Sgòr Mòr, showcasing the Cairngorms

With the winds gone and the Sunday golf finished for the season, I was willing to forgo my usual social Sunday run in favour of a hill day. That said, neither of us were filled with enthusiasm as we drove out the road, in two minds as to whether we stop in Tarland for Pressendye and the Tarland Tearooms or continue to drive out the road to Linn of Dee. The decision was made when we saw the majesty of Lochnagar, the beautiful view on the approach to Tarland made even more spectacular with the snow covering the mountain. Drive on!

Linn of Dee

Parking was plentiful at Linn of Dee today, in sharp contrast to some of the mid-summer days when the overspill car park (field) comes into play. Paying our parking fee to the National Trust and having exchanged pleasantries with the ranger, we set off back along the road for a very short distance before heading off on the track alongside the river.

Up the Pathless Hill

Just a short distance along the track we turned off and headed up, initially following some semblance of path, heather bashing as we gained height. We spotted a herd of deer as we made our way up. They also spotted us and watched for a time before heading away.

Hopefully okay at this time of year, I have no doubt this would be a great place to acquire some ticks as the season progresses, such is the level of battling through heather. A gate in the deer fence leads to more heather bashing and a target of flatter terrain as the slope eases off.

Around Sgòr Dubh

We got chatting to another walker as we made our way to Sgòr Dubh and had a good blether about hills and walking, swapping stories and sharing adventures. I may not always remember the hills but I do remember the people that we met; today it was Hugh.

While he headed up to Sgòr Dubh, we continued on to the broad ridge that would eventually lead to Sgòr Mòr. While looking deceptively close, this is a wee bit further than appearances suggest with a false top ahead of the actual summit cairn.

The going is easy across this area. There were small patches of slushy snow in places but for the most part the path was clear and easy to follow. Reaching the summit the breeze picked up slightly so we were grateful of the small windshelter cairn (seating two) to keep the chill at bay while we enjoyed a snack.

The views from the summit are the main attraction of this corbett, all the more so when the Cairngorm plateau is topped with snow.

Heading Down

Leaving the plateau we decided to follow Hugh’s suggestion of retracing our steps to some extent, aiming for and following the deer fence rather than heading down to the glen and encountering lots of boggy terrain. We met Hugh ascending and wished each other well as we continued in opposite directions.

This certainly felt quicker, a path having been worn alongside the fence and although it was boggy in places we were able to avoid most of it.

Finally through the gate once more we made our way down through the scattered pines to reach the track. A hop, skip and jump pretty much saw us back to the car park from here.

Coffee Stop

Having started later, we’d missed the chance to stop at the amazing Highlanders Bakehouse (Crathie) so armed with this knowledge headed to The Bothy at Braemar instead. A tried and trusted favourite you can’t go wrong there. Fed and watered, the day is done.