Scotland
Morven
872M
2861FT
About Morven
Rising as a massive granite whaleback above the Howe of Cromar, this prominent Corbett offers a classic Deeside ascent. The terrain is largely heather and peat, leading to a stony summit plateau. Its isolation ensures a commanding presence, providing an unobstructed perspective over the Cairngorms and the distant Aberdeenshire coastline.
Key Statistics
Rank
1st Highest in Region
Parent Range
Data coming soon
Prominence
?
387
Nearest Town
Ballater
Geology
You are walking on the Morven-Cabrach Pluton, a massive body of cooled magma. The rock beneath your feet is norite, which formed deep within the Earth's crust.
Find It
Latitude
57.1226°N
Longitude
3.0309°W
Did You Know?
- •The name is derived from the Gaelic 'A' Mhòr Bheinn', which simply translates as 'The Great Hill', reflecting its status as the highest point in the immediate area.
- •Lord Byron, who spent part of his childhood in the nearby village of Dinnet, famously immortalised the hill in his poetry, writing of the 'steep summit, oh Morven of snow' in his work When I Roved a Young Highlander.
- •The summit panorama is exceptionally wide-ranging; to the west, the jagged skyline of Lochnagar and the high plateaus of the White Mounth dominate, while the cone of Mount Keen is visible to the south-west.
- •On the south-eastern slopes, a small memorial commemorates the crew of a Lockheed Hudson aircraft that crashed on the hill during a training flight in 1942.
- •While the name suggests grandeur, those attempting a direct line through the lower slopes in late summer will find that 'The Great Hill' is frequently a polite euphemism for some of the deepest, most exhausting heather in the county.