The weekend before this run I had a fun couple of days in the Lakes where I managed to get a couple of longish runs (4hours a piece) with a pack and I felt pretty strong. I managed to avoid the crowds by choosing more obscure hills and it was only on Crinkle Crags that I found the motorway-like paths and hordes of grumpy ramblers that the Lakes are infamous for. I really struggle sometimes to figure out why people make all the effort to go walking (or climbing, or whatever) only to follow a 'prescribed' route set out in some book. I dont mean to sound dismissive but I have always thought that looking at a map and making up the route yourself is a much better way of doing things. Every now and then I have an epic but that is all part of it. Rant over.
The Thursday after that weekend I headed over to Glen Duror, which cuts through from Ballachulish to Loch Linnhe, as the forecast was good. Cold but clear and hopefully excelent visibility. 
The primary school is framed by the steep profiles of Sgorr Bhan (947m) on the right and Sgorr a'Choise (663m) on the left. Both hills topped with a scattering of quartzite scree. Our aim was the 'bag' the two Munros on one side of the glen, then head back along the ridge on the opposite side which is topped and tailed by a Corbett (Fraochaidh) and the previously mentioned Graham.
The primary school is framed by the steep profiles of Sgorr Bhan (947m) on the right and Sgorr a'Choise (663m) on the left. Both hills topped with a scattering of quartzite scree. Our aim was the 'bag' the two Munros on one side of the glen, then head back along the ridge on the opposite side which is topped and tailed by a Corbett (Fraochaidh) and the previously mentioned Graham. The lower reaches of the glen has a grassy track but soon a narrow path weaved up through bog and heather, before reaching the drier ridge of Sgoor Bhan. High up the ridge narrows and a couple of steep, blocky sections have to be negotiated before the ridge flattens and a broad scree ridge leads up to the first Munro (Sgorr Dhearg).
A well worn path zigs-zags down to the bealach and then up to the second Munro of Sgorr Dhonuill. The cold clear air was chilly but the discomfort was more than compensated for by the views North and West over a water landscape dotted with islands rearing up in high summits. The Paps on Jura jutted up in sharp grey cones in contrast with the large and almost square mass of Ben More on Mull.
A well worn path zigs-zags down to the bealach and then up to the second Munro of Sgorr Dhonuill. The cold clear air was chilly but the discomfort was more than compensated for by the views North and West over a water landscape dotted with islands rearing up in high summits. The Paps on Jura jutted up in sharp grey cones in contrast with the large and almost square mass of Ben More on Mull.The drop back into Glen Duror was not nearly as bad or craggy as the map suggested. Terrraces broke up the slope and after a quick bash through an area of clear-felling spat us out by the bothy in the glen. Birth-place of James of the Glen (a famous victim of a historic gross miscarriage of justice) I was expecting a locked hut. Instead when we poked our head through the door a fine well maintained bothy was revealed. Down here the air was warm s
o it was easy to delay to next stiff climb up through another area of clear felling. Once clear of the trees the ground was energy-sapping tussocks. After the summit of Fraochaidh a redundant fence line kept to the ridge line and the passage of counts hooves had worn a nice narrow path to follow. Left and right of the ridge large rashes of coniferous forests swathed the lower slopes of the hills. A final steep descent from the Graham on 65 degree heather lead back to the main path in the glen and back to the car.
o it was easy to delay to next stiff climb up through another area of clear felling. Once clear of the trees the ground was energy-sapping tussocks. After the summit of Fraochaidh a redundant fence line kept to the ridge line and the passage of counts hooves had worn a nice narrow path to follow. Left and right of the ridge large rashes of coniferous forests swathed the lower slopes of the hills. A final steep descent from the Graham on 65 degree heather lead back to the main path in the glen and back to the car.Distance: 24km Time: 6.5h
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