Because I have been to the summit of Cairn Gorm, I decided to go along a ridge called Fiacaill a’ Choire Chais. This move let me save some time and cover the same path twice. I did the route on 16 June 2010.
- 1: Car park near the Funicular Railway.
- 2: A path heading off the track led to a gap between Cairngorm and Cairn Lochan. I decided to leave behind the summit of Cairngorm because I’d been there already.
- 3: The gap. After the tiring climb, I reached the gap; the upper half of the ridge was covered with clouds, so from time to time, I had to look for the path disappearing on the rocky slope.
- 4: The summit of Ben Macdui (1309m). I’d planned to go along the cliff towards Cairn Lochan, but I mistakenly chose the wrong path in the clouds and patchy snow; eventually, I found the right one to Ben Macdui.
- 5: The summit of Beinn Mheadhoin (1182m). From Ben Macdui, I went westward for about 1 km and followed the path downwards to Loch Etchachan. From there, I climbed Beinn Mheadhoin with its characteristic rocky towers. I headed down on the pathless northern slope from the summit to Loch Avon.
- 6: Crossing the River Avon. The river was swollen because of melting snow, so it took me about fifteen minutes to find a good place to cross it.
- 7: Crossroads. That is the spot where a few paths cross. One of them leads upward on the eastern slope of Cairngorm. The last part of it went through a valley unluckily covered with deep snow; additionally, slanting rain and clouds made climbing more difficult.
- 8: Ptarmigan Bowl – the upper station of the Funicular Railway. I felt great relief when I reached the building. But then I had to pass a dull, boring, bulldozed track downward.
- 9: A path heading off the track and leading to the base station. That was an excellent opportunity to avoid repeating part of the route.