Stob Ghabhar walking route

Description

if you have MemoryMap (1/50K version) download the MM ROUTE HERE

A testing circular walk, beginning on easy paths which steepen after a couple of miles to provide energetic walking and scrambling up steep slopes and finishing on the spectacular and well defined ridge of Aonach Eagach with views to Rannoch moor and the mountains of Lorn.

An easy finish down grassy slopes.

The route shown in red on the map is described here as the main route.

The blue route adds in Stob a Choire Odhair (Munro about 3100 ft)

The pink route extends the walk to 10.5miles.

SERIOUS WALK IN POOR VIS OR SNOW.

Escape

If poor weather makes the descent by Aonach Eagach dangerous the south shoulder is an easier route to lower levels without serious difficulty.

Directions

At Bridge of Orchy on the A82 take the unclassified road west over the bridge and follow this for about 3 miles to the car park just before the Victoria bridge - park here.

Walk over the bridge and turn immediately left on a gravel estate road for about a mile until you see the climbing club hut on the right (NN257425).

Turn north here to follow a footpath beside the Alt Toaig burn past some waterfalls (NN251440), continuing up steadily steepening slopes on the east side of the burn into Corrie Toaig.

The graggy slopes of Aonach Eagach loom above to the west of the burn.

The track is now climbing steadily to the northwest to achieve a ridge (ALT2) overlooking Coirein Lochain at about 2200 ft (NN242458).

Heading west now then south on a steep scramble up through scree and rocks to Aonach Eagach, a top at about 3200 ft (NN237454)

The ill defined track continues just south of west now on a narrow ridge finally veering northwest to reach the top of Stob Ghabhar at 3560 ft (NN230455).

The return loop can be hard to find in cloud.

From the summit, return on the ascent path on a bearing of 146º for about 220 yards and look for a shallow depression between rocks to the right. Follow this depression for a few yards, then when clear, continue on 146º over intermittent rocky scree and rough grass to follow a broad grassy shoulder for about 1¾ miles to rejoin the ascent path downstream from the waterfalls on Alt Taoig.

After heavy rains the burn may present a little difficulty in finding a dryshod crossing. Retrace your route to the climbing club hut and the Victoria bridge.

This walk can be modified (add blue route) to include  Stob a Choire Odhair (3078ft) by leaving the route described above at  ALT1 (NN253448) to ascend a zigzag stalkers track on a broad shoulder to near the top, and finding your own way for the last 200 ft or so. At the summit follow a bearing of about 253º to rejoin the described route at ALT2. This adds about ½mile and about 700ft ascent to the walk.

An alternative approach at the bealach is to follow the pink route from the bealach, descend to a point above the waterfalls at the mouth of Corein Lochain and follow a crassy ramp up to Sron nan Giubhas on the opposite side of the corrie. Once on the grassy top, head generally west veering slowly round to south following the line of the edge of the corrie to the summit of Stob Ghabhar.

An alternative descent is to follow the shoulder of Aonach Eagach ESE for about 1/4 mile before turning right to find a way down steep grassy/scree slopes to the burn in Coir na Muic. Follow the burn to the top of a spectacular high waterfall (about NN247444) and clamber down a badly eroded path on the north side of the falls to finally cross the burn and join the ascent path.