Beinn Each | A mountain to muse life on

I planned to beat other hillwalkers by getting up early. Setting the alarm for 6am, I was at the start, a small layby on the A84 at first light.

The morning was remarkably mild, with temperatures above what they should be for this time of year. I started walking in spring-like conditions, which felt not dissimilar to late March. It didn’t feel like meteorological winter was just around the corner, and the preparations for Christmas were well underway.

The more mountains we climb (on my own and with Eve), the more I notice the differences. The physical landscape and terrain are obvious, but much more can be seen and felt. The approach trails, smells, sounds, and, above all, the feelings that are much more personal than any amount of written description can hope to convey.

Beinn Each felt urban at the start. The cars and lorries driving past left the smell of diesel and oil fumes hanging around the air. If there is ever a motivation to ‘get going’, there can be no more potent one than to escape the noise and smells of a busy road or the bustling crowds that can cling to the approach trails of some of the more popular mountains in the national park.

Beinn Each began with a steep uphill section through some beautiful woodland. 

The trail was no more than a rocky track created by flash floods that had washed away all lose material, leaving large rocks in a gully. After bad weather, this would be impassable, and an alternative route would have to be found through the woodland. 

The forest was thick and dark. Its dense canopy blocked out so much light that it felt like twilight. By now, my heart and lungs were working hard. It felt good to feel my body working hard while climbing this steep rocky trail. The noise and smell of the road below disappeared completely. The woodland felt wild and remote, just the way I like it!

I felt entirely at home walking through the woodland. I miss not being ‘on the trail’ every day, as we (Eve and I) were only a few weeks ago. Transitioning to this different, post-hiking lifestyle is proving more difficult than expected. But that's for another post that I have yet to finish writing!

Walking through the forest, I reached a substantial forest track. The forest track once again gave this mountain a very different feeling. Now, it felt like I could have been walking through Ard Forest behind where we live. I wouldn't have been surprised if a logging lorry had rattled past me and covered me in dust and fumes. 

The forest trail on the map looked like it went on for miles until I had to turn off. This track left the forest behind and entered Glen Ample with Loch Earn at its head. Passing through a deer gate, the hill had a different feel. It now felt like a long-distance trail as the path snaked its way down through the glen and out of sight.

I must have sped up considerably compared to the forest trail. This isn’t a massive surprise, given how flat and easy it was to walk compared to the steep and rocky uphill section that I just walked through. I suddenly noticed the muddy trail leading up and into the mountainous area. I only noticed it when I could see another hiker wearing a brightly coloured top coming down the way I intended to go.

Deciding to stop for my first break would give me time for this walker to pass me before I made my approach following the same trail. I sat on the path's edge, drinking piping hot coffee for about 20 minutes before he passed me, heading down the track where I had just come from. 

Starting to walk again, powered by caffeine, I headed directly uphill again into the mountains. Once again, this path gave me a different feeling. Now, it was starting to feel like a ‘proper’ hill climb, seeing the muddy trail winding and zig-zagging up the hillside.

This was where most people start having ‘fun’ hill climbing. The approach trails felt like a warm-up act for the main performance. Leaving the constricted paths behind and seeing the trail disappear into the rocks and crags was better than any West End performance could choreograph.

The trail now felt easier and less stressful on the lungs and heart. The contour lines on the maps showed it was just as steep, but it didn’t feel like it! 

The higher I climbed, the colder it started to get, but never to the point of freezing. The wind picked up, and the windchill became more evident. The hard work and pace of walking meant I only felt cold when I stopped or slowed to admire the views. The views were now starting to look as magnificent as ever, a major motivating factor for my love of the hills!

One of the many things I love about mountains is how the sun creates stunning light effects on the surrounding hills, casting huge shadows that can cover entire mountainsides and creep over peaks. This gives a real sense of physical excitement for nature and the wild.

It’s almost primordial how the sun in the hills, with its gift of warmth and light, can affect the mood and excite the senses. Being in the mountains or on the trail can speak to the deepest parts of us, awakening feelings that modern urban living drowns out and crushes.

The trail soon reaches the point where it meets the horizon and flattens somewhat. Once again, this gives yet another unique feeling as it quickly weave arounds, up and over slight undulations in the land. 

In my last journal entry on Benvane, I mentioned feeling like a giant, walking amongst tall peaks. Walking towards the summit of Beinn Each only accentuated this feeling of gigantism. On Beinn Each, I felt like Gulliver from Gulliver's Travels.

Beinn Each’s undulations were smaller than those on Benvane but more prominent. There is something fun and childish about terrain like this. Adults, in my opinion, are children at heart. Every adult l needs time and space to be the child we all keep inside but are sometimes too shy or self-conscious to let out. 

Walking in the mountains and hiking along trails allows me that opportunity. For Eve, only time will tell!

So far I had only seen one other hiker coming in the opposite direction. From my elevated position, I could now see people walking down the trail leading into Glen Ample going towards Loch Earn. I selfishly hoped they would continue and not start the ascent to Beinn Each. All the people I saw continued along the track, leaving me alone in the mountains!

I was now feeling myself getting genuinely excited, hoping to have the summit on Beinn Each to myself. 

Reaching the summit of Beinn Each was outstanding. The wind was blowing, the clouds were swirling and best of all, I was all alone! I love the sense of solitude only wild and inaccessible places can give. It’s the best medicine and highly addictive.

The summit of Beinn Each is relatively flat and rocky. Stuc a’ Chroin (Munro) had clouds forming on its summit and was bathed in sunlight in all directions. All I could see were glens, hills, and mountains. I could have stayed up there all day, totally content and happy.

The more trails I walk and hills I climb, the more I know I was never ment to live how we are expected. I believe most people, however, deep down inside, want more from life by having less!

We are all taught and preconditioned to believe we need more. We work to earn money, filling our homes and lives with things we don't need or want and regularly can’t afford. When we stop and think, all most all of us really want (and need) are the necessities of life. 

If only we could rise above what other people think of us and our choices, we could all be so much happier and content with less.

Think of it like this…

Would you take it if you were offered one hundred million pounds in cash, tax-free? I don’t think anyone wouldn’t take the money, me included! However, if I told you, there’s a catch. If you take the money, you will not wake up in the morning. Would you take it? I bet you wouldn’t touch the money. I know I wouldn’t touch it. So why don't we all live like every single day is worth a hundred million pounds?

Now, I agree there is a flaw. Taking the money might buy treatment for a sick child or donate to a needy charity. But it’s a thought experiment! It's not real, but it's a good way to make people think about how valuable their time is and how worthless money is if we think a little differently.

For my pennies worth, enjoy life and work hard but play harder. Love your family, be there for friends and prioritise experiences. It’s that that will make life worth living. Nobody’s going to remember you for your new shoes or expensive sofa. You will be remembered for your actions and how you live your life. That’s what will ultimately make you happy. So put on a pair of shoes and get outside and climb a hill or hike a trail. Feel the wind, rain, sun and snow on your skin. You might enjoy it!

I loitered on the summit of Beinn Each for as long as possible. I wasn’t on the summit for long before a man with a large backpack joined me. He told me he was planning to spend the night on the summit. I think he was slightly disappointed to see me sitting there, although I thought he would appreciate the solitude more after I had started the descent, leaving him alone.

I took a slow hike back down. I retraced my steps, being careful not to slip or trip. There were a few steep drops to my side, but nothing to be concerned about, except in the snow or ice.

I passed a few people coming up, most with dogs! Hike any hill, and I reckon the ratio of dog to human is at least 2:1. The British are a nation of dog lovers.

The most remarkable section of the desce was the steep forest section just before reaching the A84. The forest had a different feel to it than the initial ascent.

The sunlight was casting a dull light on the forest floor, highlighting the fungus that was reflecting light like cats' eyes on the road at night. Walking amongst thousands of eyes staring at me from small holes in the ground was captivating, almost poetic. It was a unique and memorable way to end the day.

The A84 was considerably busier and noisier than when I arrived, and I felt no need to loiter on the roadside. I drove home feeling refreshed and ready for the rest of the day. However, my desire to be back in the hills and on the trail was greater, and it continues to grow stronger every day.

Specifications 

• Mountain climbed: Beinn Each
• Translation: "Mountain of horses"
• Status: Corbett
• Range: Grampian Mountains
• Location: NN 60167 15805
• Elevation: 813 metres
• Distance: 4.1 miles
• Duration: 3.46hrs
• Start/Finish: A86 North of Callander (Google Maps)
• Map: Harvey Maps - British Mountain Maps; Southern Highlands (Harvey Maps)

Thank you for reading

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