Chno Dearg

Chno Dearg
Inverness-shire
Chno Dearg from Stob Coire Sgriodain
Range:	Grampian Mountains
Summit:	3,432 feet NN377741 56°49’48"N, 4°39’41"W

Chno Dearg is a mountain in Inverness-shire, which reaches a height of 3,432 feet at its summit, and so it qualifies as a Munro. It is about 16 miles north of Fort William.

Overview

Chno Dearg is to the east of Loch Treig in the high ground between the loch and Strath Ossian. It reaches a height of 3,432 feet. It is not regarded as a particularly striking hill, being described in the Scottish Mountaineering Club's Munro guide as “a rounded and featureless hill”, its convex slopes giving a monotonous climb to the summit. The neighbouring Munro of Stob Coire Sgriodain, with which Chno Dearg is usually climbed is considered a more exciting hill even though it is 230 feet lower in height.

Chno Dearg has a considerable topographic prominence of 2,129 feet, being surrounded by the deep glens of Glen Spean, Loch Treig and Strath Ossian, and its summit is a fine viewpoint especially for the Creag Meagaidh group of hills to the north-east.

Another feature of the mountain is its appeal to the ski mountaineer, with its sweeping northern slopes offering a continuous three-mile run with 2,500 feet of descent from the summit.

The mountain's name translates from the Gaelic as “Red Nut”, however early maps give the name as Cnoc Dearg which translates as “Red Hill”. "Red" may refer to the profusion of heather on the hill.

Geography

The mountain has two main summits over 3,000 feet:

• Chno Dearg main summit, 3,432 feet, NN377741
• Meall Garbh, 3,202 feet, NN640509, a Munro top

Looking west from the summit over the Easains and The Grey Corries to Ben Nevis

Chno Dearg's expansive northern flank falls gradually to Glen Spean and the shores of Loch Laggan, the lower part being covered with an extensive forestry plantation. These northern slopes can be boggy at times with numerous small streams, and contain the subsidiary top of Meall Chaorach (2,674 feet) which is found a mile from the main summit.

On the western side of the hill is Coire an Lochain, a shallow hollow with gentle slopes which contains Lochan Coire an Lochain.

The mountain's main ridge goes south-west from the summit to a col with a height of 3,028 feet. Here it splits, with one spur swinging round the head of Coire an Lochain to go eventually north and link to the adjoining Munro of Stob Coire Sgriodain. The other spur continues southerly to link to Meall Garbh (3,202 feet) which is listed as a “top” in Munro's Tables. Meall Garbh has steep crags on its eastern flank.

The south side of Chno Dearg contains the steep-sided Coire nan Cnamh which falls precipitously to the glen of the Allt Feith Thuill, a tributary of the River Ossian. All drainage from the mountain reaches the River Spean to the north where it flows to the west coast.

Ascents

Chno Dearg is usually climbed from the hamlet of Fersit (NN350784) and usually the adjacent Munro of Stob Coire Sgriodain is also included in the ascent. The route from Fersit offers a natural round of Coire an Lochain, taking in both Munros, with a brief detour to take in Meall Garbh.

The proximity of the West Highland Line in the area offers walkers the alternative of starting from Corrour railway station and climbing Beinn na Lap first and then continuing north over Chno Dearg and Stob Coire Sgriodain to finish at Tulloch railway station to catch the evening train.

References

• The Munros, Scottish Mountaineering Trust, 1986, Donald Bennett (Editor) ISBN 0-907521-13-4
• In the Hills of Breadalbane, V.A. Firsoff, no ISBN
• The Munros, Scotland's Highest Mountains, Cameron McNeish, ISBN 1-84204-082-0
• The Magic Of The Munros, Irvine Butterfield, ISBN 0-7153-2168-4
• Hamish's Mountain Walk, Hamish Brown, ISBN 1-898573-08-5