Ben A'an is a hill in the Trossachs in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The pointed peak of its west top ( in elevation)

Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...

map, 1@25,000 scale ''Explorer'' series, OL 46, ''The Trossachs'', 2015. resembles a small mountain.

Location

Ben A'an is situated in the Trossachs area of the highlands north of Glasgow, rising above

Loch Katrine Loch Katrine (; or ) is a freshwater loch in the Trossachs area of the Scottish Highlands, east of Loch Lomond within the Stirling (council area), Stirling council area. It mostly lies within the Shires of Scotland, historic and registration c ...

and Loch Achray. The summit area is largely treeless and comprises several rock outcrops and crags, its highest point being a rounded summit of elevation, unlike its lower west top.

Ascent

The normal route is from the pay and display car park of "Ben An" (sic) by the shore of Loch Achray. From there the signed path heads straight uphill in a north-northeasterly direction before picking up the course of a burn, the ''Allt Inneir'', and heading north-northwest up to a low saddle (246 m). The path crosses the saddle heading northwest before picking up the course of another burn, the ''Allt na Cailliche'', and following it steeply uphill below the crags of Ben A'an. Close to the source of the burn the path swings westwards and behind the west top of the hill onto a col, from which it is a short climb to the summit of the west top which is the destination for most hikers. There is no obvious path to the main summit.

Views

Even though Ben A’an is not particularly high, it offers panoramic views of the surrounding

loch ''Loch'' ( ) is a word meaning "lake" or "inlet, sea inlet" in Scottish Gaelic, Scottish and Irish Gaelic, subsequently borrowed into English. In Irish contexts, it often appears in the anglicized form "lough". A small loch is sometimes calle ...

glen A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. The word is Goidelic in origin: ''gleann'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic, ''glion'' in Manx. ...

strath A strath is a large valley, typically a river valley that is wide and shallow (as opposed to a glen, which is typically narrower and deep). Word and etymology An anglicisation of the Gaelic word , it is one of many that have been absorbed i ...

s and mountains, including Loch Katrine, Loch Achray, Ben Venue and even as far as the

Arrochar Alps The Arrochar Alps are a group of mountains located around the heads of Loch Long, Loch Fyne, and Loch Goil. They are part of the Grampian mountains range, which stretch across Scotland. The villages of Arrochar, Argyll and Bute, Arrochar and Lo ...

on the western shore of

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; ) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault (HBF), often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Central Scotland and the Highlands.Tom Weir. ''The Scottish Lochs''. pp. 33-43. Published by ...

Name

The name "Ben A’an" is an erroneous Anglicization by

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

. Its original name is uncertain, but it has been suggested that it may have been ''Am Binnean'' which means "the pinnacle",Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park brochure ''What's in a name?'', 2014. although some sites cite its meaning as "the small pointed peak".''Climb to stunning views at Ben A'an''
at scotland.forestry.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 May 2017.

References

{{Reflist Mountains and hills of Stirling (council area) Trossachs