Date: Saturday 2nd June 2018
Company: Myself and Becky
Distance: 22.5km, Ascent: 860m
Time walking: 6Hrs 15Mins
After work on Friday, we made our way across to Applecross without really having any kind of hill plan in mind. On arrival in Applecross we visited the Applecross Inn, which is always a must, and began considering our hill options for the following day. On spotting Dun Caan, across the Inner Sound, I recalled ascending this fantastic, prominent hill on a day of zero visibility. I knew I had to put that right with a re-visit to Raasay and re-ascent of Dun Caan. We therefore abandoned Applecross that same evening and made our way round the coast as far as Loch Carron before parking up for the night.
On awakening the following morning and looking out the van window, I was treated to a wonderful sight. I popped out of the van to take some photos of Loch Carron which looked almost surreal with mist, inversion and reflections. I posted the following pic on Twitter and was amazed that within a day of posting it had reached 1000 likes and had gained me over 100 new followers.
Overnight parking spot at Loch Carron:
From Loch Carron, I drove to Sconser on the Isle of Skye where on arrival we had around twenty minutes to get ourselves suited and booted, make some sandwiches and get ready to catch the first ferry of the day across to Raasay. I decided it was not worth taking the van across and that we would ascend Dun Caan from the ferry. Going across as foot passengers cost less than £6 return for the two of us. A real bargain!
Aboard the Sconser to Raasay ferry:
Click here to see a map of the route undertaken
On arrival on Raasay, we initially made our way towards Inverarish where we noticed a shop that we would potentially visit on the way back. We then made our way towards Glen Lodge with a view to starting our ascent from the disused mine. The track was very much overgrown and disappeared into the trees so I was not keen to progress this way. Instead, we therefore retraced our steps to take the North (Pole) road and then the good quality standard route up Dun Caan.
Heading towards the North Pole:
By the time we reached the sign marking the start of the hill track, we were already feeling the heat and began rationing our water.
Start of hill track leading towards Dun Caan:
Thanks to the good track, it didn't take long to reach the small lochan and Loch na Meilich.
Ascending the Dun Caan hill track:
On arrival at the small lochan we stopped for a break to admire literally dozens of Azure Damselflies which were darting about above the surface of the loch.
Dun Caan from small lochan:
Dun Caan:
We then made our way down to Loch na Meilich before commencing the final ascent of Dun Caan.
At Loch na Meilich:
Looking back towards small lochan:
The final ascent is quite steep but straight-forward thanks to a zig-zagging track.
Final ascent of Dun Caan:
It was great to reach the summit of Dun Caan and get some views.
View from the summit of Dun Caan:
Becky at Dun Caan's trig point:
We spent around ten to fifteen minutes at the summit before commencing our descent and return to the ferry via the same route.
View from the summit of Dun Caan:
Becky just below the summit of Dun Caan:
Cumulonimbus forming towards the mainland:
During the walk out, we spent a good twenty minutes again at the small lochan admiring the views and the damsels.
Looking back to Dun Caan from small lochan:
On reaching Inverarish, we visited the shop to buy a large bottle of juice and some ice lollies before walking the final mile or so back to the ferry.
Dun Caan is definitely one of my favourite small hills.