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…
Glen Shiel and Kintail
Creag nan Damh
A Munro of 917 metres, number 276 of the 282.
The hill
Creag nan Damh stands on the south side of Glen Shiel, in the hills that run from the glen to Loch Hourn and Loch Quoich.
Sgurr an Lochain is its nearest Munro, about two and a half kilometres to the east, with Sgurr na Sgine a little further off to the west.
It is one of the lowest hills on the list: number 276 of the 282, and less than three metres over the 3,000-foot line.
The Kintail Mountain Rescue Team describes its whole area as one of well-defined ridges and wide stretches of steep ground.
- The ground
- Kintail Mountain Rescue Team covers the country from Kyle of Lochalsh on the west coast to Loch Ness in the east, and calls it particularly demanding, with large areas of consistently steep ground and well-defined ridges.
- Under snow
- There is no avalanche forecast for this hill, but that does not mean there is no risk under snow. The Scottish Avalanche Information Service's full winter forecasts for its six areas begin on 17 December 2026.
- Summit
- Grid reference NG 983 112.
- Parking
- Neither the Highland Council nor Forestry and Land Scotland lists a car park at Cluanie or in Glen Shiel, and the council lists none at Shiel Bridge, Morvich, Kintail, Invergarry or Glenmoriston either. Find where to leave a car in a route description before you set out.
- Train
- There is a railway station at Kyle of Lochalsh.
- Phone signal
- Mobile coverage is still poor in places, Kintail Mountain Rescue Team warns, so bear it in mind and plan for it before you head out.
On the hill today
1° to 4°Rain on the summit, 917 m. Feels like −3° in the wind.
West wind to 10 mph, gusting 24
Rain, about 10 mm
Light from 7.56am to 6.17pm, ten hours
Sat 17Some cloud0° to 5° on top · 6 mph, gusts 15
Sun 18Some cloud−2° to 4° on top · 11 mph, gusts 23
Mon 19Cloudy−4° to 6° on top · 7 mph, gusts 17
A weather model's forecast for the height of the summit, not a report from the hill. Read the mountain forecast the evening before: Northwest Highlands forecast, Creag nan Damh, The Met Office's Northwest Highlands mountain forecast, Scottish Avalanche Information Service.
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 NG 983 112
- 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 Creag nan Damh 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.
- Creag nan Damh on WalkhighlandsRoute descriptions with maps, for the way to the summitwalkhighlands.co.ukThe route↗
- Kintail Mountain Rescue Team on mountain safetyThe rescue team on conditions and phone signal in its hillskintailmrt.org.ukThe rescue team↗
- Mountaineering Scotland on deer stalkingWhen stalking takes place and what to domountaineering.scotStalking↗
- The area map of the mountain forecastsWhich mountain forecast covers which hillsmwis.org.ukThe weather areas↗
- Northwest Highlands forecastThe Mountain Weather Information Service's forecast for the Northwest Highlands, three days ahead and written by forecasters. Its area runs north from Knoydart in the west and the Great Glen in the east; the area map shows which forecast covers a hillmwis.org.ukMountain weather↗
- Creag nan DamhThe Met Office's forecast for the summit itself: a computer model for one point, not a report from the hillweather.metoffice.gov.ukSummit forecast↗
- The Met Office's Northwest Highlands mountain forecastThe Met Office's mountain forecast for the Northwest Highlands, issued every afternoon before 6pmweather.metoffice.gov.ukMountain weather↗
- Scottish Avalanche Information ServiceThere is no avalanche forecast for this hill, but snow can bring the risk all the same. Full winter forecasts begin on 17 December 2026, sooner in North Cairngorm and Lochaber if winter comes earlysais.gov.ukAvalanche↗
Next along: Sgurr an Lochain, Sgurr an Doire Leathain, Sgurr na Sgine, Sgurr na Ciste Duibhe. Checked on 10 October 2026. The facts on this page are Kintail Mountain Rescue Team's, the Highland Council's, Forestry and Land Scotland's and National Rail'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.