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
It was a bit showery when 7 of us set off from the Badaguish car park and we wondered if the forecast strong winds and rain would appear. However, the weather improved as we walked up the track and by the time we got up the hill it was breezy but dry and clear.
We had lunch at the top of Meall a' Bhuachaille, sheltered by a big cairn with a wall where a tourist kindly took a photo of us all with a French couple who she thought we were with. We managed to crop the photo later!
There were lovely views from the summit and all the way along the ridge as we walked over Creagan Gorm and Craigowrie. On our way down from Craigowrie we heard an unusual bird call, which we identified as a European Golden Plover with the help of Carol's Merlin app. We also stopped to take photos of an impressive [Ed - peacock-like] felled tree, then were soon back at the cars. It had been a very good day - we all enjoyed the walk and the company and were delighted that the rain had held off!
Taking part: Carol, Catherine, Fiona, Helen M, Helen W, May, Sharan
Photos: Carol, Helen W
