Sgurr na Banachdich has a reputation as the easiest Cuillin Munro, but it doesn't have to be a grind. Not all the way, anyway.

The approach, from the Memorial Hut, up the North bank of the Allt Coire Banachdich leads to the screes of Sgurr nan Gobhar. The high point of the grass-type vegetation is a moraine, which seemed to be the best approach to minimise the dreaded scree-slog.

Coire na Banachdich seemed to be full of waterfalls and torrents. Not obvious from these pictures is that on three occasions, I just had to stop and crouch over my sack as I was deluged with rain for about 5 minutes. Then it would just stop as if nothing had happened, and the clouds would sail off East over the Main Ridge.

A red deer hind and calf moved off when I got too close. They were still curious, though.

The season is really moving on, with the vegetation turning this distinctive tawny colour.

The approach is still looming ahead. Doesn't look so appealing now. It had its moments, but was not as bad as I feared. The lower half had mobile scree, which I could get round, using the heather and rock islands. Above halfway, the ground was composed of eroded gabbro with scrambling possibilities. Near the skyline a more organised band of rock bars the way.

The barrier posed a problem at first. Go left? It stretched out of sight.

Go right? Looks promising with a bit of a break up to the skyline. When I got there, though...

A staircase in a dyke! An easy way through the barrier completely unseen from below.

Another stop for a sharp shower, but plenty to admire. (I don't 'get' B&W, btw)

Before long I reached the top of Sgurr nan Gobhar (630m), the Westerly end point of the most Westerly side-ridge stretching out from the Cuillin.

The reward for the steep ascent up the west end of this ridge is the delightful ridge traverse leading up the Sgurr na Banachdich, which nearly cleared for an unguarded second. Coir' an Eich is to the left, with a zig-zag path grinding its way up the scree just left of the gully.

Two ravens took my place on the end summit as I moved on. This end of the ridge was actually quite gentle, with wax cap mushrooms and wood-rush almost on the summit. Normally the weather is too harsh, and the combination of grazing and rainwash create conditions for the turf to fall away, as can be seen.

With a scramble ahead, things began to change. The rock (whisper it) was actually quite slippy. I put this down to the complete cover of lichens, and the fact that a lot was basalt and the gabbro was not the really rough gabbro found in Coire Lagan. Any difficult scrambling could be avoided, in general, but I did want to see what this cleft was like, and it was fun.

Sgurr nan Gobhar is one of the most level sections of ridge in the Cuillin, about 1000 metres from the 630m West top to the junction with the An Diallaid ridge. The walk up Sgurr na Banachdich is not all as good as that, though, as I was soon to find.

This is what came next! I thought twice about uploading this shot. It reminds me of pit bings. It's not a great advert for the Cuillin, but it's all there! A party of four were heading up to the Munro summit. The heavy rain showers had given up, but been replaced by more wind, and more cloud. It was fairly chilly at the top. I didn't hang around, but found a niche to shelter for a (third) bite of lunch. Then I cast around for the continuation to Sgurr Thormaid. I found myself descending back towards the West, and reascended the 20 metres or so. I crossed the ground between the Glen Brittle approach route and the Thormaid ridge. I suppose not many people are in this little corner, so probably won't have seen this...

Bags of rubbish half-hidden in a cairn and littering the area round about. Plastic bags containing used water bottles, rusty gas canisters, plastic cutlery, tea bags. Apart from the brightly-coloured ones in the picture was a big green tent bag stuffed with waste. It would take an empty rucksack to have space to carry it all down. Criminal! Considering this is almost certainly adventurers like me on a Ridge Traverse and having a great time, why... They brought it up full, could they not take it down empty... I took the orange bivvy-bage and some bottles. It was all I could manage. I found a closed cell foam mat rolled and stuffed in a crevice nearby. It was doing no harm. I left it.

I wanted to look at the approach to Sgurr Thormaid, and found my way down to it. It's not very far. The ridge is pretty chaotic round here, with lots of loose and jumbled boulders. Some scary clefts on each side of the ridge separate Thormaid from Sgurr na Banachdich. I could work out where to go, the rock looked much better than what I had just come down, but in the wind and with greasy rock, on my own, I didn't want to have to downclimb it, so left it for another day.

Back up to the top of Coire an Eich I had some pretty strong gusts. I measured 30 knots before my phone packed in. Sat and admired Coire a' Ghreadaidh from An Diallaid (peak on left, below).

And then down the ridge. Not down the scree, the ridge was much easier, up and down. I realised I had ringed the coire. For a short day, it took me a while to work out why I was so tired. It wasn't the extra weight I was carrying, I ate and drank well. It was the wind. I'm convinced. It fair takes it out of you.

Round Coir' an Eich

Nic

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