It’s been a pretty full on day but I did manage to swing the leg over the Big Scoot in the late afternoon. With light fading pictures weren’t going to be that great but I did think that top of a snow-covered Ben Vorlich glistening in the setting sun would have come out better than it did.
Ben Vorlich – at over 3000ft qualifies as a Monroe and I have been to the top quite a few times in all weathers in the past – little wonder my knees are worn out. The walk in starts more or less from where the Scoot is parked and gets steeper by the time you hit the snowline but it is still regarded as one of the easier Monroes to climb.
Out of shot to the west is Stuc a Croin another Monroe and I’ve bagged them both in a day with my daughter and my elder brother along for company. In the patchy snow near the summit of Stuc a Croin is where I saw my first ptarmigan. Slightly bigger than a grouse the ptarmigan changes the colour of it’s plumage to merge with snow or vegetation as the seasons progress and must be one of the hardiest birds in the country to survive on the mountain tops in winter. I had a photograph of it somewhere but that was a long time ago and there has been a lot of water under the bridge since then.
Still on the subject of wildlife I keep bumping into wild goats on the south side of the River Earn and Loch Earn. I had never heard of them being there and can only imagine they are part of an Estate herd that have been allowed to run feral. There is a big Billy Goat with enormous horns and the sight of him makes me wish I still carried a decent camera. M-mmm — just a thought — I have a birthday coming up this month – who knows – I might be lucky.
from-a-distance 