Winter Sun

Everyone loves a bit of sun on their faces in the winter months - it's a sign that longer days will soon be the norm, and spring is just around the corner.  We had checked out the weather for today and it was set to be a glorious day.  However, when running a B&B, the ability to get up at the crack of dawn and head off to do a route is dependant on whether you have guests in and are cooking breakfast.  That doesn't necessarily mean you can't get a sneaky day out up on the closer hills, but it can become a bit of a rush and you're always watching the clock.

So after breakfast this morning, an early decision was made that we wouldn't be rushing out with the crampons, ice axe and suncream as we had 'things to do'. By 9:00 it was a decision we were deeply regretting. The day was however pulled back from one of regret to a wonderful day. We had a cycle down to the Ballachulish slate quarry - only a quick cycle, but then we walked up around the rim of the quarry. You really get great views of Ballachulish and Beinn a Bheithir from this vantage point and can gain a real sense of the size of the Quarry.

 

 

From here, Loch leven was looking very tempting for a paddle out, so we rushed home, loaded the canadian canoe and hit the water. It really couldn't be calmer and for and hour or so we leisurely paddled around the islands. One of the islands, Eilean Munde is in fact an old graveyard where an old chapel lies in ruin, and the clan chief of the Macdonalds, killed in the Glencoe massacre, is buried. The Easternmost island, Eilean a Chomhraidh, had a gently sloping shingle beach, where we landed and strolled around. This is definitely a place to head back to in the summer for a picnic.  The only interuption was a seal making a huge splash as he popped his head out of the water a few times to see what was going on. Just before we landed, there had been about 7 or 8 herons all standing on the rocks - I'd never seen so many together in one place before.  What with the oystercatchers, and the geese low level flying over the water with their wings occasionally clipping the surface, it really was a great wildlife experience.

 So today just goes to prove that Glencoe in winter is not just about the mountains and bashing up winter routes, there's just so much more on offer. Although looking at the conditions - a mountain day would have been nice !!!