An Caisteal () is a mountain in the Breadalbane region of the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

, south of the village of

Crianlarich Crianlarich (; gd, A' Chrìon Làraich) is a village in Stirling council area and in the registration county of Perthshire, Scotland, around north-east of the head of Loch Lomond. The village bills itself as "the gateway to the Highlands". Ety ...

. It is a Munro with a height of .

Overview

An Caisteal, which qualifies as a Munro, is located in a popular area for hill walking within a group of seven Munros and fourteen tops which stand on the eastern side of Glen Falloch in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park. The mountain reaches a height of 995 metres (3,264 feet) and is usually climbed together with the neighbouring Munro of

Beinn a' Chroin Beinn a' Chroin is a mountain in the Breadalbane, Scotland, Breadalbane region of the Scottish Highlands, six kilometres south of Crianlarich. With a height of it qualifies as a Munro. Overview Beinn a’ Chroin stands well into the inte ...

,"The Munros" Pages 13 (Gives route for both hills) to which it is connected by a high col to the south east. The mountain's name translates from

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

as "the castle" and is believed to refer to the prominent castellated rocks at the summit which serve as an easy way of identifying it from a distance."100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains" Pages 31 (Gives info on origin of name)

Geography

An Caisteal is a mainly grassy hill with some rocky outcrops on its higher slopes. The mountain is formed by four ridges which radiate from its summit, the north ridge goes over a series of undulating rocky knolls known as Twistin Hill to reach the subsidiary top of Sròn Gharbh (709 metres) before dropping down to the

A82 road The A82 is a major road in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Inverness via Fort William, Highland, Fort William. It is one of the principal north-south routes in Scotland and is mostly a trunk road managed by Transport Scotland, who view it a ...

in Glen Falloch. This northern ridge is the most popular route of ascent and Twistin Hill has some curious features on it as it approaches the summit, there are a number of small caves close to the path and a deep cleft cuts into the ridge."100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains" Pages 31 (Gives info on Twistin Hill features) The north west ridge also terminates in Glen Falloch after crossing the lesser top of Stob Glas (710 metres), this ridge can be used for ascent but is not as popular as the route over Twistin Hill. The other two ridges are shorter and link to other mountains with the south west ridge connecting to the Munro of Beinn Chabhair some two kilometres distant and includes a sharp rough descent and ascent over a low col with a height of 619 metres. The south east ridge links to Beinn a' Chroin across the Bealach Buidhe (805 metres) and the headwaters of the River Falloch. Drainage from the mountain reaches both the east and west coast of Scotland, most precipitation goes via the River Falloch and

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; gd, Loch Laomainn - 'Lake of the Elms'Richens, R. J. (1984) ''Elm'', Cambridge University Press.) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Ce ...

to reach the

Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...

at the west coast, however a small amount drains from the southern slopes to go via Strathyre and the River Teith to reach the

Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meani ...

at the east coast.

Ascents

An Caisteal is usually ascended from Glen Falloch — there is a large lay by for parking on the A82 at grid reference although it is also possible to start from Derrydaroch farm 2.5 kilometres to the south west."The Munros" Pages 13 (Gives route from Glen Falloch) The route goes under the railway by a sheep creep and follows a track by the River Falloch upstream for about a kilometre before striking SW to climb Sròn Gharbh direct across pathless grass. A path is then picked up at the summit of Sròn Gharbh which leads across Twistin Hill and past "The Castle" rocks to reach the summit.

References and Footnotes

*The Munros, Scottish Mountaineering Trust, 1986, Donald Bennett (Editor) *The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland, Diadem, 1993, Irvine Butterfield, *100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains, Warner Books, 1992, Ralph Storer, *Hamish’s Mountain Walk, Baton Wicks, 1996, Hamish Brown, *The Munros, Scotland Highest Mountains, Lomond Books 2006, Cameron McNeish, Footnotes {{Authority control Munros Marilyns of Scotland Mountains and hills of the Southern Highlands Mountains and hills of Stirling (council area)