itself does not own any of the bothies; they are usually remote buildings that the landowner allows walkers to use.
When going to a bothy, it is important to assume that there will be no facilities. No tap, no sink, no toilets, no beds, no lights, and even if there is a fireplace, perhaps nothing to burn. Bothies may have a simple sleeping platform, but if busy you might find that the only place to sleep is on a stone floor. Carry out all your rubbish, as you would do if you were camping, and aim to leave the bothy tidier than you find it.
If you intend to make regular use of bothies you should join the MBA to contribute towards the costs of running the organisation. The MBA organises working parties to maintain and tidy up the bothies and they would welcome volunteers to help with this task. For more details on using bothies, consult the MBA’s excellent website: www.mountainbothies.org.uk.
Navigation
The 1:100,000 maps in this guide are good for planning purposes and will give you a general idea of the route, but they don’t give enough detail for accurate navigation in difficult conditions. For this reason it is essential that you carry the relevant maps.
The Ordnance Survey (OS) 1:50,000 maps, available in paper form or for GPS devices, are very good and should be all you need to follow the recommended routes. In popular areas updated OS 1:25,000 maps are available but not really necessary. Probably the best maps are the Harvey maps (mainly 1:40,000) but they don’t have full coverage of the Scottish Highlands.
The contour lines on all of these maps are remarkably accurate and should be seen as your main navigational tool. Inexperienced walkers going out in good visibility should learn to relate contours to the ground so they are better prepared if they get caught out in mist.
You should always carry a good compass (those produced for orienteering by Silva and Suunto are probably the best). In good visibility it should be sufficient to orientate the map using the compass, so that north on the map lines up with north on the ground. At present, magnetic north is near enough to grid north not to have to adjust for magnetic variation. Learn to take bearings from a map and follow them using the compass in clear conditions, before you find yourself having to navigate in mist.
The most difficult thing in navigation is knowing how far you have travelled, which can be important when navigating in mist on Scottish hills. In extreme conditions it may be necessary to pace-count to measure distance – practise this skill in good conditions, so that you are prepared.
Probably the most common navigational error is to head in the wrong direction when starting to descend so it is a good habit to always check your compass when leaving a mountain summit, even in clear conditions.
GPS
If you are experienced at using map and compass, a GPS unit is not essential for navigating the Corbetts. However, even experienced mountain navigators will find they can make navigation easier in mist and the less experienced might find that using a GPS unit allows them to navigate safely in poor visibility.
Safety
The most important thing is not how to deal with accidents, it’s how to prevent them. There are three main tips for reducing your chance of a mountain accident by about 90%:
Learn to navigate!
Learn to navigate better!
Learn to navigate even better!
The 90% figure is not a made-up statistic. Research done about 40 years ago suggested that poor navigation was a major contributory factor in about 90% of Mountain Rescue incidents in the Scottish Highlands.
Three more tips should account for the other 10% of accidents:
Make sure you have a good tread to your walking shoes or boots. Don’t wear shoes with a worn tread.
Use two walking poles – this greatly increases safety on steep grass slopes and during any difficult river crossings.
Always have waterproofs, hat and gloves in your pack, whatever the weather.
Finally, if you are intending to do any walking in winter you should take some training in walking in snow-covered mountains. There are excellent courses at Glenmore Lodge National Outdoor Training Centre (See Appendix B for details).
Areas in this Guide
1 Mull, Morvern, Sunart and Ardgour
SE face of Garbh Bheinn, towering over Loch Linnhe (Route 6)
The southern section of this guide contains some of the most magnificent, rugged, rocky mountains in Scotland, with the scenic value being enhanced by the fjord-like Loch Shiel, Loch Eil, Loch Linnhe and Loch Sunart that surround the area. Despite the fabulous scenery, this sparsely populated wilderness is rarely visited, possibly because there aren’t any Munros in the area. Ardgour (Ard Ghobhar) means ‘height of the goats’, and you can still see feral goats and it is an area where you are likely to see golden eagles.
The Isle of Mull has been included in this section because it can be convenient to access it across the Sound of Mull from Lochaline to Fishnish. The scenery on Mull is magnificent, but for many visitors it is the wildlife (including the spectacular white-tailed eagle) which attracts them to the island.
2 Glenfinnan and Rum
This section covers the peaks either side of the A830, the ‘Road to the Isles’, which links Fort William to Mallaig. The road and the spectacular railway attract a lot of tourists, but the mountains are rarely frequented, again possibly because of the absence of Munros. Centred round the tiny village of Glenfinnan at the head of Loch Shiel, included are the peaks of Moidart, the north of Ardgour and those just north of Glenfinnan. This is an area of magnificent rocky peaks which would be demanding for the inexperienced walker in bad weather.
The island of Rum has been included in Section 2 as it is accessed by ferry from Mallaig at the end of the ‘Road to the Isles’. Most of Rum is a National Nature Reserve managed by Scottish Natural Heritage. The walking throughout this rocky island is magnificent. The island is a haven for a variety of birds and animals. Rum is where the white-tailed eagle was first reintroduced to Scotland and the island is the breeding ground for about one third of the world’s population of Manx shearwater.
While you are at Mallaig you could also take a ferry to Inverie to climb the Corbetts in Knoydart which are featured in Sections 3 and 4 or a ferry to Skye to climb the two Corbetts on that island.
3 Glen Loy, Loch Arkaig, Glen Dessarry and South Knoydart
This section includes all the Corbetts that can be accessed from the minor road between Fort William and Loch Arkaig, including those that can be climbed from the roadhead at the western end the loch. There is a big contrast between the relatively gentle Corbetts in Glen Loy and overlooking Loch Arkaig and the remote, rough and rocky mountains in Glen Dessarry and Knoydart to the west of Loch Arkaig. There is neither accommodation nor campsites in this section so most visitors will be staying in or around Fort William.
Glen Dessarry is one of the access routes to the wild Knoydart peninsular. Ben Aden in Knoydart is too remote to contemplate as a day-hike from any access point and the suggestion is to access Knoydart along Glen Dessarry and stay at Sourlies Bothy on Loch Nevis to climb Ben Aden and Beinn
