Hills of Britain and Ireland
OS Map of Monadh Mor
Height: 1113m / 3652ft • Prominence: 138m / 453ft • Summit : rock 12m SE of cairn • Trip reports (hill-bagging)
Snow Patches
After that steep climb, we are now reaching the plateau across which we have to walk to get to Monadh Mor. There was a fall of snow last night and despite the sun, it is now quite chilly and there's still remnants of it on the hill. Not much further now until we reach our final goal of Monadh Mor. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape rock rocks monadhmor snow topic rockpaper 50481048781
Beinn Bhrotain
From the summit of Monadh Mor we have a great view of the rocky upper slopes of Beinn Bhrotain, our first Munro summit of the day and are now heading back the way we've come as it was felt it would be too difficult trying to navigate the steep and boggy Glen Geusachan. Fortunately we don't have to go all the way over, the plan is just to traverse to the right of hit, minimising the amount of climbing we have to do. Zooming in you can make out the summit cairn which I've pictured in a previous post, to give an idea of scale! Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape rock rocks beinnbhrotain monadhmor 50510050026
High Mountain Panoramic
From the high plateau before we reach the final summit of Monadh Mor (which is to our left), we have a great view of the massive Cairngorm Mountains. In sight here are the UKs 2nd, 3rd and 4th highest peaks, with only Ben Nevis being higher, and even then only by 30 meters! To the far right, we can see Beinn Bhrotain, our first Munro of the day that we've had to come up and over to get here, climbing from the bottom of Glen Dee below us. There are are number of Munros in sight here which I have picked out. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape panorama beinnbhrotain topic rockpaper 50489554738
Resting At The Summit
An hour after descending from Beinn Bhrotain we've made the broad summit of Moandh Mor. Never quite alone, even here, but it did mean we could get another shot of Andy (in blue) and me (in green) without having to set up the tripod this time. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape summit rock rocks steve monadhmor rockpaper 50494624906
Summit of Monadh Mor
We've finally made it. An hour after departing the summit of Beinn Bhrotain we make our 2nd and final summit of Monadh Mor with the high Cairngorm Mountains beyond. We'll take a look around before retracing our steps, but for now, let's get our breath back. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape summit rock rocks monadhmor topic rockpaper 50493461796
Hazy Highlands
Such a clear day and although this looks hazy, Andy informs me that some of those mountains we're seeing from the summit of Monadh Mor on the far horizon are close to Scotland's West Coast!! Suffice it to say, we can see a fair distance so a little haze is to be expected, besides I liked the hazy effect through the glens. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape monadhmor topic 50497977576
OS Map
This is OS mapping. In some areas, OpenStreetMap shows more footpaths
Spatial NI has online OSNI mapping. Click "Basemap Gallery" (4 squares icon at the top).
Now would be a good time for a cup of tea.
GPX Editor
Record map clicks
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Photos
Please tag your photos and upload them to the British and Irish Mountains group on Flickr
The other photos have been geo-tagged as on or around the summit. For less busy mountains, it can be a little hit and miss.
Snow Patches
After that steep climb, we are now reaching the plateau across which we have to walk to get to Monadh Mor. There was a fall of snow last night and despite the sun, it is now quite chilly and there's still remnants of it on the hill. Not much further now until we reach our final goal of Monadh Mor. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape rock rocks monadhmor snow topic rockpaper 50481048781
Beinn Bhrotain
From the summit of Monadh Mor we have a great view of the rocky upper slopes of Beinn Bhrotain, our first Munro summit of the day and are now heading back the way we've come as it was felt it would be too difficult trying to navigate the steep and boggy Glen Geusachan. Fortunately we don't have to go all the way over, the plan is just to traverse to the right of hit, minimising the amount of climbing we have to do. Zooming in you can make out the summit cairn which I've pictured in a previous post, to give an idea of scale! Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape rock rocks beinnbhrotain monadhmor 50510050026
High Mountain Panoramic
From the high plateau before we reach the final summit of Monadh Mor (which is to our left), we have a great view of the massive Cairngorm Mountains. In sight here are the UKs 2nd, 3rd and 4th highest peaks, with only Ben Nevis being higher, and even then only by 30 meters! To the far right, we can see Beinn Bhrotain, our first Munro of the day that we've had to come up and over to get here, climbing from the bottom of Glen Dee below us. There are are number of Munros in sight here which I have picked out. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape panorama beinnbhrotain topic rockpaper 50489554738
Resting At The Summit
An hour after descending from Beinn Bhrotain we've made the broad summit of Moandh Mor. Never quite alone, even here, but it did mean we could get another shot of Andy (in blue) and me (in green) without having to set up the tripod this time. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape summit rock rocks steve monadhmor rockpaper 50494624906
Summit of Monadh Mor
We've finally made it. An hour after departing the summit of Beinn Bhrotain we make our 2nd and final summit of Monadh Mor with the high Cairngorm Mountains beyond. We'll take a look around before retracing our steps, but for now, let's get our breath back. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape summit rock rocks monadhmor topic rockpaper 50493461796
Hazy Highlands
Such a clear day and although this looks hazy, Andy informs me that some of those mountains we're seeing from the summit of Monadh Mor on the far horizon are close to Scotland's West Coast!! Suffice it to say, we can see a fair distance so a little haze is to be expected, besides I liked the hazy effect through the glens. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape monadhmor topic 50497977576
Glen Crossroads
Between Monadh Mor and Beinn Bhrotain, we look down into Glen Geusachan immediately below us. This meets Glen Dee running left to right, with The Devils Point on the near left of the junction. In Glen Dee is the River Dee, which flows through Aberdeen into the North Sea. Beyond Glen Dee is Glen Lui, with the summit of Carn a' Mhaim to the left. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
aberdeenshire scotland scottishhighlands highlands cairngorms mountain hills landscape rock rocks glen beinnbhrotain monadhmor topic 50513484391
Rocky Highlands
Descending into the bealach between Monadh Mor and Beinn Bhrotain once again, the steep sides of Beinn Bhrotain can be seen to the right, and really shows just how desolate these upper highlands are. Beinn Bhrotain (pronounced Bane Vrottan meaning Hill of the Hound) stands at 1157 meters (3796 feet) and is the first of our Munros today. Monadh Mor (pronounced Monnagh Mor meaning The Big Hill) is our second and final destination and stands at 1113 meters (3651 feet). A short 5 mile cycle up Glen Dee gets us to the foot of the climb, then it's an 11 mile hike across rough and boggy ground to get there. An epic 8.5 hours, largely un-pathed, time in the hills gets us back to the cars just before full dark falls!
27-Sep-20 • steve_whitmarsh • flickr
mountain rock landscape scotland highlands rocks aberdeenshire hills cairngorms scottishhighlands monadhmor beinnbhrotain topic 50516886616
Videos
In today's video I will be climbing two munros in the heart of the Cairngorms.. Monadh Mor & Beinn Bhrotain THE ROUTE: ...
In late June 2024, I made a trip to the Cairngorms National Park, in the Scottish Highlands. This was my longest backpacking ...
3rd April 2025.
In late June 2024, I made a trip to the Cairngorms National Park, in the Scottish Highlands. This was my longest backpacking ...
In late June 2024, I made a trip to the Cairngorms National Park, in the Scottish Highlands. This was my longest backpacking ...
Notes
- Data: Database of British and Irish Hills v18.2
- Maps: We use OS mapping for England, Scotland, Wales, and the Isle of Man. Sadly, Channel Islands, Northern (OSNI) and Southern Ireland (OSI) mapping isn't available online, so we use Openstreetmap.