… fog, fog and more fog; that was the outlook, hmm. I went anyway because if nothing else I needed the exercise and I could check out this new location.
Well as it turned out the weather forecast was spot on for once, I arrived at the parking bay and couldn’t see a thing. Garnering my camera bag and with the head torch fired up I set off. It was up hill from the start and in the moist foggy conditions the light from my torch reflected back off the heavy moisture in the air reducing visibility. Head down I pushed on, moisture condensing on my hair and dripping on to my nose, trekking poles click clacking on the hard path, the only noise in the otherwise dampened silence.
Stob Coire Easain floats above the low cloud
Pushing on further checking the GPS for my proximity to the point I’d need to turn off and I duly did so. Pushing, pushing and I stopped for a breather, looked up and wow; I was greeted with an absence of fog, clear skies; a few stars still visible.
There was a temperature inversion, it was a beautiful morning up here, grim dull and dreich down below. All the mountain tops were above the low cloud and I could see my location quite clearly.
A river of low cloud flows down through Glencoe
In one direction the sun was only a distant, warm glow on the horizon, in the other dirction the moon was setting above the mountains of Glencoe.
Moonset
Like the proverbial kid in a candy shop I explored various hillocks in the vicinity not knowing which way to point the camera first. As the sun started to gain height I ascended the higher hill behind me to see what was over the back, it was a warm ascent.
Ben Nevis, Scotland’s highest mountain enjoys the early sun
Gazing over to Ben Nevis the inversion was all around, it felt as though I was on an island. It was soon time to break out the coffee and Croissants and sit in the warmth of the morning sun. The coffee tasted good, the croissants delicious and well earned.
Ben Nevis and the Mamores
With just a couple of bites left of my croissant I was joined by those ever faithful companions the Scottish midges, my coffee and croissant were finished pacing up and down trying to avoid being their breakfast. It was time to head back down and descend into the murk.
Sure enough I left the warm bright sunshine behind together with the visibility. I made it back to the car, the parking bay full of cars as the day trippers were preparing for the ascent of the various surrounding mountains, what a treat they were in for.
I made a stop off on Rannoch Moor to shoot a panorama the only bright colour in the landscape being the mass off bright red berries on a Rowan Tree.
The weather forecast had been right, what a miserable foggy day; it was great… :)