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Cairn Gorm ( gd, An Càrn Gorm) is a
mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher th ...
in the
Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sc ...
. It is part of the
Cairngorms The Cairngorms ( gd, Am Monadh Ruadh) are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms became part of Scotland's second national park (the Cairngorms National Park) on 1 Se ...
range and wider
Grampian Mountains The Grampian Mountains (''Am Monadh'' in Gaelic) is one of the three major mountain ranges in Scotland, that together occupy about half of Scotland. The other two ranges are the Northwest Highlands and the Southern Uplands. The Grampian rang ...
. With a summit elevation of
above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...
, Cairn Gorm is classed as a
Munro A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...
and is the seventh-highest mountain in the
British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
. The high, broad domed summit overlooking Strathspey is one of the most readily identifiable mountains from the nearby town and regional centre of
Aviemore Aviemore (; gd, An Aghaidh Mhòr ) is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popu ...
. Although it shares its name with the Cairngorm mountains,
Ben Macdui Ben Macdui ( gd, Beinn MacDuibh, meaning "MacDuff's mountain") is the second-highest mountain in Scotland and all of the British Isles, after Ben Nevis, and the highest of the Cairngorm Mountains. The summit is above sea level and it is class ...
is the highest mountain in the range. Since the 1960s over of the north-western slopes of the mountain in and have been developed for
alpine skiing Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...
. The ski lift infrastructure includes a funicular railway in Coire Cas. The corrie south of Coire Cas, , is separated from the ski area by a ridge known as . The southern slopes of Cairn Gorm overlook the remote Loch Avon (pronounced Loch A'an).


Etymology

The mountain shares its name with the wider
Cairngorms The Cairngorms ( gd, Am Monadh Ruadh) are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms became part of Scotland's second national park (the Cairngorms National Park) on 1 Se ...
mountain range and the
Cairngorms National Park Cairngorms National Park ( gd, Pàirc Nàiseanta a' Mhonaidh Ruaidh) is a national park in northeast Scotland, established in 2003. It was the second of two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament, after Loch Lomond and The Tros ...
of which it is a part. This is despite that it is neither the highest nor the most prominent mountain in the range. The Cairngorms mountain range was historically known as , a
Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...
name meaning The Red Hills. The Scottish Gaelic means "blue" in English; but when describing vegetation can mean "green" or "greening", so Cairn Gorm can mean either Blue Cairn or Green Cairn.


Climate

Cairn Gorm has a
tundra climate The tundra climate is a polar climate sub-type located in high latitudes and high mountains. undra climate https://www.britannica.com/science/tundra-climateThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019 It is classified as ET according to Köppen ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''ET''). There is an automated
weather station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include temperat ...
(AWS) controlled by
Heriot-Watt University Heriot-Watt University ( gd, Oilthigh Heriot-Watt) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world's first mechanics' institute, and subsequently granted univ ...
on the summit of the mountain providing temperature and wind speed data. There is also a separate AWS run by the
Met Office The Meteorological Office, abbreviated as the Met Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and is led by CEO Penelope ...
(synop code 03065) that publishes temperature and frost data. Cairn Gorm averages 194.4 frost days per annum, making it the coldest weather station in the United Kingdom. Winter low temperatures are not extreme when compared with some other UK stations, but the severity of the climate is illustrated by its cool summers. The highest temperature since 1985 is , recorded on 23 May 1989. The coldest temperature is on 6 March 2007. Daytime temperatures staying below all day occur most frequently between October and May but have been observed during every month of the year. Daytime maximum temperatures below and night-time temperature above are uncommon. The lowest daytime maximum was on 28 February 2018. The
Foehn wind A Foehn or Föhn (, , ), is a type of dry, relatively warm, downslope wind that occurs in the lee (downwind side) of a mountain range. It is a rain shadow wind that results from the subsequent adiabatic warming of air that has dropped most of i ...
can affect the mountain, particularly during late autumn and winter. This phenomenon presumably resulted in the November record high. The warmest month on record is July 2006, with a mean temperature of . Conversely, the coldest month on record is March 2013, with a mean temperature of . Cairn Gorm is notable for having the highest ever recorded wind speed in the UK on land. A wind gust of was recorded on 20 March 1986. A wind gust of was recorded at Cairn Gorm on 19 December 2008 but was discovered too late to be verified by the Met Office.


Hiking and climbing

In clear, calm weather, the ascent of Cairn Gorm is a straightforward hike via the alpine ski area on the northern slopes. But when the mountain is stormbound, particularly in winter during
blizzard A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow is not falling b ...
and high avalanche risk conditions, any ascent or descent can be potentially lethal - particularly during ''white-outs'' when it is easy to lose one's bearings near the barren, featureless summit which is ringed in many directions by precipitous drops. In common with all the highest Cairngorm summits, ascents during winter conditions (which can and usually do extend well into springtime) will often require good navigation skills and winter climbing equipment such as crampons and ice-axes. The ''Windy Ridge'' path on ''Sròn an Aonaich'' lying to the northeast of Coire Cas is a steep and direct route, and is generally recommended by local Rangers, guides and guidebooks. Another route to the summit is the access road up the centre of Coire Cas, however this route is a track used by the railway operator's vehicles, and gives an indirect route with several steep sections. It is not recommended as an ascent route, especially during the skiing season, though it gives good views of the
Cairngorm Mountain Railway The Cairngorm Mountain Railway, which opened in 2001, is the highest railway in the United Kingdom. The two-kilometre long funicular ascends the northern slopes of Cairn Gorm, the United Kingdom's seventh-highest mountain, serving the Cairngo ...
in its lower sections. Also in Coire Cas, ''Fiacaill a' Choire Chais'' offers a good
walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...
route to Cairn Gorm and the adjacent plateau. A circuit of the cliff tops overlooking the Northern Corries of Cairn Gorm is highly recommended in many guide books and publications, giving one of the finest views in Scotland. Walkers are advised to consult the local map and call in at the Ranger Base at the car park. There are many climbing routes at the head of
Coire an t-Sneachda Coire an t-Sneachda (sometimes misspelled as ''Coire an t'Sneachda'') is a glacial cirque or corrie landform in the Cairngorm or mountain range in the Grampian Mountains of the Scottish Highlands. The summits of Cairn Lochan (1215 m) and ...
and Coire an Lochain, and in winter these corries form one of Scotland's major ice climbing areas.


1971 disaster

On 21–22 November 1971, five pupils from Ainslie Park High School in Edinburgh and a trainee instructor from Newcastle-under-Lyme died in a blizzard at Feith Buidhe on the Cairn Gorm plateau. It stands as the UK's worst mountaineering disaster.


Wildlife

The mountain is home to a number of bird species, including
dotterel The Eurasian dotterel (''Charadrius morinellus''), also known in Europe as just dotterel, is a small wader in the plover family of birds. The dotterel is a brown and black streaked bird with a broad white eye-stripe and an orange-red chest ban ...
and
ring ouzel The ring ouzel (''Turdus torquatus'') is a mainly European member of the thrush family Turdidae. It is a medium-sized thrush, in length and weighing . The male is predominantly black with a conspicuous white crescent across its breast. Females ...
(in the spring and summer) and
snow bunting The snow bunting (''Plectrophenax nivalis'') is a passerine bird in the family Calcariidae. It is an Arctic specialist, with a circumpolar Arctic breeding range throughout the northern hemisphere. There are small isolated populations on a few h ...
and ptarmigan (also known as
rock ptarmigan The rock ptarmigan (''Lagopus muta'') is a medium-sized game bird in the grouse family. It is known simply as the ptarmigan in the UK. It is the official bird for the Canadian territory of Nunavut, where it is known as the ''aqiggiq'' (ᐊᕿ� ...
) (all year round). Mammals inhabiting the mountain include
mountain hare The mountain hare (''Lepus timidus''), also known as blue hare, tundra hare, variable hare, white hare, snow hare, alpine hare, and Irish hare, is a Palearctic hare that is largely adapted to polar and mountainous habitats. Evolution The mountai ...
,
red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of we ...
and a herd of reindeer. Wildflowers found on the mountain include dwarf cornel,
cloudberry ''Rubus chamaemorus'' is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae, native to cool temperate regions, alpine and arctic tundra and boreal forest. This herbaceous perennial produces amber-colored edible fruit similar to the bla ...
and
butterwort ''Pinguicula'', commonly known as the butterworts, is a genus of carnivorous flowering plants in the family Lentibulariaceae. They use sticky, glandular leaves to lure, trap, and digest insects in order to supplement the poor mineral nutrition ...
. For many of these species of flora and fauna, Cairn Gorm is one of their key strongholds.


Cairngorm Mountain alpine ski area


History

The alpine ski area was developed on Cairn Gorm from 1960 onwards. A chairlift and chalet opened in December 1961. In the summer of 1968 a new half mile of road was built that improved access for skiing in the Coire-na-Ciste area. It is the second largest in Scotland (after Glenshee). By the 1980s, thousands of skiers were using the slopes on busy weekends, which could often become very crowded. By the 2000s, the number of skiers at Cairngorm and Scotland's other ski areas had dropped, partly as a consequence of budget airline travel making access to the Alps more attractive. Snow conditions in the Scottish Highlands are unpredictable and
Global Warming In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
has emerged as a potential threat to the viability of the Scottish ski industry. In 2004, Adam Watson predicted that there would be no more than twenty years left for the industry. However recent winters have had excellent snow cover and ski conditions and winter sports usage has recovered significantly resulting in improved finances. In 2011–12 the resort trialled a TechnoAlpin T40 snow cannon, and in 2012–13 three more were leased. A larger TF10 cannon was added for the 2013–14 season In April 2014 Natural Retreats was chosen by HIE as the new operator of Cairngorm Mountain Ltd.


Funicular controversy

By 1990, much of the original infrastructure was ageing and proving increasingly difficult to maintain. The chairlifts and tows were susceptible to the high winds to which the mountain is prone, and were frequently forced to shut in winds above 25 mph (40 km/h). The operators, Cairngorm Chairlift Company, proposed removing the chairlift and replacing it with a funicular railway. There was strong opposition to the funicular from environmental groups, who were concerned about damage to the mountain and its fragile soils and plants. The eventual compromise reached, after negotiations with
Scottish Natural Heritage NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and s ...
, allowed the
Cairngorm Mountain Railway The Cairngorm Mountain Railway, which opened in 2001, is the highest railway in the United Kingdom. The two-kilometre long funicular ascends the northern slopes of Cairn Gorm, the United Kingdom's seventh-highest mountain, serving the Cairngo ...
to be built, but with restrictions on its usage. Only those engaging in snow sports, or spectating, are allowed to exit from the top station. Other funicular users can visit the restaurant and visitor centre, but are currently restricted from leaving the building to start a walk. However, there are groups campaigning to remove this restriction. Controversy mired the building project, with budget over-runs, allegations of conflicts of interest by those connected to both Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the construction company and questions raised about the use of public money. The construction was estimated to have cost around £19.6 million, mostly funded by
Highlands and Islands Enterprise Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE; gd, Iomairt na Gàidhealtachd 's nan Eilean) is the development agency for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. Its role is to " ...
(HIE), a government body. £2.7 million was provided by the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...
. The funicular opened in December 2001. The railway provides access from the ski centre's day lodge base station at up the Coire Cas to the ski centre's Ptarmigan building at AMSL, a total distance of 6,460 ft (1.97 km). Thie Ptarmigan station is the highest elevation train terminal in the British Isles.


Cairn Gorm Locomotive

A locomotive operated by
Caledonian Sleeper ''Caledonian Sleeper'' is the collective name for overnight sleeper train services between London and Scotland, in the United Kingdom. It is one of only two currently operating sleeper services on the railway in the United Kingdom, the other ...
, a train operator that offers sleeper trains from
London Euston Euston railway station ( ; also known as London Euston) is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden, managed by Network Rail. It is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line, the UK's busiest inter-city railw ...
to
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...
. The locomotive is the only Class 67 locomotive to be operated by
Caledonian Sleeper ''Caledonian Sleeper'' is the collective name for overnight sleeper train services between London and Scotland, in the United Kingdom. It is one of only two currently operating sleeper services on the railway in the United Kingdom, the other ...
. The locomotive is the subject of a Hornby model with TTS Sound in
OO gauge OO gauge or OO scale (also, 00 gauge and 00 scale) is the most popular standard-gauge model railway standard in the United Kingdom, outside of which it is virtually unknown. OO gauge is one of several 4 mm-scale standards (4 mm to 1 foot, ...
.


References


External links

*Computer generated summit panorama
NorthSouthCairnGorm Mountain Ltd.
{{Scottish Munros section 8 Munros Mountains and hills of the Cairngorms Mountains and hills of Moray Mountains and hills of Highland (council area) Ski areas and resorts in Scotland Climbing areas of Scotland One-thousanders of the British Isles