We woke upwards from our nighttime inward the auto amongst slightly potent necks , but nosotros were shielded from the cold. Frost had collected on the windshield , as well as at that topographic point was warm condensation on every surface. We had started listening to an audiobook of Good Omens past times Neil Gaiman as well as Terry Pratchett the nighttime earlier , as well as continued listening patch nosotros ate a breakfast of fresh raspberries as well as (untoasted) toaster waffles. We had to instruct our unloosen energy upwards earlier the long walk nosotros had planned that day. Apparently , the atmospheric condition was going dorsum to bluish skies as well as >50% peril of snowfall , hence nosotros were going vertical. We’d planned a walk upwards Carn Bhac inward Inverey , that followed a few ridges upwards a mount called The Battery. It looked pretty hard as well as , equally park , nosotros had 0 thought of what nosotros had lined up.
Nick’s childhood friend Craig (who nosotros met upwards amongst inward London a few times) had got a novel project as well as decided to nip upwards to Scotland inward the downtime. Craig rides motorbikes as well as plant inward motorbikes as well as mostly loves motorbikes. We were hoping he’d run across upwards amongst us inward fourth dimension to practise the walk , but it wasn’t meant to live on as well as nosotros laid off without him. I’ll spare y'all the gruesome details (the ones pertaining to blisters) as well as the arduous ones (think climbing upwards a wall of scree) but I’ll tell y'all the skillful stuff. We were exclusively an hr or 2 into the walk when nosotros saw a herd of cherry-red deer running across the snow. When nosotros looked over , they looked dorsum , but weren’t besides interested inward us as well as continued running across the icy expanse. Super cool. We also saw many , many , many white hares. We saw fifty-fifty to a greater extent than homes for white hares , as well as tried to avoid trampling them.
A herd of deer , running through the snow
The adjacent purpose gets a piffling gruesome but hither goes: when nosotros went to the Wildlife Park , the keeper who fed the wildcats showed us some ‘pellets’ from the owl area. They weren’t poo pellets , but piffling furry vomit sacks that were filled amongst indigestible bits as well as pieces , similar claws as well as pilus as well as bones. We started finding them on every cairn , on lots of large rocks , as well as mostly scattered about. We kept our eyes peeled for ospreys as well as golden eagles. Spoiler: nosotros establish none , but establish to a greater extent than testify of them , which I volition instruct to.
Once nosotros got to the top of our outset summit , nosotros establish a scenic spot as well as sat for a Scottish luncheon of oatcakes , which are basically porridge Ryitas. We’d been sitting for less than 5 minutes as well as discussing the advantages of having our emergency shelter (which nosotros bought at the recommendation of WalkHighlands.co.uk) as well as how nosotros in all likelihood should’ve pulled that out during our climb of Sgor Gaoith.
“That wasn’t actually an emergency ,” I said. “We did pretty good on our finally walk , anyway.”
“I approximate so. Lucky nosotros didn’t conduct hold a whiteout or anything. I actually desire to give it a go out , though ,” Nicholas replied. “Let’s only effort it out now.” He had a point. It was starting to instruct a flake windy as well as chilly.
He was only pulling the orangish give the axe out of the daypack when it started to snow. Like , actually snow. We peered at the white basis around us through the clear window inward our shelter. Not 10 minutes had passed when it started to instruct uncomfortably warm inward our piffling shelter , as well as nosotros lifted it to discovery an almost cloudless sky. We kept walking.
After the snowfall had passed Nicholas demonstrated the utilization of the emergency shelter. In the background y'all tin catch the sentiment nosotros had patch nosotros lunched.
At the top of the 2d summit , nosotros made an exhausted beeline for the cairn as well as were pretty shocked amongst what nosotros found. This is the additional testify of the birds of prey as well as it’s a flake gross (depending on your definition).
“An osprey left us a lucky rabbit’s foot!” Nick yelled equally I scrambled over the rocks.
I thought I’d misheard – but at that topographic point it was. Sticking out of the rocky cairn was a whole rabbit’s human foot , os as well as all.
“We couldn’t accept that dorsum to Commonwealth of Australia ,” I commented.
“Maybe nosotros should accept it dorsum downwards for Craig?” Nick suggested.
We yet had 5 hours left of our hike , hence nosotros left the human foot where it belonged. This isn’t the outset rabbit remnant nosotros were to discovery , but I’ll instruct to the rest. Don’t worry , at that topographic point aren’t whatever to a greater extent than pictures though.
The lucky rabbit's foot
Shortly later , nosotros establish the outset other walker out on the trip. I yelled out hullo as well as waved , hence realised Nicholas was doing a wee when he looked over. Oops. The summit wasn’t far off , as well as nosotros sat , truly exhausted , at the top. Nick started doing what he does best , which is adding rocks to the cairn. I don’t know why he does this. It must live on an engineer thing. I started taking pictures instead.
“Oh , it’s starting to snowfall again!” I yelled to Nick. Snow was a flake of an understatement. Shortly nosotros were surrounded on all sides past times a thick blanket of white as well as could catch piffling inward front end of us. We were sitting atop our 2d Munro inward a full whiteout. I was glad Nicholas hadn’t completely packed away the emergency shelter , because nosotros had to interruption it out again.
Me , settling into the cairn , to hold back out the impending whiteout
We in all likelihood sat inward the snowfall , blowing on our hands to halt them numbing as well as continually wiggling our toes , for one-half an hour. Nicholas started insisting that nosotros maintain on going as well as the topographical map didn’t hold back similar nosotros were close whatever abrupt descents. I wasn’t besides cracking to instruct a naïve traveller statistic though , as well as nosotros stayed set until it had cleared. The views were pretty worth it though. These pictures don’t actually practise anything justice. They don’t give y'all whatever feel of how large as well as broad as well as expansive the landscape was , or how foreign the juxtaposition of Sun as well as snowfall was , or how speedily the clouds were moving overheard. It was something else.
The administration of The Top of the Battery
I’m glad the sentiment was amazing , because the adjacent 2 hours were genuine hell. The mass we’d picked upwards mentioned that the ridge to the Battery Top tin live on ‘boggy at times’. I didn’t translate that to hateful ‘prepare to live on talocrural articulation deep inward bog for 120 minutes’. That’s what happened though. We were xx minutes inward as well as I had composed a catchy ditty that I would notate for y'all if I had whatever musical ability. The lyrics were ,
“Ana hates the bog ,
And the deer loathe the bog ,
But the bunnies loathe the bog most of a-a-all.”
Another xx minutes as well as I had some other poesy upwards my sleeve ,
“But the osprey loves the bog ,
And the eagles dear the bog ,
But the bunnies loathe the bog most of a-a-all.”
When I relayed the lyrics to Nicholas as well as he got it stuck inward his caput , he didn’t inquiry the 2d verse. I assumed this is because he had been next the path I forged through the bog. He hadn’t , as well as I had to clarify.
“Didn’t y'all catch all the rabbit bits inward the bog?”
“What?”
“The rabbit bits.”
“The rabbit bits?”
“The ears as well as feet as well as bits of tail? All the pellets beside them?”
“What?”
“That’s why the ospreys dear the bog. I approximate it makes the rabbits easier to catch.”
You’ll live on glad at that topographic point are no pictures , because it was something out of a rabbit horror film.
I recollect I repressed the finally hours of the walk , or I walked inward an exhausted jar , my legs aching from tripping through the bog as well as heather , but nosotros did catch a royal stag on the finally leg.
The royal stag
Craig had done the hard operate when nosotros met him unopen to 8pm as well as establish us a decent identify to camp. He as well as Nick compared camping ground gear patch I sat inward the heated seats of the auto as well as drank my Lemsip. I didn’t fifty-fifty tending how freaking mutual frigidness it was when I finally got into the tent , because nosotros were hence exhausted as well as I was truly glad to live on sleeping out of the car. It was a actually overnice campsite but I was besides knackered to instruct a picture. It was inward pino forestry committee , hence I’ll permit y'all painting your ain idyllic camping ground spot.
