Ben A'an

Ben A'an
Perthshire
Ben A'an
Range:	Trossachs Hills
Summit:	1,512 feet NN502082 56°14’34"N, 4°25’8"W

Ben A'an is a hill amongst the Trossachs Hills, standing just to the north of the glen of the Trossachs, and east of the foot of Loch Katrine. The distinctive pointed peak of its west top (1,490 feet) resembles a small mountain and gives Ben A'an its name.

The summit area is largely treeless and comprises several rock outcrops and crags. Its highest point is a rounded summit outcrops and crags, rising to a rounded summit at 1,512 feet.

Name

Ben A'an from above Trossachs Pier

The name "Ben A’an" is a romanticised anglicization by Sir Walter Scott. Its original name is uncertain, but it has been suggested that it may have been Am Binnean which means "the pinnacle", although some sites cite its meaning as "the small pointed peak".

Ascent

HIkers near Ben A'an's summit

The normal route is from the pay and display car park of "Ben An" by the shore of Loch Achray. From there the signed path heads straight uphill in a north-northeasterly direction before picking up the course of a burn, the Allt Inneir, and heading north-northwest up to a low saddle (246 m). The path crosses the saddle heading northwest before picking up the course of another burn, the Allt na Cailliche, and following it steeply uphill below the crags of Ben A'an. Close to the source of the burn the path swings westwards and behind the west top of the hill onto a col, from which it is a short climb to the summit of the west top which is the destination for most hikers. There is no obvious path to the main summit.

Views

Even though Ben A’an is not particularly high, it offers wide views of the surrounding lochs, glens, straths and mountains, including Loch Katrine and Loch Achray, Ben Venue to the south, and even as far as the Arrochar Alps on the western shore of Loch Lomond.

("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Ben A'an)