Meall Odhar

About Meall Odhar

Sitting quietly above the Cononish glen west of Tyndrum, this rounded Graham offers a wilder, less-trodden alternative to the nearby Corbetts. Its broad, heathery slopes lead to a summit with excellent, uncrowded views across the deep trench of the glen toward the soaring peaks of Ben Lui and Beinn a' Chléibh.

Key Statistics

Find It

Did You Know?

• •The name is derived from the Gaelic Meall Odhar, which translates as 'dun-coloured' or 'sallow hill'. It refers to the muted, brownish-grey tones of the grasses and heather that dominate its rounded slopes for much of the year.
• •The hill's southern slopes overlook the Cononish gold mine, Scotland’s only commercial gold mining operation, where precious metals are extracted from quartz veins deep within the Tyndrum hills.
• •While often overlooked in favour of its taller neighbour, Beinn Chùirn, this hill is a substantial objective in its own right and is typically climbed via the track from Cononish farm, which follows the river Fillan into the hills.
• •The summit offers a spectacular, unobstructed view of the massive north-east corrie of Ben Lui, providing a scale and perspective of that mountain's famous central gully that is lost when standing closer to its base.
• •For a hill named after a dull shade of brown, it occupies some remarkably high-value real estate, standing directly above the most productive gold deposit in the British Isles.