Area: Sutherland, Scotland
The most northerly Munro, and a fairly obvious second objective today after doing Ben Loyal first thing. Both peaks were obvious from the Orkney ferry, and dominate the landscape along the northern coast of Sutherland. I expected to see a few more people on Ben Hope, given its fame (and the fact that it was a beautiful day) but given the length of the drive down a single track lane along Loch Hope I was still surprised by the numbers, shocked almost. In fact, it was so busy I decided I would despatch it quickly. The path is very obvious and goes up steep ground before cutting right to gain a very broad ridge, almost a bowl, that leads up to the summit. It takes a while to get there, past numerous false summits, and I only just broke the hour in the end. Superb views, even better than from Ben Loyal this morning. Most notable, the huge sea lochs, particularly Loch Eriboll, which I had yet to reach. The wild terrain over to Foinaven and Arkle (where I intended to stay the night) looked wonderful, and I picked out Ben More Assynt and Quinaig (both done in 2011) to the south. An easy jog back down, a second lunch, and then it was over to Loch Eriboll where I parked and headed to Strabeg bothy for a memorable evening alone in a wonderful location.
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