Beinn a' Chroin
Encyclopedia
Beinn a’ Chroin is a Scottish
mountain located six kilometres south of Crianlarich
in the Stirling Council area. With a height of 942 metres (3090 feet) it qualifies as a Munro
.
which lies 1.5 kilometres to the north west across the Bealach Buidhe (805 metres). The hill is well seen from the upper part of Glen Falloch from where the long summit ridge and the steep head wall of Coire
Earb can be appreciated. The translation of the mountains name from the Gaelic
language is vague and there are three possible meanings. Some sources give the translation as “Hill of Danger” although Beinn a’ Chroin is no more dangerous than any other peak in the group. Other sources give the meaning as “Hill of the Sheep Fold” while others give it as “Hill of the Cloven Hoof” referring to the mountains twin summits.
Beinn a’ Chroin is surrounded by four other Munros which lies round the head waters of the River Falloch, to the north and east lies Cruach Ardrain
and Beinn Tulaichean which can be reached by an arduous journey contouring round Coire Earb and climbing the subsidiary top of Stob Glas. The other two Munros, An Caisteal and Beinn Chabhair can be attained by following the west ridge down to the Beallach Buidhe from here the continuation to An Caisteal is up steep slopes to the north west. To reach Beinn Chabhair there is further descending to the west to reach an unnamed col (609 metres) before ascending to the summit. The impressive Coire Earb stands on the north side of the mountain, this corrie gives fine examples of boulder fields and moraine
as a result of glacial
action from the last Ice age
. The smaller Coire a’ Chroin lies on the upper southern slopes and contains the small Lochan a’ Chroin. Drainage from the mountain reaches both coasts of Scotland with the River Falloch going west from Coire Earb to the Firth of Clyde
while all other rainfall goes east to the Firth of Forth
.
at grid reference and climbs An Caisteal first before continuing onto Beinn a’ Chroin by the Beallach Buidhe. A direct ascent is possible from the same starting point by walking high up into Coire Earb and then climbing the mountain by the north ridge which leads to the eastern end of the summit ridge. The mountain can also be climbed from the east starting at the end of the public road which leads to Inverlochlarig from the A84 at grid reference . This route follows the track by the River Larig to reach the foot of the mountain before climbing it by its steep grassy south east slopes. The summit ridge is undulating with several strange rock formation and some small sheets of water around the highest point.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
mountain located six kilometres south of Crianlarich
Crianlarich
Crianlarich is a village in the Stirling district and registration county of Perthshire, Scotland, about six miles north-east of the head of Loch Lomond...
in the Stirling Council area. With a height of 942 metres (3090 feet) it qualifies as a Munro
Munro
A Munro is a mountain in Scotland with a height over . They are named after Sir Hugh Munro, 4th Baronet , who produced the first list of such hills, known as Munros Tables, in 1891. A Munro top is a summit over 3,000 ft which is not regarded as a separate mountain...
.
Overview
Beinn a’ Chroin stands well into the interior of the Crianlarich group of seven munros and so it is usually climbed with other hills in the area, more often than not it is ascended with An CaistealAn Caisteal
An Caisteal is a Scottish mountain situated six kilometres south of the village of Crianlarich in the Stirling Council area.- Overview :An Caisteal, which qualifies as a Munro, is located in a popular area for hill walking within a group of seven Munros and fourteen tops which stand on the eastern...
which lies 1.5 kilometres to the north west across the Bealach Buidhe (805 metres). The hill is well seen from the upper part of Glen Falloch from where the long summit ridge and the steep head wall of Coire
Cirque
Cirque may refer to:* Cirque, a geological formation* Makhtesh, an erosional landform found in the Negev desert of Israel and Sinai of Egypt*Cirque , an album by Biosphere* Cirque Corporation, a company that makes touchpads...
Earb can be appreciated. The translation of the mountains name from the Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
language is vague and there are three possible meanings. Some sources give the translation as “Hill of Danger” although Beinn a’ Chroin is no more dangerous than any other peak in the group. Other sources give the meaning as “Hill of the Sheep Fold” while others give it as “Hill of the Cloven Hoof” referring to the mountains twin summits.
Geography
Beinn a’ Chroin's summit 'moved' in the 1990s. It has a 1.2 kilometre long summit ridge, two thirds to the west gently undulating with four tops and then one third with a distinct top at the eastern end, of the ridge separated by a col with a height of 877 metres. The recognised summit location of highest point of Beinn a’ Chroin changed in 1997. For all years prior, the official highest point of the mountain was the eastern end 940 metres. OS Landranger 1.50k map only showed a 938m spot height on western ridge. However late 1996 amateur cartographic sleuth (Charles Everett) noticed on the new OS 1.25k map, two small 940 metre contour rings without spot heights, on the western ridge, just 75 metres apart, one to NE one to SW. Realizing that these both had to be higher than the eastern top, he sent a number of letters to the Ordnance Survey over next six months asking for 1. The exact heights inside these contour rings and 2. Why these two points, both of which were clearly higher points on the mountain than the eastern 940m top, hadn’t had spot heights detailed on the map. Initial response from some departments was unhelpful and frustrating and stating they were unable to give any information. Persistence with another couple of letters eventually hit the jackpot with a July 1997 letter confirming that there was a spot height of 941.5m in one of the contour rings, but frustratingly not specifying which. Subsequently Harveys maps, when they republished their Crianlarich map, gave the NE contour ring on west ridge, 941m.at 388186 and SW one 942m. at 387185 representing the new summit position of Beinn a’Chroin. The eastern top has now become a subsidiary Munro “top” at 940 metres.Beinn a’ Chroin is surrounded by four other Munros which lies round the head waters of the River Falloch, to the north and east lies Cruach Ardrain
Cruach Ardrain
Cruach Ardrain is a Munro mountain located in the southern highlands of Scotland in the Stirling Council area, five kilometres south east of Crianlarich.- Overview :...
and Beinn Tulaichean which can be reached by an arduous journey contouring round Coire Earb and climbing the subsidiary top of Stob Glas. The other two Munros, An Caisteal and Beinn Chabhair can be attained by following the west ridge down to the Beallach Buidhe from here the continuation to An Caisteal is up steep slopes to the north west. To reach Beinn Chabhair there is further descending to the west to reach an unnamed col (609 metres) before ascending to the summit. The impressive Coire Earb stands on the north side of the mountain, this corrie gives fine examples of boulder fields and moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...
as a result of glacial
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
action from the last Ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
. The smaller Coire a’ Chroin lies on the upper southern slopes and contains the small Lochan a’ Chroin. Drainage from the mountain reaches both coasts of Scotland with the River Falloch going west from Coire Earb to the Firth of Clyde
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde forms a large area of coastal water, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre peninsula which encloses the outer firth in Argyll and Ayrshire, Scotland. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth of Clyde, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran.At...
while all other rainfall goes east to the Firth of Forth
Firth of Forth
The Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
.
Ascents and summit
Most guide books recommend climbing Beinn a’ Chroin along with the adjacent Munro of An Caisteal. This walk starts from the A82 roadA82 road
The A82 is a trunk road in Scotland. It is the principal route from Lowland Scotland to the western Scottish Highlands, running from Glasgow to Inverness, going by Loch Lomond, Glen Coe and Fort William. It is the second longest primary A-road in Scotland after the A9, which is the other...
at grid reference and climbs An Caisteal first before continuing onto Beinn a’ Chroin by the Beallach Buidhe. A direct ascent is possible from the same starting point by walking high up into Coire Earb and then climbing the mountain by the north ridge which leads to the eastern end of the summit ridge. The mountain can also be climbed from the east starting at the end of the public road which leads to Inverlochlarig from the A84 at grid reference . This route follows the track by the River Larig to reach the foot of the mountain before climbing it by its steep grassy south east slopes. The summit ridge is undulating with several strange rock formation and some small sheets of water around the highest point.