Lochnagar

Lochnagar
	Lochnagar north side with the lake of the same name, seen from the east
height	1155 m ASL
location	Cairngorms , Highlands
Mountains	Grampians
Notch height	670 m
Coordinates	56 ° 57 '36 " N , 3 ° 14' 41" W Coordinates: 56 ° 57 '36 " N , 3 ° 14' 41" W.
rock	granite

The Lochnagar is a Scottish mountain in the mountain range of the Cairngorms , the part of the Scottish Highlands represent. It is classified as Munro and the highest point of the southern Cairngorms, which are largely separated from the northern part by the river valley of the Dee .

Origin of name

Until the 17th century, the Gaelic name Beinn Chìochan was used exclusively , which means mountain of breasts . The name Lochnagar was later established, which in turn was originally just the name of the small, 26-meter-deep lake below the north face of the mountain. Lochnagar is an Anglicification - either from Lochan na Gaire and its meaning as "lake of noises" or "lake of laughter" or as Lochan Gearr in the sense of "small lake". The former indicates the noises that can often be heard over the lake. This goes back to the basin-like location of the lake, which is encircled by the semicircular, approximately 200 m high north wall of the mountain, similar to a classic amphitheater, which reflects all the noises of the lake or can amplify them if necessary. Frequent fall or climbing winds on the wall create an additional noise effect. Another name, which is only used for the summit plateau of the mountain, is Cac Càrn Beag , which roughly means "small piles of waste". A literal translation is provided by “Little dirty mountain”. Both characterize the high plateau of the mountain, which has only sparse vegetation and is dotted with small stone mounds. Vulgar place names like the former can also be found in other parts of the Highlands, such as the nearby Devil's Point .

Ascent

The north face of Lochnagar in winter

The shortest route to Lochnagar, albeit with a walking time of six to seven hours there and back, starts in Glen Muick at the Spittal of Glenmuick ranger station . The wide dirt road initially follows Glen Muick to the large mountain lake Loch Muick , which in turn is circled on the left to the alluvial cone Glas allt-Shiel , on which a small Victorian hunting lodge is hidden in the wood there. From there, a small path follows the stream of the Glas Allt, initially steep and past waterfalls, later flat over the high plateau of the mountain to its summit.

Alternatively, the way back can also be covered over the edge of the north face. He then goes down stairs to the saddle of Fox Cairn Well , between the secondary peaks Meikle Pap (left) and Cuidhe Crom (right) and slowly descends over gentle hills. After a while the narrow footpath meets a larger dirt road, which you follow down to the abandoned farmstead Allt-na-giubhsaich . After crossing the valley floor of Glen Muick again, you reach the starting point. The circular route over the summit can of course also be walked the other way around.

Trivia

The Royal Lochnagar whiskey distillery is named after the mountain . The name addition "Royal" goes back to Queen Victoria , who had the whiskey delivered to her nearby summer residence, Schloss Balmoral , and who gave the whiskey the official name addition "Royal".

The explosion crater of a tunnel mine in World War I , which is located in the French village of La Boisselle near the small town of Albert , was named " Lochnagar Mine ".

Prince Charles published a children's book in 1980 entitled The old man of Lochnagar , which is based in part on his own childhood experiences at Balmoral Castle, which is privately owned by the British royal family .