I parked on the grass verge beside the turning circle at the end of the minor road signposted Kinerras and accessed from the unclassified Kiltarlity to Culburnie Road, south-west of Beauly. I then walked south-west along a vehicle track passed Keepers Cottage. Beyond the track was little used and after around 500 metres from setting out I came to a set of gates in a deer fence.
Once through the pedestrian gate I followed a path that headed off to the south on a gradual gradient.
Despite being overgrown including a few trees blocking the route the line of the path was mostly obvious. This eventually led to another set of gates in the deer fence with the path here wet and boggy. Deer on a nearby knoll had spotted me and soon ran off.
The path then continued onto the slopes of Carn a’ Bhainne North-East Top. I later left this path and climbed onto the north knoll then the south knoll which appeared to be the highest point of this Tump. It was a rather pleasant morning so I took a break here sitting in the sun enjoying the fine conditions and the views. Low cloud filled the glens and there were a few midges around.
Afterwards I descended south-west, occasionally on deer tracks, to some boggy ground then climbed through heather onto the summit of Carn a’ Bhainne marked by some heather.
The descent south-west was through mainly heather, longish lower down with some bracken, to reach the west end of Loch Bruicheach. Here there was an upmarket estate hut which contained bunk beds and a stove with open views across the loch.
Here I joined a vehicle track that wound its way south regaining some of the height I had lost. I then left this track and followed animal trails onto Carn Mor North Top. The highest point of this Tump appeared to be an outcrop to the east.
From there I descended south-east, briefly rejoined the vehicle track, before leaving it and ascending through mainly heather onto the summit of the Tump, Carn Mor North-East Top, marked by an outcrop. The earlier fine weather had been replaced by cloud and some light rain which continued for the rest of this outing.
I then returned to the west end of Loch Bruicheach and climbed north through the longish heather and bracken then round the west side of Carn a’ Bhainne, probably easier to have gone over its top, to the boggy area below Carn a’ Bhainne North-East Top. I walked round the east side of this hill to rejoin the path which was followed back to the vehicle track and the start.
- Time taken – 4.5 hours.
- Distance – 12.25 kilometres.
- Height climbed – 460 metres.