Mayar and Driesh

Saturday 4th June 2016

I had planned a walk up these two Munros, Mayar and Driesh, three years ago and I had wanted to climb them for many years before that. Three years ago, I didn’t plan enough time for the ascent so despite walking all the way to Glen Doll at the foot of the mountains, I left the valley the following morning without climbing either Munro. This time I planned an extra day so after arriving in Glen Doll the evening before this walk I had a whole day to climb the mountains before I was planned to leave. As always when walking, the weather is a key figure in its success, but I was really lucky during this holiday with some amazingly good weather with hardly any rain and bright sunshine almost every day. That changed two days before this walk when it clouded over Thursday lunchtime, however these started to clear when I reached Glen Doll so that by the time I got up for this walk I had blue skies and the promise of a great day. When you plan a walk on a particular day months in advance you never know what weather you are going to get (especially in Scotland), so it was a great relief to get brilliant weather for a walk that I had been looking forward to for so many years.

Mayar and Driesh are sometimes known as the celestial twins of the Angus Glens as they sit near the end of Glen Clova above Glen Doll on the northern edge of the county of Angus and the southern edge of the Cairngorms National Park. One of the gems of the area is the nature reserve Corrie Fee, which I was keen to visit, so upon finding conflicting guidance on the route I decided to follow Ralph Storer’s direction that sent me into the corrie at the start of my walk. Therefore, setting off I walked through the conifer plantation that is typical of many that litter the Angus Glens following colour coded posts that I hoped would lead me into Corrie Fee. My walk through the wood was enlivened by small information boards designed for children that amused me and kept my interest as I continued along the forest tracks until eventually I reached a wow moment when I emerged from the wood into the great bowl of Corrie Fee.

An awesome sight lay before me of great crags encircling the corrie with a fine waterfall cascading into a stream that meanders delightfully through a beautiful meadow. The whole sight of Corrie Fee was awe-inspiring, but I had heard that the nature reserve was also a botanist’s dream with a host of rare, tiny, alpine flowers growing in the corrie, so eagerly I made my way along the path beside the stream and through the delightful meadow that covers the floor of the corrie. I wish I could name some of the flowers that I saw growing beside the path, but instead all I could do was gaze at the splendid flowers at my feet while occasionally gazing up at the awesome crags that surrounded me. Later the waterfall attracted my eye as I reached the far end of the corrie floor and began to climb the steep terrain on a good path that meanders up the corrie past the waterfall.

I was in a dream as I walked on this great path past a beautiful little waterfall through spectacular crags and out of the delightful corrie to emerge onto the rolling mountain plateau. The terrain was a significant contrast to the delights of Corrie Fee as now the gradients were gradual with no rock underfoot and little variation in the blanket grass under foot. However, blue skies and the sense of being in mountain scenery again lightened my spirits and spurred me on out of the upper corrie and up the gentle slopes to the top of Mayar. This may not have felt like a great Munro, but I was nevertheless at the top of a mountain above three thousand feet high with hazy views south into the long Angus Glens. Although I had not seen many people during my ascent I would now encounter loads as my walk took place on the same weekend, without my realising it beforehand, as the Angus Glens Walking Festival.

Consequently as I made my way across the col following an old, broken fence I saw many people climbing up the Kilbo Path that was to be my descent route, and so feeling as if I was in the Lake District I made my way along the ridge that connects Mayar with Driesh. After climbing the steep, stony hillside I turned off the path, and away from the crowds, needlessly towards Little Driesh, an insignificant offshoot of the Munro, before headed across the saddle to the summit cairn of the Munro. There were stunning views from the top of Driesh and I was in awe of the sight of mountains all around me, which never fails to impress me. Before this holiday it had been two years since I’d last been at the top of a Scottish mountain, but until this holiday I hadn’t realised how much I had missed them. I was frustrated at not having climbed more mountains before this day so I was determined to make the most of the wonderful weather now. I had forsaken Munros for far too long in perhaps the mistaken belief that I prefer long-distance walking, but this holiday was teaching me that I love being at the top of a mountain, especially in good weather such as I had on this holiday.

The walking festival people seemed to be obsessed with having their picture taken beside and on top of the summit trig point, despite the whole area being covered in daddy longlegs (crane fly). I was content to just have my lunch before setting off back down the mountain taking a more precipitous, craggy path looking steeply down into Corrie Kilbo until I reached the Kilbo Path on the Shank of Drumfollow. Rather than following the path I stayed at the top of the ridge and followed it all the way down the shank with great views west into Corrie Fee and Glen Doll. In the near perfect weather the views over the craggy walls of Corrie Fee and onto the mountain landscape of the White Mounth were spellbinding and kept my attention all the way down the ridge until I eventually joined the Kilbo Path and entered the Glen Doll conifer plantation. I was in awe of Glen Doll three years ago when I spent just one night there, but now that I was able to spend the whole day there I was even more in wonder of the spectacle of this amazing place.

Soon after entering the wood I crossed the Kilbo Burn and came across some delightful woodland flowers growing in a place where sunlight had broken through the dark conifer canopy. This beautiful and unexpected display kept me going later in the descent through the dreary conifer plantation until I eventually reached the bottom of the valley. By the time I reached the packed car park it was still quite early in the day, so I decided to pick one of the way-marked walks which climbs the western slopes of Cairn Derg on a zigzagging forest track through the plantation until it reaches a viewpoint beside a lovely stream looking along the length of Glen Doll, unfortunately the view was spoilt by a dense haze. However, while drinking the water from the stream I was able to reflect on this amazing day when I had enjoyed walking through the awesome Corrie Fee that alone demands a return visit and up to the celestial twins of the Angus Glens, and on this day as part of the Angus Glens Walking Festival, two, deservedly, very popular Munros. After waiting for this walk many years, Glen Doll and the weather had not let me down.