The Ullapool Munros (Inverlael-Beinn Dearg Range)
Schedule
Tue, 01 Aug, 2023 at 08:00 am
Location
Inverlael | Aviemore, SC
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Some cracking days out on the Munros takes us near to the lovely fishing town of Ullapool. The Inverlael / Beinn Dearg range is north of the Fisherfields at the head of Loch Broom in the Inverlael area.
Most of us visiting will travel up via Inverness. The road heads up past the massive whaleback of Ben Wyvis and up into a high plateau. Ahead lies the Fannaichs and Beinn Dearg range.
Beinn Dearg (there are quite a few Beinn Deargs) is most frequently climbed by following the River Lael up Gleann na Sguaib. Starting from near the head of Loch Broom, a path follows the wonderfully alpine glen to a wide bealach (col or saddle).
It's a nice track, passing first through farmland, woodland, open moorland and up onto this rocky plateau. There is a rather helpful dry stone wall which you can handrail almost to the summit of Beinn Dearg and it can be a bit scrambly. It has an interesting history too.
From the bealach, the neighbouring peaks of Con a' Mheall and Meall na Ceapraichean can also be bagged with relative ease as the distances and re-ascent isn't actually that much. If we have time, we can add Eididh nan Clach Geala, which lies about 3 km north of Beinn Dearg along the ridge giving us 4 Munros in a day. The views are impressive. You can see Con a' Meall from the road as the cliffs drop spectacularly beyond the summit to the north. You can also see the Skye mountains on a clear day, the northerly four Munros and the Fannaichs and An Teallach to the south...
These hills mark a boundary between what some visitors in Britain consider is a normal landscape and something that is completely far out. Heading further north from Ullapool opens up a landscape which seemingly shouldn't exist in tidy Britain. It is wild. Hills rise almost out of nowhere and stand isolated. There are huge steps which have risen out of the folding of the Earth. It is a strange and amazing place. Sutherland.
Seana Braigh is extremely remote and isolated. It's an extremely long walk to get to it from any direction. It has the feeling of being lost in time. Am Faochagach is closer to the road but involves a river crossing. This is fine when there has been a dry spell, but if the river is in spate, it involves a very long and often muddy trudge from The Black Bridge.
We'll be tackling all of these Munros over three days. Please note that although we are offering individual days for particular Munros, there is no guarantee we'll do all 3 or 4 in the Beinn Dearg range, or include Eididh nan Clach Geala with Seana Braigh on a particular day. We try to leave Am Faochagach to the final day as it is the most straight forward. But in all cases, the weather will dictate what we do and when and we won't know that until a few days before the trip. Please be flexible if only joining us for a day or two out of the three!
Munros:
Beinn Dearg (1,084m / 3,556ft)
Cona' Mheall (978m / 3,209ft)
Meall nan Ceapraichean (977m / 3,205ft)
Eididh nan Clach Geala (927m / 3,041ft)
Seana Braigh (927m / 3,041ft)
Am Faochagach (954m / 3,130ft)
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Where is it happening?
Inverlael, Inverlael,Garve, United Kingdom, AviemoreEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
