Stob Coire Easain is a Scottish

Munro A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...

mountain which reaches a height of 1115 metres (3658 feet), situated 18 kilometres east of Fort William. It stands on the western side of

Loch Treig Loch Treig is a 9 km freshwater loch situated in a steep-sided glen 20 km east of Fort William, Scotland, Fort William, in Lochaber, Highland (council area), Highland, Scotland. While there are no roads alongside the loch, the West Hig ...

, along with its "twin", the Munro

Stob a' Choire Mheadhoin Stob a' Choire Mheadhoin is a mountain in the Scottish Highlands, it is situated 19 km east of Fort William in the Lochaber area of the Highland council area. Overview Stob a' Choire Mheadhoin reaches a height of 1105 metres (3625 f ...

(1105 metres). Collectively the pair are called "The Easains" or the "Stob Corries""Hamish's Mountain Walk" Pages 172 & 173 (Suggests alternative names for the pair). and stand just one kilometre apart connected by a high col with an approximate height of 965 metres. The fine corrie of Coire Easain Beag lies in between the two mountains facing north west. Stob Coire Easain’s name translates from the

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 ''“Peak of the Corrie of the Little Waterfall”''."The Munros" Page 78 (Gives translation of Gaelic name). This mountain should not be confused with another Stob Coire Easain, a Munro “Top” on the Munro

Stob Coire an Laoigh Stob Coire an Laoigh ( gd, Peak of the corrie of the calf) is a Scottish mountain in The Grey Corries Range, 15 kilometres north east of Kinlochleven. At an elevation of Stob Coire an Laoigh is equal 37th in height (with Aonach Beag) on the M ...

The Easains stand in splendid isolation, hemmed in by valleys on three sides, giving Stob Coire Easain a substantial

topographic prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

of 611 metres. Wikipedia's list of British Mountains by Relative Height. Gives Topographic prominence as 611 metres. The mountain is the highest point on a nine kilometre long ridge which runs the entire length of the western side of Loch Treig; the eastern side of this ridge drops very steeply to the waters of the loch. To the west of the mountain is the valley of the Allt na Lairig. A subsidiary ridge going north from the summit is initially steep and craggy as it descends to the head of Coire Laire. To the south of the summit the main ridge descends gently over Irlick Chaoile to the lonely country at the head of Loch Treig. All drainage from the mountain goes into the River Spean to find its way to the west coast of Scotland via

Loch Linnhe Loch Linnhe () is a sea loch on the west coast of Scotland. The part upstream of Corran is known in Gaelic as (the black pool, originally known as Loch Abar), and downstream as (the salty pool). The name ''Linnhe'' is derived from the Gaelic w ...

. Because of their close proximity, the Easains are usually climbed together with the best starting point being at the hamlet of Fersit () where there is room to park a number of cars on the verges. The north east ridge of Stob a’ Choire Mheadhoin is followed to the summit; it is then a steep descent and climb across the stony col to the summit of Stob Coire Easain. An alternative walk utilises the

West Highland Line The West Highland Line ( gd, Rathad Iarainn nan Eilean - "Iron Road to the Isles") is a railway line linking the ports of Mallaig and Oban in the Scottish Highlands to Glasgow in Central Scotland. The line was voted the top rail journey in th ...

, with the walker starting at

Corrour railway station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = Corrour 3.jpg , caption = Corrour station, looking southeast , borough = Loch Ossian, Highland , country = Scotland , coor ...

and traversing round the head of Loch Treig to gain the main ridge of the Easains, which can then be crossed south to north finishing at Fersit."The Munros" Page 78 (Suggests both the given routes of ascent). Stob Coire Easain’s height and isolation give good views with the vista west over the Grey Corries and the Aonachs towards

Ben Nevis Ben Nevis ( ; gd, Beinn Nibheis ) is the 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 ...

being especially fine.

References

* ''The Munros (SMC Guide)'' Donald Bennett et al., * ''Hamish’s Mountain Walk'', Hamish Brown, * ''The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland'',

Irvine Butterfield Irvine Butterfield (1936–2009) was an environmentalist, hillwalker and author of several books about mountains and the outdoor environment who took a significant role in the running of organisations with such interests in Scotland. He was a go ...

, * ''100 Best Routes on Scottish Mountains'', Ralph Storer, Footnotes {{coord, 56, 49, 5, N, 4, 46, 28, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Munros Marilyns of Scotland Mountains and hills of the Central Highlands Mountains and hills of Highland (council area) One-thousanders of Scotland

See also

References