Wednesday, July 25, 2018
An Coileachan
A bridge over not-so troubled waters - the second of two on this walk deep into the heart of the Fannichs. Our hill is hidden behind the green slope to the left - and the part of the ridge visible is the part we didn't manage today.
After the bridge we somehow missed the faint path, and got bogged down along the riverbank - but at least this gave me two grey wagtails for the day list.
I also spotted two kinds of plant, the first of which I couldn't pin down for ages. It's a horsetail, possibly field or common (Equisetum arvense).
It spreads through spores rather than seeds, and is a relative of ferns.
The second was a scattering of common sundew growing in moss among the peat hags.
As we trudged up this steepish section with its bogs and rills, and Greger paused to rest, an owl materialised behind him and flew out across the valley. This is is the only presentable shot I could grab before it dived down behind a heathery hillock.
There was something a bit odd about its appearance, and the thought crossed my mind that it could be a long-eared owl, which apparently can be seen in uncharacteristic places when on migration; but on balance I think it was a short-eared owl. It acted as I've seen SEOs do before - not flying "away" away, but travelling in an arc around us and turning towards us again before diving down out of sight. The chunk missing from its wing suggests a moult (perhaps post-breeding) - although I don't know what's happened to its tail.
By the time we reached the first of the lochans we were fairly tired, and paused for a breather. There can't be many places in the UK at the moment where you can see snow - but a couple of small patches linger on the distant eastern flanks of Sgurr Mor.
It was worth the climb just to see Loch Gorm, tucked in under the cliffs of Meall Gorm. In Greger's atmospheric shot I'm falling behind because I'm looking at plants.....
.....such as these crowberries, which are part of the ptarmigan's diet (BWP).
It was quite a steep trudge up the last part of An Coileachan, but at last we reached the summit - a slabby outcrop of rock at 923m bearing a large cairn. Greger set up his camera in self-timing mode and then rushed over and told me to take a step backwards, which is why I look as though I'm dancing (or collapsing). It was overcast and grey at this point, and the braids on my hat show which way the wind was blowing.
We clambered down the slabs on the east side for lunch, and when I'd finished eating and drinking I walked down the hill a bit to take some photos. I was just turning to my left when a dark falcon came dashing across the slope below, giving me one shot before vanishing round the hill. The picture shows (I'm fairly sure, anyway) the slender shape and pointed wings of a merlin.
The ridge onwards, over An Eigin towards Loch Luichart, looked tempting - but we were too tired to include it in our walk. The zigzag line running below is probably a water pipeline and part of the hydroelectric scheme based in Lochluichart.
We set off back down, and just above the bealach we spotted ptarmigan ahead of us. If they hadn't moved we probably wouldn't have seen them, so well camouflaged were they among the scattered rocks. Here are six of eight birds which we found ourselves inadvertently herding down the hillside.
I initially thought these were all this year's young; but, editing this much later, I've learnt that adult ptarmigan have three moults a year - and this could be their grey autumn moult. Anyway, would juveniles be fully grown by now? "Chicks are almost adult-sized by mid August" states The New Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland: 1988-1991 - which not only often provides snippets of information I can't seem to find elsewhere, but is also a beautiful book.
Our disappointment at not feeling strong enough to get up the other two tops (the further one is a Munro and about two kilometres away) was forgotten as we descended back into the stunning scenery - now better lit as the clouds cleared and the sun came out. Beyond Loch Gorm is Beinn Liath Mhor Fannaich, with Beinn Dearg in the distance to the right.
We stayed on the high ground going down, and found this drier and easier; but it was still a long way, and by the time we reached the track we were hot and tired and limping. A pair of ravens flew over calling and tumbling, and in the plantation there was some half-hearted willow warbler song. An Azure Hawker settled on the path nearby. I snapped one along this track in June 2016, on a dull day when it looked rather grey. Now in the bright sunshine this one was much bluer (not sure if that is connected).
Later that evening, while sitting on the sofa watching TV, I suffered horrible bouts of cramp in my thigh muscles. Greger had had this on the summit, when after sitting still for half an hour he merely leaned down to tie up his bootlace. Can this be the end of hill-walking for us? I hope not - I still want to see dotterel one last time.
// posted by Christine @ 12:46 PM 
