Hills: Cona' Mheall
Date: Friday 24th January 2020
Company: Myself and Ann-Marie
Distance: 23.9km, Ascent: 1105m
Time: 8Hrs 15Mins
For our ascent of Cona' Mheall we arrived at the
Inverlael car park circa two hours before sunrise for a headtorch start. I
last walked the Gleann na Sguaib track in November 2018 for an ascent of
Beinn Dearg and Meall nan Ceapraichean, and prior to that in January 2016 for
an ascent of Eididh nan Clach Geala. The route ahead was therefore familiar.
The MWIS forecast for the North-West Highlands had suggested 70%
cloud-free Munros. Alas, we were about to ascend some of the 30% non
cloud-free Munros. My camera therefore stayed mostly in its bag throughout
the walk.
Despite the inclement weather it felt great to get back out
on the hills after what has been a stressful past six weeks having had an
operation to remove skin cancer and my mum having past away.
After an hour or so there was sufficient light to switch off our
headtorches. It was nice to again see the Eas Fionn waterfall as we
progressed along the track. As the River Lael was in spate, Eas Fionn looked
very powerful.
River Lael:
After crossing the River Lael we commenced our ascent towards Coire Mathair
Lathail ascending the lower and then the upper coire.
Ascent to col between Meall nan Ceapraichean and Beinn Dearg:
On approaching the col between Meall nan Ceapraichean and Beinn Dearg the
cloud lifted briefly providing us with false hope that the weather was
improving.
Meall nan Ceapraichean:
Col between Meall nan Ceapraichean and Beinn Dearg:
A short distance below the col a solitary ptarmigan stood next to the track.
It stood its ground until I was perhaps 10 feet away from it before it flew
off making a lovely croaking sound as it did so. During the ascent of the
coire we also passed two Dipper.
Ptarmigan:
Once at the col we made our way towards the 886m top before descending circa
100m to the col between the 886m top and Cona' Mheall.
Lochan between Beinn Dearg and 886m top:
During the descent to the col it was great to again see stunning Coire
Ghrande. The cliffs surrounding the loch are very impressive.
Descent to col between 886m top and Cona' Mheall:
Coire Ghrande:
To ascend Cona' Mheall we tried to avoid as much of the scree as possible by
following grassy lines of ascent.
Cona' Mheall:
The final ascent to the summit was very slippery due to ice-covered rocks
topped with a dusting of snow. It was great to reach the summit of
Munro225Rd2.
Cona' Mheall summit:
From the summit we returned back to the car via the same route.
Lochan between Beinn Dearg and Meall nan Ceapraichean:
An enjoyable day out despite worse than anticipated weather and several
current aches and pains. Well done to Ann-Marie on bagging another Munro.