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Wild Camping - Carn Etchachan | Cairngorms, July 2019

I arrived at the Corrie Cas carpark around 20:00hrs. There were one or two other vehicles around, I wondered if the owners were out on the hill for the night and had left their car there. This was going to be my plan for the next couple of nights. For now though, I sat and watched the sun go down over the hills and took in the bonus view of Loch Morlich and Rothiemurchus. I don’t have to pay a penny for this free show.

The weather conditions were to start off good with a largely sunny Monday, a little bit of a breeze but nothing over the top. I was happy about the breeze as this would help keep the midges away. The plan was to take in Carn Etchachan along with a few other Munros and tops. I’d hoped to camp as high as I could but would likely need to adjust this as the weather conditions changed. The route was going to be a little add-hoc but would essentially take in Ben Mcdui and Carn Etchachan to begin with then head where mother nature permitted.

There wasn’t going to be a mad rush to get round the hills. I was going to take enough food for a three day bimble. I wanted to also see what flora and forna was around. If the weather allowed I’d also hoped to get some time to relax and help repair the brain after an intense few weeks of work.

Day One: Corrie Cas to Campsite

Hamish (campervan) and I woke up at 08:00hrs, it was going to be a slow start, I wasn’t in any hurry. First things first, coffee! There’s nothing happening before, coffee! My kit was packed and almost ready to go. I had some fruit and museli then sat back and chilled out. I wanted to take advantage of the pristine porcelain at the ski centre before getting underway so waited until it opened. You know what I mean!

I set off and walked the really well constructed paths towards Coire an Lochain. There was a steady flow of foot traffic on the main paths so I decided to take a quieter route. So I enjoyed a slow walk along the side of the ridge with spectacular views into the Corrie beneath the peak and crags (The Great Slab) of Cairn Lochan, beautiful. While there is a path it appears to be less well used. I popped out onto the main path that ran along the ridge, again it was reasonably busy. The weather was very good so you can’t blame anyone for getting out and exploring this beautiful and very accessible area. It’s not your personal mountain Dave! Most people were heading for Ben McDui so I cut off the main path to find a more secluded area. My objective was now Carn Etchachan so headed down the stream from Lochan Buidhe. I also wanted to explore the area around Hells Lum Crag there are often impressive snow formations here, I wasn’t to be disappointed.

I now felt alone, at last! It’s been a tough few weeks and I really do find that getting away from everyone and everything helps me get my mind back in some kind of order. I’ve said it before but the mountains are my reset button. It’s no wonder there’s been so much talk about doctors prescribing walks in the hills to help people suffering from depression and anxiety.

I soon reached the crags and sure enough there were still some huge snow deposits hanging around. It’s July now and I had heard that the snow patches in this particular area can linger around for much of the year. Most of the remaining snow was on easterly facing aspects, perhaps not getting quite as much direct sun exposure helps them hang around. Winter was truly gone, and winter will arrive again before we know it. I wondered if these snow fields would join the two winters!? I went over to explore these iceberg-like formations, one thing I wasn’t going to do was get in front of them though! I’m all for a bit of adventure but surfing down the slab on one of these bad boys would be interesting, and super dangerous, to say the least. Especially when you hit that water of Loch Avon, it can be very cold you know! I was also conscious to the fact that there were a huge number of single rocks lying around, some large and some not quite so large, any one of them could ruin your day if they caught up with you though! These rocks had obviously been displaced during the snow melt and were released from the grip of the snow and ice, freed to tumble down the slabs. It’s pretty amazing how snow and ice alter the landscape year after year. Not quite the glacial landforms that profoundly modified the terrain many moons ago but a similar mechanism on a much smaller scale. A last scramble around and a few photos and it was time to get my kit back on! Never a nice moment when that sweaty T-shirt gets thrown against your back!

It was time to find a nice little camping spot further down and away from the potential rock or even iceberg fall line. Locating the area I wanted to pitch on was not easy, there were loads of nice spots! Spoilt for choice, I settled on a pitch that was close to the water course of Garbh Uisge Mor. Not to close to the edge of Shelter Stone Crag, there were some very long drops in the area. There was just enough breeze to keep away the, you know what’s! I pitched the tent (MSR Access 1) it takes no more than five minutes to set up. However, whilst putting in the last peg I managed to rip off a fly sheet anchor point! It wasn’t going to be a huge problem for tonight as it was forecast to be dry and light winds. I had planned another two nights out though in less favourable weather, that may then have been a problem. For now though, I adjusted the angle of the tent a little to allow the strong side to take the majority of the breeze. I removed a few pegs, lifted the tent, spun it, and then pegged it back down. Job done! Note to self, do I need to get a strong needle and thread to repair these things. Nope, it’s the first time in years I’ve managed to damage a tent that way! Pretty sure it’s a one off, I hope!

It was getting pretty cool in the breeze as I was bimbling around exploring so I decided to lay on my sleeping mat and relax. Inside the tent, and out of the breeze, the sun turned everything warm and cozy. Before long I woke myself up drowning in slaver and sweat. I had slept for a full hour and felt good for it.

Now full of new energy, I wanted to explore more of the cliff tops known as Shelter Stone Crag. These would take me towards the summit of Carn Etchachan. It was only about a twenty minute walk from where I’d pitched up. I crossed the stream and began to work my way through the boulders. Then began to handrail the cliff edge to the summit. Now, I’m normally pretty good with heights but this is one bad assed cliff edge. I could actually feel myself getting a little dizzy when near the edge. I decided to not quite handrail it for the remainder of the trip to the top! As I walked up, looking left, the views of Loch Avon where truly spectacular, especially in this sun and crystal clear visibility. There were also clear views of Cairn Gorm, Beinn Mheadhoin and…. actually there were far to many to mention. I reached the summit of Carn Etchachan and spent a while just looking and breathing. The great Scottish outdoors were beginning to work their magic and my mind was beginning to untangle itself all on its own!

When I arrived back at the tent, it was 17:40hrs. It was time to let the boss know where I was, so sent her a check in message using the Spot X. About ten minutes later she acknowledged my checkin and said she’d emptied the bank account, done a runner and signed off with a hearty smile! We pretty much carry this anytime we’re out adventuring but particularly when I’m doing a solo trip.

I could have walked a huge distance today but didn’t. There’s was no hurry, I didn’t have an agenda so I got back to the tent and began to write this blog. The only noise I had was the breeze, birds and stream. Just pure natural quiet. No phones, computers, social media or unreasonable work demands, dare I say it, no people!

Day Two - Camp to Campervan, Sharpish!

The weather had closed in as expected. Moderate winds and light to heavy rain came in surges. The tent had held up well but I was happy to head back to Hamish and cut this adventure short.

I sparked up the Jetboil and began to make some breakfast, and coffee! Again, I wasn’t in any rush, probably hoping that the rain and wind would miraculously disappear. It wasn’t going to, I knew it was coming and was set to hang around. I was later to discover that there was a weather warning issued for thunder and lightning, so my choice to do a runner was probably correct.

It’s never much fun packing up in the wind and rain. I firstly took out my waterproofs and set them aside. Then packed up my sleeping system, cooking and eating bits and bobs. Eventually everything was away apart from the tent. I sent Mrs a message using the Spot X to update her on my change of plan. Once that was done I wrestled myself into my boots and waterproofs trying not to beat myself up in the process. I unzipped the tent door, let go and promptly received a wet slap in the boat race! Aww the joys of wild windy wet camping! The rain had actually eased off a little but the wind was still up to its tricks. Starting from the down wind side of the tent I quickly collapsed the tent keeping the pegs in on the upwind side to stop everything from taking to the sky! The wind was helping take most of the rain off the flysheet as it flapped, I on the other hand was receiving it! I tried to ensure that I removed as much of the water as possible. No point carrying extra wait and soaking everything else in the rucksack in the process.

Everything packed, rain back on again, visibility poor, perfect! This gave me a chance to practice some navigation. I was using the Harvey Maps - Cairn Gorm Ultramap XT40 for the first time. This area specific little map was, easy to handle, weatherproof, strong, durable and didn’t take up half my jacket pocket. There’s a few differences to get used to if you’re an OS map user but these are very detailed maps and I think more, walker user friendly! I knew where I wanted to go and began breaking down the route into legs. That way I could practice timing and pacing. There weren’t a great deal of tick off features but that wasn’t a problem. It was good to have the added elements of wind, rain and full kit as this made it more of a challenge when trying to keep focused. I was however retracing my steps from yesterday so there wasn’t much going to go wrong. It is surprising though how different everything looks when there’s a nice thick blanket of cloud around you!

As I reached Lochan Buidhe the wind really picked up, the rain initially blasting my face then targeting the left side of my body as I walked past the summit of Cairn Lochan above, and to my right. I had put my map away in my pocket as I was now on the very clear path off the hills, on a familiar route. It was however always near at hand should I need it. I had planned to drop back into Corrie an Lochain, this would shelter me from the wind and rain as I descended towards my end point. The views of the Corrie I had yesterday had completely vanished.

It wasn’t long before I reached Hamish and was stripping off my wet kit. Both my jacket and trousers hadn’t performed well on this occasion and I found that I was significantly more wet than normal. I suspect my kit needs some tlc along with my tent!

We don’t always get to fulfil the plan but safety is always the main consideration on all these little adventures. The mountains have been here for millions of years, they will be here next week when you return to finish your plan!!

Camp Spot

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