Ben Vuirich

As part of my Highland Fling ultra-marathon training, I had hatched a plan to run out to Ben Vuirich and back. The great thing about running light and being fit enough is that if conditions allow it, you can grab these distant hills in relatively quick time. The forecast had been for settled weather over the weekend and I noted the glorious conditions on the Saturday before I was due to head out. Getting a wee lie-in on the Sunday meant that I awoke in good spirits and not that worried about the grey hanging over the local environs. I departed home at 0730 and was delighted with how quiet the A9 was, the whole way to Blair Atholl. It had been a few years since I had romped around Beinn a Ghlo and I had forgotten the road route, though didn't go wrong until I drove past Loch Moraig. I pulled in beside another couple of cars and donned my light pack, running trainers and gloves. I was away by 0930 and began the light run up the land rover track.

Carn Liath was covered in clag but the sporadic snowfields showed how much snow had fallen up here recently. At -2C, it was a chilly start so I was glad to get running. The track rises quite slowly but enough that I didn't run the whole of the first 2km. Once past the cattle gate though, it was delightful running all the way down to the river. The cloud threatened to lift now and again, with the occasional bit of blue shining through. After the burn crossing, the path gained height over Sron na-h Innereach but it was still possible to run the good majority of it. Eventually and reluctantly I left the track just past the crags of Stac nam Bodach and began a direct climb over this wee hill to 672m. From here, it was a negotiation of what would have been a boggy set of hags but the conditions meant it was a delightful tramp up on to the final steep climb to Ben Vuirich. The last 200m were a bit of a slog but within 2 hours of leaving the car, I was sheltered beside the trig point with occasional views to jigsaw pieces of Carn nan Gabhar. I sent my wife a wee message and then headed due North down to the track.

I picked up the track after a relatively steep descent and was glad for the slightly warmer conditions. Although I had a lightweight duvet jacket and trousers if conditions deteriorated, I hadn't used them much as I tend to overheat quickly, if I run. Ben Vuirich popped out of the cloud long enough for me to see its flat top but then was covered once again. The run back to the car was an absolute joy and I was back at the car within 3 hours 45 min. A good wee run (just short of 24km and 816m of ascent) and one that saw me back home before dark, which is always a bonus (and earns some brownie points)!