In my previous blog I mentioned that this was just the second time that I had been to the Outer Hebrides. Before visiting Seaforth Island by kayak and seeing the white-tailed eagle, I had been on the island of South Uist. Here I had some gorgeous weather and climbed Beinn Mhor. This has a prominence of over 600 metres and so was on my tick-list. As the Marilyns of Beinn Corradail and Thacla are nearby I decided to include them as well.
This round is 19.6 kilometres (12.2 miles) long and involves around 1200m (3900ft) of ascent, much of it on trackless terrain.
If of interest, there is a downloadable GPS track of my route available here together with an abridged version of this blog.
There is parking for just one car on the highway verge at NF 768828 34591 on the A865 just south of the turn to Howbeg. This is at the entrance to a track that leads to and past a croft and some ruined buildings. There did not seem to be any objection to parking here.
You might also find parking on the road to Howbeg but this is single track with passing places. And there is also an alternative starting point around 600m to the south at a memorial or even around 2¼ kilometres south at track that leads to concrete reservoir and comms mast.
So, I followed the track which took me 500 to 600 metres on to the moor as a hard track. The track goes somewhat further than the map shows as an ATV track. It is quite wet in places, but the track is generally OK. I aimed for the north end of the largest of the lochans ahead (unnamed on the map) in around a further 400m. The track continued, sometimes coming and going. Follow my track and you should be fine.
Conditions underfoot improved as I gained height.
Eventually the track disappeared (or I lost it) but the going was easy enough as the north-west ridge of Beinn Mhor forms. I saw a prominent cairn on the skyline and headed towards this. There was another similar one a little further and higher on. Both have long rocks upended within them like standing stones.
From the ridge by the first cairn, views over to Thacla began to appear. Therefore, I kept a bit to the left to keep them in sight.
The ridge rose steadily, and I continued on to point 608 where the ridge narrows. I could see the summit 750m ahead with a prominent (but lower) cairn beyond.
Whilst the ridge ahead was narrow, there were bypass paths on one side or the other where it mattered. On the final approach to the summit the path passes below the ridge line on the south-west side. It took me around 50 metres beyond the summit, so it was necessary to double back slightly when possible so as to reach the trig and cairn.
Save this one for a good day. The views were stunning, a fine P600 at 621m, the highest point on South Uist. I spent a while on top admiring them in the sunshine and the still air – weather that is most unusual for the Outer Hebrides!
The views to Skye and to Rum past the prominent cairn were particularly good. It reminded me of the great times that I had had on Skye (camping high in a corrie) and on Rum (all alone on one of the best traverses in Scotland).
I could also see the St Kilda archipelago through the haze lying 98 kilometres (61 miles) out to the north-west in the Atlantic.
The continuation to Beinn Chorradail involves reversing the route along the ridge to point 608 and then steering east to the Bealach Heileasdail. The spur down to the bealach comprises rocky slabs with a few short drop-offs. So, I found it easier just to keep to the right (south) of the spur.
Once at the bealach, the slope ahead is much steeper. So, I ignored a steep grassy rake that trended to the left. Instead, I traversed to the right a bit until I found some ground to climb and reach the south-east ridge. Then it was straightforward up to this summit.
Again, I stayed here for a while, sitting in the sun and having lunch. I just had to share the experience with someone. A day like this in the Outer Hebrides is rare. So, I persuaded my kids to join me on a WhatsApp video call in order to show them the views.
The route on to Thacla is a little more complicated to start with and might be a little difficult in poor conditions. Immediately to the north of Beinn Chorradail’s top is a cliff. Therefore it is necessary first to descend a little to the east, find a gully and cut north west across the top of this and then find a grassy shelf that passes below the cliff. Some of the ground here is loose with steep drops.
There is a view to the right to the hidden Loch Chorradail.
But this does not last too long, and you can trend north-west on easy ground towards a couple of lochans and the bealach with Thacla. There are no paths.
As I started my final climb of the day, I met my one and only person (and his dog) just after starting this ascent. I think that we were as surprised as each other to see someone else on this relatively remote hill. He told me that he had gone ahead of a friend as he wanted to climb Beinn Mhor. He would then return to Beinn Chorradail where they would meet. I saw the friend when I was 15 minutes from the top of Thacla, but he was 100m below me and some distance away. The way on to Thacla from the bealach is basically just straight up. There are no paths hereabouts. I joined its west ridge 500m west of the summit. The summit is a rocky rib that sports a trig.
By now, I was six kilometres away from the start point with pathless boggy ground in between. If tired, I imagine that the trek back might be a bit dispiriting. That is another reason why I recommend that you keep this walk for a good day.
Accordingly, once on the initial descent, head for the northern end of the snout of Maola Breac (which is the north-western outlier of Beinn Mhor) and then the outward route just to the east of the nameless lochan which is 400m away from the hard track. It was all quite hard work over the rough ground.
Once past the lochan it was a fast return to the start. I considered myself to have been extremely fortunate with the weather and the underfoot conditions (which were relatively dry).
The round took me a little under nine hours. But this time did include lengthy stops, particularly on the summits of Beinn Mhor and Beinn Chorradail. If you were in a hurry, I imagine that the round could be done in seven hours or so.
For other blogs on my climbs in the north west of Scotland this year for:
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