Stob Bàn

Stob Bàn is a mountain in the Lochaber area of Highland, sixteen kilometres east of Fort William. It stands apart from the Grey Corries ridge, a line of hills eight kilometres long that holds three other Munros and nine tops. The peak’s name means ‘white’ or ‘light-coloured’, because its slopes are covered in pale schist scree rather than the grey quartzite found elsewhere. From a distance the mountain shows a clear cone shape, separated from the main group and far from any road. It should not be confused with another Munro of the same name in the Mamores range. The mountain sits south of the Grey Corries crest, linked by a col at eight hundred metres that holds a small unnamed lochan. Three ridges radiate from the summit: the north-eastern ridge falls to the Allt na Lairige valley; the south-western ridge slopes gently to a col at seven hundred and fifty metres before climbing to Meall a’ Bhuirich; the northern ridge is steep and connects to Stob Choire Claurigh. The north-eastern face is steep and craggy, and all water from the slopes reaches Loch Treig through the River Spean and Loch Linnhe. Walkers usually start from Corrie Choille farm in Glen Spean and follow the old drovers’ road over the Lairig Leacach pass to the bothy. From there they climb the east ridge to the summit, often combining the walk with ascents of the other Grey Corries Munros. The final slope includes the ‘Giants Staircase’, a two-hundred-metre stretch of quartzite slabs that is awkward in wet weather. On clear days the view from the top takes in the Mamores and the hills around Loch Treig.