DAY ONE - ACHNASHELLACH - EASAN DORCHA BOTHY
(6k, 400m ascent)
Arriving bleary eyed off the sleeper at Inverness, we just had time to grab a coffee and a bacon roll before hopping on to the train to Achnashellach, on the stunningly beautiful line to Skye and our starting point for the journey to Cape Wrath.
The train got us in to Achnashellach station (a request stop) at 10.36, so we’d deliberately planned a short first day while we adjusted to heavy packs and the short days. After crossing back over the railway tracks we wound through some forest, scaling a deer fence before reaching a good track that took us up towards the pass at Drochaid Coire Lair.
The weather was absolutely stunning, sunny and clear skies providing superb views of the Beinn Liath Mhor horseshoe. There could not have been more of a contrast to my aborted trip the previous Christmas. The excellent track wound down the glen towards Easan Dorcha (NH012525) which we reached at about 2pm. The situation of the glen meant it remained untouched by any winter sun and was still shrouded in frost and ice.
Easan Dorcha bothy is really just a glorified garden shed and is known as the “Tea House”, perhaps as it’s better suited to a tea break than an overnight stop. We deposited our kit and walked up the slope to enjoy the sunset and scope out the route for the next day which wound down the glen towards the Coulin Forest.
As the sun dipped below the hill side we hunkered down in the bothy or “Ice Shed” as we had now christened it, the cold temperatures were a real shock to our central heating pampered systems. For the first of many nights I found myself wearing every piece of clothing I had and wondering what the days ahead would hold.
