It was to be my longest ever time spent on a continuous backpack with no fill up periods. The timing of the trip couldn’t have been better. High pressure was forecast to arrive and assert itself over the next few days giving me the best possible start and my walk started not a day too early for heavy showers dominated the weather the few days before the trip.

Sgurr na Ciche as seen from the summit of Sgurr a’ Mhaoraich

Sgurr na Sgine and the Saddle as seen from Sgurr a'Bhac Chaolais

The coach arrived in Glasgow under glorious sunshine keeping my spirits up for the trip ahead. The air was haze free and I thought about the great photos that I would accumulate on the trip. Indeed the forecast suggested that the weather would hold at least until Saturday and possibly later. My confidence in the weather, however, dropped as the coach drove over Rannoch Moor and the sky became overcast and then I was distinctly worried about the weather as it drove into the very showery Great Glen. The rain did however hold off as the coach dropped me off in Glen Shiel.

I started walking up the munro path that leads up to the west end of the South Glen Shiel Ridge. The clouds always seemed to threaten and the blue sky always seemed to be hanging over Skye and never moving any closer. I was walking with a strong pace despite the weight of my pack. I soon reached the 400m altitude in under an hour where I had lunch. A slight drizzle arrived for a small time but it was to be the last time that I would walk in rain until Saturday.

Gleouraich as seen on the way down from the first Corbett

Sgurr Beag as seen from the Bealach Buibh Leac

I continued upto the bealach linking the Corbett with the most westerly Munro of the South Glen Shiel Ridge and continued up towards the first Corbett of the trip, Sgur a'Bhac Chaolais. A short distance below the summit, I dumped my pack, grabbed my camera and continued to the summit. The views were very extensive in all directions but without sunshine. I reached the top in just under three hours from the road which wasn’t bad considering the pack weight. The wind was cold and my goretex felt drafty without my fleece on. This combined with the dark skies made the place feel a bit lonely considering I wasn’t seeing my friends again until September.

Druim Fada and Ladhar Beinn
as seen from the first Corbett

It was time to drop down now to the bealach between the Corbett and the next Munro Sgurr a’ Mhaoraich. This was where my next planned camp was but the mountain’s north west ridge looked very forbidding from here. I decided to conitnue south from the bealach into the glen and camp at 200m before ascending the Munro without my pack. This would save considerable amounts of time the next day. My fear about camping so low were the midges but the wind stayed just about strong enough to keep them away. It was a fine, if uncomfortable place to camp. The place felt remote yet just 2km away lay the Kinloch Hourn road. I felt that I was making good progress already and the sun was by now breaking through the clouds.

Me at my campsite
on the first evening

Ladhar Beinn and the lead
of Loch Hourn as seen on
the way up to Sgurr a' Mhaoraich

I knew I had a long day so I was up at 5.30 and off at 7.30 up the fairly steep slopes to the summit. The views down the upper part of Loch Hourn were both magic and daunting. Ladhar Beinn looked particularly distant from here and the prospect of that long walk in motivated me to get to the top of first munro very quickly. I was worried about the steepness of the final rise to the summit, but this proved to be no problem. I was up in under 1 ½ hours and down in 40 minutes.

Sgurr Mor and Sgurr an Fhuarain
as seen from Sgurr a' Mhaoraich

The views from the top were breathtaking in all directions and the task ahead for the next few days was laid out before me. I remembered yesterday seeing how far away Gulvain looked when the coach drove up Glen Garry and this somehow made the trip feel daunting. I just had to train myself to think ahead just one or two days at a time and it made the trip feel more achieveable and enjoyable.

The view north to the peaks
of Glen Shiel and Kintail

Back to my pack and I set off into Knoydart proper at 10am. I felt that good time was being made. I came across the Kinloch Hourn road and the first thing that struck me were the number of cars present. There were loads for midweek (at least 20) and it wasn’t even the summer holidays yet! I met a German couple who had climbed every mountain in Knoydart, Corbetts included. It was impressive to hear of how far people come to visit this place.

Sgurr a' Mhaoraich as seen
from the head of Loch Hourn