Ben Attow

Ben Attow
Inverness-shire, Ross-shire
The summit plateau of Ben Attow
Range:	Kintail
Summit:	3,386 feet NH018192 57°13’15"N, 5°16’59"W

Ben Attow, otherwise known by its Gaelic name Beinn Fhada (meaning "long mountain") is a high mountain in the Kintail range of the Highlands, on the border of Inverness-shire and Ross-shire. It is a turning point of a long, grand ridge which forms part of the county border, overlooking Loch Duich and the sea to the west and Loch Affric inland to the east.

Ben Attow's summit stands at 3,386 feet above sea level and so the mountain is classified as a Munro.

Ascent

The finest route up Beinn Fhada is from Morvich to the north-west. There is a direct line up a grassy, and rather boggy slope, from the east side of the River Croe. This leads eventually to a craggy and undulating ridge, which begins in a southerly direction over Sgurr a' Choire Ghairbh and then turns east across the wider expanse of the Plaide Mhòr to the summit. There is one short tricky section of downward scrambling on this ridge.

An easy line of descent can be found, north-westwards from the summit, into Gleann Choinneachain. The total distance from Morvich is about four miles, with around 3,609 feet of ascent, including undulations.

Ben Attow has been dismissed by some guide writers as lacking in dramatic features. It has two remarkable features: the Plaide Mor is the largest extent of ancient (preglacial) land surface to survive in the western Highlands, and is of Cairngorm character. Also its south-western slopes into Gleann Lichd are seamed for almost two miles with trenches reaching 30 feet high and 2,600 feet long, a slope deformation which is the largest 'rock slope failure' in the Highlands.