Glamaig
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| Glamaig | |
|---|---|
 Glamaig seen from Sligachan |
|
| Elevation | 775 m (2542 ft) |
| Location | Red Cuillin, Skye, Scotland |
| Prominence | c. 480 m |
| Parent peak | Sgurr Mhairi |
| Topo map | Ordnance Survey Landranger 32 |
| OS grid reference | NG514301 |
| Listing | Corbett, Marilyn |
| Translation | Greedy woman (Gaelic) |
| Pronunciation | [glæmɛk] |
Glamaig is the northernmost of the Red Cuillin on the Scottish Isle of Skye. It lies immediately east of Sligachan. It is one of only two Corbetts on Skye.
From many angles the hill resembles a perfect cone of scree, though it is linked to the rest of the Red Hills by way of a bealach, the Bealach na Sgairde (pronounced b'ya-loch na skaar-st'ya), meaning the pass of scree.
In 1889, a Gurkha named Harkabir Tharpa scaled Glamaig in a 37 minutes; his total time for the round trip, starting and finishing at sea level in the bar of the Sligachan Inn was 55 minutes. Modern hill runners competing in an annual race have shaved only a little off his time, and unlike him they do not run barefoot.
From Sligachan one route of ascent (whether running or hillwalking) is simply to head up the scree aiming for the summit - this climb is very arduous, due to the unrelenting gradient and the slipperiness of the scree. Descent may be made by way of ascent; alternatively one may continue along the Red Cuillin ridge to take in other peaks to the south.
A slightly less arduous (but longer) climb approaches the mountain from its eastern end at Sconser. Climb first to the secondary summit, An Coileach (The Cockerel), then follow the whaleback ridge to the primary summit, Sgurr Mhairi (Mary's Peak). Once An Coileach is reached at 673m (2208 feet), the more-or-less level ridge allows some respite from the gradient, with a gentler ascent of the final 102m (334 feet) to Sgurr Mhairi.
From the summit there are excellent views of both the Black Cuillin and the Isle of Raasay.
