The Ruins of a Colby Camp

For the second morning, we stirred from slumber to the majestic sight of Ben Klibreck presiding over the loch, its reflection a perfect mimicry under a regal Elizabethan ruff of cloud. As the forecast suggested a cloudier day, it seemed a propitious day for ascending its heights. Yet, as the day unfolded, any fleeting clouds dispersed, and the temperature steadily ascended, reaching a noteworthy 24°C in Altnaharra, warranting mention on the evening BBC weather forecast.

At the summit, a gentle breeze tempered the warmth, offering breathtaking vistas of the ‘Flow’ country. But was there a hint of sea fret or ‘haar’ to the north? Equally captivating were the remains of a stone structure nestled just below the peak.

This proved to be a temporary camp, erected by the Ordnance Survey during their meticulous triangulation of the land. Such encampments, dubbed Colby Camps after Major General Thomas Colby, the Survey’s Director from 1820 to 1846, are not uncommon in the upland landscape. Though the trig pillar atop the summit would not have been built by those early surveyors, it now reclines in ignominy, broken yet serving admirably as a seat¹http://canmore.org.uk/site/74135.

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  http://canmore.org.uk/site/74135