A' Chràlaig and the Cluanie Munros

The A87 travels from the A82 at Invergarry in the Great Glen towards Kintail and eventually on to the Isle of Skye.

As the road climbs westwards from Invergarry and then drops northwards through Glen Loyne down to Glen Moriston, it meets the A887 approaching from Invermoriston on Loch Ness.

To the west of this junction lies Loch Cluanie, held by a dam at its eastern end. Around 4km west of the Loch Cluanie Dam, there's a flat area below the road (marked 'Lundie' on maps), with ample space to park or stay overnight.

The hillwalking route finishes 6km further west of this point, so savvy walkers will arrange transport between the start and finish.

From Lundie, cross the A87 onto an old road and reach the start of a bulldozed track near a bridge and memorial boulder.

Follow the track uphill, which later traces an old military road. After a gate in a deer fence and near a phone mast , a small cairn marks a split. Turn right onto a soggy path heading north.

The path twists upward over damp terrain. Higher up, it crosses a flat rock area , with helpful boulders placed by walkers to mark the way — very useful in mist!

Beyond this, the trail leads into heather-clad Coire nan Clach and then climbs steeply via zig-zags onto Càrn Ghluasaid's western shoulder .

The slope eases and rocky ground gives way to grass as the summit plateau is reached. The highest point is marked by the northern of two cairns , overlooking the crags of Toll Creagach Beag.

From Càrn Ghluasaid, head west on a faint path along the rim of Toll Creagach Beag. Drop to a broad grassy col, then follow the path as it curves around the western side of Creag a' Chaorainn .

A short detour to this minor summit offers great views of Sgùrr nan Conbhairean's eastern cliffs.

After contouring around Creag a' Chaorainn, descend gently over stones and scree to Glas Bhealach. A sharp 140m climb leads to the summit of Sgùrr nan Conbhairean . On windy days, there's a well-built hide under the cairn to shelter a couple of people.

Sgùrr nan Conbhairean stands tall over its neighbours, and the views from here are outstanding!

From Sgùrr nan Conbhairean's summit, descend northwest following the line of the mountain's northeast coire, then swing north. After about 1km of gentle descent, reach a wide bealach above Coire nan Lochan Uaine.

Climb the remaining 70m via a clear path leading northeast over a meadow-like, wide and gentle slope. A small cairn marks the top of Sàil Chaorainn , perched on a rocky line above grass.

To the north of Sàil Chaorainn are two Munro Tops, Càrn na Coire Mheadhoin and Tigh Mòr na Seilge. See the Ceannacroc Circuit (in 'Alternative and nearby routes' below) for a detour to these.

An about-turn on Sàil Chaorainn, return to the bealach above Coire nan Lochan Uaine. The next bealach, Bealach Choire a' Chait, lies around 2km to the west and there are two options to reach it :

Contour route :
From the bealach, ascend towards Sgùrr nan Conbhairean to around 1,050m, then pick up a faint path that contours around its south side. Beyond Sgùrr nan Conbhairean, head down its south-western shoulder which gradually narrows to a fine grassy ridge and travels up to Drochaid an Tuill Easaich . The ridge swings north-west and drops gently towards Bealach Choire a' Chait .

Direct route :
From the bealach above Coire nan Lochan Uaine, aim south-west, keeping above some steep ground and head into Toll Easach. Losing 100m of height on wet loose grassy ground, cross Toll Easach (a good opportunity to refill waterbottles), then climb slightly to reach the northern end of Drochaid an Tuill Easaich's north-western ridge from where drop a few metres to Bealach Choire a' Chait .

A path crosses Bealach Choire a' Chait then heads uphill, over wet grass and boulders. The path then turns to a generally westwards direction and climbs for around 1km to reach the southern shoulder of A' Chràlaig.

Now on bouldery ground, A' Chràlaig's summit is just under 1km directly ahead with less than 100m of ascent - however somehow it feels further !

Views open out westwards as height is gained, and, depending on the season, beware of lingering cornices on your right that can last well into spring. A' Chràlaig's huge and impressive summit cairn comes as quite a surprise - stop here for a while and take in the vast panorama!

Leave A' Chràlaig's vast cairn behind and aim northwards on a path following the mountain's ridgeline. Terrain underfoot initially is a mix of grass and rock, with a few places needing hands-out-of-pockets. Further on, the crest of the ridge becomes easier underfoot while dropping down to a bealach above Coire na Craileig.

A climb up 50m or so on the other side of the bealach reaches the minor summit of Stob Coire na Chralaig with its tiny cairn on grass. Turn sharp right (north-east) and head down an increasingly narrowing ridge to a col above Coire Odhar - notice the head of a stalker's path descending into the coire.

On the other side of the col, the path starts to climb, encountering a couple of narrow sections requiring a little care. The ridge gradually turns more northwards, then hugs the west side of Mullach Fraoch-choire's southern ridge, Na Geurdain .

Further along, the path cuts over to the east side of the ridge and drops slightly. The path climbs again and crosses between some small rocky towers and back over to the west side of the ridge. A short steep pull on loose brown gravel, leads out of the ridge and a path leads the way on a grass-covered slope to the well-constructed cairn on Mullach Fraoch-choire's summit.

In winter, snow banks and hard ice form on the ridge make for serious mountaineering conditions. Skills with ice-axe, crampons, and possibly rope are essential.

As with A' Chralaig, the views from this peak are stunning, particularly over to Sgùrr nan Ceathreamhnan, A' Ghlas-bheinn and further to Skye and Torridon.

Bidding 'farewell' to Mullach Fraoch-choire's cairn, return along Na Geurdain to the col above Coire Odhar.

From the col, the old stalkers path leading north-west down into Coire Odhair looks promising. Alas this path gradually disappears into thick deer-grass and progress becomes increasingly squelchy and quite tiresome.

My preferred route is to head back up Stob Coire na Chralaig then enjoy a fast descent down a delightful grass-covered slope aiming south-west and crossing the Allt Coire a' Ghlas-thuill on the way.

Both of these descent routes end up on the Cluanie-Alltbeithe path, which becomes a track , from where a hike in auto-pilot mode, while admiring the views on the right up to Ciste Dhubh and Am Bathach, leads back to Loch Cluanie.

This group of five Munros can be split into two shorter outings :

East group : Càrn Ghluasaid, Sgùrr nan Conbhairean to Sàil Chaorainn
Starting at Lundie, head up Càrn Ghluasaid, Sgùrr nan Conbhairean to Sàil Chaorainn as described above.

From Sàil Chaorainn , return to Sgùrr nan Conbhairean , then head over Glas Bhealach and around Creag a' Chaorainn to the wide grassy col before the rise up Càrn Ghluasaid.

At the col, look for a faint branch in the path and veere right to contour around the top of Coire nan Clach and pick up the path on Càrn Ghluasaid's western shoulder at around c800m . Trace the path back down to Lundie.

West group : A' Chràlaig and Mullach Fraoch-choire
From the long lay-by at the western end of Loch Cluanie, walk back along the road for 500m, crossing a bridge over the Allt a' Chaorainn Mhòir to meet with the a track heading north towards Glen Affric Hostel.

Head up the track, cross a burn, then, when the track starts to level off, you should be able to find a small cairn on your right. The cairn marks the start of a rough path heading north-east directly uphill. Terrain is on wet grass for quite a way, but gradually firms up and dries out as height is gained.

The southern arm of A' Chràlaig is reached , where the route above is followed to A' Chràlaig's summit and onwards to Mullach Fraoch-choire .