Cairngorm Hills - Walking the Munros

cairngormhills.co.uk

Ground Conditions: End of September and well into autumn. It has been a very hot summer, with serious fires in the Cairngorms centered around the area of Bynach More. Now, after some rain the ground is not as dry and there have been reports of the rivers being hard to cross. [September 2026]

West GlenShee Hills

West GlenShee Hills
The Cairnwell [NO135773, 933]
Cairn Aosta [NO135791, 917]
Carn a Gheoidh [NO107767, 975]
OS map : 43
start : Glenshee Ski Area Car Park
gridref : NO139781
summary : Glenshee Ski Area Car Park - Carn Aosta - Carn a'Gheoidh - The Cairnwell - Glenshee Ski Area Car Park
distance : 10.5km.
ascent : 510m.
time taken : 4hr. 10min.

View over to Carn a'Gheoidh from Carn Aosta.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

View of Loch Vrotagan from Carn a'Gheoidh.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

The summit slopes of The Cairnwell.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

Loch Vrotachan and over to Cairngorms.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

View over to the Cairnwell.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

View over to Glas Maol.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

Cairwell from eastern ski slopes.

©cairngormhills.co.uk

The A93 ascends over the pass between Glen Shee and Glen Clunie, the hub of the Glenshee ski area. Situated west of the resort, three highly accessible peaks benefit significantly from the high-elevation starting point. While the two nearest summits sit on the boundary of the ski development and lack a sense of isolation, Càrn a' Ghèoidh offers a genuinely wild and remote Cairngorms experience. The terrain consists predominantly of grassy slopes interspersed with extensive boggy, wet ground.

Section 1:
Distance: 2.0 kms. | Ascent: 270 m. | Estimated Time: 1 hrs. 10 min.
The route begins at the large Glenshee Ski Centre car park. While often quiet outside the skiing season, parking on operational winter days is strictly reserved for ski resort patrons.

  • Depart the ski centre via the track immediately north of the main buildings.
  • Ascend the initial steep slope toward the ski café, then continue following the main track up the valley. Remain on the track at all times, as the surrounding ground is exceptionally wet.
  • Upon reaching the base of Butcharts Tow, follow the track as it continues uphill before bearing left.
  • Proceed to the track junction along the ridge separating the ski area
    • from Loch Vrotachan.
  • Turn right, ascending toward Càrn Aosta. As the main track skirts the hillside toward the top of a ski lift, branch off onto the smaller path leading directly to the summit.
A rocky cairn marks the summit of Càrn Aosta, which features excellent northern views across to the high Cairngorm plateaus.

Section 2:
Distance: 5.0 kms. | Ascent: 140 m. | Estimated Time: 1 hrs. 50 min.

  • Retrace your steps down the path to rejoin the main track, following it down to the col.
  • Continue uphill along the track for approximately halfway before taking the path branching right (west) toward Càrn a' Ghèoidh.
  • Traverse the northern flanks of Càrn Nan Sac, passing two small lochans, and continue onto the ridge.
  • Follow the ridge toward the summit of Càrn a' Ghèoidh. A small cairn marks the summit.
Navigation & Winter Note: The final summit slopes are steep and tend to hold snow late into the season. In winter conditions, it is safer to bear left (north) off the ridge to ascend via gentler gradients. Due to the featureless terrain, navigation can be challenging in poor visibility.

Section 3:
Distance: 2.0 kms. | Ascent: 100 m. | Estimated Time: 0 hrs. 50 min.

  • Retrace the outward route back toward Càrn Nan Sac and onto the ridge bordering the ski development.
  • Turn right and follow the track up to the summit of The Cairnwell.
The summit is heavily developed, housing an extensive array of telecommunications masts and infrastructure. A prominent cairn marks the true summit.

Section 4:
Distance: 1.5 kms. | Ascent: 0 m. | Estimated Time: 0 hrs. 30 min.

  • Descend via the ridge track back to the col.
  • Follow the muddy path past the pink building to rejoin the tracks leading through the ski development.
  • Follow these tracks directly back to the ski centre. During the ski season, take care to give active ski runs a wide berth.

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1st June 2021 A nice sunny and warm day out on the hills. Didn't climb the most accessible Minros, but walked over to Carn a Gheoidh. Great walk and into the wild once away from the ski developments. There were a lot of people out and ver to Carn a Gheoidh which is often deserted.

12th April 2021 Just about out of Lockdown and this hill is in the local area. Couldn't resist today as it was forecast as wall to wall sunshine; as it was. Snow on the ground to make for good views. Only did the "easy" two as the ground was very slippy and wanted a lazy day. There are good paths up and around these two hills. Quite a few people out as expected on such a beautiful day.

8th September 2019 A sunny early autumnal day with quite a number of people out on these hills. Well they are convenient. The ground is quite wet after the rain over the past week or was this over the whole summer. Cannot help thinking that the ski development needs a lot of a tidy up. Due to clear skies and sun some excellent views over the Cairngorm Massif with great views over to Ben Avon Ben Macdui and Cairn Toul. Beinn a'Ghlo looks massive from here.