Beinn Fhionnlaidh (Finlay's Hill), is one of the jewels of Appin - a superb viewpoint at the end of a long ridge. It rises rather majestically over the head of Loch Creran, a saltwater loch, which brings the sea right up into the mountains of Lochaber.
The old A-road makes a circuit around the lower part of Loch Creran, from which a dead-end spur runs up the glen past some impressive houses and through dens forests. At the point at which cars are allowed no further, a walkers carpark is provided near Elleric, from where a track forks off to the right across the Glenure estate. They seem to welcome walkers as the mountains are signposted, and gates provided alongside the cattlegrids on the estate tracks.
Navigationally the walk is straightforward. The track from the car park leads to the estate house, at which bear left until forestry is reached - then turn right through the trees to find the start of the long ridge which leads (via several false summits) to the trig point and amazing views! A recent hydro-scheme has made directions in many of the Munro books obsolete, but there is a path of sorts which leaves the new bulldozed track. We didn't use the path on the way up (We missed it!), but that wasn't a problem - our self-composed route was probably better underfoot than the soggy path on which we returned. It is a bit of a gruelling slog - but a terrific one!
Very unusually the weather on the west coast was fantastic while Perth lingered in low flying cloud and a grey dankness all day long! Views across the Nevis range, all of Glencoe, Mull, even Knoydart were visible.
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