Number 71 of 282 by height · Southeastern Highlands
Cairn of Claise
Càrn na Claise
3,491 ft (1,064 m)
Facts
- Grid reference
- NO 185 788
- Latitude, longitude
- 56.89419, -3.33864
- Area
- Southeastern Highlands
The walk up
- Distance, one way
- 3.6 mi (5.7 km)
- Climb
- 1,854 ft (565 m)
- Estimated time up
- 2 h 5 min
- Start
- Car park near Coire Fionn
Route picked by computer, not yet checked on the hill
Summit conditions
From Sunday 1 November, 17:07. Not live.
- Weather
- Clear sky
- Temperature
- 34°F (1°C)
- Wind chill
- 29°F (−2°C)
- Wind
- 6 mph (9 km/h) from the north
- Cloud cover
- 9%
- Rain or snow, next hour
- None
- Freezing level, rough estimate
- 4,045 ft (1,233 m)
- Sunrise, sunset
- 07:22, 16:31
The way up
From Car park near Coire Fionn, follow the track south-east for 1.6 mi, climbing steadily from 1,700 ft to 2,900 ft. On the way you cross the Clunie Water by a bridge and go over Sròn na Gaoithe. Then follow the path south for 0.5 mi, climbing steadily from 2,900 ft to 3,150 ft. It then turns north-east for the last 1.4 mi to the summit, climbing gently from 3,150 ft to 3,500 ft. The steepest part is between 1,700 ft and 2,500 ft, about 1100 ft from the start. The summit is at 3,491 ft (1,064 m).
Written from the map, not from walking it. Paths on the ground can differ, so carry a map and compass.See it in 3D.
Getting there
By car
Car park near Coire Fionn. Free to park. This is where the walking route starts.
Driving directions to the Cairn of Claise car park56.90331,-3.40068
By train
Nearest station: Pitlochry, 19 mi (30 km) from the car park. Too far to walk in from.
By bus
Nearest bus stop on the map: Glenshee Ski Centre, 1.3 mi (2.0 km) from the car park. Check the times first: many Highland buses run only a few times a day.
Near the start
- Toilets 1.3 mi (2.0 km)
- Café: Cairnwell Cafe 1.3 mi (2.1 km)
- Café: Tea @ The Shee 1.3 mi (2.1 km)
- Toilets 1.5 mi (2.4 km)
From OpenStreetMap. Places close or change hours, especially in winter, so check before you rely on one.
Public transport directionsBus and train times on Traveline Scotland
About Cairn of Claise
- In Gaelic
- Càrn na Claise
- Means
- Hill of the hollows
Cairn of Claise is a broad Grampian hill about three miles from the Glenshee ski centre, sitting on the border of Aberdeenshire and Angus. It rises 390 ft (119 m) above the col linking it to higher ground, and Glas Maol, 1.8 miles away, is its nearest higher neighbour.
It sits in a close group of rounded summits, with Carn an Tuirc 1.2 miles away and Tolmount and Tom Buidhe each 1.7 miles off. Its one subsidiary top is Druim Mor. The summit is a cairn on a small rocky knoll.
Tops on Cairn of Claise
One lower summit in the Munro tables, not counted as separate Munros. Keen baggers tick these too.
| Top | Height | From the summit |
|---|---|---|
| Druim MorNO 189 771 | 3,153 ft (961 m) | 1.1 mi (1.8 km) |
Through the year
Hours of daylight on Cairn of Claise in the middle of each month. The shorter the day, the earlier you need to start.
Stag stalking season, 1 July to 20 October. On many estates, walkers are asked to keep to set routes on stalking days: check the Scottish Outdoor Access Code site's Heading for the Scottish Hills service before you go.
Nearest Munros
| Munro | Height | Straight-line distance |
|---|---|---|
| Carn an Tuirc | 3,343 ft (1,019 m) | 1.2 mi (1.9 km) |
| Tolmount | 3,143 ft (958 m) | 1.7 mi (2.7 km) |
| Tom Buidhe | 3,140 ft (957 m) | 1.7 mi (2.8 km) |
Part of a bigger day: 8 Munros in one go, Glas Maol, Tolmount, Carn an t-Sagairt Mor, Carn a' Choire Bhoidheach, Cairn Bannoch, Tom Buidhe, Carn an Tuirc.
Common questions about Cairn of Claise
- How high is Cairn of Claise?
- Cairn of Claise is 3,491 ft (1,064 m), number 71 of the 282 Munros by height, in the Southeastern Highlands.
- How long does it take to climb Cairn of Claise?
- About 2 h 5 min up and 1 h 10 min back down by our route from Car park near Coire Fionn, before stops: 3.6 mi (5.7 km) each way with 1,854 ft (565 m) of climbing. That is one of the quicker Munros to climb. Most people take longer than these estimates.
- Where do you park for Cairn of Claise?
- Our route starts at Car park near Coire Fionn. It is free to park.
- Can you climb Cairn of Claise without a car?
- The nearest railway station is Pitlochry, 19 mi (30 km) from the start, and the nearest bus stop on the map is Glenshee Ski Centre, 1.3 mi (2.0 km) from the start. Highland trains and buses are few, so check times on Traveline Scotland before you go.
- Is Cairn of Claise a hard Munro?
- By time and climbing, it is one of the quicker Munros to climb, with 1,854 ft (565 m) of ascent over 3.6 mi (5.7 km). Like every Munro it reaches over 3,000 ft, where the weather can be far worse than at the car park, so take a map and compass and check the mountain forecast.
- Can you climb other Munros with Cairn of Claise?
- Yes. Cairn of Claise can be linked with Glas Maol, Tolmount, Carn an t-Sagairt Mor, Carn a' Choire Bhoidheach, Cairn Bannoch, Tom Buidhe, Carn an Tuirc along the ridge, for 8 Munros in one long day. See Big days for the full plan.
- What does Cairn of Claise mean?
- In Gaelic it is Càrn na Claise. It is usually translated as "hill of the hollows".
- When is the best time to climb Cairn of Claise?
- Daylight runs from about 18 hours in mid June to 7 hours in mid December, so summer gives the most time. From 1 July to 20 October it is the stag stalking season, when some estates ask walkers to keep to set routes. In winter, snow and ice turn most Munros into mountaineering terrain.
A guide only. Mountain conditions change fast: carry a map and compass and know how to use them, and read the mountain forecast for the Southeastern Highlands before you go.
Questions
Where can I get a proper mountain forecast?
Read the Mountain Weather Information Service forecast for the Southeastern Highlands, written by forecasters for walkers and climbers. In winter, also read the Scottish Avalanche Information Service report for the area.
Where does the summit weather come from?
From MET Norway's forecast model, fetched for every Munro once an hour at the summit's own height. It is computer output for one point, not a forecast written for mountains, so treat it as a guide. The past hours are what the forecast said at the time. Wind chill, the freezing level and sunrise and sunset are worked out by this site from those figures; the freezing level assumes temperature drops steadily with height, so it can be well out when cold air sits in the glens.
How was this route drawn?
It follows footpaths and tracks mapped on OpenStreetMap, from a public car park to the summit, with heights from Copernicus elevation data. A computer picked the start as the car park with the quickest mapped way up, counting the climbing as well as the distance. Nobody has checked it on the hill yet, so it may not be the usual way up, and the path may be faint or missing on the ground. A line on a map is not a description of the ground.
- Path geometry: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Overpass API extract fetched 2026-10-24T19:58:18.650Z. Start chosen automatically: the public car park on a public road with the shortest mapped-path route to the summit (busy roads and T4 paths weighted against).
- Elevation: Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (© DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018, provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA), sampled every 50 m, 3-sample median, 5 m hysteresis on ascent.
- Summit position: Database of British and Irish Hills v18 (CC BY 4.0).
Built 2026-10-25.
How is the time up worked out?
With Naismith's rule, the standard hill-walking estimate: an hour for every 3.1 miles (5 km), plus an hour for every 1,969 ft (600 m) of climbing, with no stops. For this route that gives about 2 h 5 min, one way. It ignores rough ground, weather, stops and the walk back down, so most people take longer.
Where do the car parks and bus stops come from?
From OpenStreetMap. Distances are straight lines, not the way you would walk or drive. A bus stop on the map says nothing about how often a bus calls: many Highland buses run a few times a day, some only on school days or by booking, so check Traveline Scotland first. The map cannot tell whether a car park is on a public road, so a remote one may only be reachable on foot or by train.
Where do the Gaelic names and stories come from?
From the hill's article on English Wikipedia and its Wikidata entry, put into a few words of our own. Meanings and pronunciations are only given where the article states them; many Gaelic hill names are old and their meaning is uncertain. Read the full article.
Where do the height and grid reference come from?
From the Database of British and Irish Hills, the surveyed list most baggers use. Cairn of Claise is hill 463 there.
Sources: Database of British and Irish Hills (CC BY 4.0), OpenStreetMap (ODbL), MET Norway (CC BY 4.0), Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata, Copernicus elevation data, Sentinel-2 cloudless imagery by EOX. All credits and licences.