The Meet Report Onich, 2nd to 4th August 2013

Attending
Andre Hawryliw
John Blackwood
Jim Wyllie
Alan Wyllie

Base Camp Notes
The Alex McIntyre Memorial Hut is firmly established as a favourite with our club: not
too far from the Central Belt and with easy access to a lot of brilliant hills. Under
these circumstances it was perhaps surprising that so few of our club were in
attendance. It was even more surprising that no other clubs were in attendance, as
has often been the case with this large hut (sleeps 16). All the Eight Miles High
members present were able to have a bedroom to themselves (there are 5). It must
be the time of year with so many people away on holiday. There was no warden.

Weather Notes
Fairly wet and windy on Saturday with a lot of showers and the very occasional and
short sunny interval. On Sunday morning the sun broke through and the weather
improved considerably into the afternoon.

Hill Notes – Saturday
 All first rendezvoused at the Ice Climbing Wall in Kinloch Leven for morning
coffee and a decision on the day/weather. It was wet and nobody was that keen!
 Messrs Wyllie, Wyllie and Blackwood (sounds like a dodgy firm of solicitors)
went on a low level walk to explore the Blackwater Reservoir and Dam. The last
major ‘Navvy’ built project in the UK, the dam is 27m high and 914 m long, and was
built in the early 1900s in what was then very rugged and almost inaccessible terrain.
Therefore built by hand, along with some 6km of concrete aqueduct and nearly 13km
of steel pipe in four parallel pipelines, there were many fatalities, most of whom are
buried in a small cemetery near the dam using concrete grave markers.
 Andre Hawryliw climbed Glas Bhein from Kinloch Leven village, going out
along Loch Eilde Mor. The south side of the loch was particularly wet.

Hill Notes – Sunday
 Messrs Wyllie, Wyllie and Blackwood timed their departure so that they could
stop in Perth to watch their team (Hearts) play away at St Johnston.
 Andre Hawryliw climbed Mam na Gualainn (another Corbett) from the edge of
Loch Leven in steadily improving conditions.