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Pick-up
and return of the minibus went off without
problems, the former taking place at about
9.30 pm on the Saturday evening (this having
been ascertained acceptable to Central
Coaches). Aberdeen pick-ups were quick,
although George was not at Golden Square (as
originally advised) or at Earl’s Court as
listed (and no reply to phone calls the day
before and after). At 6.45, a snowman in an
Inverurie lay-by turned out to be Kevin.
The journey out took place in frequent snow
showers and high winds, and experienced
particularly poor road conditions – neither
salting nor clearance was apparent, although
two BEAR vans were noted, with interest and
no a little exasperation. The Dufftown road
appeared so bad on the first 100 yards that
we took the A95 from Keith instead, and from
Aberlour onwards there were very few
possibilities of – and possibly little
wisdom in - overtaking a succession of
“cautious” drivers. During a short stop at
Aviemore (to wait for the Tesco toilets to
open!), we learned that the blocking of the
A9 to the south – as advertised via roadside
signs – had been due to a jack-knifed lorry.
However, pressing onwards, we reached the
Aberarder car park at about 10.40 (the only
vehicle), and set off shortly before 11.00,
a good hour later than expected.
Conditions underfoot were nasty – about 6
inches of snow on the road up to the
farmhouse, and more further up. Since the
path in places consists of railway sleepers
about 6 inches wide, not easy to discern
under 9-12 inches of snow, and is often
flanked by a deep ditch equally difficult to
differentiate from the path itself, progress
was not fast. However, it was punctuated by
entertaining episodes as the leader tried to
extricate himself from thigh-deep pits. At
the start, we were faced by a head-on wind
carrying falling or drifting snow, and the
path (and/or ditch) itself was not always
easy to follow, but conditions improved as
we entered the wood above the farm, with
sunlight around (if seldom shining on) us,
and good views back down to Loch Laggan and
beyond.
At about 12.30, on the path just beyond most
of the trees, luncheon was announced,
beneath a gully descending from Carn Liath.
The fact that the gully had obviously
produced a recent avalanche coming down to
the level of the path provoked a lively
discussion between the co-drivers on the
advisability of stopping at this point. One
view was that further falls could well be
expected; the other was that the avalanche
track was itself an assurance that the worst
had already happened. The loser of this
argument went off a little way to belay
himself to a nearby tree.
By this time, the main Creag Meagaidh cliffs
were visible, and a little more blue sky had
appeared to the south. However, given time
and conditions underfoot, options appeared
limited to continuing up the path to Loch a’
Coire for a closer look at the waters
(unfrozen, surprisingly) and cliffs, or to
ascend to the Carn Liath – Stob Poite Coire
Ardair ridge to our right, to see what we
could see. Fred and Willie chose the former
option, but unaccountably took the wrong
direction after lunch, and from above were
seen headed straight back down to the
minibus. Shouted instructions appear not to
have been heard.
The rest of us (7 in total) proceeded
directly up a heathery ridge (asserted to be
avalanche-free) towards Meall an t-Smain
west of Carn Liath, getting into a hefty
snow shower and spindrift as the slope began
to level off at about 2500 feet. Mairet did
sterling work in route-leading at this
point, as had Scott and Kevin on the
footpath. The next half-mile or so were done
in a white-out, on uncertain and often
invisible ground. With the aid of Brian’s
GPS, we navigated directly towards the Carn
Liath summit since anything more adventurous
seemed inadvisable. As the flattish ridge
was approached, boulders – grey, as
advertised - again became visible, making
walking easier, but it was still a longish
plod up to the summit in limited visibility
and a strong wind.
At the cairn, a brief lessening of the wind
allowed a glimpse down to Loch Laggan,
giving directional re-assurance on top of
Mairet’s heroinic(?) work with map and
compass, but the first quarter-mile or so of
the descent was often on hard wind slab
until this turned into steepish drifts en
route down to the An Cnapanan shoulder above
Aberarder. However, there were welcome
respites from the wind, and even the odd
glissade – voluntary or otherwise – by
Garry, Alex and others. A final snack on An
Cnapanan provided a good view over Loch
Laggan, before a descent through burgeoning
vegetation and its accompanying snowdrifts
back onto the path, and so to the minibus at
5 pm, where Fred and Willie were awoken from
their slumbers.
The roads were now almost clear, and
Aviemore was reached at about 6.10 pm for a
stop at Smiffy’s fish and chips, and, for
some, the Cairngorm Hotel bar. Leaving
around 7.00 pm, Aberdeen was reached (via
the Dufftown road) at about 9.30 pm.
Counselling for post-traumatic stress
disorder appears unnecessary: most people
said – with varying degrees of surprise –
that they had enjoyed themselves, and had
done more than seemed likely at the start of
the day. A few more folk would have been
welcome, but the survivors have had a day to
remember. |
