Mullach nan Coirean

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Mullach nan Coirean
Mullach nan Coirean seen from Stob Ban across Coire Dearg.
Elevation	939 m (3081 ft)
Location	Highland,  Scotland
Range	Mamores
Prominence	93 m
Topo map	OS Landranger 41, OS Explorers 392
OS grid reference	NN122662
Listing	Munro
Translation	Summit of the Corries (Gaelic)
Pronunciation	[Mullach nan Corran]

Listed summits of Mullach nan Coirean
Name	Grid ref	Height	Status
South East Top	NN131654	917 m (3008 ft)	Munro Top

Mullach nan Coirean is a Scottish mountain situated in the Mamores group of hills. It reaches a height of 939 metres (3081 feet) and is located eight kilometres south of Fort William. It is the most westerly of the ten Munros in the Mamores and it is connected to the adjoining mountain of Stob Ban by a col with a height of 846 metres; these two Munros are often climbed together from Glen Nevis^[1]. The mountain's name translates from the Gaelic as “Summit of the Corries”^[2] or Top of the Corries^[3] and this is quite fitting as Mullach nan Coirean has four corries on its slopes. However it is unusual that the name does not include reference to the mountains distinct red tinge cause by its red granite rock.

Mullach nan Coirean stands in stark contrast to the adjoining Stob Ban, which is a pointed and light coloured peak, owing to its crown of quartzite. Mullach nan Coirean differs, being a large sprawling mountain of ridges and corries with its granite rock giving the mountain a definite red shade (see picture. The mountain has three north facing corries: the finest of these is Coire Dearg (Red Corrie) which is drained by the Allt a’ Choire Dheirg into Glen Nevis and is overlooked by Mullach nan Coirean’s South East Top (917 metres) which is listed as a “top” in the Munro Tables^[4]. The South East Top was previously called "Coire Dearg Top" but was changed to avoid confusion as the main summit also overlooks Coire Dearg. The other two northern corries are smaller: Coire Riabhach also drains to Glen Nevis while Coire a’ Mhuillinn empties further west into the River Kiachnish which delineates the mountain's western boundary. A fourth corrie, Coire Carach stands on the mountain's southern slopes.

Mullach nan Coirean has four ridges radiating from its summit. The eastern ridge links to the adjoining Munro of Stob Ban which is three kilometres away, whilst the south western ridge links to the subsidiary top of Meall a’ Chaorainn (910 metres) before descending steeply to the valley of the River Kiachnish. The northern ridge is four kilometres long and has the vitrified fort of Dun Deardail ("Fort of the Red Eye")^[5] near its terminus just before it joins Glen Nevis. The fort is probably named after Deidre, the princess of Ulster, it is one in a line of vitrified forts that stretches from Craig Phadraig outside Inverness to the west coast^[6]. The north east ridge also descends to Glen Nevis but is much shorter. The mountain's lower northern slopes are covered by the coniferous woodland of the Nevis Forest.

As already mentioned, Mullach nan Coirean is often ascended in conjunction with the neighbouring Stob Ban; this walk starts at Achriabhach and climbs Coire a' Mhusgain before crossing Stob Ban to reach Mullach nan Coirean. A direct ascent of the mountain starts at the same place and goes through the Nevis Forest to reach Mullach nan Coirean’s north east ridge which is ascended to the summit. The top of the mountain is an excellent place to view Loch Linnhe^[7].

[edit] References

• The Munros: Donald Bennett et al: Scottish Mountaineering Trust: ISBN 0-907521-13-4
• 100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains, Ralph Storer, ISBN 0-7515-0300-2
• Hamish’s Mountain Walk, Hamish Brown, ISBN 1-898573-08-5

Footnotes