New Year's Day 2018 - Beinn Tulaichean
I don't think I'm revealing any state secrets when I say the weather in Scotland can be a pain in the ….! For us to grab our annual fix of UK winter hill-time, it's either North Wales, The Lakes, or Scotland. That means the 4hr drive, the 5hr Drive, or the 8hr drive. Take your pick.
Whichever we choose, it's an investment of time and effort and we've never shied away from that. We've also had some awesome days out as reward for our efforts. We tell tales to this day of the Good Friday a few years back, when an early Easter coincided with record and late snow falls and we set off at 4am for the long drive north and by 2pm were skiing powder filled gullies in the Cairngorms. That memory will sustain us for a good few years yet!
And so, we do make the effort. And we did so once again as 2017 drew to a close. We're glad that we did. It'd just be nice if the weather didn't taunt us quite as much as it sometimes does!
On this occasion, the last hour or so of our drive to Aberfoyle was through thick blizzard conditions as a good 15cm of snow accumulated on the roads. Snow whirled around our field of view as we tried to focus and discern the course of the road ahead. Our new investment in winter tyres seemed wise and thankfully we made our destination and settled in to hunker down and to wait out the blizzard. This could be good we thought, all we have to do is wait for the snow to stop and then we can head out and maybe those powder filled gullies would be ours once more.
Sadly, and in fact we half knew what was coming, as the storm raged on, temperatures rose, and after a day of solid rain we finally ventured out to find low cloud, dripping trees and green and brown hill-sides all around. Maybe there was still a snowline up there somewhere, but that was by no means certain and in any case if it existed it was hidden from view by the cloud. So what to do?
The answer, of course, was the same as always. Pack the crampons, grab the axe, and head out hoping for the best. Our chosen target was Beinn Tulaichean (946m), a solid Munro that sits to the east of the northern tip of Loch Lomond. Our starting point was at Inverlochlarig where we found a lone camper van in the rather damp trail-head parking spot. The van's inhabitants, one human, one canine, looked rather surprised to see others had ventured out and after a brief investigation headed back in.
It had to be conceded, it didn't look good for pristine snow capped peaks. Slushy and slippery grass slopes looked more likely. Still, we kitted up and set off. As this was part of our club's annual Scottish trip, there was quite a gang of us and plenty of spirit lifting banter of the 'oh well, another damp bog-trot' type.
Soon we were reminded, however, that even this modest altitude does things to the air. As we climbed, the air cooled and the clogging sleet was replaced by the first signs of settling snow. Then the snow began to consolidate, and before too long we were into proper snow fields with a satisfying crunch under foot. To add to this, the cloud began to break and the skies to clear. At last, we had the promise of some truly satisfying Scottish winter hill-walking.
A rocky ridge came into view across a snow filled bowl. This promised to offer some scrambling challenge and perhaps a more direct line to the summit. The day plus of rain we'd sat out in the valley had, we now knew, been snow at this height and given no melt the bowl proved to be an exercise in mid-thigh deep wading. The last steepening up onto the ridge was capped by a soft cornice that fell to a suitably unsubtle approach leaving us with a clear view to the top beyond further snow fields and a couple of rocky outcrops.
We ploughed on, taking it in turns to break trail through deep snow. The occasional chirp from down the line conveyed complaints from those of shorter gait having trouble staying in the foot holes. Occasionally, easier progress was to be found on rockier ground or on sections of wind formed crust tough enough to take our weight.
The summit didn't invite a long stay, as gusts of wind and horizontal snow were still quite frequent. The day was improving, but still had a few stings left to deliver.
Our best view of the summit came in retrospect as we began our retreat by heading along a gently descending whale-back plateau. Smiles began to break out as we each, in turn, came to that inner tipping point where we thought - Yep, it had been worth the effort. New Year's Day 2018 was going to be added to the list - Another one to remember.
As we dropped off the whale-back plateau the descent grew steeper and a couple of short steps offered up opportunities for the good old bum-slide technique. Glissading, the mountain manuals say - Bum-slide I say. All in perfect control, of course.
And that was it. More fogged-up car windows and full-on de-misters as we headed back to our Aberfoyle base-camp for a warming brew and then a warming dram. The next day, we managed Ben Venue (727m) just south of Loch Katrine in similar style and so overall, a good trip. But I repeat, the weather in Scotland is a pain in the … ! Just imagine if those feet of snow right down to the valley floor had stayed!