Beinn Sgritheall

Dominating the Glenelg peninsula, Beinn Sgritheall is a majestic mountain that offers sensational views across the western seaboard. Hikes to Beinn Sgritheall take you to one of Scotland’s greatest standalone massifs. Like all of the west coast’s high summits on a good day, you’ll be rewarded with astounding panoramas of blue sea and loch, spectacular islands, cerulean sky and wave upon wave of mountain ridge.

Steep and strenuous ascents to an unrivalled viewpoint for Skye, Rum and the western seaboard.

Beinn Sgritheall rears up dramatically from Loch Hourn, where grey, scree-covered slopes rise uninterrupted for some 3000 feet (900 m) from shore to summit. Its northern flanks are more complex, with bristling ridges and grand corries forming its finest features. Ascents from this direction are rare but possible for experienced hikers.

The most straightforward walking routes to Beinn Sgritheall ascend the steep southern slopes in one way or another, though thankfully avoiding the majority of the scree. The hamlet of Arnisdale is the obvious base, whilst there is more accommodation in Glenelg. To the north east, the Suardalan bothy offers a remote refuge.

If you’ve made the effort to reach Beinn Sgritheall’s hard-won summit, you’ve undoubtedly done so in anticipation of some pretty special views. The Black Cuillin of Skye scrape the western sky, rising imperiously from the sea. To the south is the spectacular peninsula of Knoydart, where the mighty Ladhar Bheinn lords over proceedings across Loch Hourn. In the east are the myriad ridges of Glen Shiel and due north are the monstrous sandstone behemoths of Torridon.

In winter conditions, Beinn Sgirtheall is the preserve of experienced and equipped mountaineers only.