highlands high Scotland’s wild strongholds
F
ormed by the relentless press of tectonic plates and
of Scottish mountains over 3,000ft – known now as ‘the
violent volcanic eruptions, Scotland’s mountains have
Munros’. Sir Hugh was an avid hill walker, but never quite
been shaped and sculpted over countless millennia, with
succeeded in his own attempt to complete the ‘round’.
the oldest rocks dating back an incredible 3 billion years.
Doing so remains a popular pursuit today and thousands
The scars of a turbulent geological history are evident today. Ben Nevis, Scotland’s highest mountain, is in fact a collapsed volcano, with its summit once the centre of a caldera and its vertiginous North Face having been created by superheated lava flows. Similarly, the domed granite plateau of the Cairngorm massif was formed by a magma eruption that slowly crystallised several miles beneath the hard land surface, subsequently eroding to leave the rocks and tors we see today. By contrast, the billion-year-
of Munro ‘baggers’ attempt to scale the 282 summits each year, although to date, fewer than 8000 people have managed to climb them all. The first continuous round was completed by Hamish Brown in 1974, whilst the fastest took just 31 days 10 hours and 27 minutes, an astonishing record set by Jamie Aarons in June 2023. Most walkers take a more leisurely approach, while others bag just a few, but they all contribute to a thriving tourism industry built on the back of a shared love of ‘the hills’.
old Torridonian rocks were formed by river sediments of
Scotland’s mountains offer much more than a physical
red sandstone, mud and pebbly conglomerates, laid down
challenge. They retain a sense of wildness that is hard
over the even older Lewisian Gneiss. The immediately
to find elsewhere and offer a refuge to some of our
recognisable mountains of the North West Highlands
rarest species. In a country dominated by agricultural
include Suilven and Slioch, iconic monuments that bear
landscapes, our hills are less impacted by human activity,
mute testament to millions of years of erosion.
and are home to many specialised species that are
Today, Scotland’s mountains may not be the tallest but their changeable weather provides a significant challenge for hillwalkers. In 1891, Sir Hugh Munro published a list
adapted to survive the hostile montane climate of freezing temperatures, gale-force winds and high precipitation. The ptarmigan, a mountain-dwelling grouse, lives here, as do mountain hares – both are prey for a recovering
population of golden eagles. In summer, rare breeding waders, like dotterel and purple sandpiper, raise their chicks on the tundra-like plateau, while the song of ring ouzels and snow buntings echo around the high corrie walls. Underfoot the soils are thin, low in nutrients and often acidic. Alpine plants found above the tree line are relics of the last ice age and have evolved to cope with the harsh conditions. Many rely on late-lying snow for protection from severe frosts, with research suggesting that many of these arcticadapted species are being forced up the hillsides as our climate warms and snow melts ever earlier. There is competition from below, too, as dominant grass species creep up the mountain slopes to overwhelm these high country specialists. Ultimately, there is only so much mountain. The drooping saxifrage on Ben Lawers is now only found within 165ft of the summit and those plants that remain are fast running out of space. Our mountain ranges undoubtedly look spectacular, but historical land use has resulted in a nationwide
In the heart of the Great Wilderness of the Fisherfield Forest, A’ Mhaighdean is one of the most remote Munros in Scotland, offering what some regard as the finest views in the country.
Temperature inversions, where the mountain tops are warmer than the glens below, are common in Scotland, leaving all but the highest peaks cloaked in a thick blanket of mist. For those willing to scale the heights the rewards can be spectacular, especially at sunrise as seen here on Askival on the Hebridean island of Rùm.
An Teallach, which translates from Gaelic as ‘the anvil’, is an impressive mountain that rises dramatically from the Dundonnell peat bogs. From atop Bidein a’ Ghlas Thuill, one of this mountain’s two distinct Munros, the views to the second peak at Sgurr Fiona are breathtaking. For high-adrenaline thrill-seekers, the real excitement comes in the form of an exposed traverse and descent of Lord Berkeley’s Seat, a fearsome-looking pinnacle that overhangs Coire Toll an Lochain.
Scotland’s montane zone of subalpine and alpine plant communities represent some of the most natural and undisturbed habitats in the UK. Here, lichen-dominated heath, dwarf shrubs and specially adapted flowering plants and grasses maintain a low-lying community in the nutrient poor soils.
Ecologist Sarah Watts takes hardwood cuttings from a dwarf willow high in the hills of the Corrour Estate. This work is vital to increase the amount of montane woodland, a habitat that retains water on the hills for longer, helping to reduce the risk of flooding lower down the catchment.
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