View over Loch Lomond on the descent from Ben Lomond

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Also known as: Beinn Laomainn (“beacon mountain")
Significance: High Point for the Historic County of Stirlingshire, high point for the Loch Lomond NSA
Member of: Munros, Marilyns
Parent Peak: Beinn Ime. NHN = Beinn Ime
Elevation: 974m
Date climbed: September 23rd 2023
Coordinates: 56° 11' 25'' N, 4° 37' 59'' W

Route Start & Finish: Ben Lomond (Rowardennan) Car Park, Stirling, G63 0AR
Route Distance: 12 km (7.5 mile)
Route Elevation change: +/- 913m
Subsidiary tops on route: Ptarmigan (778m)
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Ben Lomond Trail, Ptarmigan Ridge Path, West Highland Way
OS Trig Pillar: TP1283 - Ben Lomond
Pubs / Cafes on route: None on route but the Clansman Bar at the Rowardennan Hotel is near the car park
Map: Loch Lomond North Map | Tyndrum, Crianlarich & Arrochar | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map OL39
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia: (Stirlingshire / Ben Lomond), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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This was a day hike as a part of a 4-day Scottish County Top trip to bag Ben Lawers, Ben Vorlich, Ben Lomond and the Hill of Stake. We were on our 3rd day of the trip and had already ticked off Ben Lawers and Ben Vorlich. Now for Ben Lomond, not the highest of the trip, but definitely the most iconic. Ben Lomond is the most southerly Munro, sits on the edge of Loch Lomond and is very close to Glasgow. As such it’s very popular and it can be hard to find parking spots.

We read that in the summer the police close off the road to the main car-park. We were there in late September after the summer peak but we also had to get in a parkrun as it was a Saturday. By the time we arrived it was 11:00 and the main car-park was full so we parked in the overflow instead. This has its advantage though as it’s free and has a direct connection to the Ben Lomond Trail.

We opted for the clockwise circular route, initially following the West Highland Way from the overflow to the main car-park then picking up the Ptarmigan Ridge Path that ascends on the western side of the mountain closest to the Loch. The weather was a bit grey but we still had great views down to the Loch as we climbed.

The different map apps that we had in the group gave different positions for the summit of Ptarmigan so we visited both just to be sure. After Ptarmigan there’s a steep final ascent to the Ben Lomond summit and the Trig Pillar. The summit is flat and, when we were there, fairly crowded with walkers stopping for lunch. After a quick break we continued the circuit, descending down via the Ben Lomond Way.

Near the Loch there’s a path junction with one route to the main car-park and another to the overflow. We took the route to the main car-park to have a celebratory drink at the Clansman Bar at the Rowardennan Hotel.

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View to the south-west on the descent of Ben Vorlich

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Also Known as: Beinn Mhùrlaig
Significance: High Point for the Historic County of Dunbartonshire
Member of: Munros, Marilyns
Parent Peak: xx. NHN = Beinn Ime
Elevation: 943m
Date climbed: September 22nd 2023
Coordinates: 56° 16' 27'' N, 4° 45' 18'' W

Route Start & Finish: Inveruglas Visitor Centre, Inveruglas Farm, A82, Arrochar, G83 7DP
Route Distance: 13.3 km (8.3 mile)
Route Elevation change: +/- 904m
Subsidiary tops on route: None
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Loch Lomond and Cowal Way, Three Lochs Way
OS Trig Pillar: TP1309 - Ben Vorlich
Pubs / Cafes on route: Cafe at Inveruglas Visitor Centre at start/finish.
Map: Loch Lomond North Map | Tyndrum, Crianlarich & Arrochar | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map OL39
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia: (Dunbartonshire / Ben Vorlich), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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This was a day hike as a part of a 4-day Scottish County Top trip to bag Ben Lawers, Ben Vorlich, Ben Lomond and the Hill of Stake. After ticking off Ben Lawers we drove south to Balquhidder to stay at the Mhor 84 hotel ahead of tackling Ben Vorlich the next day.

It was during dinner at Mhor 84 that I realised that there was more than one Ben Vorlich and I had planned for the wrong one. Fortunately the correct one was only a 40 minute drive in the direction of our 3rd peak of the trip so we didn’t lose any time overall. Definitely a lesson learned for future trips as I soon found out that there’s also more than one Morven.

With a brand new route plan we arrived at the Inveruglas Visitor Centre for the start of the walk. We often follow Jonny Muir’s guide for the routes but this time decided to take a southern approach to Ben Vorlich instead of the northern route from Ardlui Station that he took.

From the Visitor Centre, head south along the Three Lochs Way following the A82. You’ll pass the Hydroelectric Power Station on your right. After ~900m leave the A82, still following the Three Loch Way along a track now heading west. This track runs parallel to the Inveruglas Water (stream), curving to the north to reach the dam at the southern edge of Loch Stoy.

At ~3km from leaving the A82 and 1 km before the dam you’ll meet a footpath heading steeply up to the right. This is a good place to take a break before the main ascent. Once on the path it’s a further 2.6 km climb to the cairn that marks the summit. You’ll pass the Ben Vorlich Trig Pillar shortly before the high point. For the descent retrace your steps back to the Visitor Centre. As with our Ben Lawers trip the day before, we had a lot of mist, drizzle and wind at the top but much better weather as we descended. Our slog to the top was rewarded by amazing views over both Loch Lomond and Loch Stoy.

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Other High Points in the Historic County of Dunbartonshire

• Earl's Seat, 578 metres, East Dunbartonshire Present Day County High Point: Peakbagger / Hillbagging

• Duncolm. 401 metres, West Dunbartonshire Present Day County High Point: Peakbagger / Hillbagging

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Descending Ben Lawyers towards Beinn Ghlas

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Also known as: Beinn Labhair
Significance: High Point for the Historic County of Perthshire, Council Top for Perth and Kinross, high point for the Loch Rannoch and Glen Lyon NSA
Member of: Munros, Marilyns
Parent Peak: Ben Nevis NHN = Aonach Beag
Elevation: 1,124m
Date climbed: September 21st 2023
Coordinates: 56° 32' 42'' N, 4° 13' 15'' W

Route Start & Finish: National Trust of Scotland Ben Lawers Car Park, Killin, FK21 8TY
Route Distance: 11.4 km (7.1 mile)
Route Elevation change: +/- 838m
Subsidiary tops on route: Beinn Ghlas
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Ben Lawers Trail
OS Trig Pillar: TP1281 - Ben Lawers
Pubs / Cafes on route: N/A
Map: Ben Lawers & Glen Lyon Map | Loch Tay, Killin & Kenmore | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map OL48
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia: (Perthshire / Ben Lawers), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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This was a day hike as a part of a 4-day Scottish County Top trip to bag Ben Lawers, Ben Vorlich, Ben Lomond and the Hill of Stake. First up was Ben Lawers, the 3rd highest UK Historic County Top and the highest of this particular trip.

After a flight from London and a 2 hour drive from Glasgow we arrived at the National Trust car park at the start of the trail. The Ben Lawers Trail is well marked and maintained making navigation very easy. We also had good visibility on the day, although the summit was wet and very windy. The trek to the summit passes over Beinn Ghlas, a 1103 m Munro, followed by a small descent before a steep climb to the Ben Lawers Trig Pillar.

For the return to the car park you can either retrace your steps over Beinn Ghlas or take an alternative path to the west from the col between the two peaks. This alternative route rejoins the main Ben Lawers Trail by a fence at 2.2 km from the car park.

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View to the South-East Crater from the Boca Nuova crater rim

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Significance:  Highest Point on the Island of Sicily and Metropolitan City of Catania
Parent Peak: N/A. NHN = Marmolada, Italy
Elevation: 3,342m
Date climbed: August 28th 2023
Coordinates: 37° 45' 1'' N, 14° 59' 41'' E

Route Start: 37°45'49.7"N 14°59'43.4"E
Route Finish: 37°45'55.4"N 15°00'49.7"E
Route Distance: 6.4 km (4 miles)
Route Elevation change: +336m / -540m. Net -204m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Guidebook: Walking in Sicily (Cicerone Guides): 46 walking routes including Mt Etna and the Egadi and Aeolian islands
Links: Wikipedia: (Sicily, Catania, Mount Etna), Peakbagger

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When we were talking about where to go for our summer holiday this year I wasn’t as keen as Timea was on Sicily. I always prefer to go somewhere new and we’d done Sicily. I got convinced about going when we researched about the Mount Etna and Stromboli trips. Our last trip had also been nearly 20 years ago and we’d only scratched the surface of exploring the island.

First up was the Mount Etna trip. Having come off a busy time at work, and wanting to minimise the planning, we went with a private tour organised by our hotel. Our guide Angelo and his daughter Fabiana picked us up at 07:30 from our hotel in Risposto and we headed towards the mountain.

We made a quick stop on the drive up to Cappalla Nel Maggio, an old church that had nearly been destroyed by a lava flow. A sign on the chapel tells the story (please excuse the translation): “During the eruption of November 1950 a lava flow, dividing into two arms, threatened simultaneously Milo and Fornazzo. In so much danger a solemn devout procession was promoted from the parish priest of Fornazzo Don Salvatore Fichera. It changed it, deviating to the left, it was channeled into the Cava Grande torrent, sparing the town. Then the commitment to build a chapel was born. In May 1971 another lava flow retraced the same route. The procession ended in a house owned by Mr. Sebastiano Cantarella. This house was overwhelmed by August 3, 1979. Of these there are currently some ruins still visible. The same flow of August 3, 1979 threatened to overwhelm this chapel but it stopped close to its walls penetrating inside the Chapel. The prodigious event is remembered every year on the first Sunday of August with a procession and the celebration of the Holy Mass”

The drive to the Visitor Centre at Piano Provenzana took just over an hour. Here we had a quick stop then transferred to a Unimog, a large off-road bus to take us further up. Piano Provenzana is also has a large car park and several tour agencies if you’re making your own way there. Our guide told us that there’s no limit on numbers of visitors to the mountain but you may be limited by the number of spaces on the Unimogs. An alternative is walking all the way up from Piano Provenzana but you’ve got to be a strong hiker, and prepared for the heat. Also, given the obvious dangers of climbing up an active volcano, I certainly wouldn’t go without an experienced guide.

The Unimog trip took about half an hour to cover 9.7 km and 1,183m of elevation to reach the start of the hiking section at 2,967m. There were a few other groups on the same bus and we let them go heading, preferring a more relaxing ascent. We slowly ascended in a southerly direction to reach the Boca Nuova Crater after 2.2 km.

We were there on a clear but windy day. Not too much wind to blow us off course but enough to blow clouds of sulphur into our faces. My regret here was no packing my Buff to cover my face with. Timea was better prepared as she brought hers so I had to settle with holding a tissue over my mouth and face. You definitely don’t want the sulphur inside you.

The sulphur was a small price to pay for the awesome view of the Boca Nuova Crater, still spewing clouds of steam and gas. Our route took us on a full anticlockwise circuit of the crater and close to the South-East Crater, the current high point of the mountain at 3,357m. We couldn’t get to the top of that one as it’s still dangerous but I was very happy getting to the most accessible high point of 3,317m.

After the Boca Nuova crater we skirted round the south-western edge of the North-East Crater. A circuit of this crater looked tempting but it was also too dangerous so we settled for peering over the top on the southern edge. from here we descended in a north-easterly direction towards the Observatory Etneo where we met the bus to take us back to the Visitor Centre. The fast ski-like descent down the ash fields to the bus was another highlight of the trip.

The adventure wasn’t over yet as there were 2 more interesting stops on the way back down to Riposto. First stop was an “island” of forest created when a lava flow cut off one of the main roads up to the mountain in 2002. A new road has been laid over the lava and you can take a small track down to see the remains of the old road.

Stop 2 was a small cave created by a lava flow. There’s steps at either end making it easy to walk through, although a helmet and torch is essential. The cave was once used as an ice house and is depicted in the painting “La Grotta a La Neige” by Jean-Pierre Houël. According to the information board, the painting is now displayed in The Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia.

We were back in our hotel in Rispoto by 16:30 totaling an 8 hour trip. If you’re up for a similar day trip I can highly recommend our guide Angelo at siciliaadventure.it

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Approach to Coety Mountain from Forge Side Road

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Coety Mountain

Also known as: Coity Mountain / Mynydd Coety (Welsh)
Significance: High Point for the Welsh Principal Area of Blaenau Gwent
Member of: Marilyns
Parent Peak: Pen y Fan. NHN = Sugar Loaf
Elevation: 578m
Date climbed: August 19th 2023
Coordinates: 51° 45' 55'' N, 3° 6' 53'' W
Links: Wikipedia: Blaenau Gwent, Coety Mountain, Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Coety Mountain East Slope

Significance:  Unitary Authority High Point for Torfaen
Member of: N/A
Parent Peak: Coety Mountain. NHN = Coety Mountain
Elevation: 574m
Date climbed: August 19th 2023
Coordinates: 51° 45' 56'' N, 3° 6' 50'' W
Links: Wikipedia (Torfaen), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

For both peaks:

Route Start & Finish: Parking space before the cattle grid near Varteg Road Cemetery, Varteg Road, Pontypool, NP4, UK
Route Distance: 10.1 km (6.2 miles)
Route Elevation change: +/- 276m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): N/A
Other routes touched (cycle): N/A but NCN 492 passes very close to the start of the walk.
OS Trig Pillar: TP5042 - Mynydd Varteg Fawr
Pubs / Cafes on route: N/A
Map: Ordnance Survey OS Explorer OL13 Brecon Beacons National Park - Eastern Area Map
Links: Blaenavon, Blaenavon World Heritage Site

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Coety Mountain is the high point of the Welsh Principal Areas of Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen within the Historic County of Monmouthshire. The Blaenau Gwent / Torfaen border runs along the ridge of the mountain with the 2 high points very close together.

The quickest way to bag the high points is an out-and-back from the Whistle Inn Halt at the north-western end of Blaenavon. Instead I chose a longer circular route from the south-eastern end of town to include the Mynydd Farteg Fawr Trig Pillar. There’s a parking space for a couple of cars near the cattle grid by the cemetary on Varteg Road, or, if not available you can also park along Forge Side Road.

From Varteg Road follow Forge Side Road in a north-westerly direction until you reach a footpath on the left by an old access road to a mine. Follow the path to the left of the mine as it curves up the hill towards the south-east. At a path junction take the path that leads to the north-west and follow that for about 250m. There’s no direct path from here to access the top of the ridge so I found a safe spot and headed up through the bracken. When you reach the top of the ridge take a left to follow the path to the Trig Pillar.

After the Trig Pillar retrace your steps to where you reached the top and continue following the path for ~2.4 km to the top of Coety Mountain. Keep an eye on the GPS though as the path disappears before the summit. The top of Coety Mountain is obvious but you’ll need to follow the GPS to reach the East Slope which is the high point of Torfaen.

After the high points make your way down to a track that leads to an old mine. Around 100m to the north-west of the mine you can pick up a path that leads to the south-east. Follow this for ~3.6km until you reach the point where you left the path earlier to reach the Trig Pillar. From here retrace your steps to the start of the walk at Varteg Road.

While in Blaenavon it’s worth spending a bit more time there to visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site attractions and the Historic Railway. I completed the walk just in time to take a ride on the old steam train that follows the track connecting the Whistle Inn Halt and Varteg Road. You’ll get a great view of Coety Mountain and Mynydd Farteg Fawr on the trip.

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Blaenavon's Heritage Railway

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Significance: High Point for the Welsh Principal Area of Newport
Member of: Marilyns
Parent Peak: TBC. NHN = Mynydd Twyn-glas
Elevation: 309m
Date climbed: August 20th 2023
Coordinates: 51° 38' 40'' N, 2° 51' 8'' W

Route Start & Finish: Cadeira Beeches car park, Usk Road, Llanvaches, Newport, NP26 3AZ
Route Distance: 2.6 km (1.6 miles)
Route Elevation change: +/- 37m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: N/A
OS Trig Pillar: TP6796 - Wentwood
Pubs / Cafes on route: N/A
Map: Newport & Pontypool/Casnewydd a Pont-y-Pŵl Map | Caerleon & Usk | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 152
Links: Wikipedia: Newport / Wentwood, Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Wentwood is the high point of the Welsh Principal Area of Newport within the Historic County of Monmouthshire. The Trig Pillar that marks the summit can be reached on a 2.6km out-and-back walk from the Cadeira Beeches car park. There’s an even closer parking spot just to the east of the Trig Pillar accessible from the north/south road that connects the A48 with Usk Road. I was there early on a Sunday morning and there was plenty of room to park so I made this one a very quick drive-by on the way to the more interesting Coety Mountain.

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Pontsticill Reservoir and view to the Brecon Beacons

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Merthyr Common

Significance: High Point for the Welsh Principal Area of Merthyr Tydfil
Member of: N/A
Parent Peak: Cefn yr Ystrad. NHN = Pen March
Elevation: 531m
Coordinates: 51° 47' 25'' N, 3° 20' 6'' W
Links: Wikipedia (Merthyr Tydfil), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Pen March

Significance: High Point for the Welsh Principal Area of Caerphilly
Member of: N/A
Parent Peak: Cefn yr Ystrad. NHN = Cefn yr Ystrad
Elevation: 535m
Coordinates: 51° 47' 27'' N, 3° 19' 56'' W
Links: Wikipedia (Caerphilly), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

For both peaks:

Date climbed: August 19th 2023
Route Start & Finish: Red Cow Inn, Main Road, Pontsticill, Merthyr Tydfil, CF48 2UN
Route Distance: 6.6 km (4.1 miles)
Route Elevation change: +/- 284m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Taff Trail
Other routes touched (cycle): NCN 8
Pubs / Cafes on route: Red Cow Inn at start and finish
Map: Brecon Beacons National Park / Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog Map | Western Area | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map OL12
Links: Pontisticill, Pontsticill Reservoir, Brecon Beacons National Park

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This walk covers the high points of both the Welsh Principal Areas of Merthyr Tydfil and Caerphilly.

To start the walk I parked outside the Red Cow Inn at Pontsticill and followed the road down the hill to cross over Taff Fechan (river) to meet the Taff Trail. Cross the road opposite the water treatment plant to join a footpath that leads up the hill in a north-easterly direction. The path crosses under the Brecon Mountain Railway to meet a path junction at the 350m contour line. Take a right and keep to the path now heading south-east. At the 440m contour line, approximately 1.4km into the walk, leave the path and cross open land towards the high points. This is where I found it essential to follow my GPX track as it’s easy to get lost up there.

The route to the high point roughly follows the border of Merthyr Tydfil and Powys until you reach a dry pond that marks the Merthyr / Powys / Caerphilly county tri-point. The Merthyr Common high point is to the west of the pond and Pen March to the east. There’s nothing to mark either and neither feels like an achieved summit as the ground in Powys to the north of the border is higher.

My original plan for this walk was to include the Trig Point at the summit of Cefn Yr Ystrad. It was now late in a full day of high-point bagging, getting cold and the route to the Trig Pillar was boggy. I decided to leave Cefn Yr Ystrad for another day, return to Pontsticill and rest for more high-points the next day.

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2 Peaks and a County Tri-point

Map base = Esri Topo

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Penlle'r Castel

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Significance: High Point for the Welsh Principal Area of Swansea
Member of: Marilyns
Parent Peak: TBC. NHN = Garreg Lwyd
Elevation: 373m
Date climbed: August 19th 2023
Coordinates: 51° 46' 2'' N, 3° 56' 15'' W

Route Start & Finish: Parking spot at junction of 2 small roads at marker 48 of the Gower Way
Route Distance: 1.3 km (>1 mile)
Route Elevation change: +/- 55m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): The Gower Way
OS Trig Pillar: TP5000 - Mynydd Bettws
Pubs / Cafes on route: N/A
Map: Swansea/Abertawe Map | Neath/Castell-Nedd & Port Talbot | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 165
Links: Wikipedia: (Swansea / Mynydd y Betws / Penlle'r Castell), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Mynydd y Betws is the high point of the Welsh Principal Area of Swansea within the Historic County of Glamorganshire.

It’s a misleading name as the Swansea high point is at Penlle'r Castel, an historic ruin on the summit of Mynydd y Gwair. There’s a nearby Trig Pillar called Mynydd Betws and, according to the map I was using, another summit called Mynydd y Betws with an elevation of 341m. I decided to bag them all just to be sure. My plan was to do them in a circular walk from the start of the access road to the farm near the Trig Pillar. It was wet and windy when I arrived so I decided to bag the Trig Pillar and the 341m peak first, then drive closer to the path to Penlle'r Castel.

The best place to park for access to Penlle'r Castel is at a path junction by marker 48 of The Gower Way on the east side of the hill. If you’re driving there from the south you’ll likely come up the Rhydypandy Road. This passes very close to the western side of the summit shortly before a sharp bend in the road and a steep descent. There’s no safe parking space here, so continue down the hill, then take a right at the first junction to find the parking spot at Gower Way marker 48. Note that the road junction you will have just taken is the tri-point of the counties of Swansea, Carmarthenshire and Neath Port Talbot.

From the parking spot follow the Gower Way to the remains of Penlle'r Castel. My map had the 371m point a little further to the south-west so I continued along the path, almost to the Rhydypandy Road. Retrace your steps to return to the parking spot.

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Approaching the summit of Garth Hill

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Also known as: Mynydd y Garth (Welsh), The Garth
Significance: High Point for the Welsh Principal Area of Cardiff
Member of: Marilyn
Parent Peak: TBC. NHN = Cefn Eglwysilan
Elevation: 307m
Date climbed: August 19th 2023
Coordinates: 51° 32' 36'' N, 3° 17' 40'' W

Route Start & Finish: The Taffs Well Inn, Cardiff Road, Taff's Well, Cardiff, CF15 7PR
Route Distance: 6.2 km (3.6 miles)
Route Elevation change: +/- 260m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: N/A … the Taff Trail runs past Taff’s Well Station
OS Trig Pillar: TP3324 - Garth
Pubs / Cafes on route: The Taff’s Well Inn (start), The Gwaelod-y-Garth Inn (600m in)
Map: Cardiff & Bridgend / Caerdydd a Pen-y-Bont Ar Ogwr Map | Vale of Glamorgan / Bro Morgannwg | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 151
Links: Wikipedia: Garth Hill / Cardiff / Taff’s Well, Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Garth Hill is the high point of the Welsh Principal Area of Cardiff within the Historic County of Glamorganshire.

With all of the English, Welsh and Northern Irish Historic County Tops in the bag, I had now turned my attention to the modern day counties and Unitary Authorities. The Wife was away and I had a free weekend in hand so I drove to Cardiff for 2 days of bagging the High Points of the South Wales Principal Areas. I had already bagged Werfa (Mynydd Llangeinwyr) on a separate trip back in 2019, so I had 8 to complete in this trip.

After spending the night in Cardiff and ticking off Cardiff parkrun I headed north along the a River Taff to the small village of Taff’s Well. Taff's Well is a village in the south-east of Rhondda Cynon Taf, about 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Cardiff. It is known locally as the "Gates to the Valleys". The village is named after the River Taff, which flows through it, and the warm spring within Taff's Well Park. The spring is the only thermal spring in Wales, and is thought to rise from the carboniferous limestone. The water is tepid, with a temperature of around 18 degrees Celsius. Taff's Well was a popular spa resort in the 19th century, and people would travel from all over the UK and Europe to bathe in its waters. The spa closed in the early 20th century, but the spring is still a popular local tourist attraction.

Taff’s Well Station is an obvious place to start the walk but as I was driving I managed to save 1 km each way by parking on the road outside The Taff’s Well Inn. From here there’s a path that crosses the River Taff before climbing steeply up to Main Road. Take a right onto Main Road and then, just in front of The Gwaelod-y-Garth Inn, take a left up Route des Alpes road. Continue up Route des Alpes, gradually ascending for 1 km until you reach a path that takes a sharp right hand turn towards the north-east away from the road. Continue up the path and curve round to the north-west to the trig pillar at the summit.

For the descent retrace your steps to the start but take a few moments, 1km from the summit, to visit the cliff edge view over Taff’s Well and along the Taff Valley toward Cardiff. Shortly after the view-point there’s a path leading directly down to Route des Alpes road. I decided to take this rather than the longer route I came up with. It turned out to be very steep and, after a lot of recent rain, very slippery. I got down but mostly by sliding down on my arse grabbing hold of any heather I could find. It’s definitely a shorter route but not necessarily quicker and, if I were to do it again, I would avoid it in favour of returning via the same route I had come up on.

One peak completed … now on to Tair Onnen in the Vale of Glamorgan.

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Ascent to Roque Nublo from La Goleta

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While we were in Gran Canaria for a short winter break we escaped the coast for a day to head into the mountains. Our main destination was the high-point of the island, but there’s a lot of interesting places to stop along the way. As Camino enthusiasts we would have loved to have walked the 67 km Camino de Gran Canaria from Maspolomas to Galdar, but this was a relaxing holiday rather than an adventure. We got to see some of the Camino though as the road to the island high-point runs parallel to the southern half of the walking route. The Camino starts at the Faro (lighthouse) in Meloneras on the western side of Maspolomas and we had already visited it after a walk across the dunes on our first day.

For our roadtrip to the high-point we took the GC-60 north out of Maspolomas. There’s a few interesting places to stop along the way:

• Mirador Astronómico de la Degollada de las Yeguas. 12km out from Maspolomas, this is a viewpoint with amazing view both back to the coast and of the Barranco de Fataga. It is situated at an altitude of 1,480 meters, making it one of the best places on the island to observe the stars and the night sky.

• Necrópolis de Arteara. 16km out from Maspolomas, this is an ancient burial site considered one of the most important pre-Hispanic archaeological sites in the Canary Islands. The site consists of over 900 tombs that were used by the Guanches, the aboriginal people of the Canary Islands. The tombs are arranged in a circular pattern and are made of stone slabs and boulders.

• San Bartolomé de Tirajana. 16km out from Maspolomas, this is a pretty village in the mountains that’s a great place to stop for lunch on the trip. Don’t miss the Tunte Catholic Church (Iglesia San Bartolomé), a natural stop on the Camino route.

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Roque Nublo

Start / Finish: Roque Nublo Trailhead, GC-600, 35299 San Bartolomé de Tirajana, Las Palmas
Distance: 3.1 km (1.9 miles)
Elevation Change: +/- 151m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Route is along the S-70. Crosses the S-51 at the trailhead
Cafe / pub on route: Food van at trailhead by the road.
Map: Gran Canaria Tour and Trail Super-Durable Map
Guidebook: Walking on Gran Canaria: 45 day walks including five days on the GR131 coast-to-coast route (Cicerone Walking Guides)
Links: Roque Nublo, Tejeda

42 km out from Maspolomas, this is a famous volcanic rock formation located in the centre of the island. It stands at an impressive height of 80 meters and is a popular attraction for visitors to the island. Roque Nublo is a volcanic formation that dates back millions of years and is considered a sacred site by the aboriginal people of the Canary Islands, the Guanches.

The top Roque Nublo is the third altitude of the island of Gran Canaria, although accessing the summit requires rock climbing. For the rest of us the 2 mile oute-and-back walk from the parking spot on the GC600 is spectacular enough.

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Pico de las Nieves

Also known as: Los Pechos
Significance: 2nd highest peak on Gran Canaria
Elevation: 1,951m
Date “climbed”: 20th February 2023
Coordinates: 27° 57' 43'' N, 15° 34' 18'' W

Start / Finish: Parking at Pico de los Pozos viewpoint, 35299 Gran Canaria
Distance: 0.1 km (0.1 miles)
Elevation Change: +/- 2m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): S-20, S-37 and S-50
Cafe / pub on route: Food van in car-park.
Map: Gran Canaria Tour and Trail Super-Durable Map
Guidebook: Walking on Gran Canaria: 45 day walks including five days on the GR131 coast-to-coast route (Cicerone Walking Guides)
Links: Pico de las Nieves, Morro de la Agujereada, Province of Las Palmas, Peakbagger: Pico de las Nieves

50 km out from Maspolomas, Pico de las Nieves was the main attraction for our day in the mountains. The summit was considered the highest peak on the island, and it was the high point that I found on my initial research about the island. It’s actually the 2nd highest peak of Gran Canaria, behind the neighboring Morro de la Agujereada (at 1,956m).

You can access the summit as a quick drive-by as there’s a road to a car-park very close to the top. From the car-park it’s a short climb up some steps to the stone pillar that marks the summit.

When you look across to Morro de la Agujereada it’s a wonder how anyone would have thought that Pico de las Nieves was higher. As much as I would have loved to have summited the real high point, it’s another one, like Roque Nublo, for the rock climbers.

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To return to Maspolomas by car from Pico de las Nieves, continue east along the GC-130 then take the GC-120 from Cazadores towards the Airport. Take the GC-1 south to Maspolomas. Total driving time approx 1 hour.

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If bagging all of the UK Historic and Present-Day County tops, plus the Unitary Authorities isn’t enough for you, there’s also the high points of the National Parks, AONBs and National Scenic Areas.

Contact me if you spot any mistakes and I’ll donate £1 to one of my supported causes for each correction made.

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UK National Parks High Points

Of the 15 UK National Parks 10 have a high point that is also an Historic County Top. One other, Whernside is the high point of the Ceremonial County of North Yorkshire and was the high point of the Administrative County of the West Riding of Yorkshire. The highest National Park Peak that’s not also a County Top is Ben More (not to be confused with Ben More Assynt) in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.

UK National Parks

1. Cairngorms National Park (Scotland): Ben Macdui (1,309 metres).

2. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park (Scotland): Ben More (1,174 metres).

3. Snowdonia National Park (Wales): Snowdon / Yr Wyddfa (1085 metres).

4. Lake District National Park (England): Scafell Pike (978 metres).

5. Brecon Beacons National Park (Wales): Pen y Fan (886 metres).

6. Northumberland National Park (England): The Cheviot (815 metres).

7. Yorkshire Dales National Park (England): Whernside (736 metres).

8. Peak District National Park (England): Kinder Scout (636 metres).

9. Dartmoor National Park (England): High Willhays (621 metres).

10. Pembrokeshire Coast National Park (Wales): Foel Cwmcerwyn (536 metres).

11. Exmoor National Park (England): Dunkery Beacon (519 metres).

12. North York Moors National Park (England): Urra Moor - Round Hill (454 metres).

13. South Downs National Park (England): Black Down (280 metres).

14. New Forest National Park (England): Pipers Wait (129 metres) or Telegraph Hill (127 metres).

15. The Broads National Park (England): Strumpshaw Hill - South Slope (40 metres).

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England, Wales and Northern Ireland AONBs High Points

National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) are both protected areas in the United Kingdom, but they have different designations and management structures. National Parks are designated by the UK government for their outstanding natural beauty, cultural heritage and recreational opportunities. They are managed by National Park Authorities and have specific planning policies to protect their landscapes and wildlife. On the other hand, AONBs are also designated by the government for their outstanding natural beauty but are managed by local authorities and partnerships. They have different planning policies compared to National Parks. National Parks tend to be more remote and wilder, while AONBs are often found close to populated areas and include cultural heritage and agricultural landscapes. Both National Parks and AONBs are intended to be enjoyed and appreciated by the public but the management, planning policies, and protection of the areas can differ.

There are 46 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in the UK of which 16 are the county tops of the Historic Counties that they are in. St Boniface Down is the high point of both the Ceremonial County of the Isle of Wight and the Isle of Wight AONB.

There were 2 AONBs that I couldn’t find a high point for when researching this: Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB and Lagan Valley AONB (Northern Ireland). Let me know if you know what these high points are and I can update the list.

• North Pennines AONB (England). Cross Fell (893m).

• Mourne Mountains AONB (Northern Ireland). Slieve Donard (850m).

• Nidderdale AONB (England). Great Whernside (704m).

• Sperrins AONB (Northern Ireland). Sawel Mountain (678m).

• Ring of Gullion AONB (Northern Ireland). Slieve Gullion (576m).

• Forest of Bowland AONB (England). Ward's Stone (561m).

• Llŷn Peninsula AONB (Wales). Yr Eifl (561m).

• Clwydian Range and Dee Valley AONB (Wales). Moel Famau (555m).

• Antrim Coast and Glens AONB (Northern Ireland). Trostan (550m).

• Shropshire Hills AONB (England). Brown Clee Hill (540m).

• Malvern Hills AONB (England). Worcestershire Beacon (425m).

• Cornwall AONB (England). Brown Willy (420m).

• Binevenagh AONB (Northern Ireland). Binevenagh (385m).

• Tamar Valley AONB (England). Kit Hill (334m).

• Cotswolds AONB (England). Cleeve Common (330m).

• Mendip Hills AONB (England). Beacon Batch (325m).

• Blackdown Hills AONB (England). Staple Hill (315m).

• Wye Valley AONB (England / Wales). Trellech Beacon (313m).

• North Wessex Downs AONB (England). Walbury Hill (297m).

• Surrey Hills AONB (England). Leith Hill (294m).

• Dorset AONB (England). Lewesdon Hill (279m).

• Cranborne Chase and the West Wiltshire Downs AONB (England). Win Green (277m).

• North Devon Coast AONB (England). Berry Down near Combe Martin (269m).

• Chiltern Hills AONB (England). Haddington Hill (267m).

• Somerset - Quantock Hills AONB (England). Wills Neck (263m).

• East Devon AONB (England). Gittisham Hill (259m).

• Kent Downs AONB (England). Toy's Hill (257m).

• Cannock Chase AONB (England). Castle Ring (242m).

• Isle of Wight AONB (England). St Boniface Down (241m).

• High Weald AONB (England). Crowborough Beacon (223m).

• Anglesey AONB (Wales). Holyhead Mountain (220m).

• South Devon AONB (England). Blackdown Camp (199m).

• Gower Peninsula AONB (Wales). The Beacon at Rhossili Down (193m).

• Howardian Hills AONB (England). Yearsley Cross (174m).

• Lincolnshire Wolds AONB (England). Wolds Top / Normanby Hill (168m).

• Arnside and Silverdale AONB (England). Warton Crag (163m).

• Strangford and Lecale AONB (Northern Ireland). Scrabo Hill (161m).

• Causeway Coast AONB (Northern Ireland). Carnduff Hill (114m).

• Norfolk Coast AONB (England). Beacon Hill (105m).

• Northumberland Coast AONB (England). South Hill (75m).

• Dedham Vale AONB (England). Broom Hill (69m).

• Solway Coast AONB (England). Pudding Pie Hill (56m).

• Isles of Scilly AONB (England). Telegraph on St Mary’s (49m).

• Chichester Harbour AONB (England). c. three locations with 9m spot height (9m).

To be verified … couldn’t find these originally but have been identified by Joel Adcock.

• Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB (England): Holbrook Park, (~44m)

• Lagan Valley AONB (Northern Ireland). In garden of private property on Tullyard Rd, Lisburn BT27 5JN (164m)

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Scottish NSA High Points

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and National Scenic Area (NSA) are both designations used in the United Kingdom to protect and promote areas of exceptional natural beauty. However, there are some key differences between the two. AONBs are designated by the UK government and are considered to be the most important landscapes in the country, with the highest level of protection afforded to them. NSAs, on the other hand, are designated by the Scottish government and, while they also offer protection to areas of exceptional natural beauty, they do not have the same level of legal protection as AONBs. Additionally, AONBs are managed by local authorities, while NSAs are managed by Scottish National Parks. Both AONBs and NSAs are intended to be enjoyed and appreciated by the public, but the management and protection of the areas can differ.

There are 40 National Scenic Areas (NSA) in Scotland, of which 8 are the county tops of the Historic Counties that they are in. There were 12 NSAs that I couldn’t find a high point for when researching this (scroll down to see). These are mostly in coastal areas without notable high points. Let me know if you know what these high points are and I can update the list.

• Ben Nevis and Glen Coe NSA: Ben Nevis (1344m).

• Cairngorm Mountains NSA: Ben Macdui (1309m).

• Loch Rannoch and Glen Lyon NSA: Ben Lawers (1214m).

• Glen Affric NSA: Càrn Eige (1183m).

• Deeside and Lochnagar NSA: Lochnagar / Beinn Chìochan (1156m).

• Glen Strathfarrar NSA: Sgùrr a' Choire Ghlais (1083m).

• Kintail NSA: Sgurr Fhuaran (1068m).

• Wester Ross NSA: An Teallach (1062m).

• Knoydart NSA: Sgurr na Cìche (1040m).

• Assynt-Coigach NSA: Ben More Assynt (998m).

• Loch Lomond NSA: Ben Lomond (974m).

• Cuillin Hills NSA: Sgùrr nan Gillean (964m).

• North West Sutherland NSA: Foinaven (909m).

• Loch Shiel NSA: Beinn Odhar Bheag (882m).

• The Trossachs NSA: Ben Ledi (879m).

• North Arran NSA: Goat Fell (873.5m).

• Upper Tweeddale NSA: Broad Law (840m).

• Small Isles NSA: Askival (812m).

• South Lewis, Harris and North Uist NSA: Clisham (799m).

• Jura NSA: Beinn an Òir (785m).

• Trotternish NSA: The Storr (719m).

• South Uist Machair NSA: Beinn Mhòr (620m).

• Knapdale NSA: Stob Odhar (562m).

• Hoy and West Mainland NSA: Ward Hill (481m).

• Scarba, Lunga and the Garvellachs NSA: Scarba (449m).

• St Kilda NSA: Conachair (430m).

• Eildon and Leaderfoot NSA: Eildon Hill (422m).

• Lynn of Lorn NSA: Barr Mòr (127m).

To be verified … couldn’t find these originally but have been identified by Joel Adcock.

• Dornoch Firth NSA: unnamed summit (387m)

• East Stewartry Coast NSA: Bengairn (391m).

• Fleet Valley NSA: Ben John (354m)

• Kyle of Tongue NSA: Ben Hope (927m)

• Kyles of Bute NSA: Meallan Riabhach (484m).

• Loch na Keal, Isle of Mull NSA: Ben More (967m)

• Loch Tummel NSA: Meall Tairneachan (787m)

• Morar, Moidart and Ardnamurchan NSA: Meall nan Each (490m)

• Nith Estuary NSA: Criffel (569m).

• River Earn (Comrie to St. Fillans) NSA: Either slope of Beinn Fuath (~650 metres) or Mor Beinn (640m)

• River Tay (Dunkeld) NSA: Creag Dhubh (498m)

• Shetland NSA: The Sneug (418m)

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Descending to the monastery

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Start & Finish: Gouverneto Monastery, Chania 731 00, Greece
Distance: 2.8 km (1.7 miles)
Elevation change: +/- 164m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Katholiko-Stavros
Links: Akrotiri, Agia Triada Monastery, Gouverneto Monastery, Arkoudiotissa Cave

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The Akrotiri Peninsular, not to be confused with the one in Cyprus, sticks out of the north coast of Crete to the east of Chania. We took a day trip at the end of our holiday to drive round the edge and visit the beaches. The monasteries in the mountains to the north are worth a visit as is the short but steep walk to the Katholiko ruins. The Katholiko was opened in the 11th century and abandoned in the 16th century due to pirate raids.

To get to the walk, drive to the Holy Trinity (Agia Triada) Tzagaroli Monastery. This is an interesting place to stop and visit the church and museum. From here follow the road for 4.2 km to the car park next to the Gouverneto Monastery. This monastery was closed when we got there so we did the walk to the Katholiko first.

There’s a very obvious path from the monastery down to the ruins. After 1km you’ll reach the Arkoudospilio Cave, also known as the Bear Cave. The name comes from the large bear-shaped stalagmite that is ready to drink water. The legend is that the Virgin Mary turned the bear that was stealing the water of the monks living nearby into stone.

After another 400m you’ll reach the ruins of the Katholiko Monastery. There’s another trail that we considered walking that joins from town of Stavros to the west. Another option is to descend further along the trail to the beach. Both options were tempting but it was a very hot day so an out-and-back from the Monastery to the Katholiko was enough for us.

The Gouverneto Monastery was just opening by the time we got back there at 17:00. We were just in time to observe the service in the church. If you visit note that you can’t enter wearing shorts but you can borrow a skirt at the entrance to cover your legs.

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Near the Trailhead.

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Start: Samaria Gorge Trailhead, Μονοπ. Φαράγγι Σαμαριάς, 730 11, Greece
Finish: Ferry dock, Agia Roumeli, Hora Sfakion 730 11, Greece
Distance: 16 km (10 miles)
Elevation change: +442m / -1,657m. Net -1,215m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Papoures Trail
Links: Samaria Gorge, Lefka Ori (White Mountains), Agia Roumeli, Sougia

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If you’re a fan of hiking and the outdoors in general then Samaria Gorge is a must-do for a trip to Crete. Wife and I had planned to do it together but she was sick for the first half of our holiday. We decided that I should do it alone while she recovered. This turned out to be the right plan as you really need to be on top form to do the trip.

The trailhead is an hour from Chania, the nearest large town. Unless you stay near the start overnight you’ve got at least 2 hours of driving time to get there and back. The gorge walk is a point-to-point from the entrance at 1,230m elevation down to Agia Roumeli on the coast. There’s no road access to the town so you need to get a ferry to Sougia and a bus back to the start. From leaving my hotel (90 mins from the trailhead), I was back 13 hours later.

It’s definitely worth it though. The whole of the gorge walk was stunning with photo opportunities at every turn. The first section, a steep descent through pine forest, reminded me of parts of the Inca Trail. The path is narrow and can be difficult to overtake other hikers at times so it’s good to go when it’s quiet. I was there in early October, just out of peak season. My first hour, starting at 10:00, only had a handful of other hikers on it. It got busier when I caught up with a bus party who had spread out a little formed a convoy along the path.

There’s several water and toilet spots along the route. You’ll need to take enough food and your own toilet paper if you don’t want to risk the supplies on the route. At around 7 km in you’ll reach the old village of Samaria which is a great place to stop for a while and have lunch before the final sections.

I found the path to be quieter after the old village. This was probably as I was on a brisker pace than most and only took a short stop for lunch. This second half is less steep and has a different, more barren environment. There were also more people coming in the opposite direction, presumably doing an out-and-back between the coast and the village.

The final few kilometres are a highlight as the route criss crosses the flowing river across rickety wooden bridges. The walls of the gorge close in funnelling you through some tighter, more dramatic sections.

At the end of the walk you’ll find another booth where you give them half of your entry ticket. This is so that they can tally the numbers to check that no one is left in the gorge at the end of the day. There’s a couple of cafes immediately outside the National Park boundary but, unless you’re starving, it’s better to get to the town for food.

From the end of the trail it’s an extra 2.5 km to the coast. There’s a private shuttle bus operating the last 2 km for 2 euros each. As ready for a rest as I was I wasn’t tempted by the bus. I’d completed a 15km gorge walk so I wasn’t going to take a bus for a flat 2 km.

The main option to return to the start is to get a ferry to a Sougia then the bus to the trailhead. Ferries were fairly infrequent when I was there so I had to wait 3 hours for the 17:30 boat. Although the town is small and seems to exist only for the ferries, I was glad of the time for a long, slow lunch and a rest at the end of the walk.

You’ll need to buy your ticket ahead of getting on board but there’s a few options to do so. You can book online, as I did, and get an email confirmation. Alternatively you can buy them at the trailhead cafe or at the ticket office on town’s main street. Don’t expect to buy them on the boat though, as one couple found out when they were left behind by the last ferry of the day.

You can buy your bus tickets either at the trailhead or Agia Roumeli ticket offices or at a small booth in Sougia. Personally I wouldn’t risk leaving it until Sougia so I bought mine at the trailhead. The bus operation is very efficient with several of them waiting near the ferry terminal, departing shortly after the boats arrived.

The ferry takes 50 mins for the larger car and passenger ferry or 25 minutes for the smaller passenger only ferry. The bus takes 50 minutes to return to the trailhead and drops off next to the main car park. Although you can park for free at the side of the road leading up to the trailhead, the car park is safer and saves you another walk at the end of the day back to your car.

If you don’t have a car there’s several options to go with an organised tour. The options were around 40 euro per person as a part of a large bus tour or in in the hundreds per group for a private tour. If you do have a car then getting to the trailhead yourself is by far the cheapest and most convenient option.

My costs for the trip, excluding hire car costs and petrol were:

• Parking: 5 euro

• Gorge entrance fee: 5 euro

• Ferry ticket: 13 euro

• Bus ticket: 4.80 euro

• Total 27:80 euro

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Red = The Samaria Gorge Walk, Blue = ferry route to Sougia, Green = Bus route back to the Trailhead

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Ascent of Innerdouny Hill

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Our UK County Top bagging trips have now got into a rhythm of an annual long weekend at the end of September. Our group has also grown to 6, although there’s always the inevitable last minute cancellation due to house move / new job / failing body / [*insert excuse here]. For our second Scottish adventure we tackled the “Edinburgh Crescent”, a collection of 6 high points covering 7 historic counties, all within an hour of Edinburgh airport.

We also managed to bag a couple of “bonus peaks”, Allermuir HIll and Arthur’s Seat over the weekend. See this post for details on these.

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West Lomond

Significance: Highest peak in Fife (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn
Parent Peak: Ben Cleuch NHN = Innerdownie
Elevation: 522m
Date climbed: 23rd September 2022
Coordinates: 56° 14' 43'' N, 3° 17' 49'' W
Route Start / End: Bunnet Stane Car Park, Cupar, KY14 7RR
Route Distance: 4.5 km (2.8 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 365m
Subsidiary tops on route: None
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): None
Other routes touched (cycle): NCN 1 / EV12 passes Bunnet Stane Car Park
OS Trig Pillar: TP0674 - West Lomond
Map: Glenrothes North, Falkland & Lomond Hills Map | Auchtermuchty & Cupar | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 370
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia (West Lomond), Wikipedia (Fife), Bunnet Stane, Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Having landed in Edinburgh Airport mid-morning on the Friday, we picked up a rental car for the 40 minute drive to West Lomond. This is the most north-easterly of this trip’s peaks and a nice warm-up for the longer treks to follow. We met with Joel, who drove from Northern Ireland, at Bunnet Stane Car Park. Don’t let the “car park” label fool you though, it’s just a layby for about 4 cars with a parking sign on it.

The walk to the summit is fairly straightforward, initially flat before getting steeper after Bunnet Stane. This is a rock formation with a man-made cave at the bottom and a information sign describing the history and myth around it. It’s worth stopping here to check it out before the ascent to the summit.

There’s several footpaths to the Trig Pillar at summit but we chose the most well-trodden. For the descent I originally planned to return on the same route but decided at the top to mix it up a bit and make it a circle. This didn’t work out too well as the path I chose to follow was cut of by a fence ahead of a steep drop. We took a alternative, slightly less steep, route down to meet the path we came up on. In hindsight we would have been better off sticking to the out-and-back.

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Innerdouny Hill

Significance: Highest peak in Kinross-shire (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn
Parent Peak: Ben Cleuch NHN = Innerdownie
Elevation: 497m
Date climbed: 23rd September 2022
Coordinates: 56° 14' 55'' N, 3° 33' 48'' W
Route Start / End: Forestry Commission Car Park at Littlerig on B934
Route Distance: 9.2 km (5.7 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 220m
Subsidiary tops on route: None
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): None
Other routes touched (cycle): None
OS Trig Pillar: TP4108 - Innerdouny Hill
Map: Perth & Kinross Map | Ochil Hills East & Loch Leven | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Active Map 369
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia (Innerdouny Hill), Wikipedia (Kinross-shire), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

After West Lomond it’s a half an hour drive to the Littlerig Forestry Commission car park at the start of the walk to Innerdouny Hill. The car park didn’t come up on our sat-nav so we just headed north along the B934 looking out for it on the right. In the end it was easy to find and enough parking for several cars. Given the relative obscurity of the peak, it’s unlikely that you’ll be fighting for a parking spot here.

This is a longer walk than West Lomond but much less elevation. The first 3.9 km follows a wide Forestry Commission track before taking a right turn up a narrow path to the summit. We were there on a very clear day and got great views over the Firth of Forth and some of the other peaks of our trip.

As with West Lomond an out-and-back would have been the best plan. Instead we followed a clearing between a wooded area and a wall to try a more direct route down to the start of the track. It definitely made a more interesting route but in reality didn’t save much time or distance vs. retracing our steps from the summit.

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Ben Cleuch

Significance: Highest peak in Clackmannanshire (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn, Donald, Graham
Parent Peak: Ben Chonzie NHN = Carn Chois
Elevation: 721m
Date climbed: 24th September 2022
Coordinates: 56° 11' 8'' N, 3° 46' 10'' W
Route Start / End: Free on-street parking at Upper Mill Street, Tillicoultry, FK13 6AX
Route Distance: 7.9 km (4.9 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 650m
Subsidiary tops on route: The Law (638m)
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): None
Other routes touched (cycle): None
OS Trig Pillar: TP0672 - Ben Cleugh
Map: Stirling & Ochil Hills West Map | Alloa & Dunblane | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 366
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia (Ben Cleuch), Wikipedia (Clackmannanshire), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Day 2 started with the University of Stirling parkrun, right next to the hotel where we were staying. Stirling is a good option for an overnight stay on the trip and our hotel, part of the University campus, worked out well.

From Stirling it was less than a 30 minute drive to the start of the walk to Ben Cleuch. This was a shorter distance than the previous 2 walks but much higher elevation. Navigation is straightforward as there’s a very well-trodden path to the summit.

Learning from Day 1 we stuck to the out-and-back plan and didn’t attempt a creative alternative route back to the car. The Woolpack Inn, close to the start point, is a good place for a pint and a rest before heading to the Lothians.

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Cairnpapple Hill

Significance: Highest peak in West Lothian (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn
Parent Peak: West Cairn Hill NHN = West Cairn HIll
Elevation: 312m
Date climbed: 24th September 2022
Coordinates: 55° 55' 22'' N, 3° 37' 18'' W
Route Start / End: Cairnpapple Hill parking, 2km from Torphichen, Bathgate, EH48 4LD
Route Distance: 650 km (0.4 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 14m
Subsidiary tops on route: None
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): None
Other routes touched (cycle): None
Map: Falkirk, Cumbernauld & Livingston Map | Linlithgow, Bathgate & Kilsyth | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 349
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia (Cairnpapple Hill), Wikipedia (West Lothian), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Our original plan for Cairnpapple was to follow the short circular route in Jonny Muir’s guidebook. We parked at the small Cairnpapple parking area and took the well-marked south-westerly path to the burial mound. Cairnpapple is commonly regarded as the highest point in West Lothian although the Ballencreif Hill Trig Pillar to the south is higher. Jonny Muir’s guide has the walk continuing in a straight line south from the burial ground to the Trig. Some boundary work must have been done in the meantime as we found a new fence in the way and no obvious means to walk straight to the Trig. Note that Historic Scotland charges an entry fee to the burial ground, although it’s easy to avoid it as the ticket office is not on the gate.

Separate walk to The Knook and the Trig Pillar:

Route Start / End: Top Point Parking, Unnamed Road (south of Cairnpapple Hill), Bathgate, EH48
Route Distance: 1.1 km (0.7 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 16m
OS Trig Pillar: TP0991 - Ballencrieff Hill
Links: Peakbagger (Knock)

To access the Trig Pillar we returned to the car and drove south down the minor road to a layby near the gate to the field containing the Trig Pillar. Alternative parking can be found on the south side of Knock Hill, another contender for West Lothian’s high point. After climbing to the toposcope on Knock Hill we cross the field to bag the Trig Pillar.

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Blackhope Scar

Significance: Highest peak in Midlothian (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn, Donald, Graham
Parent Peak: Windlestraw Law NHN = Windlestraw Law
Elevation: 651m
Date climbed: 25th September 2022
Coordinates: 55° 43' 25'' N, 3° 5' 31'' W
Route Start / End: Small parking area on southern end of Gladhouse Reservoir
Route Distance: 17.7 km (11 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 518m
Subsidiary tops on route: The Kips (542m), Bowbeat Hill (636m), Bowbeat Rig (585), Dundreich (623m)
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): None
Other routes touched (cycle): None
OS Trig Pillar: TP1448 - Blackhope Scar and
Map: TP1448 - Blackhope Scar and TP2914 - Dundreich
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)
Links: Wikipedia (Blackhope Scar), Wikipedia (Midlothian), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Blackhope Scar was the longest and most interesting of the weekend’s peaks. The small parking area on the southern edge of Gladhouse Reservoir is the best, and realistically only, place to start the walk. The first 2 km is fairly flat as the route follows the private road through a farm and up to the ruins of Hirendean Castle. After the ruins the route ascends in a south-westerly direction to the summit. I had read that the route is very boggy and was preparing for a Meikle Fell style swamp. As we were there following a particularly dry summer the ground was solid and much easier than expected.

Jonny Muir’s guidebook shows the route as an out-and-back to the summit but there’s a more interesting circular route. See this post on Walk Highlights and this video on YouTube for good detailed descriptions on the full circular. As well as being more interesting as a circular, you’ll bag an extra Trig Pillar and a couple of extra summits.

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Meikle Says Law

Significance: Highest peak in East Lothian (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn
Parent Peak: Windlestraw Law NHN = Windlestraw Law
Elevation: 535m
Coordinates: 55° 50' 49'' N, 2° 40' 13'' W
OS Trig Pillar: TP0685 - Sayers Law
Links: Wikipedia (Lammermuir Hills), Wikipedia (East Lothian), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

Meikle Says Law - Southeast Slope

Significance: Highest peak in Berwickshire (Historic CT)
Member of: N/A
Parent Peak: Meikle Says Law NHN = Meikle Says Law
Elevation: 535m
Coordinates: 55° 50' 45'' N, 2° 40' 15'' W
Links: Wikipedia (Berwickshire), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

For both peaks:

Date climbed: 26th September 2022
Route Start / End: Layby opposite to gated entrance to Faseny on Gifford-Longformacus Road
Route Distance: 10.7 km (6.6 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 251m
Subsidiary tops on route: None
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): None
Other routes touched (cycle): None
Map: Lammermuir Hills Map | Dalkeith, Bonnyrigg & Gifford | Ordnance Survey | OS Explorer Map 345
Guidebook: The UK's County Tops (Jonny Muir)

For our final walk of the weekend we headed to the eastern end of the Lothians for Meikle Says Law. As with Blackhope Scar this involves a short section from the parking area followed by a circular route. We took an anti-clockwise direction on the circular section following a track running parallel to Faseny Water. There’s a few places where the stream crosses the track but we found it easy to jump over without getting wet. It would be a different story after very wet conditions so be prepared to search for other places to cross or make sure that you have good waterproof boots.

Taking the anti-clockwise direction turned out to be a good plan as the track takes you right up to the summit. The Trig Pillar marks the high point of East Lothian. It’s very close to the border with Berwickshire and it’s a 100m walk to the south to bag the high point of that county. There’s nothing to mark the Berwickshire top so we just took a bearing from the gate near the Trig Pillar to the coordinates. It certainly didn’t feel like a summit but there’s was nothing else notable around so we decided to call it there.

From the Berwickshire top we retraced our steps to the Trig Pillar and followed a path on the south side in an easterly direction. The path comes and goes and it’s quite heavy going, but keep to the left of the fence and you’ll be fine. You’ll cross the East Lothian/Berwickshire border a few times on this path but with nothing to mark the boundary.

When you reach a small gate in the fence where another path comes in from the east, you’ll leave the fence, now heading in a north-easterly direction back down to Faseny Water. After crossing the footbridge you’ll have closed the loop and can return to the parking spot on the road.

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Driving Distances and Times for the Edinburgh Crescent Road Trip

Based only on connections between the walks. Add more based on accommodation, bonus walks etc. Driving times based on light traffic.

1. Edinburgh Airport to West Lomond: 32 miles / approx 40 minutes.

2. West Lomond to Innerdouny Hill: 18 miles / approx 30 minutes.

3. Innerdouny Hill to Ben Cleugh: 13 miles / approx 30 minutes.

4. Ben Cleuch to Cairnpapple Hill: 35 miles / approx 60 minutes.

5. Cairnpapple Hill to Blackhope Scar: 50 miles / approx 90 minutes.

6. Blackhope Scar to Meikle Says Law: 42 miles / approx 90 minutes.

7. Meikle Says Law to Edinburgh Airport: 39 miles / approx 60 minutes.

Total drive: 239 miles / approx 6 hours 40 minutes.

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Other High Points in the Edinburgh Crescent Area

• East Cairn Hill. 567 metres, City of Edinburgh Present Day County High Point: Peakbagger / Hillbagging

• West Cairn Hill. 562 metres, West Lothian Present Day County High Point: Peakbagger / Hillbagging

• Darrach Hill. 357 metres, Falkirk Present Day County High Point: Peakbagger / Hillbagging

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Descent of Lugnaquillia Mountain

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Having completed all historic county tops in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and having made a good start on Scotland, adding in the Irish collection made a lot of sense. My friends Mark, Joel and Matt had already made good progress on the Republic of Ireland and I was very happy to be invited into their newest County Top bagging trip.

This was a extremely well planned (by Joel) weekend covering 5 peaks in 6 counties plus a parkrun to kick off the Saturday. We used the excellent book by Kieron Gribbon as a route planning guide. I won’t repeat any of the route details here as the book covers them extremely well. Walking distances and elevation gains listed here are from my own Garmin and may differ slightly from those in the book.

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Lugnaquillia Mountain

Also known as: Log na Coille
Significance: Highest peak in County Wicklow (Historic CT)
Member of: P600, Marilyn, Furth, 100 Highest Irish Mountains, Hewitt, Arderin, Simm, Vandeleur-Lynam
Parent Peak: Peak 931. NHN = Peak 931
Elevation: 925m
Date climbed: May 21st 2022
Coordinates: 52° 58' 2'' N, 6° 27' 53'' W
Route Start / End: Parking area next to Fenton's Imaal Bar & Lounge Glen of Imaal Bar, Colliga, Co. Wicklow
Route Distance: 13.2 km (8.2 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 722m
Subsidiary tops on route: Camerahill (477m)
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: none
OS Trig Pillar: TP7335 - Lugnaquillia
Map: Discovery Series 56 - Wicklow, Dublin and Kildare: Wicklow. Kildare
Guidebook: Ireland's County High Points (A Walking Guide) by Kieron Gribbon
Links: Wikipedia (County Wicklow), Wikipedia (Ludnaquilla), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Mount Leinster

Also known as: Stua Laighean
Significance: Highest peak in County Wexford and County Carlow (Historic CT)
Member of: P600, Marilyn, Hewitt
Parent Peak: Lugnaquillia Mountain. NHN = Lugnaquillia Mountain
Elevation: 795m
Date climbed: May 21st 2022
Coordinates: 52° 37' 5'' N, 6° 46' 48'' W
Route Start / End: Mount Leinster/Nine Stones Car Park, Unnamed Rd, Co. Carlow
Route Distance: 5.4 km (3.4 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 343m
Subsidiary tops on route: none
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: South Leinster Way runs past the car park at the start
OS Trig Pillar: Mount Leinster (not in Trigpointing database)
Map: Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford (Irish Discovery Series): Sheet 68
Guidebook: Ireland's County High Points (A Walking Guide) by Kieron Gribbon
Links: Wikipedia (County Wexford / County Carlow), Wikipedia (Mount Leinster), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Brandon Hill

Also known as: Cnoc Bhreanail
Significance: Highest peak in County Kilkenny (Historic CT)
Member of: Marilyn, Arderin
Parent Peak: Blackstairs Mountain. NHN = Blackstairs Mountain
Elevation: 515m
Date climbed: May 21st 2022
Coordinates: 52° 30' 35'' N, 6° 58' 27'' W
Route Start / End: Raheendonore Car Park, Rossard, Co. Kilkenny
Route Distance: 4.8 km (3.0 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 279m
Subsidiary tops on route: none
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: South Leinster Way, Brandon Hill Loop
OS Trig Pillar: Brandon Hill (not in Trigpointing database)
Map: Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford (Irish Discovery Series): Sheet 68
Guidebook: Ireland's County High Points (A Walking Guide) by Kieron Gribbon
Links: Wikipedia (County Kilkenny), Wikipedia (Brandon Hill), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Cupidstown Hill

Also known as: Cnoc Bhaile Cupid
Significance: Highest peak in County Kildare (Historic CT)
Member of: N/A
Parent Peak: Saggart Hill. NHN = Saggart Hill
Elevation: 379m
Date climbed: May 21st 2022
Coordinates: 53° 13' 36'' N, 6° 29' 40'' W
Route Start / End: Small parking space at entrance to forest track on unnamed road between the L2018 and NB1
Route Distance: 1.1 km (0.7 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 19m
Subsidiary tops on route: none
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: none
OS Trig Pillar: TP7336 - Cupidstown Hill
Map: Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Wicklow (Irish Discovery Series): Sheet 50
Guidebook: Ireland's County High Points (A Walking Guide) by Kieron Gribbon
Links: Wikipedia (County Kildare), Wikipedia (Cupidsdown Hill), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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Kippure

Also known as: Cipiur
Significance: Highest peak in County Dublin (Historic CT)
Member of: 100 Highest Irish Mountains, Marilyn, Hewitt, Arderin, Simm, Vandeleur-Lynam
Parent Peak: Mullaghcleevaun. NHN = Mullaghcleevaun-East Top
Elevation: 757m
Date climbed: May 21st 2022
Coordinates: 53° 10' 41'' N, 6° 19' 55'' W
Route Start / End: Parking spots at Kippure TV Mast Entrance, Old Military Road, Powerscourt Mountain, Co. Wicklow
Route Distance: 7.2 km (4.5 miles)
Route Elevation Change: +/- 226m
Subsidiary tops on route: none
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched: none
OS Trig Pillar: TP7359 - Kippure New
Map: Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Wicklow (Irish Discovery Series): Sheet 50
Guidebook: Ireland's County High Points (A Walking Guide) by Kieron Gribbon
Links: Wikipedia (County Dublin), Wikipedia (Kippure), Peakbagger, Hillbagging

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The Irish County Tops are the highest points in each of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. This includes both the 26 counties of the Republic of Ireland and the 6 counties in Northern Ireland. I completed the Northern Ireland counties back in 2016 as a part of my UK County Top collection. That trip got me my first Republic of Ireland county by default as Cuilcagh is the high point of both County Fermanagh (NI) and County Cavan (ROI).

In the next few years I focused on completing England and Wales and made a good start at Scotland. It was only in 2022 that I joined a few friends to properly start my Republic of Ireland County Top collection.

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My Republic of Ireland County Tops completed so far

The Irish County Tops in height order by province/region

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• Carrauntoohil. Co Kerry. 1,039m. (ROI)

• Lugnaquilla. Co Wicklow. 925m. (ROI) Completed

• Galtymore. Co Limerick & Co Tipperary. 919m. (ROI)

• Slieve Donard. Co Down. 850 metres. (NI) Completed

• Mweelrea. Co Mayo. 814m. (ROI)

• Mount Leinster. Co Carlow & Co Wexford. 796m. (ROI) Completed

• Knockmealdown. Co Waterford. 794m. (ROI)

• Kippure. Co Dublin. 757m (ROI) Completed

• Mount Errigal. Co Donegal. 751m. (ROI)

• Benbaun. Co Galway. 729m. (ROI)

• Knockboy. Co Cork. 706m. (ROI)

• Sawel Mountain. Co Londonderry and Co Tyrone. 678 metres. (NI) Completed

• Cuilcagh. Co Cavan and Co Fermanagh. 665m. (ROI/NI) Completed

• Truskmore. Co Sligo. 647m. (ROI)

• Truskmore Cairn. Co Leitrim. 631m. (ROI)

• Slieve Foy. Co Louth. 589m. (ROI)

• Slieve Gullion. Co Armagh. 576 metres. (NI) Completed

• Trostan. Co Antrim. 550 metres. (NI) Completed

• Moylussa. Co Clare. 532m. (ROI)

• Arderin. Co Laois & Co Offaly. 527m. (ROI)

• Brandon Hill. Co Kilkenny. 515m. (ROI) Completed

• Seltannasaggart. Co Roscommon. 428m. (ROI)

• Cupidstown Hill. Co Kildare. 379m. (ROI) Completed

• Slieve Beagh. Co Monaghan. 373m. (ROI)

• Corn Hill. Co Longford. 278m. (ROI)

• Carnbane East. Co Meath. 276m. (ROI)

• Mullaghmeen. Co Westmeath. 258m. (ROI)

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More County Tops

UK County Tops

English County Tops

Scottish County Tops

Welsh County Tops

Northern Ireland County Tops

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View to the northern coast from the descent to Banyalbufar

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Start: Sant Pere d'Esporles, Carrer de sa Rectoria, 1A, 07190 Esporles
Finish: Santa Maria de Banyalbufar, Plaça de la Vila, 2A, 07191 Banyalbufar
Distance: 7.6 km (4.7 miles)
Elevation change: + 273m / - 358m. Net -85m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): GR 221 Ruta de Pedra en Sec
Pubs / Cafes on route: Several at start and end in Esporles and Banyalbufar. Cafeteria de La Granja d’Esporles at 1.5km (just off route)
Links: Esporles, La Granja, Banyalbufar, Old Postman’s Route: Mallorca Hiking / Estilo Palma Magazine, GR 221 Ruta de Pedra en Sec

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The Old Postman’s Route is a popular section of the GR221 walking trail in the Tramuntana mountains. It runs from Banyalbufar on the coast to Esporles in the interior and follows the mail route between the 2 towns. We chose to do the Esporles to Banyalbufar direction to end at the coast.

I found the Old Postman’s Route when searching for a short interesting hike to do as a part of a non-walking holiday in Mallorca. I usually prioritise finding a walk to an island high point, but Mallorca’s one is a military zone with few walking options. Instead I found this short route in the Tramuntana Mountains that turned out to the the highlight of our trip.

We had a rental car for the week and drove to the end point at Banyalbufar hoping to take a taxi to the start at Esporles. It turned out that there were no taxis in town but there’s a bus from Palma the connects both towns. This is also a good option if you don’t have a car. The bus isn’t very frequent but fortunately it was picking up from Banyalbufar shortly after we arrived.

The start point of the trail is a short walk along the main street from the bus stop in Esporles. You’ll pass several cafes on the street, all of which were packed out with an unusual combination of cyclists and dog walkers. When you get to the church of Santa Maria de Banyalbufar you’re at the start of the trail.

This is actually part of a much longer trail along the Tramuntana Mountains called the Dry Stone Route (GR 221 Ruta de Pedra en Sec). If the short Postman’s Route section is representative, then it will be a very impressive trail and definitely one that I’d love to return for other sections.

Once on the Postman’s Route, you’ll find it very well sign-posted and difficult to lose your way. It’s rocky and steep in sections but not overly challenging for regular walkers. Your main consideration should be taking enough water as there’s no cafes after La Granja.

The route is stunning and on a clear day you get glimpses of the mountains and the seas in breaks in the tree line. Once on the descent to Banyalbufar you get great views of the town and coastline.

The route finishes at Banyalbufar Town Hall next to the Church of Santa Maria de Banyalbufar and, appropriately, the town’s post office. For an extra sense of completion you can continue for another 10 minutes to reach the sea.

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In addition to the usual Zwift Route and Achievement Badges there’s 12 Extra Credit Badges. These don’t appear in your Badges screen until you’ve received them and they’re typically tougher to get than the standard badges. The Everested! Badge is awarded when you’ve climbed 29,029 ft / 8,848m in a single activity. Most people do it by riding up and down Alpe du Zwift on the Watopia Road To Sky route 8 and a half times.

As with the IRL Everesting Challenge, it’s generally understood that you need to complete it within 24 hours. As days got shorter in Autumn 2021 I wondered whether it was possible to get the badge in a single activity but not in 24 hours. I didn’t have the time or enthusiasm to spend a whole day in the saddle but I did have 30 -60 minutes each day in-between work. This would mean doing it over multiple days but not ending or saving the activity in between.

When I set out I wasn’t sure whether Zwift would award me the badge, but I didn’t see why not. My main concern was about having a power cut during the challenge and losing all the progress. Just to be safe I made a note of progress at the end of each day so I could at least add the distance and elevation to my Garmin account if I lost it all.

As it turned out I had a busy time at work so I only had 30 minutes in the saddle on most days. Still, it was good exercise and I was making progress but it did take about a month to get to the target distance. I was very pleased when the Achievement Unlocked banner came up and I get my badge.

The only snag was that the activity didn’t save properly. When I checked my Zwift Activities log, it wasn’t there, so the total distance and elevation were not saved. The badge was there though which was the main thing I was interested in. I was having Wi-Fi issues at the time so that may have been the cause. I reported it to Zwift Support but they’re not able to manually add in missing progress. It’s a shame as it was a lot of distance and elevation to lose, but certainly nothing to lose sleep over.

I’m sure that some will say that it’s a cheat to not complete it in 24 hours. Am I bothered? Not in the slightest …

For how to do it the proper way, see this article on vEveresting from Ron Chatfield

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MORE ZWIFTERY

• Alpe du Zwift Tracker

• Breaking 100 Kph in Zwift

• Zwift Watopia and (not)parkrun Mash-up

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The counties of England have evolved with the most significant changes occurring over the last 100 years. The main groupings are:

• Historic Counties. Also referred to as Traditional Counties or Former Counties. These have been in existence since the Middle Ages.

• Administrative Counties. Established by the Local Government Act 1888. These closely matched the Historic Counties but with some sub-divisions such as Yorkshire being split into the North, East and West Ridings.

• Ceremonial Counties. Areas of England to which lord-lieutenants are appointed and defined by the Lieutenancies Act 1997

• Metropolitan and Non-Metropolitan counties. Established by the Local Government Act 1972 and subsequent changes, the 1888 Administrative Counties were replaced by 82 metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties plus Isles of Scilly and Greater London.

• Unitary Authorities. Established by the Local Government Act 1992, they are responsible for the provision of all local government services within a district.

This post shows the highest point in each of England’s counties based on the above groupings. As the Venn diagram shows there is a lot of overlap between the different types of county.

Contact me if you spot a mistake on this page or you have new information and I will make a donation to one of my causes.

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Key to abbreviations in the lists below

• HC = Historic County.

• AC = Administrative County.

• CC = Ceremonial County.

• UA = Unitary Authority or Metropolitan and Non-Metropolitan County.

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England’s Historic County Tops

Also referred to as Traditional Counties or Former Counties. These have been in existence since the Middle Ages. More details on Historic Counties.

1. Scafell Pike. 978 metres. HC, AC = Cumberland. CC = Cumbria.

2. Helvellyn. 950 metres. HC, AC = Westmorland.

3. The Cheviot. 815 metres. HC, AC, CC = Northumberland.

4. The Old Man of Coniston. 803 metres. HC, AC = Lancashire.

5. Mickle Fell. 790 metres. HC = Yorkshire. AC = North Riding of Yorkshire. CC, UA = County Durham.

6. Burnhope Seat. 747 metres. HC, AC = County Durham.

7. Black Mountain. 703 metres. HC, AC, CC = Herefordshire. Also of defunct county of Hereford and Worcester.

8. Kinder Scout. 636 metres. HC, AC, CC = Derbyshire.

9. High Willhays. 621 metres. HC, AC, CC = Devon.

10. Black Hill. 582 metres. HC, AC = Cheshire. CC = West Yorkshire. UA = Kirklees

11. Brown Clee Hill. 540 metres. HC, AC, CC = Shropshire.

12. Cheeks Hill. 520 metres. HC, AC, CC = Staffordshire.

13. Dunkery Beacon. 519 metres. HC, AC, CC = Somerset.

14. Worcestershire Beacon. 425 metres. HC, AC, CC = Worcestershire.

15. Brown Willy. 420 metres. HC, AC, CC = Cornwall.

16. Cleeve Hill. 330 metres. HC, AC, CC = Gloucestershire.

17. Walbury Hill. 297 metres. HC, AC, CC = Berkshire. UA = West Berkshire.

18. Leith Hill. 295 metres. HC, AC, CC = Surrey.

19. Milk Hill. 294 metres. HC, AC, CC = Wiltshire.

20. Pilot Hill. 286 metres. HC, AC, CC = Hampshire.

21. Black Down. 280 metres. HC = Sussex. AC, CC = West Sussex.

22. Lewesdon Hill. 279 metres. HC, AC, CC = Dorset.

23. Bardon Hill. 278 metres. HC, AC, CC = Leicestershire.

24. Haddington Hill. 267 metres. HC, AC, CC = Buckinghamshire.

25. Ebrington Hill. 261 metres. HC, AC, CC = Warwickshire.

26. Bald Hill. 257 metres. HC = Oxfordshire.

27. Betsoms Hill. 251 metres. HC, AC, CC = Kent.

28. Pavis Wood. 244 metres. HC, AC, CC = Hertfordshire.

29. Dunstable Downs. 243 metres. HC, AC, CC = Bedfordshire. UA = Central Bedfordshire.

30. Arbury Hill. 225 metres. HC, AC, CC = Northamptonshire. UA = West Northamptonshire. Alternative = Big Hill - Staverton Clump

31. Silverhill or Newtonwood Lane. 205 metres. HC, AC, CC = Nottinghamshire.

32. Cold Overton Park. 197 metres. HC, AC, CC, UA = Rutland.

33. Normanby Top. 168 metres. HC, CC = Lincolnshire. AC = Parts of Lindsey.

34. Bushey Heath. 153 metres. HC, AC = Middlesex.

35. Chrishall Common. 147 metres. HC, AC, CC = Essex.

36. Great Chishill. 146 metres. HC, AC, CC = Cambridgeshire.

37. Great Wood. 128 metres. HC, CC = Suffolk. AC = West Suffolk.

38. Beacon Hill. 105 metres. HC, AC, CC = Norfolk.

39. Boring Field. 80 metres. HC, AC = Huntingdonshire.

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England’s Administrative County Tops

The Local Government Act 1888 split some Historic Counties into new Administrative Counties. The list below shows only the counties that were split with their highest points. All of the Historic Counties in the list above have the same Administrative County name and same highest point. More details on Administrative Counties.

Cambridgeshire Historic County, split into:

• Cambridgeshire. Administrative County. High Point = Great Chishill. 146 metres.

• Isle of Ely. Administrative County. High Point = Haddenham Village. 39 metres.

Cornwall Historic County, split into:

• Cornwall Administrative County. High Point = Brown Willy. 420 metres.

• Isles of Scilly Administrative County. High Point = Higher Newford. 51 metres.

Hampshire Historic County, split into:

• Hampshire Administrative County. High Point = Pilot Hill. 286 metres.

• Isle of Wight Administrative County. High Point = St Boniface Down. 241 metres.

Lincolnshire Historic County, split into:

• Parts of Lindsey Administrative County. High Point = Normanby Top. 168 metres.

• Parts of Kesteven Administrative County. High Point = Viking Way. 151 metres.

• Parts of Holland Administrative County. High Point = Pinchbeck Marsh. 8 metres.

London, previous parts of Middlesex, Essex and Surrey

• County of London Administrative County. High Point = Hampstead Heath. 134 metres.

Northamptonshire Historic County, split into:

• Northamptonshire Administrative County. High Point = Arbury Hill. 225 metres. (alternative is Big Hill - Staverton Clump)

• Soke of Peterborough Administrative County. High Point = Racecourse Road. 81 metres. Also Peterborough UA High Point.

Suffolk Historic County, split into:

• West Suffolk Administrative County. High Point = Great Wood. 128 metres.

• East Suffolk Administrative County. High Point = Wattisham Airfield. 90 metres.

Sussex Historic County, split into:

• West Sussex Administrative County. High Point = Black Down. 280 metres.

• East Sussex Administrative County. High Point = Ditchling Beacon. 248 metres.

Yorkshire Historic County, split into:

• North Riding Administrative County. High Point = Mickle Fell. 790 metres. Also the CC High Point of Durham

• West Riding Administrative County. High Point = Whernside. 736 metres. Also the CC High Point of North Yorkshire

• East Riding Administrative County. High Point = Bishop Wilton Wold (Garrowby Hill). 248 metres.

• The City of York which remained independent from the three Ridings. UA = Stock Hill, 44 metres.

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England’s Ceremonial County Tops

Ceremonial Counties area areas of England to which lord-lieutenants are appointed and defined by the Lieutenancies Act 1997. They are more commonly referred to as the Present Day counties. Many of the counties share the same name and geography as the Historic and Administrative Counties. Some of the “new” Administrative Counties such as East and West Suffolk remained while others Isle of Ely and Soke of Peterborough no longer exist as counties. Yorkshire was redivided again into 4 Ceremonial Counties vs the 3 Ridings of the Administrative Counties. More details on Ceremonial Counties.

Counties with the same name as an Historic or Administrative and have the same high point are not shown but are noted in the relevant sections above.

• Gragareth. 628 metres or Green Hill. 628 metres. CC = Lancashire. HC = Lancashire (of which Old Man of Coniston is higher).

• Shining Tor. 559 metres. CC = Cheshire. HC = Cheshire (of which Black Hill is higher). UA = Cheshire East.

• High Stones. 550 metres. CC = South Yorkshire. AC = West Riding of Yorkshire (of which Whernside is higher). UA = Sheffield.

• Black Chew Head. 542 metres. CC = Greater Manchester. AC = West Riding of Yorkshire (of which Whernside is higher). UA = Oldham.

• Turners Hill. 271 metres. CC = West Midlands. HC = Staffordshire (of which Cheeks Hill is higher). UA = Sandwell.

• Whitehorse Hill. 261 metres. CC = Oxfordshire. HC = Berkshire (of which Walbury Hill is higher).

• Currock Hill. 259 metres. CC =Tyne and Wear. HC = County Durham (of which Burnhope Seat is higher). UA = Gateshead.

• Westerham Heights. 245 metres. CC = Greater London. HC = Kent (of which Betsom’s Hill is higher).

• Billinge Hill. 179 metres. CC = Merseyside. HC = Lancashire (of which Old Man of Coniston is higher). UA = St. Helens.

• Dundry Hill East. 160 metres. CC = Bristol. HC = Somerset (of which Dunkery Beacon is higher). UA = Bristol.

• High Holborn. 22 metres. CC = City of London. HC = Middlesex (of which Bushey Heath is higher).

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England’s Metropolitan Borough Tops

A Metropolitan Borough, created by the Local Government Act 1972, is a subdivision of a metropolitan Ceremonial County. These exclude the 32 Boroughs of Greater London (see here for details). Each borough is effectively a Unitary Authority. More details on Metropolitan Boroughs.

Merseyside Metropolitan and Ceremonial County, split into 5 Metropolitan Boroughs:

• Billinge Hill. 179 metres. St Helens.

• Poll Hill. 108 metres. Wirral.

• Knowsley Park. 97 metres. Knowsley.

• Woolton Hill. 89 metres. Liverpool.

• Melling Mount. 36 metres. Sefton.

Greater Manchester Metropolitan and Ceremonial County, split into 10 Metropolitan Boroughs:

• Black Chew Head. 542 metres. Oldham.

• Hoarstone Edge. 497 metres. Tameside.

• Blackstone Edge. 474 metres. Rochdale. Alternative is Hail Storm Hill-Southeast Slope

• Winter Hill Boundary. 445 metres. Bolton.

• Scholes Height and Bull Hill. 415 metres. Bury.

• Mellor Moor. 327 metres. Stockport. Alternative is Robin Hood's Picking Rods

• Billinge Hill North Top. 169 metres. Wigan.

• Newcombe Drive, Greenheys. 116 metres. Salford.

• Heaton Park. 108 metres. Manchester.

• Green Walk (Bowdon). 67 metres. Trafford. Alternative is Devisdale.

South Yorkshire Metropolitan and Ceremonial County, split into 4 Metropolitan Boroughs:

• Howden Edge / High Stones. 550 metres. Sheffield.

• Howden Edge / Hoar Stones. 514 metres. Barnsley.

• Fir Hill / Harthill Field. 157 metres. Rotherham.

• Foredoles Hill. 144 metres. Doncaster.

Tyne and Wear Metropolitan and Ceremonial County, split into 5 Metropolitan Boroughs:

• Currock Hill. 259 metres. Gateshead.

• Warden Law. 182 metres. Sunderland.

• Westerhope. 131 metres. Newcastle upon Tyne.

• Silverlink Park. 94 metres. North Tyneside.

• Boldon Hills. 90 metres. South Tyneside.

West Midlands Metropolitan and Ceremonial County, split into 7 Metropolitan Boroughs:

• Turners Hill. 271 metres. Sandwell.

• Cawney Hill. 251 metres. Dudley.

• Rednal Hill North Top. 250 metres. Birmingham.

• Sedgley Beacon. 235 metres. Wolverhampton.

• Barr Beacon. 227 metres. Walsall.

• Meighs Wood. 185 metres. Solihull.

• Corley Moor. 167 metres. Coventry.

West Yorkshire Metropolitan and Ceremonial County, split into 5 Metropolitan Boroughs:

• Black Hill. 582 metres. Kirklees.

• Waystone Edge. 480 metres. Calderdale.

• Withins Height. 455 metres. Bradford.

• Burley Moor. 340 metres. Leeds.

• Woolley Edge. 176 metres. Wakefield.

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England’s Non-Metropolitan County & Unitary Authority Tops

The list below shows the highest points of the Non-Metropolitan counties that were established following the Local Government Act 1972 and Unitary Authorities established following the Local Government Act 1992. More details on Non-Metropolitan Counties and Unitary Authorities.

Counties with the same name as an Historic, Administrative or Ceremonial County and have the same high point are not shown but are noted in the relevant sections above.

• Winter Hill. 456 metres. Blackburn with Darwen: formerly part of the Historic County of Lancashire.

• The Wrekin. 407 metres. Telford and Wrekin: formerly part of the Historic County of Shropshire.

• Gisborough Hill. 328 metres. Redcar and Cleveland: formerly part of the Historic County of Yorkshire (AC = North Riding of).

• Liddington Hill. 277 metres. Swindon: formerly part of the Historic County of Wiltshire.

• Niver Hill. 264 metres. Bath and North East Somerset: formerly part of the Historic County of Somerset and the former Ceremonial County of Avon.

• Meir Heath. 250 metres. Stoke-on-Trent: formerly part of the Historic County of Staffordshire.

• Blagdon Hill Farm. 240 metres. North Somerset: formerly part of the Historic County of Somerset and the former Ceremonial County of Avon.

• Hanging Hill. 237 metres. South Gloucestershire: formerly part of the Historic County of Gloucestershire and the former Ceremonial County of Avon.

• Raw Head. 227 metres. Cheshire West and Chester: formerly part of the Historic County of Cheshire.

• Dere Street. 218 metres. Darlington: formerly part of the Historic County of County Durham.

• Beacon Hill. 196 metres. Torbay: formerly part of the Historic County of Devon.

• Bullock Hill. 195 metres. Brighton and Hove: formerly part of the Historic County of Sussex. (AC = East Sussex).

• Whitehill - Butterfield Green: 178 metres. Luton: formerly part of the Historic County of Bedfordshire.

• Bow Brickhill. 171 metres. Milton Keynes: formerly part of the Historic County of Buckinghamshire.

• Holly Hill. 170 metres. Medway (Towns): formerly part of the Historic County of Kent.

• Woolwell Road. 162 metres. Plymouth: formerly part of the Historic County of Devon.

• Mill Hill. 161 metres. North Northamptonshire: formerly part of the Historic County of Northamptonshire.

• Ashley Hill. 144 metres. Windsor & Maidenhead: formerly part of the Historic County of Berkshire.

• Whelly Hill. 142 metres. Hartlepool: formerly part of the Historic County of County Durham and the former Ceremonial County of Cleveland.

• Bowsey Hill. 140 metres. Wokingham: formerly part of the Historic County of Berkshire.

• Allestree Park. 135 metres. Derby (City): formerly part of the Historic County of Derbyshire.

• Nottingham M1 Motorway. 130 metres. Nottingham: formerly part of the Historic County of Nottinghamshire.

• Surrey Hill. 128 metres. Bracknell Forest: formerly part of the Historic County of Berkshire.

• Fort Southwick. 122 metres. Portsmouth: formerly part of the Historic County of Hampshire.

• Wold Newton. 117 metres. North East Lincolnshire: formerly part of the Historic County of Lincolnshire.

• Langdon Hill-Southwest Slope. 115 metres. Thurrock: formerly part of the Historic County of Essex.

• Nether Hall. 110 metres. Leicester (City): formerly part of the Historic County of Leicestershire.

• The Slipe. 107 metres. Bedford (Borough): formerly part of the Historic County of Bedfordshire.

• Appleton Park. 105 metres Warrington: formerly part of the Historic County of Cheshire.

• Park Lane, Tilehurst. 103 metres. Reading: formerly part of the Historic County of Berkshire.

• Saxby Wold. 102 metres. North Lincolnshire: formerly part of the Historic County of Lincolnshire.

• Halton Castle. 100 metres. Halton: formerly part of the Historic County of Cheshire.

• Quarry Hill. 100 metres. Middlesbrough: formerly part of the Historic County of Yorkshire (AC = North Riding of) and the former Ceremonial County of Cleveland.

• Boy Hill. 82 metres. Stockton-on-Tees (alt): formerly part of the Historic County of County Durham and the former Ceremonial County of Cleveland.

• Thorpe Larches. 82 metres. Stockton-on-Tees (alt): formerly part of the Historic County of County Durham and the former Ceremonial County of Cleveland.

• Basset Avenue. 82 metres. Southampton: formerly part of the Historic County of Hampshire.

• Corfe Hills. 78 metres. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole: formerly part of the Historic County of Dorset.

• Heath Mount. 60 metres. Southend-on-Sea (alt): formerly part of the Historic County of Essex.

• London Road. 60 metres. Southend-on-Sea (alt): formerly part of the Historic County of Essex.

• East Burnham Park. 51 metres. Slough: formerly part of the Historic County of Berkshire.

• Stock Hill. 44 metres. York: formerly part of the Historic County of Yorkshire (AC = North Riding of).

• Warbreck Reservoir. 30 metres. Blackpool: formerly part of the Historic County of Lancashire.

• South Field. 12 metres. Kingston upon Hull: formerly part of the Historic County of Yorkshire (AC = East Riding of).

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Defunct Counties

• Herford and Worcester. Formerly parts of the Historic & Administrative Counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire. High Point = Black Mountain. 703 metres.

• Avon. Formerly parts of the Historic Counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset. High Point = Niver Hill. 264 metres.

• Humberside. Formerly parts of the Administrative Counties of East Riding of Yorkshire, West Riding of Yorkshire, and Parts of Lindsey, (Lincolnshire). High Point = (to be verified) Bishop Wilton Wold (Garrowby Hill). 248 metres.

• Cleveland. Formerly part of the Historic Counties of County Durham and Yorkshire (AC = North Riding of). High Point = Whelly Hill. 142 metres.

• Huntingdon and Peterborough. Formerly the Administrative Counties of Huntingdonshire and Soke of Peterborough. High Point = Racecourse Road. 81 metres.

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The Rapes of Sussex

The Rapes of Sussex were major land divisions of the county, thought to pre-date the Norman Conquest. More details here

• Blackdown 280 metres. Rape of Chicester. Also Sussex HC and West Sussex CC High Points.

• Ditchling Beacon. 248 metres. Rape of Lewes. Also East Sussex CC High Point.

• Glatting Beacon. 245 metres. Rape of Arundel.

• Crowborough Beacon. 242 metres. Rape of Pevensey.

• Chanctonbury Ring. 240 metres. Rape of Bramber.

• Brightling Down. 197 meters. Rape of Hastings.

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More County Tops

UK County Tops

Scottish County Tops

Welsh County Tops

Northern Ireland County Tops

Irish County Tops

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Compared to England, the Scottish Counties have had few changes over the years. There’s 3 main groupings of Scottish County:

• Scottish Shires. Historic subdivisions of Scotland established in the Middle Ages and used as administrative divisions until 1975.

• Historic Counties. Also referred to as Traditional Counties or Former Counties. Established by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 and abolished by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.

• Scottish Council Areas. Also referred to as Present Day Counties. Established by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994.

This post shows the highest point in each of Scotland’s counties based on the above groupings. As the Venn diagram shows there is a lot of overlap between the different types of county.

Contact me if you spot a mistake on this page or you have new information and I will make a donation to one of my causes.

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Scotland’s Historic County Tops

Also referred to as Traditional Counties or Former Counties. Established by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 and abolished by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973. More details on Scotland’s Historic Counties.

The highest points of these Historic Counties are:

1. Ben Nevis. 1,344 metres. Completed. Historic County = Invernessshire, Present Day County = Highland.

2. Ben Macdui. 1,309 metres. Historic Counties = Aberdeenshire and Banffshire. Present Day Counties = Aberdeenshire and Moray.

3. Ben Lawers. 1,214 metres. Completed. Historic County = Perthshire. Present Day County = Perth and Kinross.

4. Carn Eige. 1,183 metres. Historic County = Ross and Cromarty.

5. Bidean nam Bian. 1,150 metres. Historic County = Argyll.

6. Glas Maol. 1,068 metres. Historic County = Angus. Present Day County = Angus.

7. Ben More Assynt. 998 metres. Historic County = Sutherland.

8. Ben Lomond. 974 metres. Completed. Historic County = Stirlingshire.

9. Ben Vorlich. 943 metres. Completed. Historic County = Dunbartonshire.

10. Goatfell. 874 metres. Completed. Historic County = Buteshire. Present Day County = North Ayrshire.

11. Merrick. 843 metres. Completed. Historic County = Kirkcudbrightshire. Present Day County = Dumfries and Galloway.

12. Broad Law. 840 metres. Completed. Historic Counties = Peeblesshire and Selkirkshire. Present Day County = Scottish Borders.

13. White Coomb. 821 metres. Completed. Historic County = Dumfriesshire.

14. Kirriereoch Hill-North West Slope. 782 metres. Completed. Historic County = Ayreshire. Present Day County = South Ayrshire.

15. Mount Battock. 778 metres. Historic County = Kincardineshire.

16. Culter Fell. 748 metres. Completed. Historic County = Lanarkshire. Present Day County = South Lanarkshire.

17. Hangingstone Hill. 743 metres. Completed. Historic County = Roxburghshire.

18. Ben Cleuch. 721 metres. Completed. Historic County = Clackmannanshire. Present Day County = Clackmannanshire.

19. Carn a'Ghille Chearr. 710 metres. Historic County = Morayshire.

20. Morven. 706 metres. Historic County = Caithness.

21. Carn Glas-choire. 659 metres. Historic County = Nairnshire.

22. Blackhope Scar. 651 metres. Completed. Historic County = Midlothian. Present Day County = Midlothian.

23. Meikle Says Law. 535 metres. Completed. Historic County = East Lothian. Present Day County = East Lothian.

24. Meikle Says Law (boundary). 532 metres. Completed. Historic County = Berwickshire.

25. West Lomond. 522 metres. Completed. Historic County = Fife. Present Day County = Fife.

26. Hill of Stake. 522 metres. Completed. Historic County = Renfrewshire. Present Day County = Renfrewshire.

27. Innerdouny Hill. 497 metres. Completed. Historic County = Kinross-shire.

28. Ward Hill. 481 metres. Historic County = Orkney. Present Day County = Orkney.

29. Ronas Hill. 450 metres. Historic County = Shetland. Present Day County = Shetland.

30. Craigairie Fell. 321 metres. Completed. Historic County = Wigtownshire.

31. Cairnpapple Hill. 312 metres. Completed. Historic County = West Lothian.

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Scotland’s Present Day County Tops

Scotland has 32 Unitary Authorities that replaced the 33 County Councils that existed from 1890 to 1975. More details on Present Day counties of Scotland.

The list above shows where a peak is both an Historic and a Present Day County Top. The 14 peaks shown below are distinct from the Historic County Tops.

1. Ben More. 1,174 metres, Stirling.

2. Ben Cruachan. 1,132 metres, Argyll and Bute.

3. An Cliseam / Clisham. 799 metres, Western Isles.

4. Blackcraig Hill. 700 metres, East Ayrshire.

5. East Cairn Hill. 567 metres, Edinburgh.

6. West Cairn Hill. 562 metres, West Lothian.

7. Cort-ma Law East Top. 527 metres, North Lanarkshire.

8. Creuch Hill. 441 metres, Inverclyde.

9. Duncolm. 407 metres, West Dunbartonshire.

10. Corse Hill. 376 metres, East Renfrewshire.

11. Darrach Hill. 357 metres, Falkirk.

12. Brimmond Hill. 265 metres, Aberdeen.

13. Cathkin Hill. 200 metres, Glasgow.

14. Gallow Hill. 175 metres, Dundee.

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Scottish Counties Prior to 1890 (Shires)

The Shires were historic subdivisions of Scotland established in the Middle Ages and used as administrative divisions until 1975. More details on the Scottish Shires.

The mountains below are the high points of the Scottish Shires that are distinct from either Historic or Present Day County Tops.

1. Sgurr Mor. Sgurr Mor 1003m, Cromartyshire.
   - Carn Eige is the Historic & Present Day County Top of Ross and Cromarty.

2. Dun Rig. 774m, Selkirkshire.
   - Broad Law is the Historic County Top of Selkirkshire and the Present Day County Top of Scottish Borders.

3. Carn nam Bain-tighearna. 634m, Nairnshire
   - Ben Nevis is the County Top of Present-Day Highland

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More County Tops

UK County Tops

English County Tops

Welsh County Tops

Irish County Tops

Northern Ireland County Tops

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