Suilven the Elusive
Trip Start
Sep 12, 2006
1
84
100
Trip End
Sep 08, 2008
Assynt,
Scotland,
United Kingdom
Thursday, June 26, 2008
The further north we went, the more the weather seemed to clear, and we were hopeful it would hold out for our hike the following day, to one of the most distinctive peaks in Scotland, Suilven. In the meantime, we still had a bit of ground to cover, and after leaving the single lane road through Glen Torridon and pushing on up the highway for an hour we made a stop in the port town of Ullapool. Its harbor side façade was postcard perfect, although we would have more time to savour it the following evening when we spent our final night in the hostel there. Our main purpose for the stop was for some groceries, but also the 'best chips in Britain'. Somewhat surprisingly, we were served by some Polish girls when we bought these, and I found myself scratching my head as to how they found working in a chippy in the far north of Scotland more lucrative than working in one of the major cities or even back home. It could have been the stunning scenery surrounding the town, but by the looks of the girls I doubt it.
Moving on north, we passed a few recognisable peaks, namely those of Stac Pollaidh and Suilven, before making a short stop at the ruins of Ardvreck Castle. Although hardly recognisable as a fifteenth century three storey tower house, it looked pretty impressive beside Loch Assynt, with background views taking in the magnificent mountain landscape.
It was this landscape that was to be the highlight of my time in Assynt. The drive from Ardvreck to our hostel at Achmelvich Beach passed through a barren landscape of stunning peaks rising from the moorland, with barely so much as a hint of civilisation besides the road. For the most part, ours was the only car on it, and I couldn't help but feel we were on the moon, let alone the same island as London. The road twisted and turned around Loch Assynt, besides some tiny islets with eerie looking trees, before we turned off onto a single lane road for Achmelvich Beach.
The hostel was pretty easy to find, and we were greeted by a friendly lady working there on a short stint from Glasgow. After checking in, we went for a short walk to check out the beach, via a small hut with some swallows nesting in the roof. It was a pretty idealic place, and would have been more so had the water and weather been a little warmer. I wasn't brave enough to try the former out, even after Steve first claimed it wasn't that cold. Within a matter of seconds he ran out though, saying it was so cold it physically hurt. We spent a bit of time climbing on the rocks, breathing in the salty sea air before heading back to the hostel for a spot of dinner and a good night's sleep before the big hike the next day.
Unfortunately the next day started badly. We slept in more than two hours, and the news on the weather front wasn't encouraging. It was blowing an absolute gale outside. Given what we knew about Suilven, we knew it could be a dangerous hike in strong winds, and we weren't sure what to do. When one of the girls staying at the hostel said her sister spoke with a park ranger who strongly advised against climbing the peak we made the difficult decision to do a coastal walk instead. In hindsight I regret this decision, and wish we'd have given Suilven a try, especially given the skies were reasonably clear. Nevertheless, there was no turning back, and before long we were on the road heading a little further north to the Stoerhead lighthouse.
The lighthouse was built in 1870, and marked the start of an 8km round hike out to the Point of Stoer. One of our guidebooks said the coastal scenery was a spectacular alternative to hill walking, with the added bonus of taking in a second 'Old Man of Stoer'; a towering 200ft high sea stack just offshore. The walk there was easy enough, despite the ridiculously strong winds which thankfully were blowing in from the sea and not out towards it. We reached the point after an hour or so and found a sheltered spot to sit and have some lunch, and try and work out whether the sheep lazing on the cliff tops were stupid or part of a superior race.
We took a more direct route back to the car, passing over two grassy heathery hills, one of which, Sidhean Mor, gave fantastic views out over the hills of Assynt. From the summit of this short 161m peak, the wind was ferocious, and for a moment I was glad I wasn't clinging to the edge of Suilven, for if the same wind was blowing up there we would have been in trouble. It shouldn't have taken us long to reach the car from here, although it seemed to take forever as we passed small muddy ponds in the moorland.
I found the coastal scenery pretty impressive, although Steve wasn't blown away by it, literally! We had to follow the same road we drove up on for about an hour to reach Ullapool, although we made one short detour at the small fishing village of Lochinver. There was a great view of Suilven looming over the harbourside cottages, although rather than feel depressed about the wind ruining our plans to climb it, we made our way for the Lochinver Larder, home to the 'best pies in Britain'. At £5.85 eat in or £3.35 take away we were quite happy to enjoy them in the car, and they went down pretty well after braving the coastal winds for more than three hours.
Looking back, I feel the day we spent in Assynt was worthwhile. The scenery was stunning, and everything we saw, from Suilven at a distance, Ardvreck Castle, Achmelvich Beach, the barren hillside beside the empty single lane road, and the Old Man of Stoer to the view from the heathery hill of Sidhean Mor will stay in my memory. Suilven may have been known as Suilven the Hypnotic, but for us it was Suilven the Elusive. I was determined to return.
