📌 Glenmore, Highland
★★★★★
Cairn Gorm’s shady northern slopes are littered with half a century’s worth of winter sports developments: good news for skiers, not ideal for walkers wanting to get away from it all. Fortunately the great coires to the west are beyond the ski area’s boundaries, making a magnificent and wild approach above huge crags to the eventual summit before the return to civilisation. You could even use the Cairngorm funicular railway to help with the descent! But not the ascent; outwith the ski season, you’re not allowed to leave the top station if you’ve come up on the train.
📷 Chronological photo guide
Meall a’ Bhuachaille ridge from the ascent 
Looking across to Cairn Gorm 
Coire an Lochain from the ascent 
Looking west towards Braeriach from the head of the coire 
Coire Lochain headwall 
Coire Lochain headwall 
Coire Domhain 
View back around the head of the coire 
Beinn Mheadhoin across the dark rift of Loch Avon 
Coire an t-Sneachda 
Approaching Cairn Gorm 
Looking back along the route from the ascent of Cairn Gorm 
Distant Ben Macdui 
Cairns mark the start of the descent from Cairn Gorm 
Passing the funicular top station – with skiers in winter 
The coires visited on this walk are well seen from Loch Morlich below
🌍 Location
📌 Start / finish at Cairngorm Mountain ski centre, 4 mi south of Glenmore Visitor Centre
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NH 989060
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 57.133817,-3.671660
🚌 Bus to Cairngorm Mountain ski centre
🚗 Car park (charge)
📝 Key info
▶ 11 km / 7 mi | ▲ 780 m | ⌛ 4.5-5.5 hr
Features: ⛷️ Cairngorm Mountain ski centre ★★★ & funicular railway; △ Cairn Lochan (1215 m); △ Stob Coire an t-Sneachda (1176 m); △ Cairn Gorm (1244 m, Munro)
⬤ Tough | Good paths for most of route: fainter and rougher above the coires and sometimes on cliff edges.
Download file for GPS➡️ Anticlockwise circuit: start, Cairngorm Mountain ski centre & funicular railway – Miadan Creag an Leth-choin – Cairn Lochan – Stob Coire an t-Sneachda – Cairn Gorm – Ptarmigan Station – Sron an Aonaich (or Windy Ridge) – start
🥾 On our last visit
Wildlife: Quiet on the hills today.
Weather: Cloudy to start with sunshine breaking through after overnight snow, lying to about 900 m. Winds fairly light.
October 2012
