Morar, Loch Morar, Glen Pean, Glenfinnan,
Callop, Cona Glen, Corran Ferry, Gleann Righ, Glen Nevis, Fort
William, Scotland. Extract from an old diary. (5 day back-pack) Sat 22 Jan - Wed 26 Jan 1983
The tent took a battering from the winds during the night but
stood up well. I woke with the alarm at 6am to listen to the
weather forecast and early news bulletin then went back to sleep
till 6:30 am because of the rain. I started breakfast but the
weather was so appalling it was ridiculous to go outside. About
8:15 the weather had abated a little so we set about getting
underway. No sooner were we on the move that the rain hit us
with full ferocity. I was in the lead trying my best to keep my
feet out of the worst of the wet ground. I was having difficulty
seeing properly as we gained altitude the wind velocity
increased and by the time we reached the summit of the pass I
was having difficulty keeping up right. A little over the top I
saw The descent route over to the left but we'd missed it. It
then became necessary to traverse the slippery wet glenside
until we picked up the path. In a little under a mile we were on
a stoned estate road which made the going much easier. By now
the rain had stopped but started again before long, coming and
going intermittently.
The Corran Ferry.
It turned out to be its mode for the rest of the day. The road
improved steadily as we descended the glen and we reached the
road some hours later. It was an easy walk. The main A861 at
Inverscaddle Bay turned out to be a single track road with
passing places. Our goal was the Corran Ferry about 4 or 5 miles
to the south and the only way there was by road. I don't think
Dean was too suited as his feet were playing him up a bit but
the going was easy compared to what we'd been used to. Once
around the point we saw the ferry away in the distance but being
able to see it made matters worse as it never seemed to get any
nearer. Our perseverance paid off and we arrived to wait for the
ferry's return. The crossing was calmer than I expected but the
weather had calmed down a lot in the last hour. The crossing
charge was 15 pence each which I thought very reasonable but a
car would have been £2 or £3 which is ridiculous considering the
distance. Once on the east shore of Loch Linnhe we were hit by a
sudden torrential downpour but were fortunate enough to be next
to the ferry waiting room at the time so we took shelter. The
rain passed in 10 or 15 minutes and we were on our way again.
Time was getting on so we pressed on to find a pitch before
darkness caught up with us. At Inchree we followed the forestry
track up to Abhainn Righ. It was dusk when we passed Gleann
Seileach which was a working Farm. A little above the waterfalls
adjacent we found a nice flat pitch so the tent went up and I
set to cooking a meal with the last of the food.