Scotland

Ben More Assynt

MunroHistoric County TopMarilynHuMPSimmMurdo

4 classifications here — Marilyn, HuMP, Simm and Murdo — belong to lists OpenFell holds only part of, so they have no list page. See how far the coverage goes.

Ben More Assynt, 999 m, Highland
Ben More Assynt, 999 m, Highland. Photo by Mick Knapton at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Height
998.9 m · 3,277 ft
Grid reference
NC 31832 20137
Coordinates
58.13816, -4.85821
County / area
Highland
OS Landranger
15
OS Explorer
442E
Summit feature
quartzite outcrop
Key col
NC299079 (163 m)

About Ben More Assynt

Ben More Assynt, in Gaelic Beinn Mhòr Asainn, is the "big mountain of Assynt" and the highest point in Sutherland, standing about 30 km north-northeast of Ullapool. Pale quartzite boulders cap its upper slopes and give it a recognisable look.

It sits in the eastern part of Assynt, apart from the more dramatic though lower hills such as Suilven that the district is known for. Travellers on the A837 do not see it at all, since the neighbouring Munro of Conival blocks the view; the best sightlines come from other summits nearby. More than 90 square kilometres of the surrounding ground is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its geology and rare plants.

Background written from facts in the Wikipedia article on Ben More Assynt (CC BY-SA 4.0). Heights, prominence and grid references come from the Database of British & Irish Hills, not from Wikipedia.

Access rights here

Yes Right to roam: Statutory right of responsible access to most land and inland water.

Yes Wild camping: Wild camping is broadly lawful under the 2003 Act.

General position for Scotland — local byelaws, seasonal restrictions and closures can override it. Full details: access rights in Scotland ·check another location.

Daylight at this summit today

Sunrise
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Sunset
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Daylight
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Civil twilight ends
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Computed astronomically for 58.138, -4.858. Plan your finish with the daylight safety planner.

Summit weather live

Loading forecast for the summit (999 m)…

Forecast adjusted to summit altitude. Weather data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0).

Finding the summit

Surveyor's note

cairn c 60m S at NC 31840 20084 is probably lower.

The recorded summit point is quartzite outcrop. That distinction matters on broad or flat tops, where the obvious cairn is not always the true high point.

Survey method
Leica RX1250
Record revised
21-Jul-24
Drop measured from
NC299079 · 163 m

Survey notes are field observations recorded in the Database of British & Irish Hills (v18.3, CC BY 4.0) by the hill-surveying community.

Long-distance paths past this hill

One waymarked long-distance route runs within 2.5 km of the summit — useful if you are linking this hill into a longer walk, or want a made path for the approach.

RouteTotal lengthFrom summit
Cape Wrath Trail (Kinlochewe → Inchnadamph)113 km1.9 km

Route lines © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); distance from the summit computed by OpenFell.

Get food nearby

2 places to eat or drink within 10 km of the summit, rated under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (Scotland runs its own Food Hygiene Information Scheme, a pass/fail equivalent).

Rated places to eat within 10 km of Ben More Assynt
PlaceTypeRatingDistance
Inchnadamph Explorers LodgeHotel/bed & breakfast/guest housePass6.7 km · W
Inchnadamph HotelHotel/bed & breakfast/guest housePass6.8 km · W

Classifications and ratings are the local authority's own and can be coarse — this is a lead, not a guarantee of opening hours or that food is served to non-residents. Follow a name through to the official rating page to check, and confirm before you rely on it.

Food hygiene data from the Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland (Open Government Licence v3.0). Distances and directions computed by OpenFell from the summit.

The Ben More Assynt group

2 other listed summits sit in the same prominence group, with Ben More Assynt as the independent hill at its head.

Listed summits in the Ben More Assynt prominence group
SummitHeightDrop
Conival988 m102 m
Ben More Assynt South Top959 m47 m

Grouping is by prominence alone: a summit belongs to the nearest higher Marilyn it connects to without a deeper intervening col. Over a large massif that can gather hills no one would walk in a single day, and which few would describe as parts of the same mountain — it is a measure of independence, not a suggested route.

Nearest listed peaks

PeakHeightDistance
Ben More Assynt South Top959.3 m1 km
Conival987.6 m1.5 km
Breabag815 m5.4 km
Glas Bheinn776 m9 km
Beinn Leoid792 m9.3 km
Meallan a' Chuail750.5 m9.4 km