Mount Keen Route Information

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Mount Keen

Quick Facts

This is the summed total of all the climbing within a route and is a good indicator of the strenuousness of a route.

Total Ascent

730 m

An estimate of the time taken based on a derivation of Naismiths rules. Our calculation is based on the horizontal and ascent components of a climb, we do not make a reduction for descent.

Registered users can customise these walking times by specifying their own walking and ascending speeds. They can also add a fixed time period for stoppages.

Route Time

5 hrs

The horizontal distance of the route.

Route Distance

17.62 km

The UK is covered by 204 Ordnance Survey Landranger 1:50,000 scale maps. Maps numbered 1 to 86 cover Scotland but for the highest mountains (Munros) only 23 maps are required. The name given roughly describes the area covered by the map.

You can click on the map name to purchase the map for £6.29 including postage which is one of the cheapest prices we have found.

OS Landranger Maps Required

44	Ballater, Glen Clova & surrounding area

Only £6.29 (£13.49 Laminated) from

A brief summary of this route.

Our summary will always contain one of easy, moderate or hard to indicate the severity of the route.

Notes

Moderate walk on easy terrain.

Here we provide the nearest town to the start of the route where you will find basic services.

We then give directions from that location to the route start. Your approach route may differ.

Travel Information

Head to: Edzell

From Edzel (B966) travel N 4km to junction with minor road into Glen Esk. Head NW then W through Glen Esk to car park at Auchronie.

Route Waypoint Map

The total ascent is 730 metres. Allow 5 hours to complete this 17.62 km route.

In winter months please check the local snow conditions at sais.gov.uk.

The hillphones service can inform you of stalking activities in the area.

Usually the shortest way to climb the mountain, making best use of tracks and paths to gain altitude. Route navigation requires map reading skills and an ability to navigate with a compass.

The information given here will enable you to annotate your map and plan your route. We do not give anecdotal descriptions on where to find the paths, worn by the feet of previous mountaineers.

Where the access routes are few or the ridge is narrow, paths are generally obvious. On open ground, following paths without using your compass may get you lost in poor visibility.

Route Information

Waypoint Detail

	Start form the carpark close to end of public road through Glen Esk
		NO44748037	Distance	Altitude 260 m

1	Follow road NW through Glen Mark on east bank of river to Queen's Well
		NO41898292	Distance 4.15 km	Altitude 315 m

2	Leave river and ascend NNW by track past the Knowe of Crippley
		NO40548522	Distance 2.91 km	Altitude 670 m

3	At branch, head N on more easterly path to summit of Mount Keen
		NO40918692	Distance 1.75 km	Altitude 939 m

4	Return by same route
		NO44748037	Distance 8.81 km	Altitude 260 m

A selection of weather forecasts local to this route.

Weather

Cairngorms * Monadhliath
by MWIS (PDF format)

East Highlands
by Met Office

Lochnagar
by Metcheck

Images of Mount Keen

Looking ahead along the path up to the summit of Mount Keen on the skyline. August 2008

Image by Alex Bryce

On the way off Mount Keen Looking towards Glen Mark. May 25th 09.

Image by Colin Fridge

Path to the top

Image by Niall Meagle

Mount Keen from Glen Mark. 25/07/02

Image by Terry Thomson

Route Area Map

Legend

Munro

Corbett

Graham

English/Welsh Top

Accommodation

A selection of local accommodation options who advertise with Munromagic.com.

Where to Stay

We currently have no
sponsored accommodation listings for this area.

Rating & Reviews

Rating & Reviews

Rated:

from 15 votes

Click Stars to Vote
Your Rating

Written by Paul Man on 30 Dec 2007:

Instead of retracing your steps on the way down head East from the summit to Braid Cairn, and then onto Naked Hill/Hill of Gairney. From there continue to the farm track to head South and back to the carpark. There are only partial tracks between the Mount Keen summit and the farm track but you can piece it together easy enough. Makes for a much more enjoyable day out, and ups the mileage to around 13miles. Can be pretty boggy at times but was frozen the day i was up.

Written by Mike Watson on 03 Sep 2006:

Pleasant walk through Glen Mark. Tantalising glimpses of lochnagar through the clouds but really wished we had our MTB's as track is like a motorway for 95% of the way. Looked a good one to take beginners.

Written by Ronnie Mutch on 05 Aug 2005:

Either way this is a boring hill but having done both ways, from the north or south, I would say that doing it from the Glen Tanar in the north is the better option. You can also take the mountain bikes farther if you choose. However, the Queens Well is quite nice which you pass when doing it from the south.

Written by Duncan Macleod on 29 Jul 2005:

Enjoyed trek. Started and finished in good weather. Low cloud and rain on hill. First Munro, so nothing was going to spoil it.

Written by Craig Dunderdale on 10 Jul 2005:

From Glen Mark I used a bike and did it in 4hrs. I left the bike at the Queens well which looks beautifull in the middle of the Glen, the paths are like motorways even in the worst of conditions. A nice easy route for beginners. It's almost as obvious as going up the tourist track on Ben Nevis though, I presume because it's so accessible.

Disclaimer. The details provided above are an aid to planning an expedition, but all distances, altitudes and bearings must be considered approximate. You must navigate with the appropriate map, a compass, your navigation skills and common sense, MunroMagic.com accept no responsibility for your interpretation of our route information.

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