Snowshoe loop: map & data
Total climbing: 191 m
Total time: 01:27:28
1.5 miles in 1h30 from 09.15 to 10.45 – average 1 mph in snowshoes with steep ascent (average gradient 18%)
Sunday was to be our last day in Braemar.
We’d rented the house for three nights and could have stayed till Monday, but it was unclear how passable the roads were.
The weather looked threatening on Monday, and we weren’t going to risk another epic ride in the snow, after Friday’s odyssey.
Off to the Creag Choinnich Nature Trail
With a heavy heart, we packed our things and prepared ourselves to leave Braemar.
But not before heading for the park behind our house, in snowshoes. What a fantastic idea.
9.18 – Half a tipi
The sign at the gate describes the park as: “a mixed woodland of pines and larches with an understorey of heather and blaeberry”.
Our plan was to follow the Creag Choinnich Nature Trail, which is a low ground walk. It was an excellent plan for snowshoes, but it didn’t last long.
9.31 – Maria in her new snowshoes *
We were tramping along without a care in the world when we realised we’d missed one of the signs. That’s how we ended up climbing Creag Choinnich, a rather steep little hill, instead of staying on the trail.
I love those Gaelic names. Creag means “rock”, and Choinnich is “mossy” or “boggy”. Apparently this is how you pronounce Creag Choinnich: /ˈkʰɾʲek ˈxɤɲɪç/.
I know, I can’t say it either.
9.40 – Simon speeding up
A bit about Braemar
From here we had a panoramic view of Braemar and Morrone, the Corbett we’d climbed the day before.
Braemar has several royal connections. I guess the best known one is Balmoral castle, which is just 9 miles from Braemar. Balmoral has been one of the royal family residences since 1852.
Another royal connection is “The Games”, an annual Highland Games Gathering held at Braemar in September and attended by the royals. Also, the Queen is the patron of the Braemar Royal Highland Society.
9.43 – View of Braemar & Morrone
We pressed on and before we knew it we’d climbed nearly 200m in snowshoes.
It was exhausting, like last year when we attempted to climb that Corbett by taking a steep shortcut.
Alas, as we know by now, it’s not the climb that’s the hardest in snowshoes, but the descent.
9.51 – At the top of Creag Choinnich
The top of Creag Choinnich is somewhat rocky, which makes me think I rather looked like a gigantic duck.
You see, I was twisting and turning my legs in the air, not quite sure where to land my feet to avoid the boulders.
9.59 – Beginning the steep descent
In Braemar, you’re never too far from royalty.
The Queen’s Drive is a picturesque carriageway, and one of Queen Victoria’s favourite excursions from Balmoral. We’ve got to do it next time.
10.13 – Simon observing the Queen’s Drive
Going back home
According to the information sign, there are deer in this park, but we didn’t spot any.
During the night, though, one of them had paid us a visit. It had got into our garden and wandered around for a while. In the morning, all that remained was a single line of tidy footprints.
10.40 – The end of our hike
We met just a handful of people on the trail, none of them in snowshoes. You never see anyone in snowshoes in Scotland.
We bought them after getting the idea a year ago, when we went to the mountains in Japan. When we returned to the UK, we rented three pairs for our trip to Bridge of Orchy with Sister, and loved them. A month later we bought our own.
Hopefully we’ll be able to use them again in Laggan in a couple of weeks.
10.42 – A sign for a warmer season
Our Braemar adventure had come to an end. Still with the snowshoes on, we headed for the house.
10.43 – The road between the park & our rented house
Simon had found that house a few weeks before. It was a marvellously warm and super clean place. It had three bedrooms, a large kitchen, a sitting-room/dining-room with a log fire, two bathrooms, a dry room, a conservatory, and a huge garden.
We’ve both agreed to come back, but not just for a couple of days.
I took all the photos with the Panasonic.
* Simon took this photo.