Ben Dearg By Blair Atholl
5/6/2011 Off out for a huge walk with a bike too.
Ben Dearg is a fair old hike in from the road. I think you are looking at 29km + there and back.
Yet you only get one Munro for your trouble.
Graham and I decided to tackle it in 2011 and as Mike, Grahams brother had not climbed it he would meet us at Blair Atholl and come along.
Bikes would be a good idea on this wee walk as a lot of it is on Landrover track. Graham had not long got a new car which needed special roof brackets to take a rack for bikes - at a stupid price of course. So we would take my car and my trusty bike rack I bought in a sale from Toys Are Us of all places I think.
Graham and I set off from Alford with the bikes on the back of the car over the Devil's Elbow and down to Blair Atholl where we would meet Mike, as he lives down south.
After a few phone calls between Graham and Mike we met in Blair Atholl and headed to the carpark just past the old bridge of Tilt.
There were a few cars there already but we got parked no problem. Just as we were starting to kit up for the walk a couple went past us heading for Ben Dearg on foot. I'll refer to them as Mr & Mrs Walker from now on as we were to interact with them a few times during the day. Said hello and they went off ahead. Got the bikes ready and we set off up the tarred road heading for old Blair.
Mike sorting out my kit before we set off for Ben Dearg - Graham's Photo.
I had swung my pole bag over my shoulder but that proved to be a right pain as it kept slipping down as we went along.
The two fit *****s shot off ahead of me as I puffed and panted my way up the tarred road behind them.
Silly time now.
The two of them biked up through the forest most of the way and I pushed my bike most of the way,
with the damn pole bag slipping down most of the time.
I stopped and chatted with Mr & Mrs Walker and then walked along with them pushing the bike up the long hills, till I reached a flatter bit and then off on the bike trying to catch up with Graham and Mike. It's a long pull up the track.
Graham's photo. 
Mike in the distance coming up the track. You would need the Hubble telescope to see me in the distance! The track twists and turns over a few bridges and is rough in some places but it's mostly up hill with a few steep bits to. After 8.71km there's a real treat - a big downhill into Alt Sheicheachan and the Sheicheachan bothie is at the bottom of the hill. We would stop here for a bit to eat, I think it was about lunch time by the time we got there. There was a rough tough old hillwalker camped out inside, I think he had spent the night there. He didn't seem to like a lot of people around so it was not long before he skedaddled and left the place to us.
Alt Sheicheachan bothy Graham's Photo.
We would leave the bikes here and walk the rest of the way. P.S. its like a normal walk from here.
Inside the bothy Graham's photo.
It's well equipped there's even a spade.
After lunch I padlocked the bikes together and we set off walking along Alt Sheicheachan heading north east. There's a wee burn just behind the bothy to cross but it's easy enough to get over.
Graham and Mike in Allt Sheicheachan. Nice flat walk through here about 2km to the end from the bothy. We walked along to the end of the glen where the wide path heads off to the south. But the path we would take is off to the north east, a single footpath that winds back and forth to take off the steepness. Once you get to about 750m it levels out a good bit and it's just a long haul to the top.
Mike and me coming up Meal Dubh a' Dial-ghairt on the path to Ben Dearg.
Graham's Photo.
After you get off the steeper bit it's about 2km to the top. There's not much to navigate by in the mist here.
I was getting tired by this time and we stopped for a short break before the final push to the summit.
Mike and Graham head off with the summit in sight off to the right.
Just one more big up after this to the top.
Graham's Photo
It's not that big an up but after the hike to get here it seemed pretty big to me.
Not long after we reached the top a guy with his dogs came bounding up. He had been up a few hills that day to get here with the dogs and did not look any worse the wear for it. Don't you just hate really fit folk ! He stayed for a while and then set off at a good pace to the south over a few more hills to get back to his car.
This is where he came up from, not the first or second glen you see but the third.
He took the mandatory photos of the 3 of us at the top.
Mike, Graham and I on the summit of Ben Dearg.
Mike had taken nursery bear with him so he had to get his photo taken too.
Graham's photo
Nursery bear has bagged a few Munros too.
While we were sitting having a coffee at the top Mr and Mrs Walker arrived. Not bad as they had walked all the way from the car park, the two of them were seasoned Munro baggers and if they had not bagged all 284?, 283? or now 282 Munros they were pretty close to it. Now that it's the Fisherfield 5 and a Corbet. It was still a Munro when I climbed it so I'm sticking to the 283 number.
I have climbed the 284th but it was reduced to a Corbet by then. With Brian and Willy Windows but that's another story for another day.
Photos taken, Mike and Graham set off in front of me down the hill.
Graham and Mike heading down which involves going up a bit.
It's a long walk out and as we were heading down Meal dubh nan Dearcrag which has a bit of a switch back path. I got fed up and had one of those what the ???? am I doing here moments.
No idea why, decided on route one down the hill to shorten the journey while Mike and Graham followed the path ahead of me.
Still not that happy I followed Mike and Graham down the switch back path into Allt Sheicheachan.
Mike on the switch back path, Graham's photo.
We stopped for a while when we reached the landrover track and it was now only about 2km back to the bothy where the bikes were.
Graham and Mike walked ahead chatting and I decided to film the walk for the last 11 minutes leading to the bothy.
Back at the bothy and time for a coffee. Sorted out the kit for biking and then realised there was a ??????? big hill on the way out of Allt Sheicheachan. This is where we all wished we had left the bikes at the top of the hill.
A lot of puffing and panting later we reached the top and guess what it's near enough all down hill from here. It was agreed that Mike and Graham would wait for old slow coach at a cairn not far from the wood. Mike set off like a bat out of hell on the rough Landrover track followed by Graham and of course last but not least the old Dinosaur. The two of them were soon out of sight on the Landrover track and I was making a good pace behind them.
Now Mr and Mrs Walker were futher down the track and not expecting Mike to pass them at about 30mph.
Graham flew past not long after, by the time I reached them they had recovered. I shouted to warn them I was coming at a good rate too. I stopped with them for a minute and they regaled the tale of a maniac on a bike scaring the s--- out of them. Not really sure what to say about it I departed their company and headed for the rendezvous at the cairn. Yahoo downhill all the way, now making a good pace now. I arrived at the cairn to find Mike and Graham waiting for me.
Graham at the cairn.
Mike at the cairn, Graham's Photo.
Even better news it's 99% down hill to the car park with only a small up through the woods.
In no time at all we were all back at the car park, me being the last there of course.
We loaded up the bikes and set off on an important mission with Mike heading south and Graham and I heading North. The mission - find the chip shop. I think Graham and I waited till we got to Aboyne chip shop as it's pretty good before we stopped but that could have been another trip.
Took Graham home and headed home to unpack the car etc.
PS Mike now wanted for speeding in the hills LOL.
A we bit I added after Mike left a coment.
Hope you enjoyed my wee tale of a long walk.
The cartoons take a long time to make but a wee bit of fun to do.
Dino60.
