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The summit cairn of Meall na Aighean, a white quartz block on top, with the Glen Lyon hills beyond.
Ben Lawers and Glen Lyon

Meall na Aighean

A Munro of 981 metres, number 170 of the 282.

On the hill todayI was up today
The hill

Meall na Aighean is one of the four Munros on the north side of Glen Lyon in Perthshire, above Invervar.

Together they are sometimes called the Glen Lyon Horseshoe.

Carn Mairg is its close neighbour, about two kilometres to the north-west, and Meall Garbh and Carn Gorm, the other two of the four, lie further off to the west. Schiehallion stands about five and a half kilometres to the north.

Starts from
Invervar in Glen Lyon, the start for the Munros on the north side of the glen. North Chesthill Estate publishes a recognised round from there, walked clockwise, and its map names Carn Gorm, An Sgorr, Meall Garbh, Meall a' Bharr and Carn Mairg in that order.
The estate asks
Stay on the ridges and out of the corries, walk quietly and keep dogs on leads at all times. From May to July, be off the hill well before dusk, which the estate gives as 7pm, so that the hinds can go back to their calves.
Stalking
The estate's deer stalking began on 1 September 2026, and it asks walkers to go elsewhere in September and October. Notices go up in the car park and at the hill gate on stalking days. In October 2026 its news page listed Sunday 18 October and Thursday 22 and Friday 23 October 2026 as days with no stalking. Its leaflet says stalking runs from September to January, so read the news page and the notices before an autumn or winter day.
Mountaineering Scotland
The body that represents hillwalkers takes a different view of the two-month request. Its advice for a visit, given in August 2026, is to follow the established circular route, keeping to the ridges and out of the corries except in an emergency.
Summit
Grid reference NN 694 496. The top is a rock two metres north of the cairn.
Car park
The estate provides the Glen Lyon Visitor Car Park at Invervar, and its map marks it for up to 6 vehicles. If it is full, the estate asks you to park and walk elsewhere and come back another day.
The road
Perth and Kinross Council lists the C448 from Fortingall to Bridge of Balgie as a rural clearway: no stopping on the road or its verges. A few lay-bys marked with a blue P sign are allowed, and they fill up quickly. The estate asks walkers not to park on verges, in lay-bys or in passing places.
Food
The estate's leaflet points walkers to the post office at Bridge of Balgie for lunch or tea and cakes. In 2026 the Post Office listed the branch as open from 10am every day but Wednesday. Those are the counter's hours, not a kitchen's, so check before counting on lunch.
On the hill today
0° to 4°Drizzle on the summit, 981 m. Feels like −4° in the wind.

West wind to 15 mph, gusting 29
Dry, or nearly
Light from 7.50am to 6.13pm, ten hours

Sat 17Some cloud−2° to 3° on top · 11 mph, gusts 23
Sun 18Clear−4° to 4° on top · 8 mph, gusts 15
Mon 19Drizzle−6° to 5° on top · 5 mph, gusts 12

A weather model's forecast for the height of the summit, not a report from the hill. Read the mountain forecast the evening before: Southeastern Highlands forecast, West Highlands forecast, South Grampian and Southeast Highlands mountain forecast, Meall na Aighean, No avalanche forecast for these hills.

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 NN 694 496
  • 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 Meall na Aighean yet. If you were up, yours would be the first.

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From the magazine
Read more elsewhere

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

Sleep and eat at its foot

Next along: Carn Mairg, Meall Garbh, Schiehallion, Carn Gorm. Checked on 10 October 2026. The facts on this page are North Chesthill Estate's, Perth and Kinross Council's, Mountaineering Scotland's and the Post Office'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.