After the disappointment of missing out on our Ben Nevis walk we tracked down a stunning little mountain in Kintail for our final day. But once again the weather was against us. The rain was still pouring down and winds were picking up to gale force on the hills. Forecasts were indicating that it might be a bit brighter out on the coast so we headed off towards Mallaig for a hike over a hill covered peninsular to another abandoned crofting village and beach. And what a good choice that turned out to be! Although there were a few heavy rain showers it was for the most part bright and sunny, and the walk was simply spectacular.
After a fairly strenuous trek over the hills we finally descended onto a very flat grass plain that leads onto the beach. The little abandoned village of Peanmeanach sits on the edge of the beach with half a dozen or so little crofts layed out in a semi circle looking out to sea. One of the crofts has been restored to create a bothy – the remainder are just roofless ruins. It’s hard to imagine that people actually lived here. It’s so remote, and the only route in is over the hills or by sea.
On the way back Beanie made the most of her final birthday outing by bounding through the heather at the side of the path. It was lovely to watch but it made the walk more taxing. The last thing you need while traversing bogs and slippery wet rocks is an unpredictable and surprisingly forceful sideways tug from a playful Beagle girl, so of course that’s what we got. By the time we crossed the little railway bridge near the end of the walk we were tired out, but what a great trip we’d had!
