Ascents of the Munro Crèise and the neighbouring Munro, Meall a’Bhuiridh, are usually combined. Crèise is the highest point of the ridge to the west of Meall a’Bhuiridh, stretching 3 kms from Clach Leathad to Sròn na Creise.
The summit cairn of Crèise is an insignificant affair compared to the summit cairn of Clach Leathad. This is because, until 1981, Clach Leathad was listed as a Munro in Munro’s Tables with Crèise designated as a Munro Top. Resurveying showed that Crèise, at 1100m, was a metre higher than Clach Leathad so the designations were reversed.
There are several options for reaching Crèise from the car park of the Glencoe Ski Centre, well signposted off the A82, at NN2672 5369.
1. Ascend Meall a’Bhuiridh first and then cross to Crèise via the west ridge of Meall a’Bhuiridh and return to the car park the same way
2. Contour around under Creag Dubh to the foot of Sròn na Crèise and scramble up to Stob a’Ghlais Choire and walk along the ridge to Crèise and then reach Meall a’Bhuiridh via its west ridge. Then descend north to return to the car park.
3 If the scramble up Sròn na Crèise does not appeal, then after contouring under Creag Dubh, follow Allt Càm Ghlinne into Càm Ghleann and ascend to around 560m.
Stob a’Ghlais Choire can now be reached by heading west up steep ground and continuing to Crèise and Meall a’Bhuiridh as with option 2.
4. The Clach Leathad (Clachlet) traverse. This combines Crèise and Meall a’Bhuiridh with Stob Ghabhar and Stob a’Choire Odhair, the two Munros to the south. If transport can be arranged, this can be tackled linearly by starting at the Glencoe Ski Centre car park and finishing at the Victoria Bridge car park, NN270 418 or vice versa. The Ski Centre car park is 200m higher than the Victoria Bridge car park so traversing North to South involves approximately 200m less ascent. If finances permit, spending a night after the traverse in either the Inveroran Hotel or Kingshouse Hotel would enable enjoyment of the route in the opposite direction the following day.
The 4 Munros can also be combined into circular routes by using the West Highland Way (WHW) to return to either start point. If starting from the Ski Centre, the descent to the WHW is via the northeast ridge of Beinn Toaig to Lochan Mhic Pheadair Ruaidhe. If starting from Victoria Bridge, the descent to the WHW is via the east ridge of Meall a’Bhuiridh to Ba Cottage.
Sròn na Crèise can also be reached from the single-track road into Glen Etive provided the Etive is not in spate. It is possible to cross the Etive just above where the Coupall joins it. The eastern bank is very high, steep and difficult to negotiate at this point however. Better crossing places may be found farther downstream, for example at NN2364 5346 or NN2399 5382. Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/B235/comment/23808/