Meall Mor from Glen Glass

End of public road in Glen Glass

The village of Evanton is situated just off the A9, on the northern side of the Cromarty Firth. Within the village, a bridge crosses the River Glass. From the north side of this bridge, a narrow road heads west into Glen Glass, winding through woodland and forestry.

The road continues for approximately 8km before reaching a turning circle near the gated entrance to Eileanach Lodge. While some vehicles were parked along the verge at this point during my visit, there are signs advising against parking there.

A better option is to park abt 300m east of the turning circle, at the start of the route. There appears to be no issue parking just inside a double gate across a forestry track at this location.

Out of the forest, looking over to Wyvis

From the roadside, head through the gates, onto the track and turn left, following it northwards while ignoring any side tracks. Pass the weir over the River Glass near the mouth of Loch Glass and continue a little further, with Meall Mor coming into view ahead. The track eventually splits at a turning circle - take the right fork, where a rough, eroded track begins to climb uphill.

After an initial steep ascent, the gradient eases as the track rises above a forest plantation and passes beneath a line of wind turbines - the speed of their blades offering a good indication of the wind strength higher up.

Emerging from the forest , the track dips slightly before meeting another track rising from Loch Glass. It then turns and begins its final climb, twisting and turning as it gains height.

Higher up, just below the wind farm, leave the track and head directly for the broad col northwest of the turbines. The terrain here is a mix of grass, marsh, heather, and peat bog, making an entirely direct route impractical at first, though the ground remains fairly easy underfoot. As progress is made, a faint and inconsistent path begins to emerge, becoming more distinct as the peat hags are left behind.

This path soon joins some ATV tracks, which lead uphill to a minor summit marked by a large granite boulder . A slight dip follows, crossing more peat hags before reaching the eastern top of Meall Mor, where an old line of fence posts is encountered. Turn left and follow these posts all the way to Meall Mor's main summit, passing a short section of raised dyke standing prominently just before reaching the hill's trig point .

Granite boulder on approach to Meall Mor

Granite boulder on approach to Meall Mor

Descending Meall Mor directly down to Loch Glass

For a return, rather than retracing steps, an alternative option is to descend directly south towards the shores of Loch Glass.

Initially, the terrain is a delight - springy grass and short heather make for easy progress - but as the slope steepens, the heather thickens. Lower down, a few small rocky outcrops need avoiding before reaching dense bracken near Loch Glass's shoreline. Upon reaching the loch's edge, a rough track is picked up and followed back towards the forest .

In the forest, the track is badly eroded and quite damp in places, but after around 2 km, it swings closer to the shoreline for a final 500m stretch leading back to the turning circle .

On the path above the shore of Loch Glass, looking back to Meall Mor

On the path above the shore of Loch Glass, looking back to Meall Mor