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Alan O'Dowd · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsGuide · Scotland
Easy Munros: ten to start with
No Munro is a stroll, but some are kinder than others. These are the ones we'd send a friend up first.
By the TRXO team · · 6 min read
- walks
- 10
- long
- 3.2–21.7 km
- biggest climb
- 1010 m
- by public transport
- 1
- dog-friendly
- 10
There are 282 Munros, Scottish mountains over 3,000 feet, and the list has a way of taking over people's lives. It usually starts with one. The question is which one, and the honest answer is that "easy" is doing a lot of work in that sentence: every Munro is a big hill in a country where the weather can turn in an hour, and the summit of the gentlest one is still a long way from the car.
What makes a Munro a good first one is a clear path to the top, a start you can find, a reasonable amount of climbing, and a summit that isn't a knife-edge. Half the hills on this list are within two hours of Glasgow or Edinburgh. The others are worth the drive. We've put the shortest first, but short isn't always easiest: Carn Aosda takes an hour from the ski centre, and Ben Lomond takes most of a day, but Ben Lomond has the better path.
Each one has a mapped route, a summit forecast and notes on where to park. Read the forecast. Then read it again on the morning.
Where they are
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Glenshee ski centre
Carn Aosda from Glenshee ski centre
- 3.2 km distance
- 260 m ascent
- 1–1.5 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXThe quickest Munro there is. The Glenshee ski centre car park is already at 650 m, and a track climbs past the lifts to the top of Carn Aosda in about an hour. It's not a beautiful hill, and it won't feel like a mountain day, but it's a Munro, and the view across to Glas Maol on a clear day is real enough. Most people add the Cairnwell from the same car park.
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Old Military Road lay-by
The Cairnwell from Old Military Road lay-by
- 3.7 km distance
- 300 m ascent
- 1.5–2 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXThe Cairnwell is the other easy one at Glenshee, with a mast on top and a chairlift up its side that you're allowed to ignore. From the old military road the climb is short and steep on a good track. Do it with Carn Aosda and you've bagged two before lunch, which is a very good way to start.
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Rowardennan
Ben Lomond by the tourist path
- 11.3 km distance
- 1010 m ascent
- 5–6 h time
- Moderate grade
- by public transport
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXScotland's most southerly Munro, an hour from Glasgow, and the first one for a lot of people. The path from Rowardennan is wide, obvious and well made the whole way, so the only thing between you and the summit is a thousand metres of steady climbing. The view down Loch Lomond from the top is the reward. It's busy; go early or midweek.
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Braes of Foss
Schiehallion from Braes of Foss
- 11.4 km distance
- 800 m ascent
- 4–5.5 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXThe hill they used to weigh the earth. Schiehallion's clean cone shape made it ideal for a 1774 experiment to measure the planet's mass, and the same shape makes it a straightforward climb: a John Muir Trust path up the eastern ridge, then a boulder field to the summit. The boulders are the only awkward part. Great views to Loch Rannoch and the Lawers range.
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Invergeldie, Glen Lednock
Ben Chonzie from Glen Lednock
- 12.7 km distance
- 700 m ascent
- 4–5.5 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXA gentle whaleback of a hill above Comrie, with a track most of the way and a short moorland climb at the end. Ben Chonzie is famous for two things: being easy, and mountain hares. In winter the hares turn white and you'll see dozens. It's often done as a half day, and it's a good one for a first winter Munro in calm conditions.
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Ben Lawers car park
Beinn Ghlas from Ben Lawers car park
- 9 km distance
- 680 m ascent
- 3–4.5 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXThe Ben Lawers car park sits at 450 m, which takes a lot of the sting out of this one. The path climbs through the nature reserve, where the alpine flowers are the best in Britain in June, to the summit of Beinn Ghlas. Most people carry on to Ben Lawers itself, which is the seventh-highest hill in the country and only another hour away.
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Ben Lawers NNR
Meall nan Tarmachan
- 8.4 km distance
- 650 m ascent
- 3–4 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXFrom the same high car park, Meall nan Tarmachan is the shorter and in some ways nicer hill: a steep path to a summit with a view over Loch Tay and the whole Lawers range. The full Tarmachan ridge beyond it has a scrambly step; the route here turns back at the summit, which keeps it simple.
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8
Coire Cas car park
Cairn Gorm from Coire Cas car park
- 8.3 km distance
- 620 m ascent
- 3–4 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXThe sixth-highest mountain in Britain from a car park at 630 m, on a path built for the thousands who climb it every year. Cairn Gorm is the gateway to the high plateau, and the top has a weather station and a view across the Lairig Ghru to Ben Macdui. The plateau is serious in bad weather, with nothing to navigate by; this is a good-weather hill.
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Glen Doll
Driesh and Mayar from Glen Doll
- 15 km distance
- 890 m ascent
- 5–6.5 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXTwo Munros for the price of one, from the car park at the head of Glen Clova. The path climbs through the forest and up the Kilbo path onto the plateau, where Driesh and Mayar are a gentle walk apart. Coming down through Corrie Fee, a textbook glacial corrie with a waterfall at the back, is the best part. A full day, but a kind one.
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Invermark, Glen Esk
Mount Keen from Glen Esk
- 21.7 km distance
- 810 m ascent
- 6.5–8.5 h time
- Moderate grade
- dogs welcome
Route, map and GPXThe most easterly Munro, and a long walk rather than a hard one: a track up Glen Mark past the Queen's Well to the Mounth road, then a path to the summit cone. Twenty-two kilometres, almost all of it on good surfaces. Some people cycle the glen. It's the Munro that feels most like a day out and least like a mountain, which is exactly what some first-timers want.
Before you go
- Munro weather is mountain weather. Boots, waterproofs, a warm layer, food, a map and compass, and a torch, even in summer.
- The summit forecast on each walk page is for the top, not the glen. Wind over 40 mph on a summit is unpleasant; over 50 it's a reason to go another day.
- Deer stalking runs from July to October on many estates. The access notes on each walk say where it matters; the Heading for the Scottish Hills service has daily information.
- Glenshee, Ben Lawers and Cairn Gorm all start from high car parks, which is why they're short. Don't let that make you pack light.
Questions people ask
What is the easiest Munro?
Carn Aosda from the Glenshee ski centre: about an hour up a track from a car park at 650 m. The Cairnwell next door is nearly as quick. For a more satisfying first Munro with a proper path, Ben Lomond or Schiehallion.
How fit do I need to be?
If you can walk for five hours with a few breaks, you can climb Ben Lomond. The climbing is steady rather than steep. Start with one of the Glenshee hills if you're unsure and see how it feels.
Can I do these in winter?
Only with winter experience, an ice axe and crampons, and the knowledge to use them. The same hills in snow are a different sport. Ben Chonzie in calm, clear conditions is the gentlest introduction.
Which Munros are nearest Glasgow and Edinburgh?
Ben Lomond is an hour from Glasgow. Ben Chonzie, Schiehallion and the Lawers hills are around two hours from either city. The Glenshee hills are two and a half from Edinburgh.
Read next
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GuideWalks near Glasgow you can do by trainTen walks from Glasgow with a station at the start, from an afternoon in a country park to a Munro from a bus stop. -
GuideThe best walks in the Lake District for a first visitTen walks that show you what the Lakes are about, from a two-hour stroll above Keswick to the long day on Scafell Pike.
- Trail NotesAll postsEvery guide, article and blog post by the TRXO team.
