An Gearanach is a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

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 t ...

situated in the Mamore Forest, five and a half kilometres north of

Kinlochleven Kinlochleven () () is a coastal village located in Lochaber, in the Scottish Highlands and lies at the eastern end of Loch Leven. To the north lie the Mamores ridge; to the south lie the mountains flanking Glen Coe. The village was formed fro ...

in the

Lochaber Lochaber ( ; ) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig. Lochaber once extended from the Northern shore of Loch Leven, a distric ...

region of the

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

council area.

Overview

An Gearanach reaches a height of 982 metres (3222 feet) making it

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 Nevi ...

number 167 in height orderwww.scottishsport.co.uk.
Gives Munros in height order. and with a

prominence In topography, prominence or relative height (also referred to as autonomous height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contour line encircling ...

of 151 metres it just qualifies as a Marilyn. It is part of a group of mountains commonly called the Mamores which lie between Loch Leven and

Glen Nevis Glen Nevis () is a glen in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, with Fort William at its foot. It is bordered to the south by the Mamore range, and to the north by the highest mountains in the British Isles: Ben Nevis, Càrn Mor Dearg, Aonach M� ...

and consist of 10 Munros and two

Corbetts This is a list of Corbett mountains in Scotland by height. Corbetts are defined as Scottish mountains between in height with a prominence of at least ; solely imperial measurement thresholds. The first list was compiled in the 1920s by John ...

. The translation of the mountains name from

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

is uncertain with some publications giving it as "short ridge" from "Geàrr Aonach""The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland" Page 88 Gives translation as "Short Ridge". while others give a translated name of "the complainer""The Magic of the Munros" Page 59 Gives translation as "The Complainer". or "the sad place"."100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains" Page 64 Gives translation as "The Sad Place".

Geography

The upper slopes of An Gearanach are basically a north-south summit ridge just over a kilometre in length with steep flanks which drop into the valleys of the Allt Coire a' Mhail to the west and the Allt Coire na Gabhalach to the east. At the northern end of the mountain are three ridges which go roughly NW, north and NE descending to upper Glen Nevis. To the south is a ridge which descends to the

Bealach A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since mountain ranges can present formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both human and animal migration throughout history ...

a' Chadah (857 metres) before continuing to the adjoining Munro of

Stob Coire a' Chàirn Stob Coire a’ Chàirn is a Scotland, Scottish mountain situated in the Mamores range, 3.5 kilometres north of Kinlochleven. The mountain reaches a height of 981 metres (3218 feet) and is regarded as one of the more modest peaks of the te ...

. An Gearanach is a popular mountain, not just because of its Munro status but because it is part of one of the best and most exposed ridge walks in the whole of Scotland, the Ring of Steall."The Munros, Scotland's Highest Mountains" Page 70 "Ring of Steall ... Seven tops make up this superb round". This route takes in the three other Munros of Stob Coire a' Chàirn,

Am Bodach Am Bodach is a Scotland, Scottish mountain which lies in the Mamores range, four kilometres north of Kinlochleven in the Highland (council area), Highland council area. Overview Am Bodach is a Munro which reaches a height of 1032 metres (338 ...

and Sgurr a' Mhàim during a circuit of the Allt Coire a' Mhàil, a glen which feeds the An Steall Ban waterfall. The An Steall Bàn ("the white spout") is a fine sight as it drops 120 metres down the northern lower slopes of An Gearanach.www.world-waterfalls.com.
Gives details of An Steall Bàn. The base of the falls is passed on the approach to the mountain from Glen Nevis. An Gearanach has a subsidiary peak, An Garbhanach ("rough ridge"), which lies 400 metres to the south: the two are connected by a narrow ridge which at one point is quite tricky as it tapers to a knife edge

arête An arête ( ; ) is a narrow ridge of rock that separates two valleys. It is typically formed when two glaciers erode parallel U-shaped valleys. Arêtes can also form when two glacial cirques erode headwards towards one another, although frequ ...

dropping into deep glens on either side and requires a good

head for heights To have a head for heights means that one has no acrophobia (irrational fear of heights), and is also not particularly prone to fear of falling or suffering from vertigo (the spinning sensation that can be triggered, for example, by looking down ...

. There has always been some uncertainty about which is the highest point, with both An Gearanach and An Garbhanach given a height of 3,200 feet on pre metric maps in the 1970s."Hamish's Mountain Walk" Page 164 Mentions both tops having height of 3,200 feet in the 1970s. An Garbhanach reaches a height of 975 metres and in 1921 was accidentally elevated to Munro status and An Gearanach reduced to a "top" due to the vagaries of old fashioned mapping techniques. The mistake was rectified in the 1933 revision of Munro's tables with an explanation that it had all been a mistake.The Angry Corrie.
Tricky Tops and Obscurities in Munro’s Tables - Gives details of An Gearanach. The northern slopes of An Gearanach require some care when descending from the mountain to Glen Nevis and there have been fatalities as walkers have left the

stalkers Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance or contact by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring t ...

path and tried to descend directly to Glen Nevis and got into difficulties on the crags above the An Steall Ban waterfall.www.mountaineering-scotland.org.uk.
Alarm Bells on the Ring of Steall.

Ascents

An Gearanach can be climbed from either Glen Nevis or

. The approach from Glen Nevis is shorter and has the advantage of approaching through the lovely Nevis gorge and past the foot of the An Steall Ban waterfall. After crossing the

Water of Nevis The River Nevis flows from the mountains east of Ben Nevis to its mouth near the town of Fort William, Scotland, Fort William in Scotland. Overview The river rises in the Mamores mountain range approximately halfway between Ben Nevis and Loch ...

on a wire suspension bridge and passing the foot of the waterfall, a stalkers path zig zags up the hillside to gain the NNE ridge and up to the summit. The approach from Kinlochleven involves firstly ascending Stob Coire a' Chàirn by the stalkers' path up Coire na Ba before continuing to An Gearanach giving an out and back trip of 14 kilometres."The Munros" Page 68 Gives details of Ascents.

References

* ''The Munros (SMC Guide)'', Donald Bennett et al., * ''100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains'', Ralph Storer, * ''The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland'',

Irvine Butterfield Irvine Butterfield (1936–2009) was an environmentalist, hillwalker and author of several books about mountains and the outdoor environment who took a significant role in the running of organisations with such interests in Scotland. He was a go ...

, * ''The Magic of the Munros'', Irvine Butterfield, * ''The Munros, Scotland's Highest Mountains'',

Cameron McNeish Cameron McNeish FRSGS is a Scottish wilderness hiker, backpacker and mountaineer who is an authority on outdoor pursuits. In this field he is best known as an author and broadcaster although he is also a magazine editor, lecturer and after dinn ...

, * ''Hamish’s Mountain Walk'',

Hamish Brown Hamish Brown Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. Royal Scottish Geographical Society, FRSGS is a professional writer, lecturer and photographer specialising in mountain and outdoor topics. He is best known for his walking exploits in the Scottish ...

, Footnotes {{Scottish Munros section 4 Munros Marilyns of Scotland Mountains and hills of the Central Highlands Mountains and hills of Highland (council area)