North Barrule

Nearly climbing North Barrule -

 

Wednesday  5th September 2012.

 

    It was a warm, calm sunny morning in the glen and I was worried about being too hot on the walk and dressed accordingly - but I couldn't have been more wrong.  It was not a good day to climb the North Barrule ridge with only a light fleece jacket and no hat.  I had intended taking a sun hat but forgot to pick it up on my way to the car.  A woolly hat would have been far more appropriate.   When we reached the car park at the side of the mountain road at Black Hut, we were greeted by a strong, cold wind and the sight of thick hill fog along the top of the ridge.

 

    There are four peaks along the ridge - Clagh Ouyr at the southern end, then two lower peaks, Ben Rein and Cronk ny Choree Farroghan (which are not named on the maps), and lastly North Barrule.

 

    We started up the steep climb to the top of Clagh Ouyr.  I hoped the exercise would warm me up but the wind got stronger when we reached the top and it was uncomfortably cold. 

    We trudged along through the cloud for almost an hour until I got fed up with waiting for the sun to burn off the fog and suggested to Dorothy that it might be a better plan to climb down into the Corrany valley.  Tim took this photo of Alexander waiting for me during the discussion with Dorothy.

He also took this one of Trevor leading the way down the hillside towards the sunny valley.

 

 

I had been too impatient, of course.  By the time we approached the bottom of the hillside, all the fog had disappeared - but we were more sheltered from the strong wind which was a bonus.  The small "white spot" on the side of the far peak of North Barrule (in the next photo) was caused by the sun reflecting off a plaque which was recently erected to mark the site of a plane crash during WW2.

We stopped for a tea break after we passed a lonely sheep pen in the valley.  In the past this valley would not have been so quiet and deserted because there are extensive abandoned mine workings down by the river.  Nearby, the remains of Keeill Voirrey (Mary's chapel) and a small graveyard also indicate that there was once a local population.

And finally - before the descent to the cars - the long trudge up the valley and around the south side of Clagh Ouyr.