Snow progress / Slow progress - you takes your choice

As you might be guessing from the title - no progress on tender returns. Although a call to the Dualchas office on Friday results in "yes, I have received one today and there were a couple more earlier in the week" but ...... "it's not my job / I'm not involved in that project" Aarghh, we know that Neil is on holiday but surely someone could have got in touch to give us a hint of what the figures look like. 

So another weekend, another week of wondering and waiting.  

Luckily the Easter weekend lurgy has left the house so we are free to hit the hills again. 
The temperatures have remained in the low single figures for the last two weeks which has meant that the snow dumped during the last weekend in March has retreated very slowly. The front sides of the Ochils are streaked with snow but the green bits are back again. Decided that we would walk the farm track deep into the hills and see how we get on. 

Many layers of clothing taken with us but with a good forecast for Saturday, we were off bright if not early. Clocks going forward last weekend means not such a rush to beat the end of the daylight. Carpark in the woodland park almost full, that's a first. The weather is tempting people out. 

Up through the trees and along the winding track. Going quite well today and decide to continue to the very end of the track and consider our options. The track winds its way along a N-S glen and as we get into the narrow part of the glen, the snow reappears with a vengeance. We spot evidence of skiers - including a jump someone has made and ski tracks above us. Looking up to the slopes of Ben Ever (site of the white out in January) the snow cover is deep and untracked by anything other than sheep.  

An alternative route to Ben Cleuch. Not for us today.

Towards the top of Ben Ever

We troop on and find a sheltered spot for lunch. The wind is from the north and we can feel it when it blows. Sit by a small burn that is almost covered in deep snow drifts and have a long-ish lunch. When the sun peeks through it is almost warm. 

Track disappearing in the distance, lunch spot just around the corner

Continue up the track until we reach a corner where it disappears, we can see it further on but there is a snow drift which must be over 10 feet deep obliterating the track. There are footsteps where others have slid over and down so, walking poles out and we follow the stamped out and icy trail. Looking back, I have never seen so much snow in one place. It is like a mini mountain. 

We reach the end of the track and emerge onto an Ochils plateau. Frozen ground means the bog and peat hags are frozen solid. We look up towards Ben Buck - never visited this hill before - and decide to give it a go. Gary's first step sees him knee deep in snow, my thoughts are I can't do that for another 200ft. However we make it to the next ridge and the slope and snow depth eases so we carry on. In what seems like a very short time we reach the top and spy a good line to follow along some fence posts to Ben Cleuch summit. We can see the summit ridge and it looks pretty busy with most walkers appearing from the direction of The Law. 

Head over to the fence posts and follow them through deep, wind-sculpted snow. Here we meet our first humans of the day. A young lad and an older man who flit over the snow as if it wasn't there. I am ploughing my way through slowly and feeling it in my legs and hips. However, the stunning views and  interesting skies make it enjoyable. We eventually reach the point where three fences meet. Our initial thoughts had been how are we going to get over the fence but the snow was so deep that we just stepped across. 

What fence? Plus a gate just poking out of the snow

View back the way we came up with the highlands in the distance

Now we were on the summit ridge of Ben Cleuch and it was an easy trudge through more snow to the frozen cairn. I will never tire of the view from here. 

Fit young things zoom ahead of us

The summit cairn of Ben Cleuch temptingly close - they're still ahead of us!

Some interesting ice formations on the cairn and trig point. Stopped to chat with a few people, but not for long as it was bitterly cold, then turned back for the steep descent. A relatively easy descent until we hit the almost vertical slope that leads to the stile. Big snow steps carved out by those that had gone before. easy to use if you have similarly long legs but I find myself almost leaping form step to step. Glad we didn't come up this way, slippy snow and a steep drop. We make it safely to the easier ground and I put my foot through the snow and deep into a hole. After a spectacular tumble forward, not witnessed by anyone, I find my feet again  and we carry on. 

Had planned to stop on the top of Ben Ever for our final cuppa but too windy and no shelter so we go downwards until we find a suitable rock and some shelter. Final cup of coffee and a feeling of exhilaration and tiredness. Very pleased to see the car. 

This is the longest walk we have done for some time and in challenging conditions. We may not be doing much tomorrow!

Monday should bring the news we're waiting for. Looks like we will be waiting a while after I finish work to move to Skye. Still, there's all those hills waiting for a visit. Perhaps we can use the time wisely and have a bit of fun. 

Watch this space for news on the house soon - she says with hope in her heart .