A varied low-to-mid level trek around the Etive group of mountains bounded by Rannoch Moor, Loch Etive and Glen Kinglass, mainly on good paths and tracks.
The outward eastern route follows a section of the West Highland Way (WHW) over the shoulder of Màm Carraigh to traverse Black Mount to Kings House and the foot of the Devil’s Staircase.
The north-western section ascends between the towering Buachaille Etive peaks through the Lairig Gartain, a fine old pass route linking Glen Coe and Glen Etive with a beautiful mountain view towards Loch Etive from its summit.
The south-western section hugs the eastern shore of Loch Etive as far as Ardmaddy, flanked by Ben Starav and Beinn Trilleachan.
The southern route returns along Glen Kinglass and ascends to a superb central section with a splendid mountain view to the north, reaching Loch Dochard and the Abhainn Shira.
An extraordinary spell of weather for March mandated the investment of resources for a Scotland backpack: very warm sunny weather by day and freezing nights, only slightly marred by a thick haziness to the some of the mountain views. No complaints though, this was a splendid backpack with virtually nobody around, just a handful briefly in the vicinity of the Buachaille: from halfway up the Lairig Gartain to the end of the trip we saw only one walker, who was doing a similar route in reverse. Even the Black Mount section of the WHW was deserted. Very little snow remained on the mountains, just scattered pockets on the uppermost slopes and the odd corrie edge fringed with white.
25 Comments
Great stuff Geoff, as always some fantastic photos. You’ve really captured just how wild and remote it is. Looks like it was a superb few days.
Excellent report Geoff. Fantastic scenery and five days in a row without rain - pretty unusual for Scotland !!
Superb pics and report Geoff Lovely to see you both out and about again I did wonder if the couple of weeks fine weather recently would be too good for you to miss.
Very impressive, but you can tell it was all staged in Hollywood. I mean five days in Scotland, with no torrential rain and misted out summits. However, the real giveaway is the complete lack of black clouds of midges)
Ian.
Phil - superb and wild indeed, and unbelievable for March. There just might be time for another good slot before summer but it’s back to clag and snow this week.
Mark - thanks very much. If only the Highlands were closer, we need a spell like that to make the long trip worthwhile.
Karl - Thanks again, that’s the one we were waiting for, brilliant.
Ian - heh heh, it was better than anticipated, I thought the tops were would be clagged out at least some of the time. The midges are bad enough south of the border in summer (I come out in itchy lumps), that’s why we watch the weather forecast like hawks in Spring for a chance at Scotland.
There is only one word that I can use to describe those 5 days Geoff is superb. I knew that you would be out there during that spell of settled weather. A great plan to head north of the border.
Beautiful walk backed up with some stunning pics. What a really nice read. Thanks
I figured the fine weather would see you out some place Geoff. fine round. Options for lots tops if you wanted to as well. A sense of wild land in many places there. A area packed with hills and views to enjoy. great photos and great read. Thanks for that Geoff.
James - a magnificent trek, perfectly timed by the look of the forecast for Scotland this morning and just before Easter too.
Alan - Thanks very much, a gorgeous trek in varied landscapes.
Martin - Thanks again. These low-to-mid routes through the mountains are perfect for our joint trips now, if I can devize enough of them. There is always a slight hankering to be on the summits when the conditions are good, I might try a shorter high-level version on a solo trip.
What a trip Geoff. What a trip…
Alistair - wasn’t it just, I wish I could get a spell like that more often. Could hardly have been better.
Lovely trip and photos. Handy for me as it covers part of the route up Glen Etive and Lairig Gartain that I will be doing on the TGO Challenge
Robin - Lairig Gartain is an excellent mid-level route through, a joy to walk on a good path. Loch Etive is a fine walk too, the only very short scrappy bits being just north of Ardmaddy bay and at the northern end. Should be a fine route, let’s hope the weather is as kind in May!.
Looks a good one that Geoff, might just use that route myself some time because I want to explore Etive. Unfortunately my timing was delayed - didn’t get up there at the start of the good weather - but I got a few good days myself, just recently, in other parts of Scotland.
James - a fantastic route if the summit views are not essential, easy walking and superb scenery. I just read your account of the Ben Lawers walk, still excellent bright scenery there if only for a while. The worn path does indeed look like a Lake District job.
That looked a fantastic trip - great report and photos. That section from Glen Coe through to Glen Etive is stunning and you certainly got perfect conditions for it!
Nick - thanks a lot, marvellous scenery. I’ll be trying to devize more routes like this for relaxed treks.
Looks like a thoroughly enjoyable trip Geoff, always helps if the weather is good but this seems like a walk through some excellent wild country.
One to savour and one that I’m sure will be well remembered.
Great Photos and wonderful description as ever.
Cheers,
Paul
Paul - thanks very much, a good bet for best trip of the year already (and an even better bet for best 5-day spell of weather of the year!).
Another stunning walk by the looks of it and fabulous photos too. Now I’ve read it, I’m off to peruse the maps…
Mark - Thanks you, a superb easy going route. Whenever I see walk reports in new areas, I always dive into the maps right away, I want to do them all!.
Amazing Geoff you’re an inspiration! What a beautiful place.
Dave - Thanks very much, wondrous scenery for sure and a walk to savour.
Cracking area, still missing a load of summits down Glen Etive so some good tips for a backpacking trip. Photos are absolutely stunning and real treat to get 5 days of unbroken clear weather in Scotland. You must have done something right in a previous life
Thanks again Andy,that was an opportunity and a half. I might try a solo high-level backpack to that Etive area for the summits, but it will be a hard slow business for me nowadays - the Scottish mountains sure do pack those contours.
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