Cnoc Duchaire: I left my vehicle in the large car park on the Boath Road, accessed from the B9176 Struie Road, north-west of Alness, and entered the forest via the Jubilee Path. I soon left it, crossed some rough vegetation, to reach a vehicle track which was used briefly before I entered the trees with its rough vegetation to reach another vehicle track higher up. Made limited use of this track before climbing through more rough vegetation including windblown timber to reach the summit of this Tump, where the highest point wasn’t obvious. I then headed back to the higher track and linked the tracks together to return to the Jubilee Path and the car park.
Cnoc nam Fiann and Cnoc an t-Srathaidh: These two Tumps are located north of Alness and were accessed from the Strathy Road to the west of the B9176 Struie Road where I parked in an extended passing place. I walked briefly west to the vehicle track leading to Glaick Farm then along this farm road before crossing a few fields and fences to reach an open area in Stittenham Wood. Higher up I entered the trees with lots of windblown timber before locating what I thought was the highest point on Cnoc nam Fiann.
I returned to and crossed the Strathy Road and a fence then made a slight descent to an open gate. Thereafter I crossed a couple of fences and fields to reach a tied down gate. Once over it I followed tracks beside electric pylons to another tied down gate this time in a deer fence. After climbing this gate I passed through a stock gate and walked across a field to what I thought was the highest point of Cnoc an t-Srathaidh. The return to the Strathy Road was by the upward route.
Cnoc Navie: This Hump was located north of Alness. I parked at the start of a forest track east of Dalnacloich and east of the B9176 Struie Road and followed this track west then south to below the east side of Cnoc Navie. Here there was a gap in the trees, with a covering of brash, and I used it to reach an area of the forest which had been harvested and where new trees planted. A rib of heather was followed to the summit area but the trig point wasn’t obvious. It took me a while searching through the brash and newly planted trees trying to avoid the numerous hollows to locate the trig which was concealed behind some growing trees. The return was by the upward route although I used a different gap in the trees to reach the forest track.
- Total time – 3.75 hours.
- Total distance – 11.25 kilometres.
- Total height climbed – 515 metres.