Beinn Eighe

Beinn Eighe is a mountain massif in Wester Ross, lying south of Loch Maree in the Northwest Highlands. Its long ridge holds two Munros—Ruadh-stac Mòr at 1,010 m and Spidean Coire nan Clach at 993 m—and a cap of white Cambrian quartzite that makes the peaks stand out against darker hills nearby. The northern side holds a national nature reserve while the southern slopes drop steeply into Glen Torridon, covered in pale quartzite screes. Four large corries cut into the north face, separated by spurs that extend from the main ridge. The eastern half belongs to NatureScot and the rest to the National Trust for Scotland, with the northwest part lying within a private estate. The mountain’s complex shape attracts both hillwalkers and climbers, offering routes that include the western traverse of both Munros and the famous Triple Buttress Corrie. Coire Mhic Fhearchair, known for its three rock buttresses, provides scrambles and climbs with views over Glen Torridon. The Black Carls pinnacles at the eastern end of the ridge add another challenge for those who traverse the full length. Surveyor George Campbell Smith made the earliest recorded ascent in 1851 while mapping estate boundaries, though cartographer Timothy Pont sketched the corrie in the late sixteenth century. Visitors find ancient Caledonian pinewoods at Coille na Glas Leitir, the largest fragment of its kind in northwest Scotland, and rare plants such as Herbertus borealis and Daltonia splachnoides. Golden eagles and Scottish crossbills fly above while red deer and pine martens move through the lower slopes. The summit plateau offers views across the Torridon Hills, and the quartzite ridges catch the light like snow even in summer. Loch Maree’s shores below hold otters, and the burns carry water from the high corries down to the loch.