Ben More on Mull (by bike and tent)

Ben More on the beautiful island of Mull is a Munro (a Scottish mountain over 3000 feet/914 m) and, since I have the long-term aim of scaling all 282 of the Munros, it was clear that it had to be climbed. But how? I was reluctant to take my car over to Mull on the ferry from Oban and so I resolved to take my bicycle instead – much cheaper and “greener”. I could then wild-camp overnight near Dhiseig, on the coast at the foot of Ben More, and climb the very popular mountain the next morning before travelling home. It was necessary to drive to Oban because of the usual near-impossibility of reserving a place on the train for the bike and so I decided to take a look at the nearby Black Lochs, a wildlife hotspot, before heading across to Mull.

Costs. Total cost of trip £40 (petrol + ferry + food).

Maps. OS Landranger: Sheet 48, 1:50,000.

Day 1: Drive to Oban (via the Black Lochs); ferry to Craignure on Mull; cycle to near Dhiseig; wild camp. I left home at 9.10 am but was delayed by heavy Bank Holiday traffic around Loch Lomond. Parked near the track down to the Black Lochs at about 11.55 am and started walking around this pleasant area, notable for its bird life and fairly rare butterflies and dragonflies. Returned to the car and reached Oban at 1.50 pm, finding it overrun with tourists and holiday traffic. I took some cash out of the ATM, bought some sandwiches and chocolate bars for Mull, and then went in search of a car park where I could leave my car overnight. This proved very difficult because of the traffic, poor signposting, incorrect information on the web during my prior research, and a broken ticket machine. Eventually, in desperation, I left my car in the supermarket car park, hoping it would be okay overnight (it was) and that I wouldn’t be fined (I wasn’t). After readying my bike, I caught the 3.55 pm ferry (pre-booked) to Craignure on Mull, arriving 4.40 pm. I started cycling along the A849 at about 5 pm and reached the village of Salen at 5.50 pm, where I bought a cold drink. Then I cycled along the B8035 and, after a bit of weighing up of the options, settled on a roadside wild camping spot at about 7 pm. It was a glorious evening; warm and completely midge-free. I ate some of my food, washed in a nearby stream, and went to bed at about 9 pm.

Day 2: Climb Ben More; cycle to Craignure; ferry to Oban; drive home. I emerged from the tent at 4.30 am and was underway at 5.20 am, leaving my camping gear where it was. I cycled the few hundred metres up the road to Dhiseig cottage and then started walking. Surprisingly, the weather was not great, with both wind and cloud increasing as I gained altitude. I reached the summit at 7.50 am but, buffeted by the wind, I did not stay long. On the way down I met dozens of people heading uphill and they all had the same question for me: “What time did you start out?!” I was back at my tent at 10.15 am (so 4 h 55 min for the hill) and packed my camping gear up. I started cycling back along the B8035 at 11.10 am, stopped for a cold drink and ice cream in Salen, and reached the Craignure to Oban ferry at 1.20 pm. I left Oban at about 3 pm and endured a predictably miserable drive back down to Glasgow, with the usual hold-ups along the Loch Lomond section of the A82. After a brief stop in my local supermarket, I was home at 6.15 pm.

Kit notes. I strapped my 1.5-kg, one-person tent and 3/4-length self-inflating mat to the rack on the back of my bike. On my back, I had my new 35-litre rucksack containing a sleeping bag, trekking towel, toiletries, camera, phone, and a few bike accessories. I took trekking poles with me, plus a large plastic dustbin liner to put my boots and rucksack in at night as there was no space for these inside my very small tent. On my feet, I had lightweight walking boots, even when cycling. For food, I bought 4 packs of sandwiches in Oban and 3 “double” chocolate bars.

Other useful links. I followed this walkhighlands.co.uk route for the simple “up and down” of Ben More.

CalMac ferries

Reflections. This trip succeeded in its aims: the ascent of Ben More and without use of a car on Mull. It was a pity that the weather on the morning of Day 2 was not as good as forecast, but one always has that risk. The cycling on Mull was pleasant as the roads were very quiet, although it would have been more pleasant had I not been quite so heavily laden with camping gear. The Black Lochs on the mainland is clearly an area that deserves further exploration.

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