The woman fae the train arrived around  0030; but was gracious enough to slink off elsewhere and back to sleep on the bone jarring boards; well - for a bit. 

Loki was unsettled by the other dog being in the proximity, and so at 0630 I got up and out and had a stand up breakfast out the back. 

Clouds still sitting at 400m across the hills. The forecast wasn't great either; rain from 2pm.  So it wasn't much of a decision to nab the nearest Munro (Maol Cheinn Dearg) and save the Corbetts and Sgurr Ruaidh and Beinn Liath Mhor for another sunnier day.

It's a decent track up to the bealach then a scree covered zig zag for a bit before levelling out across the summit ridge, steadily and rockily making our way to the top. From the bealcach, the visibility closed in but there's ample cairns and path and as long as you keep climbing, it's easy enough to find your way to the top.

The blip is the magnificent view that greeted us at the top. As I posted on IG - "all that for that??!!?"

Not lingering, we turned and headed back to the bothy to pick up gear; a couple of folks out but I was at the bothy for 1000 so still early. 

Onwards down the glen, and just as I was about to join the main road, the rain started. I remembered an open barn somewhere on the walk from the village but my memory was a little off as it took another 40 minutes to reach, by which time we were drenched. 

We sat awhile in the barn, perched on a clay pidgeon trap mounted on a trailer, next to a Rayburn that looked like it had once been plumbed in there. The rain eased and we continued on to Strathcarron; changed into dry  clothes in the otherwise deserrted waiting room on the platform and read for the 45 minutes until the Inverness train arrived. 

Loki was spark out in minutes; I too nodded off and read; changed at Inverness then Stirling and finally got a 47 home from the west end and home after 10. Just in time for MOTD.

She was in; having escaped for the evening and a chilli jacket potato was well received. As was the cold beer. Rehydration is very important after a taxing day in the hills.

47 left.