Ben MacDui & Meall a’ Bhuachaille - Sat 18 April 2026
Ben MacDui
A select few of lMC members found themselves at Cairngorm Ski Base Station enthusiastically ready to climb Ben MacDui.
This was going to be a day of firsts for me; My first mountaineering experience in Scotland, my first day out with IMC, my first Munro.
We left the ski area and headed up the path towards the plateau on Ben MacDui's north side and it wasn’t long before we spotted a ptarmigan and a couple of mountain hares, again another first for me.
Around spot height 1125 we encountered a reasonable amount of snow laying on the ground and Martin kindly offered some tips on traversing and climbing up snow covered hills.
As we ascended higher the landscape took on a tundra appearance and with the mist getting thicker it formed a complete whiteout.
We reached the summit and the mist lifted briefly giving a panoramic view of the surrounding mountains. An unbelievably tame Snow Bunting chanced itself to see if we had any scraps of food to offer.
We descended the mountain and stopped into the cafe for a well earned drink.
Taking part: Martin, Richard and prospective member Stuart
Words: Stuart; Photos: Stuart & Martin
Meall a’ Bhuachaille
A good time was had by all, with a Golden Plover call identified by the Merlin app, and a peacock-like felled tree.
Taking part: Carol, Catherine, Fiona, Helen M, Helen W, May, Sharan
Photos: Carol, Helen W
