Cam Chreag Glen Lyon

Hill: Cam Chreag (Glen Lyon) (Crook of the Crag)

Type: Corbett

Height: 862m

Another straightforward outing to which I added on a little extra.

Started the ramble from the excellent parking area at Innerwick. This part of the glen has estate owners happy to coexist with outdoor people, a pity not all of the glens estates are likeminded.

Judith on BBC weather last night had said it would be a fine day. Mist and gloom as I drove along, a smir of rain as I changed hmmm.

Finest feature?

Walkhighlands states that the lower glen with fine woodlands are its finest feature. Might have been the case a few years ago but deforestation has razed many of the slopes, not so attractive now. Although a large flock of Fieldfare were taking advantage of the remaining natural wood.

Another hike up an estate track, not many hills without them these days. 

Clouds disappeared for a few minutes so ridge snap, Corbett summit not in view

Quite quickly I could see the beginning of the ridge, it is a long ridge, still under cloud, fingers crossed.

Closer but still cannot see the top

I was accompanied by a heavy running burn which was no hardship as the sound of the water cascading down to the glen was soothing. 

I heard one stag roar but it sounded far away. Lots of fresh droppings on the hills so they are around but no deer seen. A couple of skeins of calling geese broke out of the cloud, a rapid count, over 100 in each skein. I heard more of them so the migration is fully on.

Snap flattens out the ascent to the ridge

Finally almost the end of the track where I reached my turn off, it looked peat boggy. The ascent to the ridge looked steeper than it was in reality but I was glad to get to the better surface on the ridge. 

Summit cairn

Once there that was the only positive. The clouds were engulfing me and the wind was trying to knock me over. It was also now very cold, indeed almost freezing. So, all the views I looked forward to were not to be.

Atmospheric glimpse of Loch Rannoch 

The ridge is rocky and grassy but wide enough to present no danger then out of the gloom appeared the high point of the small cairn. In the atmospheric light Loch Rannoch shone briefly.

View back down the ascent to Glen Lyon

Luckily on the return along the ridge the cloud did come and go to give fleeting glimpses of what lay out there. This is a wild bog ridden landscape up high, not a place to get stuck/lost in.

I descended by the same route back to the hut. As I had made good time I decided to take in the opposite hill Meall nam Maigeach, not a listed hill as such, probably a top of Cam Chreag.

An ATV track helped negotiate the boggy ground but the short jaunt was worth it.

Cam Chreag ridge but not complete

End of ridge looking towards Glencoe

The clouds had lifted enough to give me some views, happy with that. A cracking view of how long the Cam Chreag ridge is in that I could not get it all into one snap.

A return the same way with Glen Lyon, the attraction always in view to take away the grind of the hard track, but my feet hurt lol.

Ascent: 914m

Distance: 16.3km

Time: 4.46

Wildlife: Fieldfare (flock); Geese 3xSkein; Raven (pair); Meadow Pipit; Hooded Crow; Red Squirrel; Blue tit;