Am Bodach

Am Bodach — "the Old Man" — at 1,032 metres, is the third Munro of the classic Ring of Steall circuit through the Mamores, and by many accounts the toughest single climb of the whole day, steep and demanding on legs already tired from the preceding ridge.

Reached from Stob Coire a' Chàirn via an easier grassy south-west ridge and a minor summit, the final approach to Am Bodach steepens considerably over rough, loose rock with no real technical difficulties but a genuinely unrelenting gradient — several regular visitors rate this as the second hardest section of the entire circuit after the initial climb to An Gearanach. From the summit, views extend back over the ridge already crossed and ahead to Sgùrr an Iubhair and the Devil's Ridge.

Getting off Am Bodach to continue the circuit can be tricky: the route descends steep, very loose ground on bits of worn path, requiring care with footing and picking a route down using rocks as "islands of safety," with some easy scrambling and scree encountered before reaching the bealach and the climb onto Sgùrr an Iubhair — a substantial summit that was itself a full Munro between 1981 and 1997 before being demoted back to Munro Top status, and correctly excluded from the current list. From Sgùrr an Iubhair, the route turns north onto the celebrated Devil's Ridge towards the final Munro, Sgùrr a' Mhaim.

The full Ring of Steall circuit from Polldubh is around 18 kilometres with roughly 1,680 metres of ascent, typically eight to ten hours; the descent from Am Bodach in particular has a reputation among regular visitors as steep, dusty, and prone to slips in dry conditions.

This is a serious mountain day requiring sustained fitness — Am Bodach's ascent and the immediately following loose, steep descent both demand real care, particularly given they come roughly two-thirds of the way through an already long and demanding circuit.

The Lower Falls car park at Polldubh is chargeable; a seasonal bus runs up Glen Nevis from Fort William between May and September.