New Boots on Ben Lawers

I got up at 4.45am this morning, had a quick porridge and a brew, before heading out onto the extremely foggy road to Killin to climb Ben Lawers. A previous attempt at this hill was a complete washout, with only the summit of Bein Ghlas being reached before beating a hasty retreat, broken but unbowed!

Thankfully, today's weather was cold and crisp - just the way I like it, and as I arrived somewhat early in the car park, I decided just to go for it and see the sun come up on the hill. So, head torch on, I ventured forth on icy tracks out onto the open hillside. I must admit to being a wee bit uptight this
morning, as I was trying out a new pair of boots (Scarpa Manta) for the first time, and they had felt a
touch tight when I tried them on at home. However, my fears soon melted away, as they felt just fine
on the move. I have a couple of other pairs of Scarpas and they are right for my feet, so stands to reason that the Mantas should be okay.

I purchased the Mantas, as I was looking for a winter boot that would take step-in crampons. My Scarpa SLs didn't have the groove above the heel and my Scarpa Vegas were okay on technical routes, but overkill on straightforward walks.

Sunrise across Loch Tay

Early cloud on the summit

So, boots feeling good, body in reasonably good shape, of sound mind and starved of winter action due to crap weather, I breezed up Bein Ghlas in no time at all and barely paused for breath before pressing onward to Ben Lawers. The sun came up in the east, across Loch Tay, which was obscured by cloud from a temperature inversion. Here on the hill, early cloud was lifting, the sun was burning through and all was well with the world. I had the hill all to myself and the only sound to be heard was the Ptarmigan, which due to their winter plumage, I couldn't see. Some spindrift danced magically around the rim of the Corrie below and the cloud that had been clinging to the summit of Lawers scudded away to reveal the mountain in all its winter grandeur - whit a day to be oot and about!

View from the summit, looking north

There are two pillars at the summit of the mountain, atop a raised section - I think the story goes that
they tried to artificially elevate the hill to 4000 foot status - idiots! That aside, Ben Lawers is
officially the 10th highest Scottish mountain and really should need no outside assistance to display its beauty. Additionally, easy access to the hill from a high car park, coupled with NTS status has
meant that a lot of path work has been undertaken, leading to high visitor numbers. And as I began
my descent, I discovered that many others had opted to shake off the Christmas turkey and try out all the new gear that Santa had bestowed upon them. Can't really complain though, the solitude was good while it lasted.

Bright enough for shades!

Finally, lots of tricky wee icy bits on the path, cleverly disguised with a sugar coating of snow, ensured that getting back to car was eventful, as I was too lazy to get the crampons on. All in all, an excellent day and well worth a re-visit outwith monsoon season. Ben Lawers - winter garb suits you better than a raincoat!