I drove north-west from Lairg along the single track A838 Laxford Bridge Road as far as Fiag Bridge managing to park just east of the bridge. I then set out for the long walk to Fiag Lodge. A mountain bike would have been more appropriate here as the vehicle track wound its way along the east side of the River Fiag through Glen Fiag. Large areas were covered in trees so at times there wasn’t much to see.
After around eight kilometres and two hours the track came to an end at the unoccupied Fiag Lodge.
I walked round the rear of this property and commenced the ascent north-east towards Creag Dhubh Bheag South Top. Although pathless the rough underfoot conditions weren’t difficult to cross and I made reasonable progress to the summit of this Tump, an old cairn on a vegetated outcrop.
I descended north to west of an unnamed lochan then commenced the ascent of Creag Dhubh Bheag across similar terrain and vegetation to reach the summit of this Marilyn marked by a small cairn on a rock.
After taking in the views of this remote area I headed north then descended towards the Bealach na Creige Duibhe. The terrain and vegetation was a lot rougher here and included some boulders. On reaching the bealach I commenced the ascent of Creag Dhubh Mhor. It was a steady climb watched by some hinds which soon ran off. Despite the sun there was a cool breeze at the summit of this Marilyn, a rock beside the cairn. I took a break here taking in the views including the nearby Ben Hee.
It was then time to make the long return to Fiag Bridge. I returned to the bealach then traversed below Creag Dhubh Bheag and its South Top gradually loosing height. The lower I got the tougher the underfoot conditions were with the last short section along the east shore of Loch Fiag a big boggy.
On reaching Fiag Lodge I rejoined the vehicle track and managed to cut the eight kilometres back to the start by around twenty minutes compared to the outward route.
- Time taken – 9.25 hours.
- Distance – 30 kilometres.
- Height climbed – 830 metres.