April 2011 and we hiked up Schiehallion, upon doing so I saw two guys running down in. From that moment the seed was sown and knew that one day I would return and do the same thing.
Schiehallion is a pretty munro, it is very regular in shape and because of this is very noticeable. From one angle it can seem like a big pointed cone and from another like an isosceles triangle.
From Loch Rannoch Schiehallion looks like a cone
The start point of walking for most is from the Braes of Foss car park. This is kindly a little way above sea level so giving you a head start. The path is very good for the first 2km but this is also the steepest section before it begins to level off the path follows heather and rocks to almost the top when you are presented with a boulder field. It is possible to make a path out but the going is slow as this is ankle breaker territory.
So September came and we just so happened to be staying on the banks of Loch Rannoch. I am in the middle of marathon training and so had a 18mile run planned for the Sunday. This run went pretty smoothly, tired and the end but that is to be expected. The next day my legs had recovered and I decided as the sun had come out I would attempt to run Schiehallion. My partner looked less than pleased at this thought but with a little encouragement came along for the ride.
I said “you’re camera man – it’s got a zoom lens so you should be able to capture me running up some of the mountain”.
These are the results:
It took me 1 hour 30 mins to get up and down. It is 10km in total, 5km up and 5 km down the same way. The start was steep although runable but I decided to walk up the steps as a wrong footing could damage me! Plus I got this aching lower back which is recurring when I go up hills and also snowboard. My stubbornness got me to the top, not letting the pain of the back get me down. I was determined.
I was the only one on the mountain, I passed no one on the whole journey except my partner who had wandered up the first bit while waiting for me to return.
It was a great feeling to be the only one there, part of that was the danger of being on top of a mountain in only shorts and t shirt with brown water from the loch to keep me hydrated and a hastily packed waterproof just in case.
I’d totally recommend doing this run or hike, The slideshow has images from the top which I took when I hiked up there in April
Run Spud Run! 