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Schiehallion
Schiehallion triggers mixed emotions among hillwalkers. For some it is a lump of a mountain, omnipresent (if you doubt which Munro you're staring at, it has to be Schiehallion) and somewhat boring. For those people Schiehallion is to be climbed simply because it is there.
I am not one of them. I enjoyed that walk and I still have very fond memories of it.
Then again, I'm slightly biased. This was our first ever Munro - hand-picked for its "ease". It was a stunningly beautiful day (when I learnt the hard way that while my shinbones don't tan a bit, my calves can get badly burnt), a Bank holiday so it was slightly very busy. No worries about getting lost. Just mind the space at the small parking place at Braes of Foss.
There is a parking fee, but given that the John Muir Trust maintains the path leading you nearly all the way up Schiehallion, it's a small price to pay. (Plus, there's a toilet for people with tiny bladders.)
The trust built a completely new path, because the old one was eroding the mountain. So please, stick to it. It's a very descent path, steep, winding, relentless, and the best news is that it is actually a path.
Because once you make it to the end of this bit, you arrive at the "fun" part. Although my definition of fun is maybe not everybody else's. One guide describes the remaining stretch as a "prolonged plod up the rockpile". My other half still has nightmares about it. The top picture shows it very clearly. The ridge or whale back of this mountain is a boulder field. I like hopping from one boulder to the next. My other half hated it. The day after this Munro, I felt my calf muscles aching; with my other half it was the shoulders from walking bent over.
But please, do continue. Aye, I know. You have to get back down that same hellish pile of rubble. And your legs will be complaining. But just go on. You can't really miss the summit. Just "plod" along and arrive at the top of a mountain situated a really, really fair distance from the next Munro, Corbett or even Graham. The views are simply exhilarating.
Just to give some examples.
Loch Rannoch and the full Nevis range
View towards Ben Nevis
View towards the Glencoe mountains
View towards the Cairngorms
View towards Ben Vrackie and Beinn a' Ghlo
Honestly, forget the plodding. Go and see for yourself. But don't forget the sunscreen.
Done 31 May 2010.
