Walking in the Highlands
The Mighty Stob Ban and Mullach nan Coirean – a fantastic alternative to the ‘Ring of Steall’ walk
With our re-opening date of 15th July looming ever closer, Cameron and I were eager to squeeze in another new hill walk amidst all the deep cleaning, painting and risk assessment writing. As always, Cameron had been watching the weather forecast very closely and Monday appeared to be mostly bright and dry – perfect conditions for summiting a peak which is billed as having spectacular views from the top.
Stob Ban had been on our list for a little while, it’s such an iconic shaped quartzite peak which looks as if stands somewhat alone amidst the other towering peaks of the surrounding Nevis and Mamores ranges. It has an alluring feature and has always captured our dreamy mountainous gaze as we’ve been doing our weekly supermarket shop in Fort William – well, let’s be honest, when it hasn’t been hidden by low cloud that is!
Rather than just do a straightforward out and back route, Cameron had found a really good circuit on the Walkhighlands website, which included a ridge traverse to a second Munroe – Mullach nan Coirean. I’ll provide the link at the end. The whole route is 8 miles with a total ascent of 1155 metres and a suggested walking time of 6-8 hours.
After one of Cameron’s speciality breakfasts, we left Distant Hills Guest House and drove the short distance to Glen Nevis and parked just past the Lower Falls car park in a small lay-by just over the bridge and the Polldubh Falls. As we got out of the car and put on our boots, we found we were not alone. A golden eagle was soaring over head, quite literally watching us with eagle eyes!! The second ‘wow’ of the day was just a few footsteps away – the gushing Polldubh Falls that thunder beneath your feet as you cross the bridge.
The route follows a good path, perhaps a little boggy in places, gently ascending towards the direction of Stob Ban itself. With it being summer, the surrounding foliage was in full burst and with a dazzling green lushness and pretty meadow flowers providing additional colour along the way. We had the great fortune of spotting several red deer higher up, these are really difficult to spot but Cameron seems to have missed his calling as a deer stalker! Even with Cameron pointing in their general direction, it took me a couple of minutes to spot them.
As we gained height, we got fabulous views looking back down Glen Nevis towards Fort William and Loch Linnhe beyond, and ahead and just off to our right, beckoned the beautiful Stob Ban. We were in hiking heaven – perfect walking conditions, good path, fabulous views, red deer and a golden eagle spotted and not a soul in sight! It was one of those moments when you feel so lucky to be alive.
I haven’t yet mentioned the river course that runs to the right and deep below. As we gained more height, more streams and beautiful waterfalls began to appear. It really was breathtaking. Looking back down the valley behind us, we started to see more of the ‘distant hills’.
After approximately two hours of walking at a very steady pace, we reached a stunning broad bealach. From here, the quartzite peak of Stob Ban appeared within spitting distance (not a terribly nice term, sorry!). It’s at this point that I started to get just a little anxious. I’m not too great with exposure, although my skills and experience have improved in recent years. The path up the rocky section to the summit looked less obvious and I could now see the drop below down towards Loch Leven on the other side. I needn’t have been too nervous. As is often the case, the closer we got to this last section, the clearer the path became and the less steep it seemed. We did have to pick our way carefully over rocks in a couple of sections, but on the whole, the path was good. I just remained very focused on the path itself and didn’t look down too much!
It took us a little over 3 hours to reach the summit of Stob Ban at 999m, which is surprisingly broad on the top with plenty of room for me to feel very safe and able to roam around and take in the awe-inspiring views. The top of Ben Nevis remained in cloud for the duration; however, we got fantastic views of Devil’s Ridge which forms part of the Ring of Steall walk, a walk we thoroughly enjoyed the previous summer. We could see the infamous Aonach Eagach ridge and the other Glencoe peaks as well as the sea out towards Argyll. It wasn’t until we reached the summit of Stob Ban that we realised just how close we live, as the crow flies, to Kinlochleven. So far, this had been a fabulous and well-rewarding walk and had surpassed all expectations.
So, one Munro down, one more to go. From the summit of Stob Ban, it was very easy to see the rest of the route as it traversed a grassy ridge round to Mullach nan Coirean at 939m. First we had to descend the shattered quartzite rocks down to the beallach to start the traverse, but we took our time and did this easily enough. The ridge walk itself was relatively straightforward and somewhat leisurely after the ascent of Stob Ban. The views opened up even further and it was a little over an hour before we reached our second summit of the day marked by a very large cairn. It was here that we saw the only other person for miles around. To our utter astonishment, this guy was a fell runner and had just run up what was to be our descent off the mountain!
As is often the case for Cameron and I, the descent was a means to an end. As I get older, my knees get sore after a while and this walk-off was no exception. To be fair, the path was pretty decent, a little boggy in the mid section but much easier than the walk-off of Sgurr a Mhaim at the end of the Ring of Steall.
In summary, this walk definitely features in our top 10 for views and great days out on the hills. It took us 7 hours in total to complete with a couple of stops. The scenery and terrain provided plenty of variety with some wildlife as an added bonus. It had the little exposure challenge for me, which always feels exhilarating once achieved and you know you’ve had a pretty good work out by the end of the walk. Cameron and I would also say it’s a great ‘tester’ for anyone thinking about doing the neighbouring ‘Ring of Steall’ but are not quite sure if they can sustain 10-12 hours or have concerns about the exposed ridge sections. And if not a ‘tester’ it’s a fantastic alternative.
Did you know that we offer guided walking holidays from Distant Hills Guest House in Spean Bridge in the spring and autumn months? We offer a variety of day walks completed in small groups with a qualified guide and explore some of the more less-frequented trails in and around the Lochaber region of the Scottish Highlands. Click here to find out more about our catered guided walking holidays or call us on +44 1397 712452.
For the full details of the Stob Ban and Mullach nan Coirean visit the Walkhighlands website or click here
If you’ve done this walk yourself, we’d love to hear how you found it. If you’ve enjoyed this article, you can read more about our walking adventures here.
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