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…
Loch Laggan and Creag Meagaidh
Beinn a' Chaorainn
A Munro of 1,049 metres, number 82 of the 282.
The hill
Beinn a' Chaorainn stands above the Laggan dam in Glen Spean, not to be confused with the Munro of the same name in the Cairngorms.
Its neighbours are Beinn Teallach, about two and a half kilometres to the west, and Creag Meagaidh, about four kilometres to the north-east.
The dam below it is a listed building in its own right. Highland Council's record describes a curved gravity dam built in 1934 as part of the Lochaber water power scheme and aluminium smelter, raised to Category A in 2011.
Under snow, the avalanche service's forecaster writes of its summit ridge's "notorious cornice line".
- The summit edge
- The avalanche service's forecaster wrote on 30 March 2026 of this hill's "notorious cornice line", and of one place where the cornice was particularly large: if you cross that part of the mountain, stay well back and on solid ground.
- In cloud
- Mountaineering Scotland uses this summit plateau as its worked example of finding your way beside a corniced edge, and advises erring on the side of caution in poor visibility.
- Under snow
- In the early hours of 31 March 2026 the avalanche service recorded an avalanche on this hill, triggered by a cornice on a steep east-facing slope at 1000 metres: size 2, with debris 40 to 80 metres wide. There is no forecast before 17 December 2026, and that does not mean there is no risk under snow.
- Summit
- Grid reference NN 386 850
- Facilities
- We know of no toilets, café, shop or fuel at the foot of the hill.
On the hill today
0° to 3°Rain on the summit, 1,049 m. Feels like −4° in the wind.
West wind to 14 mph, gusting 27
Rain, about 4 mm
Light from 7.52am to 6.15pm, ten hours
Sat 17Some cloud−4° to 3° on top · 5 mph, gusts 12
Sun 18Mostly clear−3° to 3° on top · 10 mph, gusts 19
Mon 19Drizzle−5° to 5° on top · 3 mph, gusts 7
A weather model's forecast for the height of the summit, not a report from the hill. Read the mountain forecast the evening before: West Highlands forecast, Beinn a' Chaorainn, North Grampian mountain forecast, Creag Meagaidh avalanche forecast, The Creag Meagaidh forecasters' blog.
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.
Photographs by James Caven, via Google
Beinn a Chaorainn sadly, has a long history of people walking/skiing over the corniced edge.Mountaineering Scotland, in its advice on cornices
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 NN 386 850
- 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 Beinn a' Chaorainn 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.
- The Munros on WalkhighlandsRoute descriptions with maps. Choose the Beinn a' Chaorainn of Glen Spean, above the Laggan dam, not its namesake in the Cairngormswalkhighlands.co.ukThe route↗
- Cornices: beauty or beastMountaineering Scotland on snow that overhangs an edge, with this hill's summit plateau as its worked examplemountaineering.scotCornices↗
- Beinn a Chaorainn, 30 March 2026The avalanche forecaster's report from the hill, with photographs marking where the cornice was largest that daymeagaidhblog.sais.gov.ukThe cornice↗
- Beinn a' Chaorainn and Beinn Teallach on Munro MagicOther walkers' accounts of the two hills togethermunromagic.comBaggers' notes↗
- West Highlands forecastThree days of mountain weather for the West Highlands, an area that takes in Glen Spean and Creag Meagaidh, written by forecastersmwis.org.ukMountain weather↗
- Beinn a' ChaorainnThe Met Office's forecast for the summit: a computer model for one point, not a report from the hill. Its page for this hill is titled Highland; the Cairngorms hill has a page of its ownweather.metoffice.gov.ukSummit forecast↗
- North Grampian mountain forecastThe Met Office's mountain forecast for North Grampian, the area its summit page links to, which names Creag Meagaidhweather.metoffice.gov.ukMountain weather↗
- Creag Meagaidh avalanche forecastThe avalanche forecast for Creag Meagaidh, whose records name Beinn a Chaorainn. Reports ended for the winter in April 2026, and full forecasts begin again on 17 December 2026. No forecast does not mean no risk under snowsais.gov.ukAvalanche↗
- The Creag Meagaidh forecasters' blogThe avalanche forecasters' daily notes from these hills in the winter seasonmeagaidhblog.sais.gov.ukAvalanche↗
Sleep and eat at its foot
Next along: Beinn Teallach, Creag Meagaidh, Stob Poite Coire Ardair, Carn Liath. Checked on 10 October 2026. The facts on this page are the Scottish Avalanche Information Service's and 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.