Captured during a hike up the Munro Meall nan Tarmachan and then across The Tarmachan Ridge.
This day is a great example of why when planning a hike in Scotland you make a plan and then have a plan B, maybe even C.
Mid October I had set off from Edinburgh with my Dad to take in a hiking circuit a little bit south of Loch Rannoch. We had had a lot of rainfall recently but today was dry, if a little cold. We made the two hour drive North without incident, until we reached the smaller road leading to our starting point.
Road Closed Sign. Not ideal.
We checked the map and with a 45 minute detour we could approach from the other side. So off we went and eventually reached our starting point and began our walk. It was a beautiful crisp day with the sun shining.
We turned up onto the woodland path and carried on for about half an hour. We then came across a couple of signs; "Deer Stalking In Progress Keep Out". I am obviously paraphrasing as the sign had some great information on it. Now it is not strictly illegal to walk whilst there is stalking as we have the right to roam, we decided the right course of action was to turn back.
Plan B - Meall nan Tarmachan.
Back in the car and half an hour back up the road we had just came down we parked at the paid car park and began our hike to the summit and ridge. In all honesty I was not disappointed, this was a walk I had been saving for a clear day and we had just that.
Although this is only one Munro and the ascent to the summit is not too difficult, the full circuit taking in the ridge is a long walk with some scrambling down. There was some ice which made the descent more tricky.
We quickly made the summit of Meall nan Tarmachan, overlooking the ridge. This is where the image used in the artwork was captured.
As we hit the summit the wind picked up and we knew Caledonia was letting us know that winter was almost here. It got bitterly cold as traversed our way over the ridge, even seeing a partially frozen lochan along the way.
But eventually we made it across the ridge and completed the circuit, grabbing some amazing views as we went. Although cold the day was mostly clear and we had some amazing views across the mountain ranges. At this point I had climbed a lot of the peaks in the surrounding area and being to stand miles away and say I had been to the top of some of those peaks is an incredible feeling.
A tricky day that we had to adapt to throughout but one well worth it and just makes you want to keep exploring and seeing the beauty Caledonia continues to offer. A day I felt truly privilaged to live in a country that has these kind of views on my doorstep, even if it did get very cold as you can see below...
