Number 151 of 282 by height · Northwest Highlands
Carn nan Gobhar
Càrn nan Gobhar
3,258 ft (993 m)
Facts
- Grid reference
- NH 181 343
- Latitude, longitude
- 57.36332, -5.02455
- Area
- Northwest Highlands
The walk up
- Distance, one way
- 20 mi (32 km)
- Climb
- 6,837 ft (2,084 m)
- Estimated time up
- 9 h 55 min
- Start
- Car park near Killilan
Route picked by computer, not yet checked on the hill
Summit conditions
From Sunday 1 November, 17:07. Not live.
- Weather
- Fair
- Temperature
- 34°F (1°C)
- Wind chill
- 30°F (−1°C)
- Wind
- 4 mph (7 km/h) from the northwest
- Cloud cover
- 23%
- Rain or snow, next hour
- None
- Freezing level, rough estimate
- 3,812 ft (1,162 m)
- Sunrise, sunset
- 07:30, 16:36
The way up
From Car park near Killilan, follow the road south-east for 2.6 mi, almost level. On the way you cross the Allt a' Choire Mhoir and the Allt a' Ghlas-choire. Then follow the track east for 2.4 mi, almost level. On the way you cross the Allt an Achaidh Gharbhgein. It then turns north-east for 3.1 mi, almost level. On the way you pass Loch na Leitreach on your right. It then turns east for 1.4 mi, climbing gently from 490 ft to 1,050 ft. It then turns north-east for 1.0 mi, almost level. On the way you pass Amhainn Sithidh on your right. It then turns north for 2.4 mi, climbing steadily from 980 ft to 2,500 ft. On the way you go over Meall Shuas (2,400 ft). Then follow the path east for the last 6.6 mi to the summit, almost level. On the way you go over An Socach (3,500 ft), go over An Riabhachan (3,700 ft) and go over Sgùrr na Lapaich (3,750 ft). The steepest part is between 2,750 ft and 3,700 ft, about 17.6 mi from the start. The summit is at 3,258 ft (993 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 Killilan. Parking charge not known. This is where the walking route starts.
Driving directions to the Carn nan Gobhar car park57.31678,-5.42227
By train
Nearest station: Stromeferry, 5.4 mi (8.7 km) from the car park.
By bus
Nearest bus stop on the map: Telephone Box, 0.4 mi (0.6 km) from the car park. Check the times first: many Highland buses run only a few times a day.
Near the start
- Hostel: The Byre 1.3 mi (2.2 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 Carn nan Gobhar
- In Gaelic
- Càrn nan Gobhar
- Means
- Cairn of the goats
This Carn nan Gobhar stands on the north side of Loch Mullardoch in upper Glen Cannich, one of four remote Munros known as the Mullardochs, which fill the high ground between Loch Mullardoch and Loch Monar. It is the lowest of the four, a quiet, rolling hill of grass, rock and scree. Another Munro of the same name and height stands about 9 miles north-east, beyond Glen Strathfarrar.
Three ridges give it a rough triangle shape. One runs south-south-east over Mullach na Moille to Loch Mullardoch, one links north-west to Sgurr na Lapaich, and one runs north-east to Creag Dubh, 3,107 ft (947 m). Creag Dubh was a Munro in Sir Hugh Munro's first list of 1891 but became a top in 1921.
The hill rises 648 ft (198 m) above the col linking it to higher ground. The summit is a broad, flat ridge, and the true top is the cairn at its north end. A large cairn about 260 m south-south-east is several metres lower. Views reach north to Maoile Lunndaidh and Lurg Mhor.
Tops on Carn nan Gobhar
One lower summit in the Munro tables, not counted as separate Munros. Keen baggers tick these too.
| Top | Height | From the summit |
|---|---|---|
| Creag DubhNH 199 350 | 3,107 ft (947 m) | 1.2 mi (1.9 km) |
Through the year
Hours of daylight on Carn nan Gobhar 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sgurr na Lapaich | 3,776 ft (1,151 m) | 1.4 mi (2.2 km) |
| An Riabhachan | 3,704 ft (1,129 m) | 3.0 mi (4.8 km) |
| Toll Creagach | 3,458 ft (1,054 m) | 3.8 mi (6.2 km) |
Common questions about Carn nan Gobhar
- How high is Carn nan Gobhar?
- Carn nan Gobhar is 3,258 ft (993 m), number 151 of the 282 Munros by height, in the Northwest Highlands.
- How long does it take to climb Carn nan Gobhar?
- About 9 h 55 min up and 8 h 15 min back down by our route from Car park near Killilan, before stops: 20 mi (32 km) each way with 6,837 ft (2,084 m) of climbing. That is one of the longer Munro days. Most people take longer than these estimates.
- Where do you park for Carn nan Gobhar?
- Our route starts at Car park near Killilan.
- Can you climb Carn nan Gobhar without a car?
- The nearest railway station is Stromeferry, 5.4 mi (8.7 km) from the start, and the nearest bus stop on the map is Telephone Box, 0.4 mi (0.6 km) from the start. Highland trains and buses are few, so check times on Traveline Scotland before you go.
- Is Carn nan Gobhar a hard Munro?
- By time and climbing, it is one of the longer Munro days, with 6,837 ft (2,084 m) of ascent over 20 mi (32 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.
- What does Carn nan Gobhar mean?
- In Gaelic it is Càrn nan Gobhar. It is usually translated as "cairn of the goats".
- When is the best time to climb Carn nan Gobhar?
- 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 Northwest Highlands before you go.
Questions
Where can I get a proper mountain forecast?
Read the Mountain Weather Information Service forecast for the Northwest 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.
- Drops 3,625 ft on the way up, so it may cross another top or a bealach first.
- Climbs to about 3,740 ft on the way, higher than this summit (3,258 ft), so it crosses a bigger hill first.
- Wikipedia says the usual start is Loch Mullardoch dam, but no public car park there is joined to the summit by mapped paths, so this route starts elsewhere.
- Long walk-in: 19.9 mi one way.
- Goes over Sgurr na Lapaich and An Riabhachan and An Socach on the way.
- Path geometry: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Overpass API extract fetched 2026-10-24T20:03:25.525Z. 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 9 h 55 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. Carn nan Gobhar is hill 936 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.