The southernmost Munro of the Skye Cuillin ridge – May

Isles of Rum and Eigg, looking south

Island of Canna

Geodha Daraich headland

Islands of Soay, Rum, and Eigg. Part of the glacier debris forming the terminal moraine below Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda is visible on the ground.

View of mainland

Steeper slopes approaching Coir' a' Ghrunnda

The slope steepening as we approach the entrance to Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Dramatic slabby rock scenery guarding upper Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Soay, Rum, and Eigg. A bit more of the terminal moraine is now visible.

Sgurr Dugh na Da Bheinn rising above Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Sgurr Sgumain, Sgurr Alasdair, and Sgurr Thearlaich on the northern side of the Loch, near which we had spent a night in a cave on the traverse earlier in the week

Sgurr Dubh na Da Bheinn and Caisteal a’ Garbh-choire

Patch of sunlight in upper corrie below Sgurr Alsadair

Looking east down into Garbh-choire and Loch Scavaig

Caisteal a’ Garbh-choire

Sgurr Sgumain, Alasdair, and Thearlaich

The way up south from the bealach to Sgurr nan Eag

Looking out to sea and down Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

B coming up from Bealach a’ Garbh-choire

Dramatic view along ridge looking north from Sgurr nan Eag

Island of Canna in the sea beyond Rubha an DÃ¹nain headland

Sgurr a’ Choire Bhig and Gars-bheinn, with the mainland in the distance

Loch Coruisk and beyond. East from Sgurr nan Eag

Sgurr Dubh Beag and Loch Coruisk. It shows the Dubh Ridge line from its lower reaches to Sgurr Dubh Mor.

Sgurr Dubh na Da Bheinn and Sgurr Dubh Mor (the upper part of the Dubhs)

Rum and Soay. Rum has its own smaller-scale Cuillin range. The currents in the sea were creating patterns in the water

Good view of the Red Cuillin beyond the Dubh Ridge

View north-north-west towards Sgurr Alasdair

Sgurr na Stri in the middle distance, with the mainland further away

Red Cuillin, Bla Bheinn, Sgurr na Stri, and Loch Coruisk

The Red Cuillin, Bla Bheinn, Sgurr na Stri, with Loch Coruisk in front of them

Sgurr a’ Choire Bhig and Gars-bheinn at the southern end of the ridge. Mainland mountains visible in the distance.

Rum and Canna

Looking out to the blue blue sea and the mainland. The lower slope of Gars-bheinn on the left

Sgurr Alasdair and other peaks over Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Upper part of slabs below Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Interesting rock formation

Worn rocks

Bouldery slope below Sgurr Dubh na Da Bheinn and Caisteal a’ Garbh-choire

Rock and water

Sandy shore at the edge of Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

As yet unopened thrift/sea pink by the loch shore

Blue-green Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

The clear water of Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda

Reflections in the water

Sgurr Dubh na Da Bheinn and Caisteal a’ Garbh-choire above Loch Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda, backed by a beautiful blue sky

Allt Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda flowing from the loch down slabs

Allt Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda flowing down to Loch Brittle and the sea

Allt Coir’ a’ Ghrunnda down the slabs

Lower Coir’ a Ghrunnda

The lower scree slopes of Sgurr Dearg with Coire Lagan to the right

The lower scree slopes of Sgurr Dearg with the shapely bowl of Coire Lagan to the right

A peaceful-looking Portree Harbour

Northern end of Black Cuillin from the road north of Sligachan

Northern end of the Black Cuillin from the road north of Sligachan

The Red Cuillin looking particularly red in an intense sunset

Having said goodbye to P and B1 who were heading home, and with a better forecast for our last day on Skye, we set off driving to Glenbrittle in order to go up to Sgurr nan Eag, a Munro that we had missed on our traverse due to the alternative start. We had considered Am Basteir, which was closer and looked to be a shorter return route, but decided on Sgurr nan Eag as it had easier scrambling to reach than Am Basteir (which has a Bad Step to negotiate).

The walk up the path towards Coirâ€™ aâ€™ Ghrunnda was pleasant, with clear views out to the Small Isles of Canna, Rum, and Eigg as well as the closer island of Soay. There were other parties heading up the steep path on the left-hand side of the corrie. We skirted around the Loch in the upper corrie, and picked our way over the boulders to reach the ridge by Caisteal aâ€™ Garbh-choire, which we had looked at from the other side on the first day of our traverse some days ago. Trying to stay close to the crest, we scrambled up to the summit of Sgurr nan Eag, which had beautifully sunny views all around. We opted to spend a bit of time there enjoying the conditions and scenery rather than rush to try to reach Gars-bheinn and return. B drew on his etching plate, and I walked around the summit area taking photographs and clambering around. It felt like a luxury to have the time to look at things in detail and take them in. A man from Germany whom we had met briefly along the ridge at the northern end of our traverse appeared suddenly, and we talked about the Scottish mountains until he went on his way, leaving us with the summit to ourselves.

Quite a few people were heading up towards Sgurr nan Eag as we descended, so we were lucky to have had the summit to ourselves. After getting back down, we drove to Portree and then back to Sligachan, where we took in the surroundings for our final evening on Skye.

Good company, kind weather, and of course the fantastic mountains all made for a great trip that we’ll be happy to look back on!