Where are the Fannaichs?

This mountain range of 9 Munros can be found in North West Scotland. They are north and west of Inverness and lie off the main road between Inverness and Ullapool. You can get as far as Garve by train, but will need a lift from there or the Citylink coach toward Ullapool.

This area is vast. Further toward the coast lies the mighty An Teallach and behind this, the remote Fisherfield Munros. The Fannaichs range - this spectacular and elegant range of 9 Munros border the road to the south. The Inverlael / Beinn Dearg range lie to the north. Further north from the charming fishing town of Ullapool (with good ferry links to Skye and the Hebrides) the landscape changes dramatically - It's Britain but as few have ever seen it. A strange landscape largely flat with mountains (not necessarily big ones) just rearing up out of it. One has to pinch oneself to consider we're on the same island as Cornwall, London, Birmingham, Edinburgh or Glasgow!

About the Day

This range consists of brilliant 9 Munros. They can be tackled over a series of individual day walks. However, the range is friendly enough to make a full traverse in just one day. Ok, it's a long day but it's perfectly doable."

This is a challenge day. It's roughly a 42km day with ​2,800m ascent. It's taken Fabian about 15 hours before going at a relatively steady pace (he's not an especially fast walker). And that's included plenty of time to take in the views.

The terrain follows good tracks for the most part and there are paths through most of the bouldery bits. But a lot of the area has an other worldly wild quality that is almost pioneering about it. There is magic up here when the weather plays along. Wispy clouds, localised mysterious fog patches.

Sgurr Mor is a stunning mountain. Elegant. At 1,110m this is the highest point in this range. Most of the others are all hovering just below the 1,000m mark. Neighbouring Beinn Liath Mor Fannaich gives the best views of it. Accessible yet remote, dramatic yet doable in a (very long) day, sweeping ridge lines, squelchy ground, good paths, boulders. It has a bit of everything. There are also various places where we can call it a day if the weather turns on us or as a team we're not feeling it.

We tend to do the traverse west to east. The route starts off with a steep pull up onto the ridge splitting the first two Munros. These two are normally done as a single day walk. But we can pull up onto the next ridge up a vague trod (not quite a path which appears and disappears) and this takes us to the middle three. Steep and long pulls to the Munros but already two of the 5 Munros we can leave our bags at the col (if the weather is good) and bimble up to the summits feeling a lot lighter!

We've then some steep climbs to get onto the final four. Beinn Liath Mor Fannaich is a boulder field and it's generally around here we're starting to feel the repeateed ascent and descents. But with two more Munros to go we've got to dig deep. The final Munro is a struggle! And the descent is largely pathless and long.

Right at the end we get a decent track, but a 40m ascent which is about the last thing we need! But by the time we can see the road we are starting to feel extremely smug about our achievement!

Munros:

A' Chailleach (997m / 3,271ft)

Sgurr Breac (999m / 3,278ft)

Sgurr na Each (923m / 3,028ft)

Sgurr nan Clach Geala (1,093m / 3,586ft)

Meall a' Chrasgaidh (934m / 3,064ft)

Sgurr Mor (1,110m / 3,642ft)

Beinn Liath Mhor Fannaich (954m / 3,130ft)

Meall Gorm (949m / 3,113ft)

An Coileachan (923m / 3,028ft)