Beinn Alligin

Beinn Alligin (Gaelic: Beinn Àilleagan) one of the classic mountains of the Torridon region of Scotland, lying to the north of Loch Torridon, in the Highlands. The name Beinn Alligin is from the Scottish Gaelic, meaning Jewelled Hill. The mountain has two peaks of Munro status: Tom na Gruagaich (922 m) to the south, and Sgùrr Mhòr at 3,235 feet (986 m) to the north.

Beinn Alligin - Sgùrr Mhor
Beinn Alligin
Highest point
Elevation986 m (3,235 ft) [1]
Prominencec. 601 m
Parent peakBeinn Eighe
ListingMunro, Marilyn
Naming
English translationBig Peak
Language of nameGaelic
Pronunciation/ˌbeɪn ˈælɪɡɪn/
Scottish Gaelic: [ˈpeɲ ˈaːʎakən]
Geography
Beinn Alligin - Sgùrr Mhor
OS gridNG865613
Topo mapOS Landranger 19, 24
Listed summits of Beinn Alligin
NameGrid refHeightStatus
Sgùrr MhòrNG865686986 m (3,235 ft)Munro, Marilyn
Tom na GruagaichNG859601922 m (3,025 ft)Munro, Marilyn
Na RathananNG873613866 m (2,841 ft)Corbett Top

Ascent

The usual route of ascent starts from the minor road between Torridon village and Inveralligin, following the route of the Abhainn Coire Mhic Nobuil (a river), before heading up into the corrie of Coir nan Laogh. Steep grassy slopes then lead to the summit of Tom na Gruagaich. The main ridge of Beinn Alligin is then followed round to the north, leading the hillwalker towards Sgùrr Mhòr. Below the summit of this peak is a deep gash in the hillside known as Eag Dubh, the black notch, one of Beinn Alligin's most recognisable features.

View east from Sgùrr Mhòr over the "Horns"

From the summit of Sgùrr Mhòr, it is possible to continue along the ridge, now heading in an easterly direction. The ridge at this point becomes much rockier, and a series of pinnacles known as the "Horns of Alligin" must be negotiated. The horns provide good summer scrambling for those with a head for heights, but in winter they are a much more serious proposition.

An alternative descent, avoiding the horns, can be made by leaving the Beinn Alligin ridge at the col between the two summits (in Gaelic such a feature is known as a "bealach") where grassy slopes can be followed westwards down into a neighbouring glen. This route is not straightforward under winter conditions.

A great cleft Leum na Caillich cuts into the ridge south of the summit. It is the scar of the most spectacular rockslide or rock avalanche in Britain, which runs out into the corrie of Toll a' Mhadaidh Mor. It occurred around 3750 years ago and is around 3.5 million cubic metres in volume.[2]

References
  1. "Beinn Alligin". Hill Bagging - the online version of the Database of British and Irish Hills (DoBIH). 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  2. Ballantyne CK (2007) in Mass Movements of Great Britain, ed. RG Cooper, JNCC, 111-116.
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