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The Fannichs
An Coileachan (923m, Munro 266) ‘little cock’
Meall Gorm (949m Munro 215) ‘blue hill’
Beinn Liath Mhor Fannaich (954m Munro 209) ‘big grey hill of Fannaich’
Sgurr Mor (1110m Munro 43) ‘big peak’
Meall na Crasgaidh (934m Munro 243) ‘hill of the crossing’
Sgurr nan Clach Geala (1093m Munro 53) ‘peak of the white stones’
Sgurr na Each (923m Munro 267) ‘peak of the horses’
Sgurr Breac (999m Munro 138) ‘speckled peak’
A’Chailleach (997m Munro 144) ‘the old woman’
The boys on the day and Penny!
Had a day at home yesterday to celebrate Shona’s birthday , it wasn’t the best weather for the hills so didn’t miss anything anyway. Myself and Steven fancied a Fannaich traverse so we set off from home at 6.30 with 2 vehicles and met at the car park just up from Loch a’ Bhraoin and left my van there and drove back to Loch Droma to the starting point , a heavy rain shower delayed the start but we were on our way at 9am. It was a pleasant start on the track through the woods but it was short lived and soon it was all mud and water basically all the way to Loch Gorm and even beyond, our first summit of the day was clear as were the next 3. Sgurr Mor is a wonderful viewpoint and the highest of the Fannaichs , the clag came down just after leaving the summit and on the way up Meall a’ Chrasgsidh we had hail mixed in with the rain shower , this was the only hill we didn’t get a view from today.
Looking towards the great Buttress of Sgurr Nan Glach Geala some great winter mountaineering on this remote cliff.
Sgurr nan Clach Geala has a superb ridge leading to the summit with a huge wild corrie on the left still holding big snow patches. A steep descent and a easy ascent took us up onto Sgurr nan Each which is also a fine peak. We now had to descend to the low bealach to pick up the path for the 2 final hills of the day, the weather was holding out and was better than we expected today.
One man and his dog the Fannichs Photo S. Morrision.
A steady climb of 450m to Sgurr Breac on a reasonable path and we could see the last summit of the day on the distance , we had to go over a small top before we reached top of A’ Chaileach . We could now see the van in the far distance and descended the N ridge to the Lochan below and back up onto the other N ridge for a very wet and muddy route till we finally got to the bridge over the outflow of Loch a’ Bhraoin and a dry path back to the van .
The Fannichs Sgurr Mor in the bacground
This is a great traverse spoiled only by the wet paths which is understandable with the summer we’ve had .
Many thanks to Steven today for his company today.
Today’s totals: 25.04mls, 2945m ascent, 10hrs 7min.
253 Munros to date.
The Fannichs Penny and Graeme
Another incredible day by Graeme, Steven and Penny wonderful to see it all going well despite the weather. The Fannich ridge is a great day and after the hard work of getting onto the ridge the Munros are a great journey. These nine Munros are a great apprenticeship for the big Scottish days and were a right of passage for many troops over the years.
- The Fannaichs. The Beginner’s introduction to Big Hill days ( from Kinloss MRT big 60)
In winter they are big serious mountains and they can become Alpine very quickly. Sgurr Mor 3645 feet is the classic mountain of the area and stands proud in winter it is a superb summit but involves some skill in a wild day.
Sgurr Mor in winter – photo Pete Greening – huge cornices await the unwary.
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