Munro

A Munro is a Scottish hill with a height over 3000 feet (914.4 m). They are named after Sir Hugh Munro (1856–1919), who produced the first attempt at an exhaustive catalogue of such hills, known as Munro's Tables, in 1891.

Related Topics:
Scottish - Sir Hugh Munro - 1891

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There are other classifications of lower Scottish hills, including the Corbetts, the Grahams and (in the south of the country), the Donalds. However, the Munros are unique in that they lack a rigid set of criteria for inclusion. Since the list's initial publication, much debate has taken place over how distinct two hills must be if they are to be considered as two separate Munros. The decisions of the editors of The Tables (the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC)) have often been criticised for being subjective and erratic, with some hills being removed from The Tables in one revision, only to be graced with Munro status again in the next.

Related Topics:
Corbetts - Grahams - Donalds - Scottish Mountaineering Club

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The SMC's current revision lists 284 Munros. They are all in the Scottish Highlands, north of the Highland Boundary Fault. The tables also include many more tops which are high points which are regarded as insufficiently distinct to merit being tabulated as separate mountains.

Related Topics:
Current revision lists 284 Munros - Scottish Highlands - Highland Boundary Fault

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Despite their modest height, walking and climbing in the Scottish mountains may be made treacherous by their latitude and exposure to Atlantic weather systems. Even in summer, conditions can be atrocious; thick fog, strong winds, driving rain and freezing summit temperatures are commonplace.

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Winter ascents of certain Munros are widely accepted to provide among the most challenging ice climbs in Europe. Sadly, some walkers are unprepared for the often extreme weather conditions on the exposed tops and many fatalities are recorded every year, often resulting from slips on wet rock or ice.

Related Topics:
Ice climbs - Europe

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Some hillwalkers climb Munros with an eye to climbing every single one—a practice casually known as "Munro-bagging". Having climbed all of them, a walker is entitled to be called a Munroist. Munro-bagging is undoubtedly the most popular form of Peak bagging.

Related Topics:
Hillwalkers - Peak bagging

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Probably the most famous Munro is Ben Nevis in the Lochaber area. It is the highest peak in Scotland and the entire U.K, with an altitude of 1,344 m (4,409 ft).

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Other famous Munros include:

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• Lochnagar, a mountain near the Royal Castle of Balmoral in the area of Glen Muick
• Sgurr nan Gillean, Sgurr Alasdair and the Inaccessible Pinnacle, in the Cuillin Hills on the Isle of Skye
• Liathach in Torridon
• The Devil's Point, Cairn Gorm and Ben Macdui in the Cairngorms
• Ben Lomond
 
Munro: Notable completions ►