![Braemar from Morrone](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Braemar_from_Morrone.jpg)
Morrone ( gd, Mór Bheinn, or Mór Shròn) is a
Scottish hill immediately southwest of the village of
Braemar
Braemar is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, around west of Aberdeen in the Highlands. It is the closest significantly-sized settlement to the upper course of the River Dee sitting at an elevation of .
The Gaelic ''Bràigh Mhàrr'' prop ...
in
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland.
It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...
.
Geography and topography
The hill reaches a height of 859 metres (2818 feet) and qualifies as a
Corbett Corbett may refer to:
* List of Corbetts (mountains), 222 mountains in Scotland between , with prominence over
* Corbett, Oregon, a community in the United States
* Corbett Award, US award for athletics administrators
* Corbett (surname), people w ...
and a
Marilyn, although with a topographic prominence of 155 metres,
[ Wikipedia - List of Marilyns in Southern Highlands. Gives prominence as 155 metres.] it only just meets the prominence criterion for these categories. Morrone very much belongs to the village of Braemar from which it is usually climbed, and with a starting elevation of 330 metres, it is an easy ascent and a unique one, being the only significant mountain climb in Scotland to start from the centre of a village.
["Climbing the Corbetts" Pages 150 (No mountain walk starts from a town).] Morrone is used for the
Braemar Gathering hill race every September, and is a popular venue for
paragliding
Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like 'po ...
and
hang-gliding
Hang gliding is an air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised foot-launched heavier-than-air aircraft called a hang glider. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminium alloy or composite frame covered ...
. The hill is occasionally referred to as Morven and it is given both names on Ordnance Survey maps, although
Hamish Brown
Hamish Brown M.B.E. FRSGS is a professional writer, lecturer and photographer specialising in mountain and outdoor topics. He is best known for his walking exploits in the Scottish Highlands, having completed multiple rounds of the Munros and be ...
says ''I’ve never heard it called Morven.''
["Climbing the Corbetts" Pages 150 (Never heard it called Morven).] In point of fact, the pronunciation of ''Morrone'' does not correspond closely with the pronunciation of ''Mór Shròn'', and the derivation of ''Morrone'' is a complex question. Watson and Allan come down on the side of ''Mór Bheinn''.
["The Place Names of Upper Deeside" Page 118] Morrone is not to be confused with
Morven, the highest point in
Caithness
Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland.
Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded by ...
, or with the local
Morven, a mere to the northeast.
Morrone has a prominent profile, dominating the village of Braemar, and lives up to its name, which translates as ''Big Hill'' or ''Big Nose'', but the hill is otherwise undistinguished, having few topographical highlights. It has a long south ridge, continuing from its summit over undulating ground to link with the Munro of
An Socach nine kilometres to the south. Its eastern flanks are drained by the Coldrach Burn and the Allt Coire na Sgreuchaig, both flowing into the Clunie Water to join the
River Dee just north of Braemar. The northern and western slopes are drained by a series of streams running directly into the Dee as it passes to the north of the hill. Morrone has three named but unexceptional
corries on its slopes, the Coire Allt a' Chlair to the west of the summit, the Coire nam Muc to the north and the Coire na Sgreuchaig on the north eastern slopes.
Morrone Birkwood
The hill's lower northern slopes are the site of the Morrone Birkwood
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...
, managed by
Scottish Natural Heritage
NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and ...
. Floristically unaltered since the end of the last ice age, it is the sole surviving example in Britain of a sub-alpine
birch
A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...
-
juniper
Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' () of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from the Arcti ...
wood on basic soils.
["The Past and Present Vegetation of the Morrone Birkwoods National Nature Reserve" (“The wood is the sole surviving example in Britain of a sub-alpine birch-juniper wood on basic soils“).] It is also the most extensive and diverse example of a transition between woodland and juniper scrub in the UK. Some of the stands of juniper are the largest and most diverse in Scotland, and it has an extensive range of rare flora such as
twinflower
''Linnaea'' is a plant genus in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. Until 2013, the genus included a single species, ''Linnaea borealis''. In 2013, on the basis of molecular phylogenetic evidence, the genus was expanded to include species f ...
,
interrupted club moss and
globeflower. There are tufa-forming springs on the site, and it is the habitat of the endangered
Geyer’s whorl snail. In the past the wood has been subject to high levels of grazing by
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
, but since its declaration as a conservation area, the wood has been fenced to exclude deer and some natural regeneration has taken place.
[Joint Nature Conservation Committee.](_blank)
Gives rest of info on Morrone Birkwood.
Ascents and view
![Morrone Panorama](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/Morrone_Panorama.jpg)
Morrone is usually climbed from the village of Braemar.
["The Corbetts and Other Scottish Hills" Page 93 (Gives routes of ascent and descent).] From the centre of the village, Chapel Brae is followed to the car park by the duck pond. From here a track goes south through the woods to reach a viewpoint with a plaque identifying the surrounding mountains. The main track swings right to the Birkwood, but the route is to the left for a hundred metres, and then takes a footpath on the right up the open hillside. It is then a two kilometre climb south west to the summit.
Nearing the summit, one has a bird's-eye view of Braemar. The top of the hill is adorned with a radio mast and buildings dating from 1969, part of a
University of Aberdeen
The University of Aberdeen ( sco, University o' 'Aiberdeen; abbreviated as ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; gd, Oilthigh Obar Dheathain) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Sc ...
research station. Braemar mountain rescue team also has a radio relay station on the summit.
["Climbing the Corbetts" Pages 150 (Gives info on summit buildings and masts).] At the highest point there is a
trig point
A triangulation station, also known as a trigonometrical point, and sometimes informally as a trig, is a fixed surveying station, used in geodetic surveying and other surveying projects in its vicinity. The nomenclature varies regionally: they a ...
and a large
cairn
A cairn is a man-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the gd, càrn (plural ).
Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehis ...
.
The view is extensive, with an all-round mountain panorama from 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 ...
to
Lochnagar
Lochnagar or is a mountain in the Mounth, in the Grampians of Scotland. It is about south of the River Dee near Balmoral. It is a popular hill with hillwalkers, and is a noted venue for summer and winter climbing.
Names
The English name ...
and the
Glenshee Ski Centre
Glenshee Ski Centre is an alpine snowsports area in the Scottish Highlands. It is located above the Cairnwell Pass at the head of Glen Shee on either side of the A93 road between Blairgowrie and Rattray, Blairgowrie and Braemar. Glenshee is Brit ...
. The descent from the mountain can be varied by following the vehicle track serving the summit structures, which runs south and then east to end on the old military road in Glen Clunie, from where it is a short walk back to Braemar.
References and footnotes
*Climbing The Corbetts, Baton Wicks, 1996, Hamish Brown,
*The Corbetts and Other Scottish Hills, SMC, 1990, Scott Johnstone et al.,
*The Corbett Almanac, Neil Wilson Publishing, 1994, Cameron McNeish,
*The Place Names of Upper Deeside, Aberdeen University Press, 1984, Adam Watson and Elizabeth Allan,
Footnotes
{{coord, 56.98040, -3.43140, type:landmark_region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(NO131886), display=title
Corbetts
Marilyns of Scotland
Mountains and hills of the Eastern Highlands
Mountains and hills of Aberdeenshire
Special Areas of Conservation in Scotland
Climbing areas of Scotland
Protected areas of Aberdeenshire