Burns Supper, The Cabin, Balgowan
30 – 31 Jan 2026
Niel Craig & Pete Laing
Last year’s Burns Supper was partially kyboshed by storm Éowyn. Ferocious winds and dire warnings about travelling on Friday put everyone off until Saturday when things had calmed down a bit. Scenes of carnage greeted the brave few who travelled up on Saturday. Uprooted trees and debris littered the roads and it was a sadly depleted group that enjoyed their haggis, neeps and tatties in Watters Cottage at Kinlochleven that night.
Fast forward 1 year. Storm Chandra makes landfall on 26 January and devastates the SW but fails to reach Scotland. Game on!
It has been some years since we’ve enjoyed the hospitality of the Edinburgh Section’s ‘Cabin’ at Balgowan, near Laggan. Maybe the proximity of Raeburn’s just along the road (with preferential rates), rumours of dampness (unfounded) or the taxing, 3-minute, uphill walk to the hut were factors in us not visiting recently, but the powers that be decided that this year’s Burn Supper would be held here.
It was a full house. Whether this was down to the promise of fine dining and entertainment or the reported good conditions on Creag Meagaidh is unclear. Plans were made, groups were formed and the climbers were away at sparrow fart the next morning, heading for Meggie. The others enjoyed a more relaxed start before heading in the same direction but with lesser ambitions. The carpark was rammed. I’ve never seen so many cars there before. A sign of the times and probably something to do with some elite climbers waxing lyrical about the best conditions on Meggie for years a few days earlier. We shoe-horned our cars into what little space we could find, and enjoyed a pleasant walk up to Coire Ardair. The non climbers were on an archaeological mission, intending to try to find the site of the old JMCS Meggie Hut in the Coire. Attempts to find this had failed in previous years, but armed with better beta, some photographs and steely determination, we were hopeful of a better outcome this time. We reached the huge, obvious boulder below Raeburn’s Gully where the old MR box is still located and started to scout around for obvious looking boulders. A likely looking candidate was spotted a few hundred meters uphill from where we were and an advance party stumbled towards it in the deep snow. The wise stopped for first lunch in case this was a wild goose chase. As it happened, we hit gold first time, finding the site of the old hut. Little remains – some concrete (the door step?), some evidence of a built-up wall and a few rusty wall hangers that used to support the roof on the boulder that formed the back wall. Some pictures were taken, lunch was had and we wondered at the effort and shifts that our predecessors put in to build this howff. The cloud was down, it was late in the day and there was little enthusiasm to venture higher so we returned to the hut to prepare the meal and await the climbers. Little did we know how long that wait would be.
Hut site – then and now
Meanwhile, somewhere on the Post Face ……
The climbers had headed off early to climb on Creag Meagaidh. When they reached the car park at 7:30, it was almost full. It was going to be busy. Reaching the foot of Easy Gully, they started up Staghorn Gully, but decided to finish via the slightly harder South Pipe Direct which appeared to be empty. The initial pitch from the ledge on Staghorn was an enjoyable and sustained section of well rimed ice leading up to a 20m snow slope and an ice cave. The others followed and energy levels were restored after what was a very chilly belay below. The pitch out of the cave led onto a steep, short icefall. The moves were bold for the grade. After a good effort, they finally succumbed to defeat.
By this time, the cave was becoming rather crowded. An offer to take over the lead of the final pitch by a climber who had been patiently waiting in the queue was quickly accepted. He led over the crux to the final stance on the ridge which led to the plateau. There were still nine in the cave and it was after 4pm. It made sense to join forces and get everyone to the top as quickly as possible. The ‘caterpillar’ was quite an operation. Stories and banter were exchanged by those waiting as one by one, and two by two, climbers were roped up the final section. Above, the first 2 to arrive took control of what can only be described as the ‘belay machine’ – a well-oiled one at that. It was a marvel to behold. Meanwhile, others were put on rope coiling duties, the results of which were less than perfect due to tiredness and cold. From there, it was an easy solo to the plateau. Thankfully, there was no cornice to contend with.
It was pitch black as they made their way down the mountain and everyone felt relieved once they got back onto the path. What a day! They made it back to the hut in time for their Haggis, although perhaps not quite as early as intended. JMCS hospitality was offered to the 2 who had lent a hand on the hill and it was agreed that it was great to see everyone working together to get out of what could have easily become a rather precarious situation.
While all this was happening on the cliffs of Creag Meagaidh, back in the hut, tatties were being peeled, neeps were being mashed and haggis gently boiled. We mustn’t forget about the sprouts though, a recent non-traditional addition that has found its way on to the JMCS Burns Supper menu in recent years. Some say they provide additional atmosphere to the evening, though I suspect their full effect would only be properly appreciated the following morning. Anyway, by the wonders of modern communications the Staghorn Gully team WhatsApped us to say they were a bit delayed and would be at the top of the climb by 5:30 and at the car park by 8pm. And they’d be bringing a couple of guests for tea. Some ungenerous souls suggested that we should just have the soup and not let on that there was any. This was vetoed. We did however manage to make short work of the salsa and tortillas which wasn’t mentioned to the latecomers. We passed the time by playing cards, stoking the fire, spoiling our appetites with nibbles and an impromptu fiddle and whistle recital by the 2 resident musicians.
The climbers arrived at about 8:30 with 1 immediately going into full on cordon bleu mode and preparing a whisky sauce to complement the meal. For a first attempt it was fine but it was more consommé than sauce. The impressive flambé caused a few ooohs and aaahs and one or two folk eyeing up the nearest fire extinguishers. The Selkirk Grace was delivered, the haggis was addressed (in Italian. Spanish last year.) and much food and drink was enjoyed by all. There was little appetite left for recitations and the party settled down to discussing the events of the day over a few drams.
Flambé
On Sunday, groups went their separate ways with 1 having a gentle trundle round the Falls of Bruar. In an act of extreme daring, the party made an attempt of the Ladies Knitwear Hall (VS) but were forced to retreat from the route by extortionate prices. Wounds were licked in the tea shop before heading south. Another group, being made of sterner stuff, drove to Garva Bridge and made a slightly less daring attempt on Geal Charn where they enjoyed fine views of the Monadhliaths, the back of where all of yesterday’s action took place and the well plastered ‘Gorms in the distance. The youfs were treated to lunch in a homemade Zarsky shelter – a revelation to the lads but probably a bit of kit incompatible with the modern way of travelling super lightweight.
A great weekend with good food, company, new friends and great craic.