Assynt
Richards Mountain Pages
Of all the mountain areas of Britain, Assynt is perhaps the most distinctive. Its landscape of
island peaks on an archipelago of lochans and heath is quite unique nad appears strangely alien.
From almost every vantage point, one peak instantly grabs the attention -
Suilven. From the way in from Lairg, and the only sizeable settlement (Lochinver) its steep
sides give it an instantly recognisable profile like no other peak in Britain. Its such a
distinctive peak that I've given it its own page - just follow the link below.
Besides Suilven, there are several other isolated peaks worth a look...
- Canisp - Suilven's immediate neighbour, best climbed by ridges close to the path between the two.
This peak gives good views back to Suilven.
- Cul Mor - A wide M shaped peak when viewed from Elphin.
- Cul Beag - I've not seen this one yet.
- Stac Pollaidh - A minature Suilven, popular as it lies close to the road. Consequently is suffers
from bad erosion.
- Quinag - Three peaks that dominate the North of the area. Lying close to the sea, they should
give good views of the coast
- Ben Mor Assynt and Conival - The two Munros provide some good ridge walking on quartzite, plus
the opportunity for a little scrambling. The views are reasonable but not as good as from the other peaks.
- Glas Bheinn - A corbett largely missed in favour of more impressive peaks. However it has superb
views to its neighbour - Quinag. The route from Inchnadamph is gentle.
- Breabag - A fairly dull looking Corbett, but it probably has some good views to Cul Mor and Suilven.
Geology
Assynt is a geologists dream. The heart of the region is a Lewisian gneiss plateau scraped
clean by the ice age. On this sit isolated peaks of Torridon sandstone with steep sides, protected
from further erosion only by a cap of quartzite.
Bounding this area is a strip of limestone, complete with sink holes, and caves. At Inchnadamph the river
disappears into a cave to re-appear about half a mile downstream. Here it plunges into a deep gorge so
narrow at the top, that you could get your foot stuck walking across it.
Beyond the limestone we have the familiar quartzite peaks of the higher mountains - Ben Mor Assynt
and Conival. However even here we have interesting geology. From the ridge between these peaks you can
see a magnificent example of folding on a neighbouring peak.
Further round, past the highest waterfall in Britain you come to the clearest example of a thrust fault to
be found in this country.
Settlements
Being such a remote region of the country, settlements are few and small. There is only one
of significant size (where most facilities can be found) and that is Lochinver. Apart from
that, there are the hamlets of Inchnadamph and Elphin. All three places can provide accommodation.
Transport
There are few options when it comes to transport. The only public transport in the area is the
postbus. Here there are three options:
- bus from Inverness to Ullapool, postbus to Assynt area
- train from Inverness to Lairg, postbus to Lochinver and Inchnadamph
- train from Inverness to Lairg, postbus to Durness, postbus to Assynt area
Maps
You can buy the maps that cover this region, in association with Ordnance Survey, by using the links below:
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