Chno Dearg – Up the Long Slopes Above Fersit

The walk

The usual way up Chno Dearg starts at Fersit, at the end of the Loch Treig road, and climbs the hill's long, grassy north-west slopes. By our map it is about 11 km (7 miles) there and back, with about 820 metres of climb. Allow about 5 to 6 hours there and back, by our map's distance and climb, more with stops, in poor weather or under snow, and leave plenty of daylight for the way down. The summit is 1,046 metres up. The ground is wet and tussocky low down, and the path fades as it climbs.

Chno Dearg is the higher of the two Munros on the east side of Loch Treig, above the head of the loch and Fersit. Its partner, Stob Coire Sgriodain, is about two kilometres to the west, and many walkers climb the two together in a round from Fersit. This walk climbs Chno Dearg alone and comes back the same way. One guide gives another way up, by Creag Dhubh and Meall Chaorach to the east, to miss the worst of the bog. Corrour Estate counts the hill among its Munros and calls stalking a vital part of its habitat management, so follow any signs on the day.

The Loch Treig road leaves the A86 about 13 km east of Spean Bridge and runs south for about 6 km to Fersit, the guides say. By our map it is one lane wide. Park at the road's end, just before the houses, where one guide finds ample room beside the rubbish and recycling bins. Do not count on a toilet, a shop, fuel or a phone signal near the hill.

Before you set off, check the mountain forecast, and under snow the snow and avalanche conditions too, as Mountaineering Scotland advises for every trip. Even on a clear summer day it is often much colder and windier on the hill than below, Forestry and Land Scotland warns. Wear good walking boots and carry warm, waterproof clothing, plenty of food and drink, and a torch in case the day runs long. Carry a map and compass and know how to use them, and do not rely only on a phone or GPS. This is open moorland with few landmarks, MunroMagic says, and one guide rates the navigation on these hills demanding.

From the parking, walk east down the track and over the River Treig and the railway by their bridges. Go through the gate and on past the houses and the farm. One walker tells of cattle roaming the fields beyond the farm: give them a wide berth. About a kilometre from the start, by our map, the road ends by the farm and a track bridge takes you over the Allt Chaorach Beag.

Beyond the bridge a path heads south up the east side of the burn, and after about 300 metres another leaves it for the south-east, by our map. The ground is wet and tussocky, with a faint path and soggy vehicle tracks, one guide says, so expect to pick your way between the boggy patches. About 2 km from the start the path crosses a small burn with no bridge, by our map. Burns can rise fast in a day: turn back if one is too full to cross.

About 3.4 km from the start and about 620 metres up, by our map, the path grows faint on the long north-west slope. From here it is a long, steady pull towards the summit, and the path gradually disappears, one guide says, so walk on a bearing. About 765 metres up the line crosses a second small burn, again with no bridge. Near the top the slope steepens and boulder fields begin: the steepest stretch, just below the summit, climbs about 36 metres in every 100. If the cloud is coming down, the wind is rising or anyone is tiring, turn back.

The summit is a bouldery dome, 1,046 metres, with a large cairn that gives shelter from the wind, one guide says. There are crags to the east and south-east, within a kilometre of the summit, MunroMagic says: know where you are in mist. A path runs on south-west from the summit to the broad bealach and Stob Coire Sgriodain: it is not this walk.

Out on the hill there are no waymarks or signposts, and paths are not always easy to follow. Forestry and Land Scotland asks walkers to turn back if they get tired. Under snow it is a winter mountain, and no avalanche forecast covers it. The Lochaber avalanche forecasters have called the hills east of Loch Treig "no man's land", between their two areas. Having no forecast does not mean there is no risk.

The way down is the way you came. The broad top has few landmarks, so in cloud take a bearing for the north-west slope before you leave the summit, and check it often. One walker coming down this side in mist found nothing like a path at first, only rough, tussocky grass. Lower down, keep by the burn to the bridge and walk back through Fersit to the road. In an emergency dial 999, ask for the police and then for mountain rescue, Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team says: its ground runs east to Corrour.