Sgòr na h-Ulaidh

Sgòr na h-Ulaidh, at 994 metres, is the forgotten mountain of Glen Coe — its name meaning "peak of treasure" — hidden from view behind the imposing bulk of Bidean nam Bian and seeing far fewer ascents than its famous neighbours.

The route starts from a car park just east of the bridge over the Allt Gleann Leac na Muidhe on the A82. A cycle path leads to a track, followed up the glen past holiday cottages and farm buildings to the edge of forestry, from where a path follows the east bank of the Allt na Muidhe. Crossing the burn where convenient, the route strikes uphill on grassy slopes towards the bealach between Corr na Beinne and Meall Lighiche — the climb here is very steep and demanding, gradually easing onto a fine ridge with a grand view of the peak ahead. The summit cairn is perched right on the edge of the northern crags, a marvellous viewpoint with Loch Etive and Ben Starav prominent to the south and Ben Nevis rising to the north over scores of lower peaks — the summit itself is riven by a great gully cutting down through the crags.

From the summit, a path leads east for a short distance before the steep, rocky descent of the north-east ridge, eased by a zig-zag path, to the gentler ascent of Stob an Fhuarain beyond. Most walkers descend from here north to the bealach on the Aonach Dubh a Ghlinne ridge, or continue the traverse to link with Bidean nam Bian for the exceptionally fit.

The round trip taking in Sgòr na h-Ulaidh alone, often combined with the Corbett Meall Lighiche, is around 8.5 miles with roughly 1,000 metres of ascent, typically six to eight hours — most hillwalkers treat this as a satisfying afternoon's outing on its own, given the mountain doesn't easily link to other Munros.

The ascent up to the summit from the bealach is exceptionally steep on grass and rocks and requires careful route-finding — walkers should specifically avoid descending this way, since retracing the ascent route in reverse is considerably safer than attempting a different line down.

Parking near the Allt Gleann Leac na Muidhe bridge is free; Citylink buses run along Glen Coe with request stops at the driver's discretion.