Coire an t-Sneachda (sometimes misspelled as ''Coire an t'Sneachda'') is a glacial

cirque A (; from the Latin word ) is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by Glacier#Erosion, glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are corrie (from , meaning a pot or cauldron) and ; ). A cirque may also be a similarly shaped landform a ...

or corrie

landform A landform is a land feature on the solid surface of the Earth or other planetary body. They may be natural or may be anthropogenic (caused or influenced by human activity). Landforms together make up a given terrain, and their arrangement ...

in the Cairngorm or mountain range in the

Grampian Mountains The Grampian Mountains () is one of the three major mountain ranges in Scotland, that together occupy about half of Scotland. The other two ranges are the Northwest Highlands and the Southern Uplands. The Grampian range extends northeast to so ...

of the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

. The summits of Cairn Lochan (1215 m) and Stob Coire an t-Sneachda (1176 m) lie above Coire an t-Sneachda's headwall. The

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

translates into English as .

Location and access

Coire an t-Sneachda is located in Invernesshire, Northern Scotland. The nearest major town is Aviemore. The nearest road access point is the

Cairn Gorm Cairn Gorm () is a mountain in the Scottish Highlands. It is part of the Cairngorms range and wider Grampian Mountains. With a summit elevation of Height above sea level, above sea level, Cairn Gorm is classed as a Munro and is the sixt ...

ski centre, which is located approximately away (approx. 45–60 minutes walking, in fair conditions).

Geology and wildlife

The

country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

is the Caledonian granite of the Cairngorm batholith which gives rise to the high plateau from which the corrie was eroded. The last glacier occupied this corrie or

approximately 10,000 to 11,000 years before present during the

Younger Dryas The Younger Dryas (YD, Greenland Stadial GS-1) was a period in Earth's geologic history that occurred circa 12,900 to 11,700 years Before Present (BP). It is primarily known for the sudden or "abrupt" cooling in the Northern Hemisphere, when the ...

stadial. This cold period, which is also known as the Loch Lomond stadial, was the last mini

ice-age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

that brought

glaciers A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

and

tundra In physical geography, a tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. There are three regions and associated types of tundra: #Arctic, Arctic, Alpine tundra, Alpine, and #Antarctic ...

conditions to the Scottish Highlands. The corrie is home to a number of bird species, including ring ouzel and

snow bunting The snow bunting (''Plectrophenax nivalis'') is a passerine bird in the family Calcariidae. It is an Arctic specialist, with a circumpolar Arctic breeding range throughout the northern hemisphere. There are small isolated populations on a few ...

(in the spring and summer) and ptarmigan (also known as

rock ptarmigan The rock ptarmigan (''Lagopus muta'') is a medium-sized game bird in the grouse family. It is known simply as the ptarmigan in Europe. It is the official bird for the Canadian territory of Nunavut, where it is known as the ''aqiggiq'' (ᐊᕿ� ...

) (all year round).

Climbing

The corrie is a popular destination for climbers, primarily because of its easy accessibility from the

ski centre and the relatively reliable snow and ice conditions throughout the winter season. A number of climbers have been killed in the corrie, attracting some media attention. Most notoriously, in the winter of 2007 five climbers died after falls or from exposure in adverse conditions during a two-month period. A member of the

Cairngorms The Cairngorms () are a mountain range in the eastern Scottish Highlands, Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms became part of Scotland's second national parks of Scotland, national park (the Cairn ...

mountain MRT (Mountain Rescue Team) was quoted by

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...

as stating, "... it may edown to a combination of factors such as how easily accessible the corrie is – it is about an hour's walk from the ski centre car park – people not having adequate equipment and poor climbing conditions".

References

{{reflist

External links

Geological information"Death in the snow: why have five climbers been killed on one peak", ''Guardian''"Loch Lomond Stadial"
article from ''

Nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...

'' Cirques of Europe Munros Badenoch and Strathspey Climbing areas of Scotland