Lawers and Loch Tay

1981 Lawers & Loch Tay (Malcolm)
6th February to 8th February
We travelled up on a Friday night and discovered the route up Strathyre was a good way North.
Staying the night at the appropriately named 'Munroe Hotel' in Strathyre, we soon found that the atmosphere at The Inn a few doors down was more lively.
The place was full of red and white scarves and we wondered if Man Utd perhaps had a game in Scotland.  We should have known better.  It was the Welch contingent in support of their teams attendance at Murrayfield to play Scotland.  The had no tickets for the match and intended to watch it on TV.  They had saved up all year for the trip, and it was a common feature, to just be in Scotland at the time of the game was enough. 
A posh piano had been 'borrowed on trial 'for the weekend and shipped up on the coach from Wales. 

February 7th.1981
Malcolm
Three Munros
Meall Corranaich.  Beinn Ghlas.   Ben Lawers. (Loch Tay).
We parked at the visitor centre and took in Meall Corranaich and Beinn Ghlas en route for Ben Lawers, making it three for the day.
It was wet and windy but these were three fast Munroes.  We started at 11am and were finished by 3pm.  There was some difficulty in the retreat from Ben Lawers due to high wind from the S.W. and driving hail and sleet.  For once we actually beat Naismith !!
7 miles. 3800ft. 4 hours.
We spent the evening and night at the Kingshouse Hotel near Balquidder, which at this time had the main road passing its door.
The place was full and included many locals who had been to the Scottish match (which I think Scotland won).  There was a fairly refined hill shepherd from the Etive area who was a fanatical Rabbie Burns fan.  Apart from entertaining us with recitals (including 'timorous beasties'), he also enlightened us that the poet had in fact a large following in Russia of all places.  It was a lively night.

8th February.1981
Malcolm.
Two Munros.
Ben Vorlich  Stuc a'Chroin
Parking at Edinample at the west end of Loch Tay we followed Glen Ample for a mile or so then headed up into Corrie Fhuadaraich and then made a beeline for Ben Vorlich.  It was cloudy, breezy, and with light flurries of snow.  We were fortunate to obtain some views, but not from the summits.
From Vorlich we headed for Stuc a Chroin fairly directly.  It presented a considerable buttress and this gave a steep icy scramble up a gash that received no sunlight.  At this point we did not possess ice axe and crampons and we began to wish that we did.  There was little by way of views as a reward, but by way of contrast, once we started the descent, it became hot and sunny.
I reached my 50th Munroe on todays second peak.
10 miles. 3600ft.