Day Five.  23rd May 2012.  Liathach.  The Grey one.

Of the whole trip, this was the most satisfying climb.  Two Munros on an awesome terraced rock wall rising majestically above the Glen.

Again, the bike came to my aid as I cycled up the Glen to the start point to avoid having the walk in or out at the end of the day.

The heat, for the rest of my time in Scotland, was going to become a major problem.  I bet that hasn't been said before about Scotland!

The climb up at least had the benefit from starting right from the road.  It was very steep though, an impression not shown in the above picture, but it WAS very steep and totally unrelenting.  This has the advantage of enabling you to get higher with every footstep but the cost is that is tiring!

After about 90 minutes of labouring up and up and up, and with no trumpets, the ridge was reached.

Despite the height, it was very hot and there was no cooling breeze at all. 

From there, the walk westwards entailed several rocky up and down pitches until a very good viewpoint was reached. I mistakenly took this for a summit but that was some distance ahead.

Looking back towards Beinn Eighe

It was about now that a problem I have never experienced or read about in the Scottish mountains became potentially serious; water, or mainly, the lack of water.  The heatwave had dried up all sources of drinkable water leaving only what could physically be carried as to what was going to be available.  It is possible to carry an expensive or time-consuming form of sterilising any dodgy ground water that might be stumbled on but in this very wet part of the country, this isn't a consideration thought to be necessary.  On the one hand, I was very lucky with the timing and the views but on the other hand, I could envisage a serious situation developing.  It is tough and tiring walking/climbing and in this heat, copious amounts of water are required.  I'd taken the precaution of downing a full litre before setting off but then I was limited to what was in my rucksack.  And water is heavy!  It wasn't long after this point I'd drained the last of my supply and I knew I had some distance to go without this precious commodity and boy, was I going to suffer!

Summit, Spidean a' Choire Leith

I had a real shock on reaching the first summit. The distance to the second summit was much further than I'd expected it to be.  Having done all the ups and downs, I assumed all the technical and climbing bits were over but there was the tricky aspect of the Am Fasarinen pinnacles to navigate before getting a clear run up to the second summit, Mullach an Rathain.

View over to Mullach an Rathain

There was an alternative route around the pinnacles and I'd got in company with a man from Somerset who was also out of water and together, we decided to take the lower route.  This was very narrow and eroded in several parts leading to some serious exposure above deep clefts in the rock face.  It does make speedier going though.

Looking back along the ridge to the first summit.

Final ridge to second summit, Mullach an Rathain

Standing at second summit of the day.

From this summit, the obvious route back to Torridon is a very short walk westwards along the ridge before an extremely steep scree slope drops away to the south.  Stronger legs would have allowed a rapid scree-run to descend very quickly to the roadside.  To my cost though, I discovered from a peak in the Dolomites that unless you are doing this regularly, you're going to be very sore the following day.  And the next mountain along was my next mountain to do tomorrow so I certainly didn't want to risk my chances.  There was the problem though, probably exactly the opposite of the usual problem here, that I was out of water, and so, for the most part, wad the ground.  The water that was trickling down the mountain was too risky to drink, mainly being to or from small stagnant pools of brackish liquid.  The road, and the drum of water I had in my car, could not come soon enough!

My route:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/181865056