Walk of the Week: Cam Chreag

THERE are two Corbetts called Cam Chreag; one near Bridge of Orchy and the other north-east of Bridge of Balgie, halfway up “the longest, loneliest and loveliest glen in Scotland”, Glen Lyon.

I judged the latter hill would be free of the cloud and rain that had been forecast for the west and so it turned out to be – just – and a vast improvement on a previous visit when I’d experienced a heavy hailstorm, sore on the face, that turned the hillside white in minutes – and that was in late May.

Cam Chreag, crooked crag, consists of a long ridge that runs north-east from Glen Lyon, then north from the slightly craggy summit towards Loch Rannoch – hence the “crooked” reference. The eastern slopes form an escarpment, easily breached at one point, and the south-eastern flanks are drained by the Allt a’Choire Uidhre that joins the River Lyon at Innerwick.

At 862m/2,828ft the hill is not much short of Munro status and is commonly climbed on the same day as the Munro that lies to the west, Meall Buidhe.

THE ROUTE

The War Memorial car park at Innerwick had a few visitors, but I met not a soul on the hill. A broad gravel track gently rises by the forest edge then dips to cross the Allt a’Choire Uidhre. Stay with the mapped track that heads west, passing ruins, then dips back to the south bank and the first sight of the hill, its plateau rimmed with snow on my day.

Later, a side track leads to a water abstraction point on the charming Allt a’Choire Uidhre, but continue west, now on a narrower track undulating through the heathery terrain. There is one briefly confusing point, circa 500m, where another track seems apparent on the north bank of the river. The track you are on dips to the right, crosses a side burn, and what was previously seen is in fact the same mapped track and still on the south bank. At 585m take note of an obvious vehicle turning point on the left, the return point later in the day.

The sun came out as I was sitting by a small burn, its cool babbling water pleasant to hear and refreshing to drink. Just before the track-end hut – a rusty corrugated shelter, its side kept closed by a small boulder – note the all-terrain vehicle (ATV) track that heads west over heathery then grassy slopes to reach the plateau. The ATV track makes light work of the 200m climb to the plateau. Before reaching a wooden post, slant right for the summit cone, its cragginess at odds with the grassy plateau. To vary the return, head south-east along the plateau, following a vague path that later becomes more developed as an ATV track. Descend to the flat area north of the 754m spot height and follow the stream into Coire Odhar, at the steepest part staying high on the west bank.

Periodic deer tracks lead through the heather to meet another ATV track which curves left to join the ascent track at 585m as previously noted, and back to the car park.

Map Ordnance Survey map 51, Loch Tay & Glen Dochart

Distance 9 miles

Height 700m

Terrain Track to heathery slopes, then grassy plateau

Start point War Memorial car park, Innerwick, Glen Lyon, map ref

586475

Time 5 hours

Nearest town Killin

Recommended refreshment spot Glen Lyon Tearoom, Bridge of Balgie