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west highland way | Scottish Landscape Art - Scottish Landscape Paintings - Part 2

Posts Tagged ‘west highland way’

‘Above Loch Tulla, passing shower’

Posted by admin on August 29th, 2014
186 'Above Loch Tulla, passing shower', Acrylic & Pastel, 2011, 60 x 60 cm

‘Above Loch Tulla, passing shower’

 ‘Above Loch Tulla, passing shower’, Acrylic & Pastel, 2011, 60 x 60 cm

Our walk over Ben Inverveigh and Meall Tairbh last Sunday, (see related blog) reminded me of this painting.   It was based on a wet but beautiful view we had as we walked the West Highland Way from Bridge of Orchy to Ba Bridge and back a number of years ago.  Thankfully the weather on Sunday was much better but it only goes to show that even in bad conditions you can sometimes see the most amazing views.

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A crowd-less August Bank Holiday Sunday

Posted by admin on August 29th, 2014
On the West Highland Way, above Loch Tulla

On the West Highland Way, above Loch Tulla

Not wanting to miss out on yet more fine weather, Nita and I had planned to get out again last Sunday.  We’d both been working all day Saturday and so decided to have a day in the Arrochar Alps as they are a relatively short drive from Irvine.  Then, however, it dawned on us that it was the August Bank Holiday weekend in the rest of the UK and we reckoned that there would be a lot of walkers heading north for the long weekend to climb a few Munros.  The Arrochar hills are very popular at the best of times and so might have been a little too busy for me last weekend! I do like walking in quiet places although whether this is just because I’m so slow and get a little embarrassed when constantly being passed by other walkers, or whether it’s just because I’m an unsociable grumpy (almost) old man …..well, it’s debatable!  Thankfully, Nita similarly likes the peace and quiet and so we’re well matched.

From the eastern end of Ben Inverveigh

From the eastern end of Ben Inverveigh

So then, where to go?  A few years ago on a similarly fine summer weekend, we did the circuit of Meall Tairbh and Ben Inverveigh, the two small but rough hills near Loch Tulla.  On that occasion we’d parked in a very busy car park near Victoria Bridge but once on our way, we saw none of the other cars occupants for the rest of the day.  This then seemed the perfect choice for Sunday.

Rough ground, Ben Inverveigh

Rough ground, Ben Inverveigh

Although both the hills are only around 650m high they offer pretty rough walking on generally pathless slopes of grass, heather and rock.  This circuit over the two hills with the steep descent and re-ascent of just under 150 m makes for a good walk.  This time however, we decided to park the car at the Bridge of Orchy and walk the few kilometres along the West Highland Way to reach the start of the long broad ridge of Ben Inverveigh.  It means a slightly longer day but makes for a pleasant easy start and finish with the added advantage that at the end of the day, you are parked by the Bridge of Orchy Hotel…… perfect for an evening meal before driving home.

A lonely loch, below Meall Tairbh

A lonely loch, below Meall Tairbh

And well, yes, it all worked according to plan….just!   We’d been rather casual and had decided to leave a little later than normal in order to reach the Green Welly in Tyndrum in time for breakfast.  Then however, we found the main road out of Ayrshire closed at Beith.   We headed across to the old Glasgow road at Lugton only to find that this was closed too!!!   The sat-nav put us right but we must have spent a good half hour driving along small country roads before finally bobbing out in Paisley.   Still, this was not a problem as we had plenty of time and so after a relaxed if slightly late breakfast at the Green Welly, we drove the few miles to Bridge of Orchy and were walking by about half past ten.  It was however, incredibly beautiful with the air being very clear for a summer day.  The views were stunning and even I could make out some of the more distant peaks.  Of course, of course, we just had to keep stopping to look and take photos and so didn’t reach the summit of Ben Inverveigh until after 13.30.  Still, no problem, we had plenty of time!   We were still on course when we reached the summit of Meall Tairbh at about 16.45 but it did seem a long way back to the West Highland Way.   The final few kilometres to reach this famous path were over very rough and boggy ground but in the past we’d picked up a path of sorts.  This time however, we decided to head over to the river as Nita reckoned she could see a path along its bank that also led back to the WHW.  This in retrospect was not a good idea.  The ground was even rougher and wetter and our pace went from slow to almost full stop.  Time however did not stop and still short of the WHW by some way, we realised we were starting to get a little late.   When we did finally reach it, it was just after 19.30 and we still had the walk back to Bridge of Orchy to do in fading light.  Nita, who had already done her usual great job of guiding me, had her work cut out as we descended the rough track in what for me was very poor light.  Wow, quite a day and we didn’t see anyone from the point where we left the WHW in the morning to the point where we re-joined it in the evening!  It’s good to be sociable!

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Stretching the legs…..

Posted by admin on April 25th, 2014

As you will have noticed, there has been a slight blip on the blog front recently….. that can be put for the most part down to a troublesome computer.   Anyway, I’m back in business now, so, at long last….. a blog.

On Carn Chreag

On Carn Chreag

As I look out of the window now, it’s a grey overcast scene, but for the most of the last week, ten days, it’s been really good weather here in the west of Scotland….. and I’ve been making the most of it.  Being both school and bank holidays, there have been a lot of people down on the harbour side here in Irvine and so it’s been important that I’ve been at my studio.  I’ve certainly had a lot of visitors which has been good and as this has been the run up to the Open Studios Ayrshire event this year, it’s been a good way of promoting that too.  Of course, having my studio open to the public is nothing out of the ordinary for me …when I’m working, the door is always open and visitors are always welcome to call in and see what work is on the go.  However, taking part in an official Open Studios event like this, is very good publicity for me  and I’ve been delighted to get involved and be one of the 47 studios open in Ayrshire over this coming weekend Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th April.  It should be a good event and of course, for many folk it’s the only time of the year when they open the studio door.   If you’re not doing anything else this weekend why not visit some of the many artists and craftspeople taking part this year.  You can find full details by visiting: www.openstudiosayrshire.com .

From the summit of Beinn nam Fuaran

From the summit of Beinn nam Fuaran

But, fine weather is not just about working and being in my studio.  I just had to get out in the hills and we managed three walks in just eight days …which was pretty good for us.   We’d started out by taking a day in the Pentland Hills near Edinburgh, (see my last blog), then a very gentle wander up Meall Odhar near Tyndrum last Tuesday.  Finally with the forecast set for almost cloudless skies, we decided we’d have to do a longer walk on the Friday.   I’ve wanted to reach the top of Beinn nam Fuaran, a steep grassy hill that rises to just over 800m but is somewhat tucked out of the way.  In the guidebooks they suggest it can be walked as part of a big circular day taking in five hills in total but I’ve always felt that this would just be a slog with no time to enjoy your surroundings.  So then, over the years we’ve visited these hills individually or in pairs, but Beinn nam Fuaran has always been a little out of reach.  This time however, I was determined to reach its summit…..but not before a good breakfast!

We timed our drive north so that we arrived at the Green Welly in Tyndrum just as they opened their doors at 08.30 and were second in line for coffee and bacon roll.  They really do make an exceedingly fine and well filled bacon roll at the Green Welly.   A five minute drive back down the road took us to a small car park just off the main road on the line of the West Highland Way.  As the crow flies, it’s just over 9km from the car park to the summit of Beinn nam Fuaran but there’s quite a bit of ascent and descent in between.

The air that day was really clear despite the bright sun and the big hills with their splattering of snow, looked especially fine. Streams rushed down the hillsides, full and busy from the melting snow above …it was really quite idyllic.  We did pass a few people on the long crossing between Carn Chreag and Beinn nam Fuaran ….but they had their heads down and were I think doing the five hills in a oner …..best of luck to them …we were going much slower!

We had to descend to about 400 m before the steep pull up to the summit of Beinn nam Fuaran which we reached just before 15.00.  It was well worth the effort, (even the cramping legs on the last hundred feet up the hill).  The views were really big and there was no noise except for the wind, an occasional passing insect and the call of a Raven circling overhead.

Below Ben Challum ....evening light

Below Ben Challum ….evening light

In all honesty we were running a bit late and there was the definite possibility of us finishing our walk in the dark …but what the heck.  As it turned out, we got back to the car about 20.45 and there was still plenty of light.  We even made it back to Tyndrum in time to get some chips and coffees before the chippy closed …so what more can you ask?!  What a day….

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Spring colours

Posted by admin on March 13th, 2014
A remnant for the old Caledonian Forest

A remnant for the old Caledonian Forest

What a difference a few days make.  After last weeks very grey and cloudy walk on Tinto, this week we saw the Scottish landscape at its very best under almost clear blue skies.  The colours everywhere were stunning and although we only walked a fairly small hill we managed to spend over nine hours in the process.  It was such a stunningly beautiful day that it just demanded that we keep stopping to look and take in the scene.

I really love this time of year with winter still very much around, (we set off with frost covering everything and the bigger hills white with snow) but summer closing in rapidly.  It was great too that even setting off from Irvine at just after 06.00 there was light in the sky and the sun rose over the Glasgow sky-line as we crossed the Erskine Bridge heading north.

We were making for Tyndrum but not for Meall Odhar which had been our original target last week, but for its neighbour across the glen, Fiarach 652 m.  We’ve never walked this hill and it was only last week while pawing over the map with my magnifier looking for the route up Meall Odhar that I spotted it and started looking for a route to it too.  It’s basically the high point of a large area of wild upland ground  that is surrounded on all sides by the higher hills, Ben More, Ben Challum, Beinn Dubhchraig and Ben Lui …to name but a few.  It’s a fine location that just demands a perfect day ….and what better than a clear, cold early spring Wednesday in March?

Ben More from Fiarach

Ben More from Fiarach

As we wanted to stretch our legs a bit more this week, we decided to park the car in the village of Tyndrum and walk back along the West Highland Way the few kilometres to the big bridge crossing the river flowing out of Cononish Glen.  This is a beautiful little section of the West Highland Way ….a proper little footpath the meanders its way along through mixed woodland and alongside streams .  The views from this path alone were superb and we got good views of the hill we were going to walk.  From the river bridge we left the WHW and followed an estate track that lead over the railway and then lead around the flanks of Fiarach for a couple more kilometres to a large area of conifer plantation.  On the way it went through a fabulous area of the old Caledonian forest that made this truly highland scene even more so.

At the start of the plantation it was simply a case of making our way up the open hillside, at first along side the trees and then climbing above them.  I have to say that I’ve never been too impressed with these conifer plantations but on this occasion I was pleasantly surprised.  We stopped level with the top corner of the plantation and sat down in bright sun to catch our breath, give the aching calf muscles a rest and to take in the views.  As we did we were aware of all of the bird song coming from the dense trees to our left.  One bird in particular ….we think it was probably a Thrush, was singing at the top of its voice and it made the place even more special.

Nita at the summit of Fiarach

Nita at the summit of Fiarach

A little higher up and the steep slopes eased and we came into the first big patches of snow.  It’s a hummocky area of grass, moss, small crags and numerous little lochs and pools.  The biggest of these, Lochain Fiarach, was almost completely frozen and had varying amounts of snow lying on it …where it was just ice, it was a beautiful shade of blue, green, and grey and this turned paler to white around the edges ….it reminded me of the ‘white’ sandy beaches we saw last year on the west coast of Harris.

Despite the generally featureless nature of the ground up here, the summit itself was a surprise ….set atop a craggy little spine that rose 30 or 40 metres above the rest of the moor.  It made a great setting and a wonderful place to stand and take in all the bigger snow capped peaks around.  The nearest of these, Beinn Dubhchraig looked particularly massive and Nita could make out three tiny figures plodding up the heavily snow covered slopes towards its summit.  We  stopped numerous times to sit and look and enjoy the colours, textures and patterns …and were impressed  to find two other visitors to this little hill ….a pair of what we think were Golden Plovers.

The summit of Fiarach from Lachain Fiarach

The summit of Fiarach from Lachain Fiarach

This really was a fine day …..it had a similarity to the wee hill, Ghlas Bheinn on the edge of Rannoch Moor that we tend to visit most years.  I definitely think we’ll be back to Fiarach again next spring.

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Back to normal

Posted by admin on January 9th, 2014

A rather full Loch Lomond

A rather full Loch Lomond

Well then, that’s Christmas by and 2014 well under way.  I hope you all had a good time over the festive period.  I had a very enjoyable few days off as well as a very good few days at the studio.  Nita was working twelve and half hours shifts on 27th & 28th December so I used these to the full working on the An Teallach commission.  After much banging of my head against the wall in the early stages of this painting, I’m at last starting to make headway and had another good long session yesterday that left me feeling quite optimistic that I’ll get it finished fairly soon.  It’s been quite a challenge but I’ve really enjoyed working on this piece and I’ve certainly learnt quite a lot.  I’m also thinking that I may have to revisit this fantastic mountain again sometime before too long…..I think we were last there about seven years ago.

Still no serious walking done recently though.  The weather has been pretty appalling and on the odd day when it wasn’t blowing a gale and falling with rain, either Nita or I were working.  We managed a short wander through the local country park on New Years Day which was nice ….it’s a beautiful mix of grass, bog and trees with lots of bird life and if you’re in the right place at the right time …deer.

Interesting patterns. Loch Lomond

Interesting patterns. Loch Lomond

We finally made it out yesterday we spent several very enjoyable hours wandering along two sections of the West Highland Way on the eastern shores of Loch Lomond.  Have to admit though, that we hadn’t banked on the water level in Loch Lomond being so high and we had to make detours around a couple of sections of the path that were completely flooded by the loch.  It certainly made for some interesting views with the trees and bushes around the edge all appearing to grow out of the water.   It wasn’t a huge walk, just a few miles, but it got the legs working again and we’re already starting to think about getting back onto the hills again next week with a bit of luck.

Ben Lomond from the shores of Loch Lomond

Ben Lomond from the shores of Loch Lomond

Looks like being a fairly busy year this year.  I already have work booked for an autumn show at a gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne  and then have the solo show and big drawing project at the end of the year lined up.  I’ve also just been asked to show a few pieces of work at the Frames Gallery in Perth as part of their spring exhibition, so I’ll look forward to that ….it’s a great gallery.  I’m hoping to do more work with photographer Dan Thornton later in the year.  Walking wise, well, we’ll have to see how it goes but I’m hoping to try and walk a few more Munro’s ….I’ve slipped back into bagging mode again and nine more Munro summits would take my tally up to 120!  I’ve always said I’d never be able to, or want to walk all 284 of them, but I do like the excuse to go and visit places I’ve never been before …so I guess my new target is to do half of them ….I should manage that within a few years with a bit of luck!

Must dash now and get myself down the studio.  My very best wishes to everyone who reads this for a great 2014.

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A walk into winter

Posted by admin on November 15th, 2013
Looking towards Beinn Dubhchraig

Looking towards Beinn Dubhchraig

It doesn’t seem any time at all since we were hauling our way up the steep slopes above Cononish in bright very warm conditions with midges and flies buzzing all around and sweat running down our faces, heading on our way to Beinn Dubhchraig.  On Sunday we were walking up Beinn Chaorach instead and looking across the glen to Beinn Dubhchraig, Ben Oss and Ben Lui ….but in very different conditions.  Now, just a couple of months later, everything above about 400 m was white with fresh snow.

Towards Ben Challum

Towards Ben Challum

It wasn’t a complete transformation to winter though, as, with it still being only mid November, many of the trees in the glens below still had leaves …some showing the full array of autumnal colours and others still almost completely green.  Even the grass was still quite green making for a stunningly beautiful mix of colour as we drove up the side of Loch Lomond under an intensely blue sky.

Ben Challum from Beinn Chaorach

Ben Challum from Beinn Chaorach

Once away from the sound of the road, it was a very peaceful scene, (very appropriate, it being Remembrance Sunday) the only sounds, the crump of the snow under our boots and the occasional call of a circling Raven overhead.   With the daylight hours being somewhat short at this time of year and our starting out late due to the icy roads, we didn’t have that much time.  I reckoned we’d have to turn back at 14.00 at the latest and at about 13.40, still a good 15 minutes from the top, we decided to call it a day and sit and have our lunch.  The views really couldn’t have been better with the great snowy bulk of Ben Challum close by, and Ben More and the Glen Falloch hills to the south east.  A glance to the right as I sat eating my sandwich and I could see Ben Lui and it’s neighbours …..it really was very clear.

Towards Ben More

Towards Ben More

Our timing proved about right as the sun was setting behind the hills by the time we were back on the main track and as we descended back to the West Highland Way in the base of the glen, it was once again a very cold and quite dark scene with the white snow covered hills almost glowing against the darkening sky and a bank of low mist forming.  The final couple of kilometres back along the West Highland Way to the car was the most difficult for me …trying to follow Nita as she picked her way around patches of ice in the gloom.

It hadn’t been a long day but a very fine way to start the winter…..apparently they’re forecasting cold weather again next week.

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A busy little week…

Posted by admin on September 22nd, 2013
From above the Devils Staircase

From above the Devils Staircase

This time last week, (Saturday 14 at 13.17), Nita and I were sat with some friends Stewart and Evelyn on a rocky little top overlooking Glencoe.  We’d not walked far, just followed the West Highland Way up to the high point of the Devil’s Staircase and headed north up the grass and heather slopes to the first little summit at around 800m.  It was however a wonderful view point and we’d been very lucky with the weather.  It was I guess the perfect Glencoe weather …a mix of bright sun and dark heavy shower clouds that rolled in filling the glen with mist and rain before passing on over Rannoch Moor.  Stewart, an Irvine man, has been living in Germany with his wife Evelyn for many years and so I think he particularly enjoyed seeing this very special bit of Scotland in very special Scottish conditions.

City of Adelaide ....heading south

City of Adelaide ….heading south

The rest of my week was spent either at my studio or standing on the harbour side waiting to see if the grand old clipper, City of Adelaide would finally start her journey by barge down to London.  Getting this vast wooden ship on a barge out of the River Irvine needed a lot of skill, two tugs and some reasonably fine weather.  The latter was the problem for the first part of the week, with constant gales or at least high winds.  All looked good on Thursday morning and a big crowd once again gathered at the mouth of the River Irvine to witness this historical event but at the last minute with the wind picking up, the wise decision was made to once again call it off.  Finally, on Friday lunchtime, with the crowds once again lining the harbour side, the City of Adelaide was towed out to sea to start its trip down to London.  As I write, it’s now well into the Irish Sea apparently ….so good luck to all on board.  I’m not sure of the exact time table but it will be heading to Greenwich for a short while before being lifted onto a really big container ship for the long voyage down to Adelaide.  If you are interested and haven’t already found it, www.cityofadelaide.org.au is a great website and has masses of information and photos.

Art wise, it’s been a good week too.  I’ve had a week of working on an 80 x 80 cm oil painting.  It is as you can see, a more abstract piece created using a large house painting brush and lots of thick oil paint.  I’ve been enjoying working like this after several weeks of doing finer, tighter acrylic and pastel pieces.  Not sure what to make of it though ….so will have to wait and see.

Work in progress, oil on canvas 80 x 80 cm

Work in progress, oil on canvas 80 x 80 cm

Finally, yesterday I also had a visit from a couple from Edinburgh.  They’ve been following my work on-line for a good while now and decided to call into the studio on their way back from a short holiday on the Isle of Arran.  They left my studio an hour later with two of my paintings …..including one of the new Harris pieces.  So then …a very big thanks to them and I hope they get much pleasure from the paintings once they are up on their wall.

I’m spending today trying to get the press release and photos together to send to the local papers and radio stations in order to promote our Open Studios Weekend on Saturday 5th / Sunday 6th October.  The event posters and flyers have been printed and are starting to get displayed …if you live in the region you may see one soon.  I’ll be sending out flyers and email invitations to all who have left their names in my visitors book, but remember, the event is open to all and is free ….so mark it in your diary and come along and enjoy seeing a great selection of work produced by some of Ayrshire’s leading artists, including; painting, drawing, prints, ceramics, stained glass, hand book-binding, photography and jewellery….one of the artists, Alison Thomas, will even be running some drop-in workshops for children too.  Hope to see you at the studios on Saturday 5th October (11am – 5pm), or Sunday 6th October (12 noon – 5pm).

Invitation 2013

Invitation 2013

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A long short walk

Posted by admin on June 21st, 2013
Meall Teibh from the summit of Beinn Inverveigh

Meall Teibh from the summit of Beinn Inverveigh

‘What we need’, I said to Nita last weekend ‘is a nice easy short walk to get us back into it after three weeks of coughing, spluttering and very little exercise’.  Well that was the plan anyway, but as so often happens, things didn’t exactly turn out this way.

We had decided that the place to go was Beinn Inverveigh; a long whale back of a hill that rises close to Loch Tulla.  To give ourselves a gentle walk in, we parked the car at Bridge of Orchy and followed the West Highland Way a couple of kilometres to a high point overlooking Loch Tulla.  It was so good to get out again and even though the clouds were thick, dark and quite low, there was a wonderfully atmospheric feel to the day …..and it wasn’t raining.  A couple who had been following us along the WHW passed at this point and continued along the path as it descends towards the Inveroran Hotel …..and they were the only people we saw during the whole of the day…….not bad for mid June.  Our route left the WHW and followed a small path heading towards Beinn Inverveigh.  The cloud appeared to be rising slowly and it was certainly above the top of our modest little hill and as we started heading up steeper ground to gain the end of this long broad ridge, the sun actually came out for a brief spell.  Once the height is gained, it’s an easy wander, the ground being a mixture of grass, moss and rock.  Normally there are many wee lochs and pools up here, but the dry spring had meant that many of the smaller ones were dry, the dark peat cracked into crazy patterns.

Heavy skies above Beinn Inverveigh

Heavy skies above Beinn Inverveigh

The top of Beinn Inverveigh is one of these rocky outcrops that just happens to be a few centimetres higher than all the rest …and is marked with a small cairn.  Another little outcrop about 100 metres away also has a cairn, but which one is the highest is a debatable point ….which ever one you stand by, the other always looks higher …until you go to that one and look back!

On the steep slopes of Meall Teibh

On the steep slopes of Meall Teibh

And that, as they say, was supposed to be that.  We’d taken about three hours to do this leisurely walk and had planned to have an even more leisurely lunch break and then wander back ….an ideal little airing.  Well……despite, in all honesty, feeling a little weary, I started to look over my shoulder to where I could see the dark lump of the neighbouring hill, Meall Teibh…..and it did look very inviting.  I think in some respects, I’m a bit like a gold fish for within a few minutes of sitting down, I’d completely forgotten that my legs had been aching and that I was feeling tired and had planned a nice short easy walk.  I heard myself saying to Nita, ‘we’ve never walked Meall Teibh from this direction …what do you think?’  Nita, realising her short day was going out the window, is, none the less, equally mad and she agreed that it would be a waste of the day not to head on over to the second hill.  Our short day had just turned into a considerably longer one.

Enjoying the views from the West Highland Way

Enjoying the views from the West Highland Way

Getting over to Meall Teibh involved continuing along our present ridge for a further kilometre or so before a steep descent to a broad lonely bealach between the two hills.  A beautiful little loch lies here below the steep sides of the two hills and other than the shrill calls of some birds on the loch and an occasional buzz of an insect; it was completely quiet and incredibly peaceful.  The steep haul up on to Meall Teibh reminded me why I’d planned a short easy day ….my legs complained something rotten, but before long we were sat by another pile of rocks marking the second little summit of the day ….two hours from top to top.

Evening sunlight ....the West Highland Way

Evening sunlight ….the West Highland Way

We now had a lengthy walk back, first along the length of Meall Teibh to reach the small road by the Inveroran Hotel, and then back by way of the West Highland Way to Bridge of Orchy.  It was a lovely walk back though especially as by this time the dark cloud was breaking somewhat and there were patches of bright evening sunlight to enjoy.  We got back to the car about 19.45 …..we’d planned to be back in Irvine eating an evening meal by then ….but what the heck; we’d had a wonderful long short walk.

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A great weekend followed by a great walk

Posted by admin on October 11th, 2012

I can’t believe it’s Thursday again already …this last week has just flown by ….but perhaps that’s because it has been a good one.

The lower slopes of Beinn Odhar from the West Highland Way

The lower slopes of Beinn Odhar from the West Highland Way

Our Open Weekend at the Courtyard Studios last Saturday and Sunday, proved a real success.  All the hard work that everyone had put into it, paid off and we had around 300 visitors over the course of the weekend.  We were, I have to admit, very lucky with the weather this year and instead of the rain and howling gales of last year we had two beautiful sunny days for the event.  The courtyard looked great with all the doors open this year and an added bonus was a newly repaired and painted table in the centre …..courtesy of ‘Jim the joiner’, a retired gentleman who makes stretcher frames for Margaret and who agreed to fix our courtyard table prior to the weekend……many thanks Jim.  I think everyone had a good time and there were certainly a few sales and a couple of commissions gained along with a lot of interest that will hopefully turn into sales over the next weeks, months or years.  There is already talk of perhaps doing another event during the lead up to Christmas ….we have a meeting next week so we’ll see what folk are thinking and take it from there.  Anyway, the biggest thanks for last weekend’s success must go to everyone who came down to the Harbour side and visited the studios ….I hope you all enjoyed yourselves.  Remember that visitors are always welcome at the Courtyard Studios, so do feel free to call in next time you’re passing.  You’ll have to take us as you find us ….these are working studios ….but that all adds to the interest.

The Crianlarich Hills from the slopes of Beinn Odhar

The Crianlarich Hills from the slopes of Beinn Odhar

I must admit that by Monday I was pretty tired.  I was in putting everything back in its place and even did some painting in the afternoon.  The weather though was still good and the mountain forecast suggested 80% chance of a cloud free Munro.  With Nita working on Wednesday and the weather going wet again on Thursday we just had to catch ourselves a walk while things were so good.  We haven’t been out though for around five weeks ….when we were up on the hills above Glen Shee and so we didn’t want too big a walk …just something short but steep enough to get the leg muscles complaining!  Last week for my ‘Artwork of the week’, I showed a small painting based on a day we’d had on Beinn Odhar near Tyndrum …and this seemed the perfect hill for occasion.  It has the added bonus that you can leave the car in Tyndrum and have breakfast at the Green Welly before starting out and a cup of tea on your return!  Perfect.

'A perfect spot for a snooze!'

‘A perfect spot for a snooze!’

There was a real feel of autumn in the air as we drove north with frost on the verges at the side of the road.  The colours on the hillside were particularly bright as the sun rose and caught the tops of the bigger hills.  The sky was completely clear and Loch Lomond looked stunning ….so good that we just had to stop at Inveruglas and take a few photos.  By the time we got to Tyndrum the sun was higher and the mountains looked very inviting …but not before a bacon roll and a cup of their excellent coffee at the Green Welly.

From near the summit of Beinn Odhar

From near the summit of Beinn Odhar

We started walking (heading north up the West Highland Way) around half past nine and after crossing the bridge over the railway line, we left the WHW and headed up the steep mainly grass slopes of Beinn Odhar.  It was hard work for my out of condition legs and I needed many regular stops (to admire the view of course) as we gradually gained height.  The views back to Ben Oss and Ben Lui were great and higher up you could see over the intervening ridge to Ben More and its neighbours.  It never ceases to amaze me when walking this hill that half way up you find the remains of an old mine …what a place to come and work.  There is still the start of an old shaft cut horizontally into the rock …but it must have proved fruitless because it only goes into the hillside a matter of a few feet.   Beyond this the ground eases and there is a tiny loch perched below the final steep and rock strewn summit.  It is remarkably beautiful here and so quiet.  In fact it was so peaceful that we decided to lie back and have a snooze for half an hour in the warm morning sunshine!  The final few hundred feet to the summit cairn is as I say, steep and strewn with stones, but it makes for a great final ascent and you arrive at the top with three hundred and sixty degree views.  On a day like Tuesday …this meant big views …he air was very clear and even I could see a fair way.  We spent more time sat at the top taking in the peace and quiet and listening to a couple of Ravens as they swooped overhead in the autumn sun.  This really was what was needed after a very busy month …back to the work now but we’re already planning the next outing.

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A tale of two Meall Tionails …..

Posted by admin on April 26th, 2012
The view from Ba Bridge

The view from Ba Bridge

For anyone out there who reads these blogs, you might remember that about a year ago I wrote about my plans to walk a wee hill tucked away amidst the bigger mountains of the Blackmount.  The hill in question was Meall Tionail …a rocky little hillock of just over 500m in height.  We’d been planning to walk this hill ever since my partner Anita saw it from one of its bigger neighbours and said that she’d like to sit and eat her sandwiches at the top of it one day ….it really is in a wonderful location, surrounded on three sides by bigger dramatic mountains and looking out on the other side to the expanse of Rannoch Moor.  Suffice to say that we didn’t make it last year as planned and so it had to wait until Monday this week before we finally got to go there.

Looking towards Meall Tionail

Looking towards Meall Tionail

With a pretty good forecast and following a reasonably dry period (the walk in involves crossing several streams) …it seemed the perfect place to go ….and so I rang our friend Guy to see if he wanted to join us.  Wanting to walk a tiny hill in the middle of much bigger ones seemed to be a daft enough proposal to him and he was all for it ….we’d pick him up from the station at half past six the next morning.

Looking east from near the base of Meall Tionail

Looking east from near the base of Meall Tionail

Meall Tionail is as I say, just a small hill …it’s the getting to it that takes the effort.  We chose to park the car at the Glencoe Ski Centre and walk the West Highland Way back south to Ba Bridge, then follow a path up the side of the river for around three miles to the summit of the hill…..I guess in total (though I haven’t made any accurate measurements ..about 13 – 14 miles for the day ….with a few hundred metres of ascent thrown in for good measure.  The weather was indeed, pretty good, the cloud was quite high and all of the bigger tops were clear …the upper slopes white with snow and looking very dramatic.  The sky was a mixture of dark clouds and bright sunshine and it made for some wonderful views and a great range of colours.  Needless to say we did a lot of stopping to look and snap away with our cameras and time went by faster than the miles under our boots.   Thankfully the path up the glen by the river proved a good one with small bridges over the numerous small streams.  At one point though the path appeared to disappear….and we were left scratching our heads and pawing over the maps ….we were confronted by a sizable stream and no sign of the path on the opposite bank.  Nothing for it but to splash our away across ….thankful now for the dry weather over the preceding weeks….and still we couldn’t figure out quite where we were or where we’d gone wrong.  We could see our hill though and on heading towards it and back towards the main river found our path …quite how it had got there was a bit of a mystery!

Lunch, but not at the top!

Lunch, but not at the top!

At around this point we’d been walking for about three hours and we still had a good distance to go to the base of the hill …let alone climb the thing.  As we’d set out at 9.15 am, it was looking like being a late finish…..much to my dismay there were murmurings in the ranks that perhaps we’d only get to the base of the hill.   In all honesty though we were running a little late and when we got to the base of the hill we did in fact decide that that was as far as we could go ….ahhhhhh, after all these years waiting to come here and the long drive and the four hours walk in …and not to get to the top …well, it was a bit galling.  We could have got to the top and back down to the car before it got dark …but we’d have had to have rushed it which was completely against the whole idea of going there in the first place.  Nothing for it but to return some time in the future …and allow more time.

We’d had a great day and seen some wonderful scenery, but I hadn’t realised how disappointed Anita was at not getting to sit and eat her lunch at the summit.  When we finally got home she said, ‘how about going back on Wednesday …the forecast is almost as good?’  I saw from her face that she wasn’t joking …and well, we haven’t done anything as daft as that for a long time …so Wednesday was booked and with an extra early start …up at 03.50, out and away from Irvine at 05.15!  Mad or what?!

Some of the mountains surrounding Meall Tionail

Some of the mountains surrounding Meall Tionail

Heavy skies over Rannoch Moor, wednesday morning

Heavy skies over Rannoch Moor, wednesday morning

This time though the weather wasn’t as good as the forecast had predicted and on reaching Loch Lomond it started to rain and both the Luss Hills and Ben Lomond disappeared into a grey wet slurp.  It continued to rain all the way to the edge of Rannoch Moor where at last we saw a few bursts of sunshine over to the east.  The mountains were all shrouded in mist and it was a very different scene from just 48 hours earlier.  This time Anita and I started walking at 07.50 and with fewer things to photograph and less stops we made good time.  It stayed dry all the way to Ba Bridge but after that the rain came back …and stayed for the next almost eight hours.  The beautiful snow covered and dramatic peaks bursting with colour in the bright spring sunshine of just two days earlier,  had been replaced by an equally beautiful scene of dark brooding hills disappearing up into the cloud.  It was cold and very wet …but we could see our little hill up ahead …its summit well below the cloud base ….one advantage of climbing a wee hill!

Wednesday morning ...poor weather

Wednesday morning ...poor weather

We arrived at the base of Meall Tionail and after a brief stop headed uphill on a mixture of grass and stone, crossing numerous small streams that were coming to life again with all the rain.  By this time the wind had picked up and it was blowing the rain along in sheets, but as we reached the top of the hill, it really didn’t matter …as Anita said, ‘This is even better than I had imagined’ …and indeed it was.  The summit is topped by a series of crags …the outer edge like battlements of an ancient castle …the views out over the glen towards Rannoch Moor quite stunning even in this wild weather.  Big mountains rose all around us, occasionally giving glimpses of the snow covered ridges for the most part hidden in cloud.  Wow, what a spot.  Anita did finally get to eat her sandwiches on the top, albeit hunched against the wind and driving rain ….but what the heck …we’ made it and it felt very special.

From the summit of Meall Tionail....at last!

From the summit of Meall Tionail....at last!

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