The easiest pronounciation is Ben Oodlay… it’s near enough if not perfect.
I cannot every recall having 2 successive weekends with WX to die for. Another stunning day. Lots of dense fog on the way up meant I arrived 30mins late at the parking for this. I was intending to do it with its neighbour across the glacial valley a few weeks back but the WX was rubbish and I didn’t fancy the look of the crags in the poor visibility, In fact it’s an easy (stamina excepted) pair of summits.
However, I found myself at the same parking place but I needed the GPS to find that the fog was so distracting on the very minor Glen Orchy road. Park at NN277367 by the forest gate, space for 8 cars. From here it’s through the gate and along the very soft and boggy track. Within a few hundred metres the track splits, left is the best way but right will meet with the left track when you are well and truly covered in mud! Follow the track along the river. Stay on the track even when it goes inside the forest. Eventually you come to a big padlocked gate at the end of the trees. There is a gate for people in the fence that you will have just walked past. You can go through the gate now and climb over the deer fence at the locked gates higher up. Or go around the the other side of the fence and struggle through the trees. Either is as big a pain in the bum. I found this out the hard way.
It’s been boggy and easy to here. Now you go up. Up over longish grass and up a damn steep slope following the deer fence. Thigh burning steep. The only way is up and keep going up. Don’t stop till you’ve had enough. Look out for the large Quartz outcrops that are so visible as you drive along the Bridge of Orchy road. These are your guide to almost the top. Just walk up the Glen Orchy side of the rocks, up the perpetual non-stop leg busting climb. Do this for 1hr30mins. You can stop to admire the stunning views if you can focus your eyes long enough! At the top of the out crops you’ll find a long wall of crags, 30-40ft high in places but a few moments walking along their base shows they are trivial to get through. Now it’s not steep but bouldery. Just keep doing what should now come naturally, go up. The sun was just above the horizon for this part so I stumbled up not able to see. Coming down it’s very pretty when you can see what your walking on.
2hr20 to reach the cairn. Computer said 2hr, I’m still not very fit. Anyway it was T-shirt WX on the way up out of the gentle breeze but cool at the top. On with the layers, up with the 20m vertical, this time it tuned up FB 1st time. On with the VX-170 and there was Iain MM3WJZ/p LOS on Meall nan Fearna SS-035. However, I had forgotten to charge the handy so waffling was cut short. Damn! Onto HF and Gordon Bennett what a pile up, a never diminishing wall of CW chasers. Hard work but great fun. Many Europeans but my 0DX was CU3AA from The Azores who was an absolute monster sized signal, wow! The skip was very short indeed I worked a few stations along the South coast of the UK. Later I switched to SSB and had another pileup. This was a real “feel-good” activation. I was surprised to hear and work M0MDA in Leeds which was extremely short skip for 20m. Again plenty of UK stations.
It starts to get dark early now so as soon as it went quiet I shutdown. There really isn’t time for multi band activations with a long drive and walk in. I was packed up by 1345Z and back at the car at 1515Z. And I had to struggle at that damn deer fence again. Go around it not over it if anyone takes this route.
Did I mention the WX, absolutely awesome again. Mid Novermber, 850m ASL 56degsN and it was just a little cool for a T-shirt. The views left me speechless. The colours of Autumn (Fall) with the low sun, the mist in the valleys. It did cloud up during the day but my drive out along Glen Orchy was interrupted by having to stop to take photos of the red and brown grass highlighted by the red setting sun.
Two weekends in a row when the WX was stupendous… it’ll rain till Easter now.
Distance driven: 190miles, total walked: 9.1km, total ascent: 712m
OK, pictures.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15816478482/in/pool-sota_pics
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15629104549/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15194951404/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15814923195/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15630062550/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15630062360/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15816479762/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15630063120/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15630063000/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15814923915/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15791242386/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15814924095/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15791242726/in/pool-sota_pics/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mm0fmf/15813026961/in/pool-sota_pics/
Distance driven: 190miles, total walked: 9.1km, total ascent: 712m