M59 | 1083 m. | 3553 ft.
Translation: The fairly hill of the Caledonians
Pronuncation: shee-haal-yan

On the first day of the 2006 Munro walking holiday, Alex, Frank and me had driven up from Edinburgh to the foot of Schiehallion where we left the car at the parking at Braes of Foss. Starting off at 3:30 p.m. we vigourously walked on the excellent new path which crosses over the lower reaches of the hill and later climbs in zig-zags up the east ridge. The going was straight-forward and soon we reached the higher sections of the ridge where heather and grass give way to rock and boulders. Crossing a few isolated very small patches of snow we climbed further and got to a fairly level section below the summit rocks. These summit rocks were the best feature of the whole climb since they made for an entertaining change compared with the heather, grass and quartzite of the east ridge. The views at the top were great and much of the Central Highlands was in clear view from the summit. We were quite happy to have reached this summit in such good weather and enjoyed ourselves looking at the scenerey and drinking some water. Then, it being late in the day already, we descended the hill by the way we had climbed it. Three hours after we had started we were back at the Braes of Foss parking. We had a last look at the hill and then drove off to Pitlochry were our B&B was. Nice views, easy hill, good weather, perfect start to the week!


Description Schiehallion is one of the best known of Scottish mountains by virtue of its striking appearance and isolated position in the heart of the Highlands. It is a conspicuous feature from many viewpoints. From the east and west it appears as a steep conical peak, but from the north and south its true shape is more apparent as a long whale-backed ridge. The upper part of the mountain is covered with quartzite scree and boulders which give it a pale grey appearance. A narrow public road goes round the north side of Schiehallion between Coshieville and Kinloch Rannoch, and near Braes of Foss farm on this road there is a carpark at the foot of the mountain. The path from there to Schiehallion leads across rising moorland to the steeper slopes. Higher up the east ridge is reached and the path continues along its broad crest to the summit, giving rough walking on the angular quartzite stones and boulders.