UKC

For various reasons Pondering doing An Tellach for a weekend hit . The plan is at the very  early stages . Drive up to Ullapool from the lakes on a Friday evening . Stay Ullapool Friday pm . Saturday  park at the dundonell hotel . An teallach ridge . Saturday pm stay at the hotel . Beer . Food . medals .Sunday drive back . Any and all thoughts please ? 

In reply to mike123:

If you want to stay at the Dundonnell hotel it closes for the winter on 31st october

In reply to mike123:

There is road side parking right next to the start of the track for about 4 cars, I doubt there will be many there. Towards the end of the ridge there is a turn east to Glas Mheall Liath before dropping down, it's a better finish than going north to a less interesting Glas Mheall Mor. The last 20 mins from the end of the path to the road is a swampy bushwhack for some reason. Knock of Liathach traverse on the way back home.

In reply to mike123:

Great plan! An Teallach is amazing, but the ridge can be tricky, so be prepared.  Just check the weather before you gothings can change quickly up there.

In reply to mike123:

Have you done An Teallach before? and are you planning on doing the crest of the ridge or the bypass path?

We're at that point of the year where it isn't Summer anymore but it isn't established into Winter conditions, so potentially harder to negotiate ridges like An Teallach, especially alone. Saturday looks like the visibility will be very poor, with potential of snow falling.

If you've never been there before it's an awful lot of the weekend to spend driving to do arguably the most impressive mountain in Scotland but poptentially not see much of it or the incredible views it has to offer.

I once did Liatach in heavy rain and 0 visibillity because I was so hell bent on doing it when in the area. I now want to do it again as I didn't see it last time, and from that experience I've learned to save those first times up special mountains for decent weather and vis.

Well worth exploring the Fisherfield area too if you're able to save the visit for when you have more time.

With all that said, if you're super keen to get up this weekend and enjoy it for what it will be then have an amazing time and stay safe. 

In reply to mike123:

Am I right in thinking that you are not particularly considering this weekend? Others seem to have assumed that you're going tomorrow, but I don't read that from your message, and are taking a little longer in planning it.

I've certainly put off going there several times in the past, as I had the view that others have put, that it is too good a hill to go up for the first time in poor visibility weather. I actually went up it over twenty years ago at autumn half-term, and the weather and conditions were absolutely lovely. I seemed to have the hill to myself, and near the end of the pinnacles, I disturbed two juvenile golden eagles. This was soon after I had put my SLR away, as I had been telling myself off for not moving along fast enough, due to taking too many pictures. By the time that I got the SLR back out again, they had flown into the nearby cloud, just above the hill. Doh! Nevertheless, a superb day.

As above, I'm not sure why there was a less obvious path out at the end, and hacked through the rubbery leaved foliage to the road.

In reply to mike123: thanks for responses so far . It’s a plan for “a weekend “ sometime soon  not this weekend . I have done an tealach  before but some  time ago .  Reasonably experienced team of winter mountaineers but not really aiming for winter conditions. It’s about following up on one of many plans made with a now deceased friend .

In reply to mike123:

My mistake, you didn't say this weekend.

In that case go for it when you get a good forercast!

Best of luck

In reply to mike123:

You didn't say which way round you're going, but the scrambling is definitely better if you go clockwise as you're mostly going up the harder bits. As mentioned above, a good finish is to cut down the Glas Meall Liath ridge from the main summit. From the lowest point of the col before GML a steep but easy grass slope leads down rightwards to the lochan. You can avoid the boggy bushwhack (and the road walk) by cutting across Coir' a' Ghiubhsachain to the low saddle at 099841 (nice short scramble just left) and following the side of the gorge to join the outward path (you have to hop the stream, usually easy but a poor idea if it's rained a lot). It's shorter, quicker and nicer than the swamp, though pathless).

In reply to mike123:

If you happened to have a second car, you can start from Corrie Hallie and descend to the road just east of the hotel. If you do this, I would recommend using the old path (marked on the OS maps) down the Meall Garbh ridge in preference to the newer one that follows the Allt a' Mhuillin and which is eroded and boggy lower down. 

If conditions are not favourable for scrambling, an interesting alternative route is a circuit of Coire Mor an Teallaich starting from Ardessie (taking in Sail Mhor if you are keen!). 

In reply to mike123:

I'll not comment on the Lakes-Ullapool drive as it sounds awful in one hit ;p

If you've not done it before be aware it's a long day but any sketchy bits or scrambling are easily avoidable as the bypass path is so well worn. If you're planning on avoiding the climbing at the end of the ridge it's very very easy to just walk to the end of the ridge then double back on yourself.

Probably my favourite mountain day out in Scotland, far better than Liathach IMO (which is amazing too!)