22 May 2021
This was for me the best mountain walk on Mull. The fine ridge with significant high level walking ranks it in my mind alongside many better known Scottish ridge walks. I was fortunate that my husband had decided not to walk so I had transport to the start point and from the end. There are only 4-5 buses per day – relying on public transport would mean a constant need to keep track of time, which would spoil the joy of having plenty of time to take in the views.
The walk begins in a straightforward way following the service track to gain significant height (around 550m). I was fortunate to have chosen a day when the visibility was excellent and so enjoyed fine views all the time.
Once off the track, the path was intermittent. Soon I was walking along an exposed but wide ridge (so I had no particular worries about falling off!). I reached the trig point and huge cairn on Mainnir nam Fiadh.
There was only a small amount of height loss to reach the high point of the day along the airy ridge. This was Dun da Ghaoithe which at 766m ranks as a Corbett. Views were outstanding especially westward across a splendid series of fine summits extending all the way to Ben More
There was a short period of precipitation and I even noted some snow during a light shower. Certainly I needed to be prepared for anything and the adage of “four seasons in a day” was apt.
However in general the weather was excellent with fine views continuing. The ridge became gradually less prominent as I continued in a west of northerly direction ticking off the summits. The path undulated a little up to each summit but the trend was gradually down as I proceeded over Beinn Thunacaraidh and Beinn Mheadhan where I ate lunch whilst admiring the mountain views to the south west.
The way was less distinct to reach Beinn Chreagach Mhor. From here there was no discernible path and I spent some time finding a safe way down between some small but awkward cliffs, eventually reaching Maol Buidhe, the final summit of the day. During this traverse I spotted a mountain hare but it was very shy and had darted out of sight before I could get my camera ready.
I could see the line to follow to reach the Pennygown Holiday Park next to the cemetery which was earmarked to be my pick up point. The Cicerone Guide to the walk mentions some quarries in the area making the descent to the road difficult. Indeed at one point my way was blocked by a double electric and barbed wire fence. Frustratingly at that point I had almost reached the end of my walk. I followed a vague path in an easterly direction along the fence line and found a point where other walkers had clearly managed to breach the fence on to the quarry track from where I reached the main road.
Amazingly, I noted that a bus would be due in around thirty minutes so I decided that I would wait for that rather than dragging my husband out. However he had sent a text that I received when I turned on my phone and he was already waiting in the cemetery car park, having spent part of the afternoon watching the coastguard helicopter and a bronze coloured private plane at the nearby airstrip. I remembered seeing the coastguard helicopter flying over the mountains earlier in the day.
This was definitely a fine airy ridge walk and a notable highlight of my stay on Mull. The amazing thing was that, even on such a fine day with superb visibility, I had seen no one from the moment I left the main road to the moment I stepped back on to it at the end of my walk.
Where's Kathryn? 