A' Chailleach

This rounded Munro stands at the edge of the vast Monadhliath plateau. Its heathery slopes provide a steady ascent from Newtonmore, following the path beside the Allt a’ Chaorainn. On a clear day, the summit offers a sprawling perspective across the Spey Valley toward the high, jagged profiles of the Cairngorm giants.

• •The name is Gaelic for 'The Old Woman'. In Scottish folklore, the Cailleach is the divine hag or goddess of winter who was said to have shaped the Highlands by dropping rocks from her wicker basket.
• •The hill is frequently climbed as part of a three-Munro circuit from Glen Banchor, usually paired with its neighbours Càrn Sgulain and Gèal Charn.
• •The summit provides an exceptional vantage point for looking east toward the Cairngorms; you can clearly pick out the massive bulk of Braeriach and the dark, craggy northern corries above Aviemore.
• •The approach through Glen Banchor passes through land that was once part of a busy 'rathad' or right of way, historically used by locals traveling between Newtonmore and the Great Glen.
• •The Monadhliath plateau is notoriously featureless in mist; it is the kind of landscape where a solitary fence post can feel like a major navigational landmark.