Walking the Corbetts Vol 2 North of the Great Glen. Brian Johnson
base for Routes 9–15: Fort William
As there are so few facilities at Glenfinnan, many walkers climb these mountains from a base in Fort William, which is the premier tourist resort in the W Highlands and has all facilities for walkers and climbers.
Tourist information: VisitScotland, 15 High Street, Fort William, PH33 6DH Tel: 01397 701 801
Glen Nevis SYHA, Fort William, PH33 6SY Tel: 01397 702 336
Linnhe Lochside Holidays is a large complex on the A830 on the N side of Loch Eil just outside Fort William with chalets, static caravans and a camping and caravan site. Tel: 01397 772 376 www.linnhe-lochside-holidays.co.uk
Local facilities for Route 9: Lochailort Inn and Glenuig Inn
Lochailort Inn is an old droving inn. Tel: 01687 470 208 www.lochailortinn.co.uk
Glenuig Inn on the Sound of Arisaig has both traditional hotel facilities and bunkhouse accommodation. Tel: 01687 470 219 www.glenuig.com
Base for Route 16: Kinloch, Rum
Only the locals are allowed to take cars to Rum and it is not feasible to climb the Corbetts on a day trip so you will need to stay on the island. Assuming you are staying for longer than is needed to climb the Corbetts, it might be worth taking a bicycle for use around the bay and on the dirt road to Harris, which has recently been resurfaced.
Rum has hostel accommodation, a basic campsite, camping cabins and a caravan. There is also a bothy which would be a suitable base for climbing the Corbetts and wild camping is permitted on the island. An excellent website gives full information on the island, including accommodation details: www.isleofrum.com
There are likely to be big changes in the accommodation during the life of this guide with the possible closure of the facilities at the castle, to be replaced by new facilities including a B&B, so check the website to see the latest situation. The facilities tend to get full in high season and booking is advisable.
Kinloch Castle Hostel has dormitory accommodation as well as a few double bedrooms. Breakfast, packed lunches and evening meals are available. Evening meals are also available to non-residents. Tel: 01687 462 037
There is a basic camping area 10min walk from the ferry by the shore of Loch Scresort, with water, toilets and hot showers. There are two ‘camping cabins’ as well as two open shelters on the campsite.
At the head of Loch Scresort there is a small well-stocked store (with post office), a community hall with a teashop and other facilities, including internet access.
Access to Rum
Caledonian MacBrayne runs the ferry service from Mallaig to the ‘Small Isles’: Eigg, Muck, Rum and Canna. Crossing time varies as on some of these sailings you go to or from Rum via other islands. In 2012 the timetable was as follows:
Summer
Mallaig to Rum: Mon 10.15am, Wed 10.15am, Fri 12.40pm and Sat 7.30pm
Rum to Mallaig: Mon 3.20pm, Wed 4.05pm, Fri 4.35pm and Sat 7.40pm.
Winter
Mallaig to Rum: Mon, Tue, Thur and Sat at 10.20am
Rum to Mallaig: Mon 2.20pm, Tue and Thur 2.25pm and Sat 11.50am.Tel: 0800 066 5000 (UK only) www.calmac.co.ukArisaig Marine Ltd runs ‘Island and Wildlife’ cruises from Arisaig to the Small Isles. Although they primarily organise round trips, they will take passengers on one-way trips if space is available. Operating a much smaller boat, they can be fully booked and are more liable to disruption from the weather. In 2012 they operated sailings from 30 April to 21 September.
Arisaig to Rum: Tue, Thur and Sat at 11.00am
Rum to Arisaig: Tue 3.30pm, Thur 3.45pm and Sat 3.30pmTel: 01687 450 224 www.arisaig.co.uk
ROUTE 9
Sgurr na Ba Glaise peak of the grey cow, Rois-Bheinn mountain of showers and An Stac the stack
| Start | Inverailort (NM 76470 81710) |
| Distance | 16km (10 miles) |
| Total ascent | 1610m (5300ft) |
| Difficulty | There is a great deal of rock on the ridges of these grassy mountains, but the going is surprisingly easy as any difficulties can be bypassed, provided you have good visibility. These are not mountains for the inexperienced in bad weather when finding the easy route down steep, craggy ridges will be difficult. There is easy, but boggy terrain to cross on the lower slopes of the mountains. |
| Time | 7hr 40min |
| Summits | Beinn Coire nan Gall (787m), Druim Fiaclach (869m), Sgurr na Ba Glaise (874m, 2817ft), Rois-Bheinn (882m, 2887ft), An Stac (814m, 2550ft). |
| Maps | OS Landranger 40 |
| Access | From Glenfinnan follow the A830 W to Lochailort, turn left along the A861 and after 600m there is limited parking by a minor road signed to Glen Shian. At the time of writing it looked as if a large factory was about to be built here to service the fishing industry, but this shouldn’t affect the route. |
| Note | If the walk is too long for you it would be possible to miss out Druim Fiaclach and climb the steep grass slopes up Coire a’ Bhuiridh to the Bealach an Fhiona pass between Sgurr na Ba Glaise and Rois-Bheinn or the pass to the S of An Stac; however, this would miss out the dramatic ridge between Druim Fiaclach and Sgurr na Ba Glaise. |
This group of rocky Corbetts in the N of Moidart provides an excellent ridge walk round the head of Coire a’ Bhuiridh. Rois-Bheinn is the most westerly Corbett on the mainland and provides magnificent views towards the islands of Rum and Eig. The recommended route includes Druim Fiaclach, which just fails to reach Corbett status because the drop between it and Sgurr na Ba Glaise is only about 410ft. Druim Fiaclach used to be listed as the Corbett rather than Sgurr na Ba Glaise as it was shown as higher (2852ft compared with 2817ft) on the OS 1 inch:1 mile maps.
An Stac from Beinn Coire nan Gall
Inverailort House was requisitioned by the War Office at the end of May 1940 and the house became a training centre for irregular forces, with trainees being taught how to work behind enemy lines, hand-to-hand combat, sabotage, use of explosives and survival techniques. Special Operations Executive (SOE) training was centred on nearby Arisaig House. In August 1942 the army was replaced by the Royal Navy; the house became HMS Lochailort, used for training naval cadets and ratings to become officers on the small craft used by Combined Operations. The Royal Navy moved out in January 1945.
Don’t follow the road to Glenshian Lodge, but head S along a tarmac farm road. Turn left along a grass track, signed Druim Fiaclach, immediately before the cottages. Pass through three sets of gates, passing the remains of outbuildings erected by the army in the war, and keep straight on along a faint boggy path which goes to the right of the wooded Tom Odhar knoll. The old stalker’s path improves as you climb to cross a couple of vehicle tracks before joining another track, marked by a small cairn (120m, 77700 81430). A little higher, fork left along a vehicle track which drops down to a bridge over the gorge of the Allt a’ Bhuiridh (35min, 125m, 77890 81340).
Climb roughly SE up the grassy slopes of Beinn Coire nan Gall. There are some boggy vehicle tracks on the slope, but they don’t tend to head in the right direction and are best ignored. Eventually reach the summit of Beinn Coire nan Gall (2hr 25min, 787m, 79220 79770). Head SSW to a small lochan (245m, 79130 79600) and climb easily up grass slopes between crags on the N ridge of Druim Fiaclach to reach the cairn on a rocky rib (2hr 50min, 869m, 79150 79170).
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