Eughhh university hard….

Its that special time of year when essay deadlines are looming and Christmas is beginning to call and I wish I was anywhere but here at uni. However I must endure and although snow is glistening invitingly on the mountain tops I must resist and make do with remembering other climbs for the moment……

*cue dreamy mirage sequence*

It was Summer last year and my dad and I had turned up in Scotland, I was set to do some volunteering with the National Trust on Loch Lomond but we’d turned up a couple days early with the intention of doing some mountain walking. Unfortunately we hadn’t factored in the rather unpredictable and generally bad Scottish weather. On our first day we ended going to the Steall Falls and got absolutely soaked and on the second day we were driving back from our hotel near Loch Linnie to another on the shores of Loch Lomond. However while driving back through the Highlands we suddenly found the rainy clouds had broken up and the sun was shining, determined to have our fill of the good weather we drove to Arrochar, a tiny village at the northern end of Loch Long. From there we began our walk up Ben Arthur, also known as the Cobbler.

At 2900ft the Cobbler doesn’t quite make the cut for the Munro’s but it is an impressive summit none the less and is very distinctive. The first part of the walk was a long pull, but it was all for the better as we soon emerged on a plateau, with Scottish Munro’s towering up on either side of us. Peaks such as Ben Narnian and Ben Ime loomed into view amidst the constant rain showers. Luckily I was more prepared for these showers after my Steall Falls walk.

 

The final ascent led up a long flight of stone steps, a slippery slog but again it mean’t that the whole climb was over rather quickly. As we neared the summit the last of the rain showers broke up and we were bathed in brilliant warm summer sunshine. From the summit I could see all the way down Loch Long including RNAD Coulport where the UK’s nuclear weapons are stored, as well as prominent peaks such as Ben Lomond, which I ended up climbing the next day. Fortunately the gorgeous weather would stay with us throughout our stay on the summit, our walk back down and the drive to Loch Lomond.

Now I must go, there’s a pile of history work yelling my name.

 

Thus concludes my tale, if you enjoyed this story feel free to write in the comments, or leave like and thanks for reading.

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