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Glenshee, Lochnagar and Glen Clova

An Socach

A Munro of 943 metres, number 230 of the 282.

On the hill todayI was up today
The hill

An Socach stands in Aberdeenshire, and the Met Office calls it An Socach, Glen Ey, to tell it from the two other Munros of the same name.

Its nearest neighbour is Beinn Iutharn Mhor, about three and a half kilometres to the west. Carn a' Gheoidh lies to the south-east and Carn Bhac to the north-west, each a little over four kilometres away, and Glas Tulaichean is just beyond them to the south-west.

Before you go
There is more than one An Socach. Read a route for this one before choosing where to leave the car.
The ground
The national park authority asks walkers to plan ahead and find out whether any stalking is taking place on the land they mean to visit.
Summit
Grid reference NO 079 799
Food
Our nearest places to eat are in Braemar.
On the hill today
0° to 5°Drizzle on the summit, 943 m. Feels like −4° in the wind.

West wind to 15 mph, gusting 30
Rain, about 1 mm
Light from 7.48am to 6.10pm, ten hours

Sat 17Cloudy−1° to 4° on top · 10 mph, gusts 23
Sun 18Clear−4° to 4° on top · 9 mph, gusts 17
Mon 19Drizzle−6° to 6° on top · 9 mph, gusts 18

A weather model's forecast for the height of the summit, not a report from the hill. Read the mountain forecast the evening before: Cairngorms National Park and Monadhliath forecast, Southeastern Highlands forecast, An Socach (Glen Ey), Southern Cairngorms 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.

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 NO 079 799
  • 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 An Socach 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.

Sign in to tell them
From the magazine
Read more elsewhere

For the route itself, take the map and read these.

Sleep and eat at its foot

Next along: Beinn Iutharn Mhor, Carn a' Gheoidh, Carn Bhac, Glas Tulaichean. Checked on 10 October 2026. The advice on stalking is the Cairngorms National Park Authority's and on river crossings Mountaineering Scotland'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.