I had been toying with the idea of revisiting Stuchd an Lochain for sometime now, so when a good weather window presented itself at the beginning of the month I grabbed it with both hands.
This was to be the Laser Comp's first outing as well as some other new bits and bobs. I was planning a high level camp and was really looking forward to see how well this tent would cope.
The drive up the A9 was fantastic even though I was travelling a lot later than I wanted to. But I was in no rush, as the weather was absolutely stunning and the tunes that Sara Cox was playing on Radio 1 were
fantastic. At this point I didn't have a care in the world.
At Ballinluig I joined the tourist convoy to Aberfeldy then headed up Glen Lyon. In all honesty after Aberfeldy the roads were actually surprisingly quiet going up Glen Lyon or was it because I was surprisingly late on the go. Once past Meggernie castle I caught up with a couple of cycling groups who kindly let me pass. "Ach cyclists are not all that bad" I thought to myself when i gave them a friendly wave as I turned off for the road that leads to the hydro at the foot of Loch an Daimh.
When I arrived at the car park it was heaving with cars and Vans. I had spotted a good space on the road in but didn't have to use it as I got parked quite close to the Dam. Yup the good weather had brought out a lot of walkers. As I got my gear together I started to think at how busy it was going to be up there. But I knew once I was over the other side of Stuchd an Lochain I should pretty much have the rest of the place to myself.
I had managed to squeeze all my gear into my OMM Classic Marathon 32l which was a personal new record as I used to fill a 70 litre rucksack for an overnighter.
I think it was just after midday when I managed to head up the hill and the sun was now beating down with some ferocity. I soon met the cairn at the foot of the hill and followed the path up Coire Ban. The last time I was here it was absolutely chucking it down so to be following the rough path up in beautiful sunshine was a welcome treat. I stopped about halfway way the Coire and took on some water. I had put a zero tablet in my water and boy did it taste nice and refreshing. It certainly added that certain something to the same old water.
I tried to get into a rhythm with the poles but I just couldn't it felt like I had lost a lot of fitness with the previous months illness. So when the top of the Coire came into view it was a truly welcome sight. I picked up the path and the fence posts at the cairn at the top of the Coire.
I got the strangest of looks from another walker who was coming down off the ridge. I noticed that he had the same rucksack as myself. I think he may have been quite shocked to see that I had a sleep mat attached to the outside and the fact that my rucksack didn't look as stuffed as his one. There definitely has to be a lot to be said about this lightweight malarky.
Once on the ridge I was getting back into the rhythm and found myself on top of Stuchd an Lochain in no time. Unfortunately I wasn't going to get any views today as it had turned out really hazy. I sat on the summit for about half an hour and enjoyed some water and two out of date energy bars. I tell you Holland And Barrats sale section is a great place to get some bargains.
I was now getting a great view towards the Corbett Sron a' Choire Chnapanaich. I was shocked that I had only passed 3 couples and one solo walker on the way up here considering the amount of cars in the car park. Once watered and fed I headed towards Sron a' Choire Chnapanaich. The walk of Stuchd an Lochain was a pleasant one and as the breeze was now in my face and the views over to the two Corbett's were fantastic. I followed the fence posts down off Stuchd an Lochain and walked over Meallan Odhar. Once I reached the bealach between Meallan Odhar and Sron a' Choire Chnapanaich I was met with a considerable sized bog. Which turned out to be a bit of a nightmare to cross. Unfortunately I was speaking to my friends partner the night before who told me "How she wouldn't go walking herself as one of her friends had slipped and broken her ankle on the hill". This kept playing through my mind and I may have become a bit over-cautious with my footing which may have slowed me down a bit.
The one thing that I had noticed on the ascent of Sron a' Choire Chnapanaich is that the wind was starting to get up quite considerably which was good for walking as it was cooling me down but was bad for the idea for the high level camp. So I made the decision to drop down to the shore of Loch an Daimh once I had topped Sron a' Choire Chnapanaich.
I had read in an old Cameron McNeish book that you can drop of the front of this hill dow to the shore of Loch an Daimh. I belive that he calls this descent as "steep", I walked to the edge and decided that it should be more described as "nigh on vertical". I didn't quite fancy it due to the now tired legs that were showing the tell-tale signs of cramping.
After a quick squint at the map I decided to drop back off the hill to about the 620m mark the follow the F'eith Thalain down to my camp site for that night. On the way down I managed to fill my now empty water bottles. Due to the amount of sheep and deer that were kicking about I thought it would be a wise choice to use the chlorine tablets which had been firmly buried in the depths of my rucksack for sometime now.
I think it was the back of six when I got to the camp site for the night and it was time for the Laser Comp to have its first of hopefully many outings. The tent pitched no problems at all first time and the titanium v pegs that I had purchased from Alpkit took the ground superbly. Once pitched it was time for a brew and some food. This was going to be another new experience as I wasn't the usual freeze-dried stuff that retails about a fiver a meal. I had opted for a couple of meals that I had read on a mountain marathon website. These consisted of a Knorr Chicken Noodle Soup with an added sheet of Sharwoods Egg Noodles and a Sainsburys Basics Custard with a Nutrigrain Bar broken up and put inside it. All I have to say is that it tasted absolutely fantastic and when I topped it off with another brew and an Eat Natural Bar. I felt like I had eaten like royalty. I was well stuffed and just lay on top of my sleeping bag soaking in the views up Loch an Daimh. Before I knew it was starting to get dark so a quick pee and it was off to bed.
I had a patchy sleep that night due to the aching legs and the sudden wind that got up about 12am. Boy can those Laser Comps rattle (note to self, buy some ear plugs). I think I managed to get a good kip from about 2am until about 7am when the familiar sound of heavy rain hitting of the tent awoke me. I needed to attend the call of nature but I lay there for the best part of an hour before I really!!! needed to go. Fortunately the rain had eased a bit so after having the morning ritual. I decided to pack up and head off around the loch munching my Bakewell Flapjack as I went.
I was heading for the Munro Meall Buidhe but decided against it due to the deteriorating weather. So I headed off around the loch to meet the Landrover track about halfway along the northern shore of the loch. The walk was brisk and my heart-felt happy with what I had accomplished. I will be back in the near future to top Meall Buidhe.
I stopped off at Bridge Of Balgie for a Lucozade but had to settle for a Coke as their selection of juice was quite limited. The chilled sugary juice was still a welcome treat that I savoured all the way over to Killin. I made my usual stop off's at the Outdoor shop and the relatives before heading home. Good times...
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