Sgurr Nan Clach Geala at 3586 ft. Is the second highest of the Fannichs while its neighbours, Meall a’Chrasgaidh and Sgurr Nan Each at 3064 and 3028 ft. respectively are much lower barely qualifying as Munros. From the top of Sgurr Nan Clach Geala, the the two look quite insignificant while from the passes on either side the former is a really very substantial climb. So the traverse feels less like a ridge walk than an ascent of a single very big hill with a couple of wee subsidiary peaks on each side. There is a small car park on the A382 a very short distance from where a track heads off near some woodland towards Loch a’Bhraoin about a kilometre away. I headed down this to near the Loch where a gate bars progress straight on (towards a boathouse) and paths branch off right (signposted to Kinlochewe) and left (towards Loch Fannich). I took the left branch and followed the sometimes faint riverside path for about 5k to the top of the pass. At one point I crossed from left to right of the river. It was not a hard crossing but I was careless and got a bit of a soaking - worryingly my camera packed in for about an hour but seemed to dry out and recover. Approaching the top of the pass I stopped to chat with an agreeable man who had completed the circuit of the three Munros going the other way round - clockwise. It was barely lunchtime and he was planning to pop up Am Faogagach in the afternoon! He was only ten Munros away from completion and it was another on his list. From the top of the pass I headed straight up towards the bealach between Sgurr nan Clach Geala and Sgurr nan Each. This was a pathless, steep and somewhat purgatorial slog but from the bealach and easy gentle climb up a part led to the top of Sgurr Nan Each and back again.
From here the climb up Sgurr Nan Clach Geala was a lot steeper and longer but not too bad with a path still under my feet. The view from the summit is astonishing. An Teallach dominates it but all the hills of Torridon, Fisherfield and Assynt are clearly visible along with countless others. The path now veers right and follows the cliffs above Coire Mor for a bit. Soon the slopes to my left got less infeasibly precipitous and I followed a steep grassy band straight down. Meall a’Chrasgaidh I had climbed before one winter long ago so I decided to skip it. As I made the steep descent a large herd of deer observed me from below only to scatter as I got too close for their comfort. I climbed down into the basin below the Sgurr Nan Clach Geala-Meall a’Chrasgaidh bealach from where more pathless trudging down not too unpleasant ground eventually put me on the stalkers path that took me back to the rover and so home. I never had a walk when I saw so many frogs. They seemed to be everywhere.
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