Ben Lawers
Ben Lawers | |
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Beinn Labhair | |
Coordinates | 56°32′44″N 4°13′15″W / 56.54556°N 4.22083°W |
Naming | |
English translation | mountain of the loud stream[2] |
Pronunciation | Scottish Gaelic: [peɲ ˈl̪ˠavɪɾʲ] |
Geography | |
Location | Perth and Kinross, Scotland |
Parent range | Grampian Mountains |
OS grid | NN636414 |
Topo map | OS Landranger 51 |
Ben Lawers (
Ben Lawers lies on the
Due to its high elevation and underlying geology Ben Lawers is home to an exceptionally rich selection of
History
There is much evidence of former settlements and other human activity on the southern slopes of Ben Lawers above Loch Tay. The fertile limestone and schist soils on these southern slopes have been farmed since very early times and there are many Bronze Age remains. The discovery of many boulders with cup and ring marks led Derek Alexander, an archaeologist for the National Trust for Scotland, to note that the Ben Lawers was likely to have been "a very significant landscape in prehistory."[6]
Overgrown tracks climb up the mountain from the valley to the peat beds and
In 1878, a group of twenty men led by Malcolm Ferguson spent a day building a 6-metre-high (20 ft) cairn nearly 15 metres (50 ft) in diameter in the hope of bringing the summit above the "magic" figure of 4,000 feet (1,219.2 m). The cairn, which was topped with a massive block of white quartz is no longer there; in any case the Ordnance Survey ignored it as an artificial structure that was not truly part of the hill.[5][9]
Ownership
Prior to the 14th century, the mountain stood on the lands of Clan MacMillan. Chalmers of Lawers obtained the land by force from the clan in the mid-14th century in the reign of David II. The land was confiscated from the Chalmers family in 1473 by James III and given to Sir Colin Campbell of Glenorchy after Thomas Chalmers was implicated in the murder of James I. The lands have mainly remained in the ownership of the Campbells of Glenorchy and Breadalbane up to the present day, with some notable exceptions. Many of the farms were sold off in the late 1940s.[citation needed]
Most of the south side of the Ben Lawers range has since 1950 been owned by the
The northern side of the Ben Lawers range comprises three privately owned estates, at Roroyere, Roromore, and South Chesthill. All three cover land extending from Glen Lyon to the watershed of the ridge.[14][15][16] As with all land in Scotland, there is a freedom to roam on the hills regardless of whether the land is in public or private ownership, provided that access is exercised responsibly, in accordance with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.[17]
Nature and conservation
Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve | |
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Location | Perth and Kinross, Scotland |
Coordinates | 56°32′44″N 4°13′15″W / 56.54556°N 4.22083°W |
Area | 44.4 km2 (17.1 sq mi)[19] |
Designation | NatureScot |
Established | 1964[18] |
Owner | National Trust for Scotland |
Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve |
Ben Lawers is regarded by botanists as one of the richest areas for
The mountain is also of interest to zoologists. Some of the bird species include ravens, ring ouzels, red grouse, ptarmigan, golden eagle, peregrine falcon, dotterel, golden plover, and short-eared owls.[22][4] Other rare species include the viviparous lizard and the wildcat.[23]
The Ben Lawers range has been designated as a National Nature Reserve (NNR) since 1964.[19] In 2005 the boundary was altered so that all NTS land at Ben Lawers (including the neighbouring Tarmachan range) was included in the NNR, which the trust now manages on behalf of NatureScot.[4] Ben Lawers is also designated as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC),[24] and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).[20] The Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve is classified as a Category II protected area by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.[18]
The Ben Lawers range forms part of the Loch Rannoch and Glen Lyon National Scenic Area,[25] one of forty such areas in Scotland, which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection from inappropriate development by restricting certain forms of development.[26]
Climbing
Ben Lawers is a popular mountain, resulting in path erosion and vegetation loss from the number of visiting
Gallery of images
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Ben Lawers seen from Loch Tay
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Ben Lawers in winter
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Lochan Nan Cat from the summit of Ben Lawers
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Ben Lawers and Meall Garbh
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Ben Lawers 3D map
See also
- Ben Nevis
- List of Munro mountains
- List of places in Perth and Kinross
- Mountains and hills of Scotland
References
- ^ "Ben Lawers (Beinn Labhair)". Hill Bagging - the online version of the Database of British and Irish Hills (DoBIH). 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
- ^ a b "Ben Lawers". Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba: Gaelic Place-Names of Scotland.
- ^ ISBN 9780907521945.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Ben Lawers SSSI Site Management Statement". Scottish Natural Heritage. 25 March 2011. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
- ^ a b D. Bennet (ed.) The Southern Highlands. Scottish Mountaineering Club District Guides - Scottish Mountaineering Trust. 2nd edition (August 1986). p. 161
- ^ "Ancient stone artwork discovered". BBC. 17 August 2009. Archived from the original on 21 September 2009. Retrieved 20 September 2009.
- ^ ISBN 0946487391.
- ISBN 0946487391.
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "Ben Lawers (279696)". Canmore.
- ^ NTS Guide (2018).
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "Ben Lawers Visitor Centre (103356)". Canmore.
- ^ "New visitor facilities planned for Ben Lawers". Walk Highlands. 8 June 2010. Retrieved 16 September 2004.
- ^ "Ben Lawers and Beinn Ghlas". Walk Highlands. Retrieved 16 September 2004.
- ^ "Property Page: Roroyere". Who Owns Scotland. 16 September 2004. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ "Property Page: Roromore". Who Owns Scotland. 16 September 2004. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ "Property Page: South Chesthill". Who Owns Scotland. 13 September 2004. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ "Scottish Outdoor Access Code" (PDF). Scottish Natural Heritage. 2005. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
- ^ a b c "Ben Lawers". Protected Planet. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
- ^ a b "Site Details for Ben Lawers NNR". NatureScot. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
- ^ a b "Ben Lawers Site of Special Scientific Interest Citation". Scottish Natural Heritage. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
- ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
- ^ "Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve". National Trust for Scotland. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
- ^ "Ben Lawers (NTS Guide)" Pages 24 & 25 (Gives biology details).
- ^ "Site Details for Ben Lawers SAC". NatureScot. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
- ^ "Loch Rannoch and Glen Lyon NSA". NatureScot. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
- ^ "National Scenic Areas". NatureScot. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
- Ben Lawers, National Trust for Scotland, ISBN 978-0-901625-54-0
External links
- Computer generated summit panoramas North South Index
- NTS Ben Lawers page
- Ben Lawers on Walk Highlands