Meall Mor - 748m
Tuesday 19th November 2013
Tuesday 19th November 2013
Weather/Conditions: The start of winter! A thin layer of snow fell the evening before, along with a drop of temperature that meant there was black ice everywhere. The drive was a touch sketchy... The setting Moon was atmospheric, the rising sun was beautiful. But it was cold too...!
Distance/Ascent/Time: 14km / 850m / 3h 55m
Accompanying: Alone
I'd always thought I'd cycle into the base of Meall Mor, but the bike had a flat tyre so I just walked. That was fine anyway as the road was somewhat icy... I started up the south flank of Meall Mor, another climb that just felt utterly hard work, all the way. I was too close to my situation at the time to really appreciate the temporary nature of this lethargy, but I felt completely drained. The walk to the summit felt like hard work and I was generally a bit dispirited. After of my summer, I was on a kind of 'motivation rebound'. I had a period of being unsure where my motivations lay and it was a while before the fires really lit again. Thank god that's over now, but at the time it was very real.
The sunrise, however, was really stunning and it was nice to finally see a wee bit of Scotland I'd long looked forward to exploring. Glen Gyle is worth more of a look, for sure. With the summit cairn gained, I headed back the way I came, down long slopes to the glen floor and out the road to Stronachlachar. This was a nice walk, but I was impatient to get back, and it drowned out the pleasure of being there.
Back at Stronachlachar, I drove home via. Drymen, suddenly out of one wild world (the Highlands) and into a softer, sunnier place where the warm sun was melting the snow back to fields of green. It sure was a raw, wild place to have gone at that time in the morning. I must go back in the future...
Ascent
Descent
Panoramas
Glen Gyle morning
Meall Mor 360°
Times (Time relative to 0.00)
(0.00) 6.05am Stronachlachar
(2.00) 8.05am Meall Mor
(3.55) 10.00am Stronachlachar
(0.00) 6.05am Stronachlachar
(2.00) 8.05am Meall Mor
(3.55) 10.00am Stronachlachar
Written: 2015-11-10