Outdoor Adventures with Ancient Brit
Munro 2007 - Day 17: 2nd May
Wednesday 2nd May
Aonach Eagach (Ridge)
Am Bodach 943 m (Munro Top 9)
Meall Dearg 953 m (Munro 26) (Naked Munro 17)
Stob Coire Leith 940 m (Munro Top 10)
Sgorr nam Fiannaidh 967 m (Munro 27) (Naked Munro 18)
Distance: 10.7 km
Ascent: 1114 m
Time: 6:40 hours
Mountain name: Aonach Eagach Pronounced: Ernoch Egg-yoch Translated:
Notched Ridge
Mountain name: Meall Dearg Pronounced: Miaowl Jerrack Translated:
Red Hill
Mountain name: Sgorr nam Fiannaidh Pronounced: Skor num Freeonly Translated:
Peak of the Fingalians
Weather: There was frost on the windscreen of the van in the morning. It was clear all day
again, but with only a light wind it felt much hotter than recent days.
Nature note: I heard Cuckoos when I set out at the start of my walk and again in the
woods around the Clachaig Inn at the end of my descent. The ridge was devoid of life
except for midges which were putting in their first substantial appearance of the summer.
There are hundreds of species of midge and they don’t all bite. Fortunately these early
season midges seemed to be of a non-biting variety.
Geological note: The rock in the Glen Coe area is almost all of volcanic origin and much of
it is superb for scrambling. Meall Dearg consists of pink porphyrite which is rather
different than the rhyolite and andesite lavas that make up most of the ridge. Once you
reach Sgurr nam Fiannaidh the rock is mainly quartzite which helps account for the
difficulty of my descent route since quartzite breaks up into boulderfields and scree and
quartzite slabs tend to be rather slippery.
The Route: The Aonach Eagach is probably the most difficult ridge on the mainland of
Scotland. There is exposed scrambling at Grade 3 and there is no easy descent. The route
is serious and committing as there are no descent routes once you set out on the ridge. I
parked at the main viewpoint in Glen Coe and had to walk a short distance up the A82 to
the next parking area where there is a well engineered path heading up Am Bodach. When
it reaches the crags the path is no longer maintained but it winds with a few easy rock-
steps to the summit. The route along the ridge is fairly obvious and the rock is in good
condition for scrambling. There is relatively easy scrambling between Am Bodach and
Meall Dearg and then it gets much more difficult on the section to Stob Coire Leith. It is
then easy walking to Sgorr nam Fiannaidh. I then headed on along the ridge before
descending down a path which follows the west side of Clachaig Gully. This descent is
described by the guidebook: “This is steep and loose, with the added problem of some
slabby rock to descend with considerable exposure at times.” The descent was certainly
more dangerous than the Aonach Eagach and I would recommend doing the ridge in the
reverse direction or descending in the direction of the Pap of Glen Coe and then dropping
down from the col before the Pap.
Personal note: I had breakfast at a Little Chef at Spean Bridge. I wouldn’t normally
choose Little Chef for breakfast but it was the only restaurant open at 7:30am.
I parked at the viewpoint in Glen Coe. There were a couple of tents camped beside the
River Coe which looked as if they were in the same place where I spent a week on my first
visit to Scotland with the Scouts about 40 years ago. (I don’t think camping is allowed in
the glen nowadays)
I had traversed the Aonach Eagach several times before, including a traverse in
winter conditions which was very difficult. It’s not a ridge I would want to be on in bad
weather which is why I chose to do it today. The Aonach Eagach is demanding and I found
it hard work as I have done very little climbing in the past 20 years. The thing I found
most difficult compared with 20 years ago was the loss in flexibility in the knees which
makes scrambling more difficult. There were quite a few pairs of hikers on the ridge as
well as a few individuals. These included a young Australian couple and a couple of
Yorkshire men heading in the opposite direction. I spent some time on the summits with a
pair of 60 year-old brothers who had driven up from Glasgow for the day.
It was quite hot, even at 3000ft, and would have been warm enough to climb stripped
off if it hadn’t been so busy. I did manage to strip off when I had my main break of the
day at 3pm on Stob Coire Leith and I remained naked until I got down to the Clachaig Inn.
On leaving Stob Coire Leith a military aircraft flew overhead, certainly not more than
100m above me. You get used to jets training in the mountains, but this one seemed to be
getting very close to the mountain ridges as it passed over them.
I hadn’t intended taking the steep route down to the Clachaig Inn and if I had read
the guidebook carefully I wouldn’t have done so. I was attracted by the good path and well
cairned route at the top of the descent and deviated from the decent I had made on
previous occasions in the direction of the Pap of Glen Coe.
I met the two Yorkshire men outside the Clachaig Inn and had a chat with them. I
wasn’t carrying any money so I was delighted when one of them bought me a pint of beer
and then they drove me back to my van.
Overnight: I drove on up to Glen Etive and spent the night in one of the small parking
areas at the head of the Glen. Manchester United lost their European Champion’s League
semi-final to AC Milan.
Aonach Eagach (Ridge)
Am Bodach 943 m (Munro Top 9)
Meall Dearg 953 m (Munro 26) (Naked Munro 17)
Stob Coire Leith 940 m (Munro Top 10)
Sgorr nam Fiannaidh 967 m (Munro 27) (Naked Munro 18)
Distance: 10.7 km
Ascent: 1114 m
Time: 6:40 hours
Mountain name: Aonach Eagach Pronounced: Ernoch Egg-yoch Translated:
Notched Ridge
Mountain name: Meall Dearg Pronounced: Miaowl Jerrack Translated:
Red Hill
Mountain name: Sgorr nam Fiannaidh Pronounced: Skor num Freeonly Translated:
Peak of the Fingalians
Weather: There was frost on the windscreen of the van in the morning. It was clear all day
again, but with only a light wind it felt much hotter than recent days.
Nature note: I heard Cuckoos when I set out at the start of my walk and again in the
woods around the Clachaig Inn at the end of my descent. The ridge was devoid of life
except for midges which were putting in their first substantial appearance of the summer.
There are hundreds of species of midge and they don’t all bite. Fortunately these early
season midges seemed to be of a non-biting variety.
Geological note: The rock in the Glen Coe area is almost all of volcanic origin and much of
it is superb for scrambling. Meall Dearg consists of pink porphyrite which is rather
different than the rhyolite and andesite lavas that make up most of the ridge. Once you
reach Sgurr nam Fiannaidh the rock is mainly quartzite which helps account for the
difficulty of my descent route since quartzite breaks up into boulderfields and scree and
quartzite slabs tend to be rather slippery.
The Route: The Aonach Eagach is probably the most difficult ridge on the mainland of
Scotland. There is exposed scrambling at Grade 3 and there is no easy descent. The route
is serious and committing as there are no descent routes once you set out on the ridge. I
parked at the main viewpoint in Glen Coe and had to walk a short distance up the A82 to
the next parking area where there is a well engineered path heading up Am Bodach. When
it reaches the crags the path is no longer maintained but it winds with a few easy rock-
steps to the summit. The route along the ridge is fairly obvious and the rock is in good
condition for scrambling. There is relatively easy scrambling between Am Bodach and
Meall Dearg and then it gets much more difficult on the section to Stob Coire Leith. It is
then easy walking to Sgorr nam Fiannaidh. I then headed on along the ridge before
descending down a path which follows the west side of Clachaig Gully. This descent is
described by the guidebook: “This is steep and loose, with the added problem of some
slabby rock to descend with considerable exposure at times.” The descent was certainly
more dangerous than the Aonach Eagach and I would recommend doing the ridge in the
reverse direction or descending in the direction of the Pap of Glen Coe and then dropping
down from the col before the Pap.
Personal note: I had breakfast at a Little Chef at Spean Bridge. I wouldn’t normally
choose Little Chef for breakfast but it was the only restaurant open at 7:30am.
I parked at the viewpoint in Glen Coe. There were a couple of tents camped beside the
River Coe which looked as if they were in the same place where I spent a week on my first
visit to Scotland with the Scouts about 40 years ago. (I don’t think camping is allowed in
the glen nowadays)
I had traversed the Aonach Eagach several times before, including a traverse in
winter conditions which was very difficult. It’s not a ridge I would want to be on in bad
weather which is why I chose to do it today. The Aonach Eagach is demanding and I found
it hard work as I have done very little climbing in the past 20 years. The thing I found
most difficult compared with 20 years ago was the loss in flexibility in the knees which
makes scrambling more difficult. There were quite a few pairs of hikers on the ridge as
well as a few individuals. These included a young Australian couple and a couple of
Yorkshire men heading in the opposite direction. I spent some time on the summits with a
pair of 60 year-old brothers who had driven up from Glasgow for the day.
It was quite hot, even at 3000ft, and would have been warm enough to climb stripped
off if it hadn’t been so busy. I did manage to strip off when I had my main break of the
day at 3pm on Stob Coire Leith and I remained naked until I got down to the Clachaig Inn.
On leaving Stob Coire Leith a military aircraft flew overhead, certainly not more than
100m above me. You get used to jets training in the mountains, but this one seemed to be
getting very close to the mountain ridges as it passed over them.
I hadn’t intended taking the steep route down to the Clachaig Inn and if I had read
the guidebook carefully I wouldn’t have done so. I was attracted by the good path and well
cairned route at the top of the descent and deviated from the decent I had made on
previous occasions in the direction of the Pap of Glen Coe.
I met the two Yorkshire men outside the Clachaig Inn and had a chat with them. I
wasn’t carrying any money so I was delighted when one of them bought me a pint of beer
and then they drove me back to my van.
Overnight: I drove on up to Glen Etive and spent the night in one of the small parking
areas at the head of the Glen. Manchester United lost their European Champion’s League
semi-final to AC Milan.
Gear Aonach and
Aonach Dubh
Aonach Dubh
Glen Coe and
Aonach Dubh
Aonach Dubh
Ben Nevis from
Am Bodach
Am Bodach
Gear Aonach and
Aonach Dubh
Aonach Dubh
Ben Nevis
Aonach Eagach
Aonach Eagach
Aonach Eagach
Stob Coire Leith and
Aonach Eagach
Aonach Eagach
Clachaig Gully
Summit, Meall Dearg
Summit , Sgorr nam
Fiannaidh
Fiannaidh
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