Not simply one of Scotland's greatest small mountains, but among the most remarkable of any height, Suilven is a classic inselberg, or island peak, rising shark fin-like out of a rippled sea of low-lying knolls and lochans. An alluring sight in distant views, and a long haul from any start point, Suilven combines a stunning and remote setting with an exciting ridge walk along its airy spine, to give you a mountain adventure with few equals. The popular northern approach from Lochinver counts as the easy option, and can even be mountain biked much of the way; on the other hand the less-trodden southern assault from Inverkirkaig has a more rugged feel, passing the impressive Falls of Kirkaig, and offering a nice contrast between the pretty birch woods of the approach and the wild moorland of the interior. While it's possible to combine north and south in a big loop, the linear version described here is probably far enough for most folk.
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Detailed description
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Difficulty: SevereDistance: 14.23 miles (22.90 km)
Total ascent: 1,281m
Time: 7:30 – 9:30 hours (Walking)
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Additional Information
Start/Finish:Car park at Inverkirkaig, NC085193
Nearest town:
Lochinver
Terrain:
A well-made path for the first few kilometres, deteriorating into an intermittent trail on the final approach to the foot of the mountain - rough but not excessively boggy. Some very steep and eroded ground in ascent to the central bealach on the summit ridge. The traverse of this ridge is quite exposed, with occasional scrambling sections. The most significant of these is the final ascent to the main east top, Meall Meadhonach, a short and very sharp grade 2 step; bear in mind that for most teams the 'easy' way off this peak is to reverse the ascent - not trivial.
Seasonal variations:
A massive day in limited winter light. Watch out for high wind, it would not be fun. In full winter conditions the ascent of Caisteal Liath will merit a winter mountaineering grade I, while the ascent of Meall Meadhonach is a very definite grade II - consider a rope, not least for the descent, which may need to be abseiled (anchor in-situ at the time of writing).
Weather and Hill Conditions: mwis: Northwest Highlands – Met Office: West Highlands
Guidebooks:
Scotland's Mountain Ridges (Cicerone)
Maps:
OS Explorer 439 (1:25,000), OS Explorer 442 (1:25,000), OS Landranger 15 (1:50,000) Directory Listings:
Find more Listings near this route Tourist info:
Lochinver (0845 22 55 121)
Further Routes
by Dan Bailey UKH
- Beinn Dorain and Beinn an Dothaidh 5 Feb
- East Ridge of Beinn a' Chaorainn and Beinn Teallach 21 Jan
- A' Chralaig and Mullach Fraoch-choire 4 Dec, 2023
- Meall na Teanga & Sron a' Choire Ghairbh - The Loch Lochy Munros 6 Nov, 2023
- Bynack More 19 Oct, 2023
Of course the real answer, to avoid the boggy word mentioned in the first two sections, is to canoe in to the foot of the hill from Loch Veyatie and onto Fionn Loch. Though this does miss out the excellent Kirkaig Falls; you can visit them via a short detour afterwards. From your gear test review on the cookware, I'm guessing you actually camped somewhere near the west end of Fionn Loch. Lovely view! I thought the eroded path below Bealach Mor was pretty unpleasant, but not basically unsafe with care.