A last-minute change of plans meant we were off to Arrochar with Carys - and what a fantastic day it turned out to be.
I picked Britton up at the usual 7am, then we headed to Newton Mearns to collect Carys. The forecast looked promising, with only a slight threat of showers in the afternoon. After around an hour’s drive, we arrived at the very expensive Argyll and Bute Council car park, charging a painful £1 per hour…
Heading up Beinn Narnain
We took on the classic Arrochar route: starting with Beinn Narnain, onto Beinn Ime, and finishing with The Cobbler. I’ve done the route a few times before, but decided this was a good opportunity to get some analogue navigation practice in. I attempted to walk to different contours and then checked it on the app.
We made good progress up the track and reached the summit in around an hour and a half.
Good team photo at the summit of Beinn Narnain.
A bit of map practice!
Beinn Ime
After a quick sour snake break, we descended Beinn Narnain and made our way over towards Beinn Ime.
Britton and I on Beinn Ime.
At the summit of Beinn Ime, we had an important decision to make. We had only paid for six hours of parking, leaving us with roughly two and a half hours to get up and down The Cobbler.
Naturally… we decided to risk the parking fine for a better strava loop!
The Cobbler
We seemed to fly up The Cobbler, reaching the summit in no time at all. We then took on the iconic Thread the Needle scramble!
Don’t look down!
Iconic Skerryvore Live Across Scotland pose.
Me successfully through the needle!
Carys mid-threading.
We descended via the steep path and then followed the zig-zag route back towards the car park. Disaster struck right at the final hurdle for Carys, who tripped on a kerb and twisted her ankle!
We made it back to the car forty minutes late… and somehow there was no parking ticket. Result! We then had a very late lunch before heading home.
Britton’s Flat Warming
The best way to finish off a good day in the hills is, of course, with a beer. Britton had just furnished his new living room, so it was only right we gave it a proper test run.
A number of strong beers were consumed, along with a bottle of Champagne that somehow ended up being shared with a few passers-by who happened to be in the right place at the right time…