One thing I learnt this week, walking poles just seem to transfere blisters from the feet to the hands