Little Conval

Rising above the malt whisky capital of Dufftown, this rounded Moray Marilyn offers a steady, heathery climb. While often overlooked for its larger neighbour, Ben Rinnes, the summit provides a clear perspective of the Spey Valley and the distinctive profiles of the Cairngorm peaks to the south.

• •The name Conval likely stems from the Gaelic Coinneal, meaning candle, which may refer to historical signal fires or the specific way light catches the heathery slopes.
• •The summit plateau is marked by the remains of an Iron Age hillfort, featuring a collapsed stone rampart that once provided a strategic lookout over the Dullan Water.
• •It is most often climbed in tandem with Meikle Conval, with the two hills forming a distinctive double-humped silhouette when viewed from the north.
• •From the summit cairn, the view to the north-east looks directly down onto the 'Seven Stills of Dufftown', where the pagoda roofs of famous distilleries like Glenfiddich are easily spotted.
• •In a quirk of topographic classification, Little Conval is high enough and sufficiently isolated to be a Marilyn, whereas its taller neighbour Meikle Conval misses out on the title due to a lack of relative prominence.