UKH

Many years ago my then climbing partner proposed a trip to Scotland to do a well starred multipitch, but it was remote, involved a long walk in, would have been somewhere on the VDiff-VS spectrum and I vaguely think it had the word buttress in its name. Sadly the trip never happened and I've now been trying to identify where it was.

After flicking through the index in Andy Nisbet's Scottish Rock climbs, I think it may well have been Fionn Buttress. However I am just checking if anyone is aware of any other route which matches those parameters, in case I've barked up the wrong tree. Thanks in advance.

You might need to narrow it down a bit more!

Central Buttress Beinn Eighe?

Don't know if that's it, but Fionn Buttress may well be the best route fitting that description.

It's not a "buttress" but Mitre Ridge fits otherwise

That might be a contender. I got the impression the walk in might be in excess of 3 hours.

Depends obviously but CB probably isn't quite as long a walk as that in summer.

That's certainly a hell of a walk in according to my guide book and might be a possibility as I cannot be dead certain that it was XXX 'buttress'. Cheers.

I got the distinct impression that it would take hours to get there, we'd probably have it to ourselves and of course be miles from help if anything hit the fan. 😊

If you haven't been there Central Buttress Ben Eighe is probably the most impressive of the contenders so far. A bit more likely to have others on it though. Fionn Buttress is pretty good too and is south facing, I remember getting fried on it. 

Wisdom Buttress on Beinn Lair is a contender (not so well protected).

You could do all three in a long weekend. 

Thanks Roger. Wisdom Buttress/Ben Lair are not in my guidebook so I'll have to track that one down, but your suggestions for a long weekend have been noted. Cheers.

For either Fionn Buttress or Wisdom Buttress, use a mountain bike for the approach. There's a good hard track more than half the distance, at least until you start to lose height. Ignore the "no mountain bikes' sign on the gate, if it's still there - the path was paid for by public money, for the stalkers bringing deer carcasses out on the back of hill ponies. A mountain bike certainly causes a lot less damage than a laden pony!

Some folk even nip in and out for the day, though I've always stopped in the bothy to make the best of the long approach. Something in the order of 4 hours approach to Carn Mor if walking, maybe half hour less for Beinn Lair. Fastest approach to both would be taking a kayak or canoe over Loch Maree, then directly over the bealach, if that is an option?

Rock on the former route is lovely Lewisian gneiss, wasn't so impressed with the hornblende schist on Wisdom Buttress.

Many thanks for all the info Gary. One of my pals is into canoeing....hmm. I think I can see a little plan coming together.

Did it have a delightful pocketed pitch in the middle?  Fionn does.

Squareface (VD) ?

Alas my mate didn't give any detail about rock quality or even rock type which would have helped pinpoint it.

Looking at the photos and logbook comments that's defo another one to go on the list. Cheers.

I've approached Carnmore both by cycling to the edge of the forest and by kayaking across Loch Maree. I'm not sure kayaking saves time and is probably more effort with quite a flog in and out over the hill, but a lovely way to get there!

Cheers Robert.