route is highlighted on the relevant section of Ordnance Survey’s 1:50,000 maps.
The main route described is shown in orange, then any alternatives are first blue, then green, then pink, where applicable.
The small section of map provided is not a replacement for carrying the relevant OS map. For those who prefer to use the more detailed 1:25,000 maps, the map numbers for these as well as for the 1:50,000 maps are given in the route information box. HARVEY Maps also cover many of the mountain areas in this book – www.harveymaps.co.uk.
Grid references
Grid references (expressed as two groups of three digits) are given for the start and end points, and summits of all the mountains included, as well as for some useful points along the way, particularly where routes lack paths or key landmarks to aid navigation. These are six-figure references based on GPS readings taken by the author while on the routes.
Distance and ascent
Figures given for distance and ascent both refer to the whole route from start to end. This means the level of ascent is often greater than the height of the peak being climbed.
Difficulty
Rather than give any kind of grading of difficulty, the guide provides an overview of the type of terrain, gradient, exposure, length and need for navigation on each route, to allow you to judge for yourself how easy or difficult you will find a route. A very long walk without any exposure may be difficult for some, while a short walk down steep scree is easy, and vice versa. This allows you to match routes to your own skills and confidence.
Times
Timings given for each route are the walking time to complete the whole route. They are based loosely on 4km an hour plus 30 minutes for every 300m of ascent (Naismith’s Rule) and the author’s own timings. They do not include time for breaks, which should be added to give a clearer idea of the length of time needed. A 4hr30 route may appear short, but can easily become a full day out by the time you’ve stopped for lunch and had a couple of breaks.
Getting to routes
Details of the starting point for each route are given in the information box. In the majority of cases these refer to a car park, but where there is none, details of where you can park are given. Information on how to reach a route by public transport, where possible, is also included and while it is hard to reach many of Scotland’s mountains without the use of car, in an age of climate change we should all be encouraged to do so where we can.
Something else
Also in the information box are details of one or two of the best attractions or things to do near the route, with relevant contact details. These attractions range from ruined castles to real ale pubs, and are intended to enhance your enjoyment of your visit to an area, or fill some time while waiting for a train, bus or lift, and are by no means exhaustive. Visiting attractions and facilities in rural areas, rather than just turning up to do a walk and leaving again, also helps the local economy, so you can feel good about yourself while drinking that pint!
SUTHERLAND AND THE FAR NORTH
Suilven and Loch Druim Suardalain
1
Ben Loyal (765m) in Gaelic Beinn Laghail, probably ‘the law mountain’, from the Norse ‘laga fiall’
| Start | GR 584 546 |
| Distance | 14km |
| Ascent | 820m |
| Time | 5hr30 |
| Terrain | A good walk in on tracks gives way to grassy slopes that are less challenging or steep than the rocky peaks of Ben Loyal might suggest. |
| Maps | OS Landranger 10, OS Explorer 447 |
| Access | Ben Loyal forms part of the Ben Loyal Estate (01847 611291) |
| Getting there | Start at the turning to Ribigill Farm off the minor road around the Kyle of Tongue (584 546). There is parking for a couple of cars. You could walk to here from Tongue. There is a daily bus from Thurso to Tongue (Traveline Scotland 0871 200 22 33 www.travelinescotland.com). |
| Something else | Take a walk on the stunning sands of the Kyle of Tongue, or visit the ruins of Varrich Castle, once home to the MacKay clan chiefs. |
A royal hill in Scotland’s far north, Ben Loyal is renowned for its queens, castles and treasure. Climbing far above the Kyle of Tongue, this route gives you an opportunity to conquer your own castle, and gaze out to where the North Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean.
Ben Loyal is known to many as ‘the queen of Scottish mountains’, although it’s not clear why, as the name doesn’t seem to have royal connotations. But ‘queen’ or not, Ben Loyal does have an impressive castle.
The granite tower of An Caisteal, ‘the castle’, is Ben Loyal’s highest top, at 765m. It is just one of the five rocky tops that crown the ridge, causing it to be described as castellated. From each of these tops you gain fantastic panoramic views over the surrounding countryside, composed as it is of vast swathes of wild land and water. The shifting white sands of the Kyle of Tongue in particular are a sight to be seen.
Ben Loyal across the Kyle of Tongue
In the middle of the Kyle you can see the Rabbit Islands, so named because rabbits were introduced to them in the 1700s to provide meat for the local laird. You also look down to small Lochan Harkel. Not that notable in its appearance, it does hold an extraordinary story and, perhaps, treasure!
In 1746, the Hazard, a Jacobite ship carrying over £13,000 in gold coins to fund Bonnie Prince Charlie’s rebellion, hid in the Kyle of Tongue, hoping to evade capture by HMS Sheerness, a navy frigate. The Hazard’s crew took the coins ashore with a plan to deliver them by land, but the crew were attacked and threw the coins into Lochan Hakel. Bonnie Prince Charlie sent 1500 men to retrieve the money, but they were defeated en route, and it is thought that the government recovered most of the coins. If the 1500 men had fought at the Battle of Culloden instead, they might have prevented the Jacobites’ defeat.
Route
From the start, follow the road to Ribigill farm, going left where it divides to pass between the farm buildings. Continue along the track from here, which runs between the fields heading towards Ben Loyal. Ignore a fork off to the right to head left and across a small ford. This track takes you across level boggy ground towards the ruined farm of Cunside.
Cross the Allt Lon Malmsgaig (580 515) to the same side as Cunside, but then leave the track to take a small path heading south-southeast towards the Bealach Clais nan Ceap. This climbs up the right-hand side of a small burn.
Leave the path before you reach the bealach to climb steeply southwest up the side of Sgor Chaonasaid at the end of the Ben Loyal ridge, gaining the summit of Sgor Chaonasaid (712m) from the south. From here there are fantastic views of the ever-changing sand banks in the Kyle of Tongue.
Follow the grassy ridge from Sgor Chaonasaid to pass over Sgor a’Bhatain
