Cairn Toul ( gd, Càrn an t-Sabhail, 'hill of the barn') is the fourth-highest mountain in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

and all of the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

, after

Ben Nevis Ben Nevis ( ; gd, Beinn Nibheis ) is the highest mountain in Scotland, the United Kingdom and the British Isles. The summit is above sea level and is the highest land in any direction for . Ben Nevis stands at the western end of the Grampian ...

Ben Macdui Ben Macdui ( gd, Beinn MacDuibh, meaning "MacDuff's mountain") is the second-highest mountain in Scotland and all of the British Isles, after Ben Nevis, and the highest of the Cairngorm Mountains. The summit is above sea level and it is cla ...

and Braeriach. The summit is 1,291 metres (4,236 feet) above sea level. It is in the western massif of the

Cairngorms The Cairngorms ( gd, Am Monadh Ruadh) are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms became part of Scotland's second national park (the Cairngorms National Park) on 1 S ...

, linked by a

bealach A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both human and animal migra ...

at about 1125 m to Braeriach. The mountain towers above the

Lairig Ghru The Lairig Ghru ( gd, Làirig Dhrù) is one of the mountain passes through the Cairngorms of Scotland. The route and mountain pass partially lies on the Mar Lodge Estate. Like many traditional routes, the ends of the route through the Lairig Gh ...

pass. Cairn Toul is often climbed together with other peaks. From the south, it may be climbed with The Devil's Point, which lies about 2.5 kilometres south-southeast. Alternatively, it may be climbed from the north, including Braeriach and Sgor an Lochain Uaine. Both routes are long days by Scottish standards: around 15 km (plus return) regardless of whether one starts from Coire Cas above

Speyside Speyside can refer to: * Speyside, Ontario, a settlement in Ontario * Strathspey, Scotland, the famous whisky producing region by the River Spey ** Speyside single malts, the type of whisky produced in Strathspey * Speyside, Trinidad and Tobago ...

, or Linn of Dee to the south. The mountain may also be climbed from the west, starting from Achlean in Glen Feshie. This provides for a slighter shorter route (around 27 km for the round trip), though the walker must negotiate a large expanse of undulating boggy

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

in order to reach the Breariach-Cairn Toul massif. There is a bothy, '' Corrour'', at the point below Cairn Toul in the defile of the Lairig Ghru.

References

{{Scottish Munros section 8 Munros Marilyns of Scotland Mountains and hills of the Cairngorms Mountains and hills of Aberdeenshire Places and place names on Mar Lodge Estate One-thousanders of the British Isles

See also

References