Buachaille Etive Beag

Sunday 23rd July 2006

The weather for this walk was very mixed with hot spells under bright sunshine and cold spells with rain. Overall it wasn't a bad day but the quality of the mountain walking wasn't really up to the standards of the previous week; having said that the views were first rate. I started with another long walk up Glen Coe, all the way up to the top of the valley, and it was great to explore the whole valley. I had considered walking up the Pap of Glencoe, but my desire to see the top of Glen Coe prompted a change of mind. Despite the long walk it was well worth it to see the stunning views down the valley. Last year I got my first glimpse of Glen Coe from a bus and ever since then I had been desperate to return. It truly is a wonderland; I now know what heaven is going to look like, Glen Coe is heaven on earth.

Once past the major road works at the top of the glen (I was walking along the old road so the modern road hidden in the gorge was not spoiling my view), I took the footpath marked to Glen Etive but I didn't stay on it for long as before the path descends to cross a river I took a left branch up towards Buachaille Etive Beag (known as the Wee Buachaille). The path was rather muddy with nothing to appeal to me so I was relieved when I finally reached the bealach where the rocky slopes led me up to the top of Stob Coire Raineach, the northern Munro of the Wee Buachaille.

After a lunch spent admiring the views all around me, including the encroaching clouds, I headed off along the ridge donning waterproofs, but the rain proved to be short-lived. After a climb to a 902m top the ridge levelled off and provided me with an entertaining, but short-lived walk along the rocky ridge to Stob Dubh, the southern Munro. From there the only way off was south down the scree towards Glen Etive. After the fun of the scree was behind me I desended dreary grass all the way down to the bottom; the stunning views of Glen Etive with Loch Etive in the distance were my only compensation.

At the bottom I turned around and crossing the Allt Lairig Eilde I followed the path over the pass and back down to the top of Glen Coe where my long walk back continued. Pausing once again at the top of the glen to admire heaven on earth I headed down the glen back to the youth hostel. Sadly my few days in Glencoe were already at an end and the next day I moved over to Glen Nevis, but I would miss Glen Coe.