At One with the Mountains - An interview with Nick Gardner
Issue 6: Nick Gardner and his wife Janet were living an idyllic life on a croft…
The Fannichs and Strathcarron
A' Chailleach
A Munro of 999 metres, number 143 of the 282.
Photographs by Katherine Leighton, via Google
The hill
A' Chailleach stands in the Fannichs, the range of the Northwest Highlands that Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team counts as a cluster of 12 peaks.
This is the Fannichs hill of the name, not the A' Chailleach of the Monadhliath near Laggan.
Its neighbour Sgurr Breac lies about two kilometres to the east, and the Scottish Wildlife Trust says the two hills "together form the Western Fannichs". Both stop just short of 1,000 metres, and A' Chailleach is the lower by a metre.
In 2025 the Trust took on the Inverbroom estate, its largest ever site at 7,618 hectares, which is bordered to the south by these two Munros.
- The ground
- The Scottish Wildlife Trust took ownership of most of the Inverbroom estate on 3 March 2025, and places A' Chailleach and Sgurr Breac at the southeastern extremity of the estate. Follow any signs on the day.
- Under snow
- The Fannichs count only among the more outlying mountains of the Torridon avalanche forecast: its forecasters apply to them what they learn in the core of that area. Forecasts begin on 17 December 2026, and no forecast does not mean no risk.
- Summit
- Grid reference NH 136 714
- The bothy
- The Scottish Wildlife Trust has restricted the Loch a' Bhraoin (Lochivraon) bothy to use as an emergency shelter only, for safety reasons that include the water supply and the state of the building. Do not plan a night there.
On the hill today
0° to 3°Drizzle on the summit, 999 m. Feels like −4° in the wind.
West wind to 13 mph, gusting 26
Rain, about 5 mm
Light from 7.56am to 6.15pm, ten hours
Sat 17Cloudy−1° to 4° on top · 9 mph, gusts 16
Sun 18Some cloud−3° to 4° on top · 12 mph, gusts 23
Mon 19Cloudy−5° to 5° on top · 6 mph, gusts 10
A weather model's forecast for the height of the summit, not a report from the hill. Read the mountain forecast the evening before: The Northwest Highlands forecast, A' Chailleach, Torridon avalanche forecast.
October2026
MTWTFSS
Going another day?
Choose the day you mean to climb.Near or far: the light you will have, and what the summit is likely to be doing.
Whilst the mountains are spectacular, the terrain is extremely hazardous.Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team, of the mountains in its area, which include the Fannichs
Before you go
Carry
- A paper map and a compass, and the skill to use them
- Waterproofs, warm layers, hat and gloves
- Food and drink
- A head torch, a whistle and a first aid kit
- A survival bag
- Boots with a good grip
Under snow and ice this is a different day, with short light and the risk of avalanche. It needs an ice axe, crampons, winter boots and the skill to use them.
If something goes wrong
- Dial 999, ask for the police, then mountain rescue
- Give a six-figure grid reference: the summit is NH 136 714
- Say how many are hurt, how many are with you, and your number
- Register to text 999 before the day: text the word register to 999
The summit is optional. Turning back is the right decision whenever the cloud, the wind or the light say so.
How to call for help in the hills · Safety and skills for the hills · ThinkWINTER
From our readers
Nobody has written from A' Chailleach yet. If you were up, yours would be the first.
Tell the next person
Were you up? Three words is enough.A free account, a word for the weather and a line if you like.
Read more elsewhere
For the route itself, take the map and read these.
- A' Chailleach on WalkhighlandsThe full route, with a map. Make sure it is the A' Chailleach of the Fannichs: a Munro in the Monadhliath shares the namewalkhighlands.co.ukThe route↗
- Inverbroom, the Scottish Wildlife Trust's reserveThe Trust's page for the estate, with its notice on the bothy and, to follow, its access detailsscottishwildlifetrust.org.ukThe estate↗
- Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team: our areaThe rescue team that covers the Fannichs, on the ground it works in and the distances involveddmrt.org.ukRescue team↗
- The Northwest Highlands forecastThree days of mountain weather for the areas north from Knoydart and the Great Glen, written by forecastersmwis.org.ukMountain weather↗
- A' ChailleachThe Met Office's forecast for the summit itself: a model for one point, not a report from the hillweather.metoffice.gov.ukSummit forecast↗
- Torridon avalanche forecastThe nearest avalanche forecast. The Fannichs count among its more outlying mountains, outside the core the forecasters mainly visit. Forecasts begin on 17 December 2026; no forecast does not mean no risk under snowsais.gov.ukAvalanche↗
Next along: Sgurr Breac, Sgurr nan Clach Geala, Sgurr nan Each, Meall a' Chrasgaidh. Checked on 10 October 2026. The facts on this page are the Scottish Wildlife Trust's, Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team's and the Scottish Avalanche Information Service's; the forecasts are the Mountain Weather Information Service's, the Met Office's and the Scottish Avalanche Information Service's. Height and position from The Database of British and Irish Hills, v18.3, adapted, CC BY 4.0. This page is not a route description and does not replace a map.