Lairig Ghru

Wednesday 29th May 2013

This was a long, complex and tiring day as I got to grips with this great trail through the Cairngorms National Park that I have devised myself and passes close by all of the most significant mountains in the park. I set off from the Cairngorm Lodge Youth Hostel on the glorious Allt Mór Trail that I have taken many times before and really enjoyed every time. This well-constructed route follows the Allt Mór burn through a richly planted valley that is an absolute delight to walk through, especially in descent at the end of a long walk on the Cairngorm massif. On this occasion I was carrying a heavy rucksack upstream, so it was not the relaxing walk I was used to, but a tiring climb through a wonderfully wild valley until I reached a bridge over the burn. I had considered diverting away from my prescribed route in order to take in the top of Ben MacDui, the highest point in the Cairngorm Mountains, and the second highest point in Britain. However the low cloud, strong winds and the abundance of snow on the high tops convinced me to go around Ben MacDui over the Lairig Ghru, a highly visible pass through the Cairngorm Mountains that I was actually keen to do.

After crossing the Allt Mór I followed a heavily constructed path that I despaired over the first time I took the path, but after eight years of blending into the scenery I now considered it a very good path. I think I now appreciated it as a path that kept me out of the bog, and I have definitely seen paths that are a lot worse, mostly in the Lake District. The path goes along the northern edge of the Allt Mór after it has swung west to cross the heather moorland that lies in front of the northern corries of the Cairngorm Mountains that were looking rather murky in the dull, misty conditions. They did not look very inviting and reassured me that I had made the right choice to head through the Chalamain Gap. This narrow pass got into the news a couple of months ago when an avalanche in this relatively innocent pass claimed the lives of three experienced mountaineers. The Scottish mountains claimed the lives of a surprisingly large number of people during the last, particularly harsh, winter and shows the risks associated with walking in Scotland in wintry conditions.

The harsh winter was taking a long time to release its grip on the mountains and even at this point in the year there was still a sizeable amount of snow blocking the eastern end of the Chalamain Gap. I have always enjoyed the challenge of walking through the pass, but knowing about the recent deaths and the amount of snow at the beginning made my traverse a little worrying. With the aid of my walking poles I was able to safely cross the snow-field and then, after stowing my poles away, I crossed the boulder field in the Chalamain Gap to the boggy ground on the other side. Here the path was atrocious and I longed for the heavy construction of the other side of the pass as I struggled through the boggy ground, across the hillside and down into the valley at the foot of the Lairig Ghru. The sheer sides of the pass were intimidating and let me know that I was approaching what is probably the greatest mountain pass in the whole of Scotland. Either side of the Lairig Ghru are some of the highest mountains anywhere in Britain and the highest point on the pass itself would dwarf most of the fells in the Lake District.

After reaching the Allt Druidh I was immediately confronted by an enormous snow drift that completely covered the path and the stream. Carefully I crossed the snow-field to the other side and made my way up the valley on the stony path all the way up to the top. It was taking me so long to get to the top of this enormous pass that I started to remind myself of the indicators for reaching the top of a pass. Firstly, if the water in the stream is still heading towards you then you know you’re not there yet. You’ll know that you are at the top of the pass when you can see the view down the other side, and it took me a long time to get to that point. Eventually, after a lot of effort dragging my heavy rucksack up the hillside, I eventually reached the point where I could categorically say that I was at the top of the pass. I was so relieved, and tired, that I collapsed onto the floor and when I had recovered the energy to lift my head there was a pair of ptarmigan just a couple of metres away from me.
 

I had my lunch at the top before continuing for mile after mile down the other side of the Lairig Ghru past the enlarged Pools of Dee and the awe-inspiring Garbh Choire to my right. The great crags that surround this corrie were a tremendous sight, even in the poor weather. I had been over the Lairig Ghru only once before, back in 2009 when I had climbed the mountains to the west of the pass. On that occasion I had a lot more energy than now as I climbed four Munros after climbing over the pass. Now, after passing Corrour bothy, I turned left around the hillside into a bleak, dreary area of bogs and heather under dull, grey skies until eventually I descended into Glen Luibeg where wonderful trees littered the valley beyond. I got my feet wet trying to cross the swollen Luibeg Burn (I didn’t know the Luibeg Bridge was a short distance upstream), but I didn’t care as the sun came out while I walked through Glen Luibeg, past Derry Lodge and into Glen Derry. Despite the sunshine I had a strong headwind and I was really tired after my long, tiring walk carrying a heavy rucksack over the Lairig Ghru. I struggled on up the valley and eventually reached the Coire Etchachan Bothy where I spent the night. This was a long, tiring walk where snow-fields and overflowing streams through strenuous mountainous terrain made for a very difficult day.