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Liathach

Coordinates: 57°33′52″N 5°27′44″W / 57.564329°N 5.462121°W / 57.564329; -5.462121
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Liathach
Liathach from the east
Highest point
Elevation1,055 m (3,461 ft)[1]
Prominence957 m (3,140 ft)
Ranked 8th in British Isles
Parent peakCàrn Eige
ListingMarilyn, Munro
Naming
English translationthe hoary place
Language of nameGaelic
PronunciationScottish Gaelic: [ˈs̪pitʲan ə ˈxɔɾʲə ˈʎeː]
Geography
Map
LocationTorridon, Scotland
Parent rangeNorthwest Highlands
OS gridNG929579
Topo mapOS Landranger 25

Liathach (Scottish Gaelic for 'the hoary place'; pronounced [ˈʎiəhəx])[2] is a mountain in the Torridon Hills, in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. It stands between Loch Torridon and the neighbouring mountain Beinn Eighe. The mountain is a ridge running east–west, with several peaks, and its upper half is made up of many steep rocky terraces. The highest peak is the Munro of Spidean a' Choire Lèith ('peak of the grey corrie') at 1,055 metres (3,461 ft) high. The other Munro peak is Mullach an Rathain at 1,024 metres (3,360 ft) high.

Geology

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The rocky terraces of Liathach seen from Beinn Eighe

The mountain is composed of Torridonian sandstone which forms massive near-horizontal strata. They form the numerous terraces that are obvious from afar. The rocks are mainly red and chocolate sandstones, arkoses, flagstones and shales with coarse conglomerates locally at the base. Some of the materials of these rocks were derived from the underlying Lewisian gneiss, upon the uneven surface of which they rest, but the bulk of the material was obtained from rocks that are nowhere now exposed. Upon this ancient denuded land surface the Torridonian strata rest horizontally or with gentle inclination. Some of the peaks, such as Beinn Eighe, are capped with white quartzite, giving them a distinctive appearance when seen from afar. Some of the quartzite contains fossilized worm burrows and is known as pipe rock. It is about 500 million years old. The Torridon landscape is itself highly denuded by glacial and alluvial action, and represents the remnants of an ancient peneplain.

Climbing

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Listed summits of Liathach
Name Grid ref Height Status
Mullach an Rathain NG912577 1023.8 m (3,359 ft) Marilyn, Munro
Meall Dearg NG913579 955 m (3133 ft) Munro Top
Stob a' Choire Liath Mhòr NG932581 983 m (3225 ft) Munro Top
Am Fasarinen NG923574 927 m (3041 ft) Munro Top
Stùc a' Choire Dhuibh Bhig NG942582 915 m (3002 ft) Munro Top

Liathach has four listed "Tops" in the Munro Tables, Meall Dearg at 3133 feet (955 m) stands off the main ridge at the end of the Northern Pinnacles which run north from Mullach an Rathain. The route along the Northern Pinnacles is considered a rock climb, although another route to the top from Coire na Caime only involves a short steep scramble on the final 50m to gain the ridge. Irvine Butterfield considers Meall Dearg "The most difficult top in the British Isles challenged only by the Inaccessible Pinnacle of Sgùrr Dearg".[3][4] The Northern Pinnacles were first climbed in 1894 by Hinxman, Rennie and Douglas.[5]

Climbing the mountain including both of the above peaks is a challenging expedition; the intervening ridge is for the most part a series of rocky pinnacles known as Am Fasarinen (The Teeth), which reaches a height of 927 metres at the western end and is considered a Munro "top". There are few places on the ridge for descent, so once committed, the walker has little choice but to complete the entire ridge walk. The pinnacles can however be avoided by means of a narrow path that traverses the ridge on the south side. The path is very exposed, and there is much erosion at points where it crosses any of a series of gullies. In winter the traverse of Liathach becomes an even more serious expedition.

References

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  • The Munros and Tops, Chris Townsend, ISBN 1-84018-727-1
  • The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland, Irvine Butterfield, ISBN 0-906371-30-9

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Liathach". Hill Bagging - the online version of the Database of British and Irish Hills (DoBIH). 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Liathach". Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba: Gaelic Place-Names of Scotland.
  3. ^ "The Munros and Tops" Page 174 Gives details of Meall Dearg.
  4. ^ "The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland" Page 223 Gives quote from Butterfield and route from Coire na Caime.
  5. ^ Douglas, W. (1894). "The Northern pinnacles of Leagach". Scottish Mountaineering Club Journal. 3.
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