Sron a' Cha-no

About Sron a' Cha-no

Perched like a stern doorman at the entrance to the Cairngorm plateau, Sron a' Cha-no offers spectacular views into the Northern Corries without requiring the full exertion of its more famous siblings. It’s the perfect spot for feeling superior to the tourists wandering near the Ptarmigan Station.

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Did You Know?

• •The name translates from Gaelic as 'Nose of the Cask,' which might sound like a promise of hidden whisky, but sadly only refers to the rounded shape of the ridge. It sits prominently above the Allt na Ciste, overlooking some of the most dramatic winter climbing territory in the UK.
• •This area is part of the Cairngorms National Park, home to the only free-ranging herd of reindeer in Britain. While the summit itself is a bit of a boulder-hop, it serves as a vital vantage point for surveying the unique arctic-alpine tundra of the main plateau.
• •The rock here is dominated by pink Cairngorm granite, which was formed deep underground roughly 400 million years ago. It has since been scoured by glaciers into the rugged 'Nose' you see today, proving that even mountains can get a bit of rhinoplasty over several million years.
• •It is technically classified as a 'Top' of Cairn Gorm rather than a Munro in its own right. This makes it a frequent victim of 'bagging by proximity' where hikers accidentally summit it while trying to find the actual mountain during a Cairngorm whiteout.
• •Because it overlooks the ski resort, you can enjoy a sense of rugged wilderness while watching people struggle with T-bar lifts in the distance. It’s the ideal place to eat a soggy sandwich while judging the fashion choices of day-trippers who took the funicular halfway up.