The Scottish 4000s
By Iain McCallum
With a crash the corrugated iron sheeting forming part of the bridge at Luibeilt collapsed, leaving Tim hanging by the wires over the torrent raging below. After a fierce struggle he managed to get across onto the bank on the other side leaving me to follow him as best I could over what remained of the bridge. Our attempt nearly ended here on the Scottish 4000s in 1967. But why were we, two members of the KMC, undertaking this 95 mile walk linking the Cairngorms and the Ben Nevis group?
In the 1950s and 1960s KMC members tackled many of the long walks like the Colne to Rowsley, Tan Hill to the Cat and Fiddle, Brecon Beacons to Snowdon, Lakes and Welsh 3000s This was due to the strong influence which the Rucksack Club had on the KMC's activities in that period. The first three KMC Presidents, Fred Piggott, Eric Byrom and John Hirst were all members of the Rucksack Club. Len Stubbs, a founder member of the KMC, and a keen bogtrotter, was also a member of the Rucksack Club. He encouraged members to undertake these long walks and he provided support for them on many occasions. There were no long stopovers on these walks. By convention one could not stop for more than two hours!
The Scottish 4000s links Ben Nevis, Carn Mor Dearg and Aonach Beag in the West with Cairn Toul, Braeriach, Ben Macdui and Cairngorm in the East. While members of the Rucksack Club first thought of this walk, their team was pipped by Lord Chorley of the Fell and Rock in 1924. However, the rival teams travelled between the Ben Nevis group and the Cairngorms by car. The first successful complete expedition was in 1954 when Frank Williamson and Philip Brockbank from the Rucksack Club pioneered the route. Although Philip had to drop out due to cold and tiredness after they had covered 70 miles, Frank finished the Cairngorms solo, reaching the summit of Cairngorm at 9.42pm on the third day after 50 hours of hard graft.
During the Whit weekend in 1966 two parties from the Club completed the Scottish 4000s successfully. Millie and Bowden Black together with Derek Seddon walked from West to East in 54 hours while Alan Barber, Bob Jones and Brian Ripley walked from East to West in 49½ hours. They were supported by Len Stubbs, Ken Beetham and Sam Mahon. Millie was the first woman to complete this walk. Alan's party was probably the first one to complete the walk from East to West. They had time for a four course meal in a hotel in Dalwhinnie. There they were met by Len and Tom Waghorn and Taffy Davies from the Rucksack Club. Both these parties had to contend with lots of snow on the tops. They all carried ice axes.
In 1967 Tim Mepham and I decided to tackle the walk from East to West over the Whit' weekend. We established a camp at Dalwhinnie. Tim's wife, Dilys and her friend Dorothy (Dot) Wallace supported our attempt. To minimise our need for support we carried a gas stove, a dixie and dried soups. Dilys and Dot dropped us off at the Cairngorm car park on the Saturday morning. From there we made our up to the summit of Cairngorm and then onto Ben MacDui. On our way to the Lairig Ghru we guided a group of army cadets down to the pass. To get from Braeriach to Cairn Toul we had to battle our way between the two summits in a blizzard before making our way to Carn Ban Mhor and the long grind to Glen Feshie. In the fading light we crossed the river by the wire bridge and stopped on the bank for a well earned rest and meal. Early in the morning we reached Ruthven Barracks where the Jacobite Rebellion came to an end in 1746 following the Battle of Culloden. With sun on our backs and larks singing in the air we toddled south along the General Wade's military road to Dalwhinnie. The last few miles were on the railway track - not a very good idea!
Dilys and Dot fed and watered us at the camp site. They also supplied us with a large pile of sandwiches. In the afternoon, after short sleep and a change of socks we set off along Loch Ericht towards Benalder Lodge and Loch Pattack. Dilys and Dot accompanied us for part of the way. Later, as we slogged up the Bealach Dubh, the pass over the shoulder of Ben Alder, we met Stan Bradshaw and John Eastwood from the Rucksack Club doing the walk from West to East. They told us that they had had a difficult time in the Ben Nevis Group due to bad weather.
By the time we reached Loch Ossian it had started to rain and continued to do so throughout the night. It was sheeting down as we approached Loch Treig. Here we stopped under some pine trees for a rest and some food. In the early morning light we followed the Amhainn Rath to Luibeilt passing a lonely tent on our way. It was still raining when we reached the bothy. Inside we brewed up and had something to eat. Our expedition nearly ended in disaster at this point when part of the bridge collapsed. However, we did manage to cross the burn and make our way up to the watershed at Tom an Eilte and so into the bogs of Upper Glen Nevis.
As we climbed out of the Glen towards Aonach Beag the weather started to improve, the rain stopped and the cloud base rose. High on the slopes of Aonach Beag we stopped for a break. Both of us found our sandwiches almost impossible to eat due to dehydration. The weather continued to improve and by the time we reached the summit of Aonach Beag the skies had cleared and the sun was out. Following a very steep descent to the pass, we slowly climbed up the snow covered ridge to Carn Mor Dearg. The snow was quite hard and we had to kick steps. Ice axes would have come in handy at this point. The Ben covered in snow looked superb in the sunshine.
Following the ridge and taking great care we made our way up to the top, which we reached at about 2pm. It was very clear. From the summit one could see for miles. What a finish to our walk! With aching legs we slowly made our way down the tourist track to the Youth Hostel in Glen Nevis where Dilys and Dot met us. They drove us back to our camp site at Dalwhinnie for a well earned meal and a good sleep.
Our walk of 95 miles involving 12,600 feet of ascent took us about 53 hours.
In 1977 a party from the Rucksack Club recorded a very fast time for the walk. It took Mike Cudahy and John Richardson just under 38 hours from Glen Nevis to the Cairngorm car park. From Dalwhinnie they used a more direct route via Loch Cuaich. They had to climb deer fences and wade the river at Bhran Cottage to get to Glen Feshie. They were well supported and for much of the way they wore running shoes.
Sources: RCJournals - 1955, 1967, 1977; Articles by Tom Waghorn in Climber and Rambler(August 1966) and the MEN (June 1966) ; Alan Barber's notes.
Note: Aonach Mor's height was recorded as 3,999 feet in 1967. Now 4006 feet.
