Aonach Beag 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 t ...

in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

. It is located about 3 km east of

Ben Nevis Ben Nevis ( ; , ) is the highest mountain in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and the British Isles. Ben Nevis stands at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Highland region of Lochaber, close to the town of Fort William. The mount ...

on the north side of

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� ...

, near the town of Fort William. Apart from Ben Nevis, Aonach Beag is the highest peak in the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, 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 Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

outside the

Cairngorm mountains The Cairngorms () 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 September 2003. Althou ...

in eastern Scotland. Aonach Beag is linked to its close neighbour to the north,

Aonach Mòr Aonach Mòr is a mountain in the Scottish Highlands. It is located about northeast of Ben Nevis on the south side of Glen Spean, near Fort William, Scotland, Fort William. The mountain has a summit elevation of and is classified as a Munro. T ...

, by a high saddle or

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 ...

. The name Aonach Beag (''small ridge'') might imply that this mountain is smaller than

(''big ridge''). However, Aonach Beag is higher; the names refer to the relative bulk of the two mountains rather than their elevation. The easiest way up is to take the

gondola lift A gondola lift is a means of cable transport and type of aerial lift which is supported and propelled by cables from above. It consists of a loop of steel wire rope that is strung between two stations, sometimes over intermediate suppo ...

serving the Nevis Range

ski area A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...

on Aonach Mòr to an elevation of 650 m and follow the ridge joining the two peaks. More traditionally, the hill is often climbed from the south from

. This way the walker avoids the paraphernalia associated with the ski development. Aonach Beag is often climbed in conjunction with Aonach Mòr. Aonach Beag's north face holds one of Scotland's longest-lying

snow patch A snow patch, is a geomorphological pattern of snow and firn accumulation which lies on the surface for a longer time than other seasonal snow cover. Snow patches are known by a wide range of synonymous terms including snowpatches, snow beds, snow ...

es (grid reference NN196718), which sits at the bottom of the climb known as 'Queen's View' at an elevation of about 950 m. This patch has been known to last through to the first lasting snows of the new winter, and was present continuously from late 2006 to late November 2011.

References

{{Authority control Marilyns of Scotland Munros Mountains and hills of the Central Highlands Mountains and hills of Highland (council area) One-thousanders of Scotland

See also

References