Chasing the elusive Scottish sunshine, we headed over to the west to climb Beinn a’Chochuill and Beinn Eunaich which are two Munros next to the Cruachan range. Trail magazine used the following two phrases in the description of the walk: These descriptions made the views from the tops sound outstanding, and a perfect pair to climb on a beautiful sunny morning. As the night was clear it was very cold, so we woke up to a very cold van with ice on the inside of the windows, but with beautiful sunny morning outside the van. On the walk in we discovered that it was calving season for the local highland cows, which delighted Becky. The initial walk up the valley was up a track which was fairly painless, but we soon arrived at the base of the proper climb up to the summit ridge. This was very abrupt and made the climb up to Am Bodach on Aonach Eagach seem like a gentle stroll! We soon got to the top to be greeted by a strong wind, but stunning views in every direction. The ridge up to the summit of Beinn a’Chochuill. Read the full article…

To make the most of the weather forecast we decided to head south east with the aim of completing the Tarmachan Ridge, which is the ridge high above Killin at the end of Loch Tay. The conditions were generally pretty good, with snow from around 550m. We had plenty of sunshine which meant that we had fantastic views for most of the ridge. The snow meant that we made quick progress once we were on the ridge, and we were privileged to have the ridge to ourselves after the initial Munro. Despite the easy access, we felt fairly remote while on the ridge, which combined with the weather made for a very enjoyable day. There was a slightly unexpected arete leaving the second top which was very exposed which was very enjoyable, as we decided from the second top the forecast bad weather came and and the conditions reverted to snowy, windy and cloudy. The descent from the final col took a lot longer than expected due to the soft snow, combined with the track being covered in yet more soft snow until we were within 2km of the car.

With another day of cold weather and strong winds we decided to have a short walk up Sgurr na Bana-Mhoraire, which is a stunning viewpoint overlooking Loch Torridon on the shoulder of Beinn Damh. The walk up was on an excellent track, so we made good time to the summit. The views from the top did not disappoint, and we were glad that we didn’t need to spend too long in the winds on the summit ridge!