■Distance: 5¼ miles/8.4km ■Time: 3½ hours ■Grade: Challenging
CHOSEN BY… ALEX FOXFIELD
It seems that Buachaille Etive Beag’s fate is to remain forever in the shadow of its more celebrated neighbours, particularly its limelighthogging big sibling, the iconic Buachaille Etive Mòr. Among the celebrated mountains of Glen Coe, it’s just one of the gang and its comparative lack of muscle makes it the least threatening of the bunch. Herein lies part of its charm. While expeditions on the likes of the razor-edged Aonach Eagach and the mighty and complex bulk of Bidean Nam Bian are major undertakings, Buachaille Etive Beag gives up its spectacular crest more readily, helped by a handily high start point at around 250 metres.
So, forget its noisy neighbours for a moment. As legendary mountaineer Martin Moran once put it: ‘Transported to the English Lakes or Snowdonia, Buachaille Etive Beag would be idolised as an upthrust of unparalleled grandeur.’ The massif runs in a relatively straight line from the northeast to the south-west, with long valleys of the Lairig Eilde and Lairig Gartain on either side.
The ridge runs in parallel with the Bidean’s great Beinn Fhada arm, which terminates above the glen as the easternmost of the famous Three Sisters. Buachaille Etive Beag’s north-eastern termination also presents a dramatic front to the A82 below, the crags of Stob nan Cabar doing their best to imitate that of the nearby Etive Mòr’s Stob Dearg, but failing to be as astonishing. Hiding beyond this subsidiary peak is the lower of two Munro summits, Stob Coire Raineach, while the parent peak of Stob Dubh rises at the south-western end, forming an impressive twin alongside Buachaille Etive Mòr’s Stob na Broige when seen from upper Glen Etive. This is a simple yet superb out-and-back that tackles both the mountain’s Munros. The ridge walk between them is magnificent, with Glen Coe’s big hitters on display and – when Stob Dubh’s summit is won – a jaw-dropping view down the barrel of Glen Etive. There’s no scrambling, just rugged Scottish hillwalking, and the ascent path is clear all the way.
