I find that the Scottish mountains known as Fionas are a great target for winter because they are lower in stature than the Munros and Corbetts, which means you are less likely to be faced with strong winds and cloud. They can be a tough day out due to rough terrain that is often pathless because these mountains are much less walked, but the rewards are the peace, a lack of other people and the sense of achievement. I also have many of these summits still to tick off the list of 219 in my fairly local area.
A walk of Càrn Mhic an Toisich
Càrn Mhic an Toisich is located between Glen Moriston and Plodda Falls, north of the A887. I was joined by my friend Wendy for the walk of some 15km with 680m of ascent .
We started close to – just west of – the settlement of Dundreggan and simply crossed the road from a lay-by and headed through a metal gate into a native woodlands.
The woods revealed a cairn that mark an historic moment. A board tells the story of a religious teacher Finlay Munro, who in 1827 stood in this spot to preach. As he spoke, some people heckled him and Munro declared that the ground on which he stood would “bear witness to the truth of his sermon until the Day of Judgement”. There are two marks in the ground where he stood and it is believed nothing will grow where they are. You can see two quite deep imprints in the ground next to the cairn.
The woodland path winds uphill through the trees to reach a wider track at around 200m elevation, which we joined and then followed for many kilometres as it climbs in a north-westerly direction.
While the terrain all around is rough and covered in a thin blanket of heathery vegetation, we stuck to the track until an elevation of about 500m.
The higher we ascended the wider the vistas became and we could see many snow-capped mountains all around, although in the near distance the views were a bit blighted by large electricity pylons.
The joy of this part of the walk was the wide track that allowed Wendy and I to walk side by side and chat. I really enjoy a walk with a friend and the chance to talk and laugh.
As we approached the highest point on the track, NNW of the start, there was no other option but to walk into the rough moorland to complete the uphill section.
Because it is winter, the vegetation wasn’t as thick and fully grown as it would be during there summer months and Wendy and I came across bits and pieces of trod so we made fairly speedy progress. The gradient was quite easy-going, too, as we headed in a NNW direction.
Looking ahead, we could see a higher point, Meall Ruigh Disdain and then another higher point An Suidhe, which we skirted lower down to the left. We continued to ascend towards the increasingly obvious main summit of Càrn Mhic an Toisich.
The top – at 680m – is marked by a cairn. We enjoyed sweeping, wide -open views and looked down over several lochs. The vies included more man-made objects, this time a wind farm.
To return, we followed almost the same route, with a few twists and turns of difference on the rougher terrain. We reached the track exactly where we had exited it and continued the walk downhill, back through the woods and to the van at the lay-by.
Càrn Mhic an Toisich
Distance: 15km
Total elevation: 680m