Sgòrr Dhearg (Beinn a' Bheithir)

Sgòrr Dhearg, at 1,024 metres, is the highest of Beinn a' Bheithir's two Munro summits — "Mountain of the Thunderbolt" in Gaelic, named for the Celtic storm goddess Cailleach Bheithir — a tremendous mountain looking very fine from the north side of Loch Leven above Ballachulish.

The standard route starts from the car park in Gleann a' Chaolais, just off the A828 west of South Ballachulish, following waymarked forestry tracks and paths through the trees before emerging onto mossy, often wet open ground, following lines of old fence posts up towards the bealach shared with Sgòrr Dhònuill. From here, a path climbs steadily east over grass giving way higher up to boulder field and scree, zig-zagging to the summit — little remains of the marked trig point beyond a couple of iron rods in the cairn, but the views are fabulous in every direction, taking in the great trough of Glen Coe framed by the ridge just traversed, and Loch Leven and the Mamores backed by Ben Nevis.

An excellent alternative ascent tackles the north-east ridge to the subsidiary top of Sgòrr Bhàn first — a graceful, steep-sided curving ridge with some scrambling required higher up, best kept for a dry day, with one awkward stretch avoidable on the left — before continuing along to Sgòrr Dhearg.

Combined with Sgòrr Dhònuill, the full round from Ballachulish or Gleann a' Chaolais is around 14.9 kilometres with roughly 1,469 metres of ascent, typically seven to seven and a half hours.

The Sgòrr Bhàn ridge scramble is genuinely serious in winter, becoming a grade I climb, and appreciable cornices can form along the edges of the northern corries — care is needed near the summit's north-eastern edge in snow, where the ground can run straight out onto an overhanging cornice.

Parking in Gleann a' Chaolais or at Ballachulish is free; the village is served by both local and Citylink buses.