Cruach Ardrain

Although not the highest mountain in Crianlarich, Cruach Ardrain looks the most imposing and interesting.
As I had already travelled to Loch Tay and Lomond to climb Ben Lawers and Vorlich on two of the three previous days, I wanted to do something more local.... well how about a mountain that I could see from the car park of the Bed and Breakfast ( Ewich House) where I was staying. Notice the Alpacas hut in the foreground.
After stopping in Crianlarich to buy the regular lunch time sandwich, I made the short journey of less than 5 minutes down the A82 Loch Lomond road and parked in a lay-by. The ascent route from this viewpoint ( below) did not look spectacular but the idea was to follow a track across the field and then under the Glasgow - Crianlarich - Oban / Fort william railway (running alongside the middle of the picture in trees). The track continued up the valley to the right of the hillside before a path to the left branched off up the hill behind the fir forest (centre of picture).....

The undulating ridge was reached (Grey Height) where it was time to stop and observe the metropolis that is Crianlarich ! The dominant feature from both the ground and from the hill top is the railway, the station, viaduct and the Fort william railway section curving round and gaining height to the left of the picture....

This was the best day of the week for weather but I still wasn't tempted to use the swimming pool !!

Time to press on as some other walkers that I met on the way up decided to stop for lunch, too early for me after the plate of breakfast that I was fortunate to have. The ascent of Grey Height in the initial and end stages were a constant hunt for partial sheep tracks and from the above pictures, you will notice that the ridge route was more interesting to Meall Dhamh. There was a lot of height loss before setting off on the final push to the summit which was thankfully not as steep as Ben Vorlich.

On reaching the summit, the first duty I had was to frighten a Hare away that was hiding near the summit cairn probably on food watch from a walkers sandwich.... who would have thought it at 3400 feet....

Time to relax

...while slightly to the left, amazingly I could still keep an eye on the safety of my car in the lay-by albeit with a zoom lens !!

All too soon it was time to return and I decided to use a different route to join the valley I was talking about earlier, a lot quicker. The route was taken from the Ordnance survey guide book to the area, but unfortunately this route was pathless and consisted of negotiating wet, rough grass and crossing merging streams and tributaries that proved to be a little wider as the valley was reached...

Once on the valley floor, I thought it would be an easy walk back, but the rough countryside continued with many small streams to jump...

It took a while before I caught up with the track I had left earlier and combined with the Ben Vorlich walk the previous day, I felt I had done a walk ....and a half. It seemed forever to get to the car as I didn't meet one person on the whole of the descent route, so it was nice to get back to the civilisation of the town.....

It would seem unlikely that I will do this mountain again for some time as there are a few others in the area that I would like to do first, so I'll live with the memory of this view (below) everytime I pass through the railway station on my charter trips to Oban....

Railway station with a view......& a good cafe !

The other lasting memory I have about this trip apart from the B and B (just above the dogs head in the photo below) is...... it's not always about the enjoying the view, it's about the art of hunting, finding or waiting for food.

I want what's in that bag !!!

Ewich House, Crianlarich, The Southern Highlands

In the fir tree lined valley of Strathallan between Tyndrum and Crianlarich lies the early 19th century Ewich house. I came across this B&B on trip advisor earlier in the year but it was difficult to get booked up as it was so popular. One of the reasons for this is the high rating that it gets on trip advisor coming into the top 10 of Europe's B&B's and Inns 2010. Ewich House is ideal for Scottish car tours and West Highland Way walkers as it is situated in a key location just off the Glasgow to Fort William road but quiet enough due to the surrounding trees. Most of the visitors I shared the accommodation with, stayed for only one or two nights so I felt privileged to enjoy a lot of the facilities as it seemed unusual to stay for five nights. This post is more of a complimentary photographic post to my written trip advisor review.

The building was a very welcoming place and the owners did their best to make everyone satisfied with their visit. I was fortunate enough to be given a room to the side of the building and I could open the curtains in the morning to a view of fir trees and mountains.......

Every morning as I descended the staircase, I caught sight of the birds enjoying themselves out of the window as they made use of the breakfast facilities !!

then it was my turn to enjoy myself as the next view I had was of the breakfast room......

...and the freshly cooked breakfast which was substantial including Scottish Haggis, black pudding, Potato scones and eggs from the back garden hens.....

By day three, I had to refine my choice to a few less ingredients as it was taking too long to eat !!

One of the most unusual things that you will ever see at any Bed and Breakfast is the sight of four Alpacas.......However, I'm not sure how appreciative there were of the countryside views.........

This view was taken looking towards Crianlarich with the mountain "Cruach Ardrain" in the background. Incidentally, one of my challenges later in the week.

After a long day out and evening meal, it was time to watch the sun set over the trees....

           ... with the resulting light shining on Crianlarich's Ben More and Stob Binnien.

It was time to retreat to the warmth of the guest lounge to enjoy the relaxation and comfort....

               ....and leave those outside in the grounds to do a similar thing !! .....