Day 6 of the holiday, we had leisurely day on 4, and to a lesser extent, 5. Bruce’s knee forced us to relax on Tuesday and the rain made this easy, staying indoors, browsing shops and drinking coffee / eating cake. Yesterday we tested things out a bit, walking from Aviemore to Boat of Garten on the Speyside Way. This proved comfortable enough, we timed it well with the rain arriving after us, had lunch and caught the bus back.
Meall a’ Buachaille, Glenmore
Parking by the reindeer centre we set off on a good path at Glenmore. This ambled gently through the forest allowing the legs a chance to warm up. We got chatting with another walker and stayed with him until An Lochan Uaine (the green lochan). Walking to the end of the loch, then back, trying to find the best place to capture the mystical green waters we parted ways with our fellow walker, later chatting again when we all met at the summit.
Ryvoan Bothy
Next stop was the bothy where we popped in for a seat and a snack out of the wind. It was a little disappointing to see that others had left rubbish. As Bruce commented, the bin men aren’t picking up out here!
Very Blustery on the Up!
Leaving the bothy behind we began winding our way up the hill. This was a pretty relentless slog, all the more so with the wind gusting strongly.
There were times when we were almost blown off the path with the big gusts, much to my delight!
Shelter at the Summit
The summit is marked by a lovely big windshelter cairn. There we met the fellow we’d chatted to earlier and with lots of room for three joined him to relax in the sunshine. Being out of the wind it was really pleasant and I could happily have stayed there all afternoon with a good book; sadly that wasn’t an option as I didn’t have a book and Bruce struggles to rest for too long, so off we headed.
Descent to the Forest
The path down was equally windy. I’d put my jacket on when we stopped at the summit and happily kept it on after fair way down.
Suddenly we dropped out of the wind and it was hot! What a difference in temperature from yesterday!
Reaching the road, we headed up to the Visitor Centre for lunch before our afternoon walk.
Afternoon Ambling: Coire an t-Sneachda
Feeling refreshed we started at the ski centre car park, picking up where we’d left off on Monday. We retraced our steps initially, then branching off left rather than following the path for Ben Macdui.
The path was well made and allowed to progress at a decent pace.
Snow Melt
With the significant rise in temperature today, there was also a significant shift in the snow line. Where we’d had snow on the path on Monday, today we could see it was clear. The burns were in spate and flowing impressively!
An Impressive Coire
Coire an t-Sneachda is a beautiful sight! The snow lying in it made it all the more impressive, the spectacle growing the closer we got.
We walked in to the coire before stopping for a snack.
At this point we heard voices and scanned the face looking for climbers. None to be seen, the voices continued and then a couple of guys appeared with skis in their backs having had fun on the snowy face.
Retracing Our Steps
The route back was the way we’d come, down over the bouldery path initially, then picking up the good path as we progressed.
The water continued to flow, the sun shone and the wind blew.
We reflected on our adventures over the week as we walked. It’s been eventful and fun, a chance to reset and recharge.
Clare, happiest outdoors! 