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A night time
ascent of Ben Lomond has been on my to-do list for years. I mean
years. Dad did it decades ago, and the images he brought back were
inspiring. Since seeing those images, I'd always wanted to do it and
even though I'd made attempts in 2008, circumstance stopped me.
In the
months leading up to late June 2009, I'd developed an interest in
camping. Steve was happy to join me in camping and we started out by
spending the night on
Dumgoyne several nights before. Once we'd got into the swing of things,
I took the opportunity to suggest that we climb Ben Lomond together by
night. We were only a few nights beyond the summer solstice and the
weather appeared to be just right. No night could be more perfect, I
felt that this could be the one chance until next year. I could picture
it in my head, although it was pure luck as to whether it would actually
happen: we climb in the dark beneath clear skies, above the clouds which
are beneath us and we sit in the twilight before the sun breaks over
the horizon, spilling light across the cloudscapes. That was the dream.
And I'm glad to say that it happened.
Stopping at Tescos on the way for food,
Steve and I took the car out to Rowardennan. The first thing I noticed upon stepping
out of the car was that it was a warm night. The sky was dusky because
the sun wasn't far away, but the stars were out too. I could smell the
singing in the air, a left over from the heat of the preceding day.
Steve and I got ready by the car when we also realised that the place
was swarming with midges, and they were in the car too. To make matters
worse, we then locked the car and when we realised that the light was on
inside, we couldn't find the keys to open the car and turn the light off.
We found them eventually, but not without being
bitten to shreds by midges.
On our way...
It was all fine in the end - once we found the keys, we set off on our
way (12.30am). Even during the early stages through the forests,
I had no need for a torch where enough light penetrated the trees. We
headed up through the forest, Steve casually cursing me for taking him
along. I found the going a little tedious at times myself, but told
myself that the effort would pay off.
Then at around 400m, I caught sight of some low cloud to the east. It
was beneath us and merely occupying one of the valleys somewhere near
Ben Venue. My hopes were up now, and we climbed steadily up onto Sron
Aonaich, the broad arm that leads to the summit. The summit region of
Ben Lomond lay ahead of us and some cloud was creeping up and briefly
engulfing us. To the north east, the valleys were submerged in cold blue
clouds, pouring over saddles and accumulating in the basins. On the
horizon was a band of gold - a sign of things to come. Unless conditions
changed dramatically, we were in for a very special morning.
During the final section to the summit, we entered some cloud again, but
it was little more than a cloud cap. It was eerie enough to be walking
through in the half-light of dawn, but the route was so well marked that
I needn't think of anything else than the surroundings. We arrived at
the summit soon after, greeted by the most spectacular of views.
But the sun still wasn't up. Steve and I made ourselves comfortable out
of the wind and after some time, Steve went to sleep inside my bivvy bag
- probably a sensible thing to do, being the driver. I couldn't pull my eyes
away from the north east, and would wake Steve up when the sun rose.
It was a little cold at the top, but I eagerly anticipated the sunrise.
Plenty of time went by to suck in the surroundings, when on the horizon, the edge of the clouds turned to intense
oranges. The sun was around the corner, so I awoke Steve. The sun didn't
arrive for another ten minutes but when it did, it looked simply
beautiful... I was so happy to be on top of Ben Lomond and knew myself that
it could be a long time before I'd see views like these again. They
exceeded 31st
December 2008, and that day was very tough to beat.
The sun continued to rise into the sky and I continued to watch. Steve
fell asleep again, but I barely took my eyes off the views. Take them
while I've got them, I guess... As time got on though, it was clear we
couldn't stay forever. The transition from night to day was nearly
complete and I'd seen and done just about everything I'd come for.
Descending via. Ptarmigan
When
I suggested descending to Steve, he was happy to do so and we descended
to Ptarmigan. Views were still present as we left but we'd have to get
back to reality soon. I nipped up to the top of Ptarmigan and got a few
pictures on the way before we headed downwards again. Coire Odhar (the
southern corrie on Ben Lomond) was extremely impressive with cloud
streaming around it's bowl. With the last of the views, we descended
once more and into the cloud.
The descent was a little tedious as we walked through the cloud, but I
didn't find it too bad either. We arrived back at Loch Lomond and took the West
Highland Way back to Rowardennan. Back at the car, we threw the gear in
the back and sped off with windows wide open - the car was still
swarming with midges, they couldn't get out. A good blast with the windows
filtered them out and we continued on the way home. We picked up a
guy on the way back as well, who was hitching on the road to Drymen.
He'd walked for five days from Loch Earn to Loch Lomond, seeing few
people and carrying all his food with him. Interested in long distance
walking myself, I got some of his advice on the logistics because I may
as well get it from someone who knows their stuff. Then it turned out
that he was at least 65 years old - I hope I'm that fit when I'm 65.
We dropped him off in Glasgow and then headed home.
We had got back by early morning and when I got home I slept until early
afternoon. I didn't feel as shattered as I thought I would because I just
needed a few hours sleep late morning. Walking by night is certainly
something to try again, but right now there's no telling when I'll do it
again. With a long summer ahead of me, the possibilities are endless and
who knows what I'll get up to? I'd like to think that Ben Lomond sets
the tone for things to come.
Panorama
360˚ from Ben Lomond's summit
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