Grey Corries ridge from Stob Choire Claurigh

Stob Choire Claurigh () is a mountain in

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 ...

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 ...

, with a height of . It is part of the Grey Corries, near

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 ...

, and lies about east of Fort William. It is described as one of the best ridge walks on the Scottish mainland."100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains" Page 72 “One of the longest and most entertaining ridge walks on the (Scottish) mainland”.

Overview

Stob Choire Claurigh stands in the Grey Corries, a group of mountains strung out along an eight km long ridge which never falls below the 800 metre (2,600 ft) contour and includes twelve summits, four of which reach

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 ...

status. Stob Choire Claurigh is the highest of the Grey Corries reaching a height of 1,177 metres (3,862 ft). The upper part of the mountain and the main section of the ridge is composed of pale grey

quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tecton ...

rocks and scree making an eye-catching sight which is well seen from the villages of

Spean Bridge Spean Bridge () is a village in the parish of Kilmonivaig, in Lochaber in the Highland region of Scotland. The village takes its name from the Highbridge over the River Spean on General Wade's military road between Fort William and Fort A ...

and Roybridge and the

A86 road The A86 is a major road in Scotland. It runs from the Great Glen at Spean Bridge to Kingussie and the Cairngorms National Park via Loch Laggan. It is a primary route for its entire length. The road was built as a parliamentary road by Thomas ...

which runs between them. The mountain's name has been translated 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 ...

as "peak of the brawling corrie", taken from the verb ''clamhras'' which means clamoring or brawling. The name may refer to the roaring of the many stags in the corries of the mountain during the breeding season."The Munros" Page 76 Gives details of translation."The Magic of the Munros" Page 67 Gives details of translation.

Geography

Stob Choire Claurigh is a substantial mountain which includes four subsidiary tops (three of which are listed in the 1997 edition of Munro's Tables),The Munros and Tops 1891-1997.
Spreadsheet giving details of changes to Munro's Tables at each revision. four high corries and long, forested, northern slopes which descend to the valley of the River Spean. Three main ridges radiate from the summit. The northern ridge descends for two km to the “Munro Top” of Stob Coire Gaibhre (958 metres) continuing for a further two km to the

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respons ...

owned Leanachan Forest where it broadens into the Spean valley. Four hundred metres from the summit on the northern ridge is the North Top (1121 metres), at this point a spur goes east to the subsidiary summit of Stob Coire na Ceannain (1123 metres), offering easy scrambling. This eastern spur can be used as a means of ascent up rough, stony slopes from the Lairig Leachach

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland *Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *El Paso, Texas, a city which translates to "The Pass" * Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see Li ...

. The two other ridges link to adjacent Munros, with the south ridge connecting to Stob Ban, 1.5 km distant, over a col with a height of 803 metres. The twisting, high level SW ridge continues for three km over the “Munro Top” of Stob a’ Choire Lèith (1105 metres) to link to the Munro of Stob Coire an Laoigh. The four principal corries on the mountain are steep walled, holding snow well into the spring with streams which rise at around the 1000 metre mark, they drain in various directions but all eventually feed the River Spean, reaching the west coast at

Loch Linnhe Loch Linnhe ( ) is a sea loch in the Highland Council area, in the west of Scotland. The part upstream of Corran is known in Gaelic as (the black pool, originally known as Loch Abar), and downstream as (the salty pool). The name ''Linnhe ...

Ascents and view

The most popular starting point for the direct ascent of Stob Choire Claurigh is Corriechoille farm (grid reference ) at the end of the minor road from Spean Bridge. The route follows the Lairig Leacach track through a short section of the Leanachan Forest, the track is left immediately after the forest and steep slopes are climbed on the right hand side to reach the north east ridge. The ridge is followed over Stob Coire Gaibhre and along the rim of Coire na Ceannain which gives airy views down to its circular lochan, to reach the summit which is marked by a pile of quartzite boulders. There is a fine view from the top, especially to the SW where there is a fine outlook of the switchbacks and tops of the Grey Corries ridge backed by

Aonach Beag Aonach Beag is a mountain in the Scottish Highlands. It is located about 3 km east of Ben Nevis on the north side of Glen Nevis, near the town of Fort William. Apart from Ben Nevis, Aonach Beag is the highest peak in the British Isle ...

and

. Many walkers will continue SW along the Grey Corries ridge descending eventually by the north ridge of Stob Coire an Laoigh down to the forest and eventually Corriechoille."The Munros" Page 76 Gives details of ascent from Corriechoille.

References

* ''The Munros'', Scottish Mountaineering Trust, Donald Bennett (Editor) et al., * ''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 ...

, * ''100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains'', Ralph Storer, * ''Hamish’s Mountain Walk'', Baton Wicks, 1996,

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 ...

, * ''The Magic of the Munros'', Irvine Butterfield, Footnotes {{coord, 56, 49, 26, N, 4, 50, 54, W, region:GB_type:mountain, display=title Munros Marilyns of Scotland Mountains and hills of the Central Highlands Mountains and hills of Highland (council area) One-thousanders of Scotland

Overview

Geography

Ascents and view

See also

References