Beinn Chùirn
Encyclopedia
Beinn Chùirn is a Scottish
hill situated five kilometres west-southwest of Tyndrum
, it stands on the border of Stirlingshire
and Perthshire
at the northern extremity of the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park
.
. It stands in the Cononish valley in the company of three other mountains (Ben Lui
, Ben Oss
and Beinn Dubhchraig
which are all Munro
s and tend to overshadow the smaller hill. When seen from the east Beinn Chùirn looks like a smaller version of the neighbouring Ben Lui, both having impressive east facing corries
, it is sometimes mistaken for Lui by motorists on the A82 road
in Strath Fillan. The hills name translates from the Gaelic
language as “Cairn
Hill”. In recent years the hill has received some publicity after the discovery of a vein of gold
on its slopes.
of 446 metres being surrounded by glens and low cols
. To the north is Glen Lochy and to the south is the Cononish valley. Two km to the east lies another Marilyn hill Meall Odhar to which it is connected by a col of 473 metres, while three km to the south west lies the Munro Ben Lui across a col of 434 metres. The hill has a fine east facing corrie, Coire na Saobhaidhe, which is small but has steep walls. Just north of the summit at a height of 810 metres is an unnamed circular loch
an about 100 metres in diameter.
A ridge that goes south east from the summit contains a gorge down which the Allt Eas Anie flows in a series of waterfalls, one of which is quite large and impressive. This gorge gives a challenging ice climbs when frozen in winter. The northern slopes which fall to Glen Lochy are clothed in coniferous woodland below the 350 metre contour. Drainage from this northern slope finds its way to the west coast of Scotland at Dalmally
via the rivers Lochy and Orchy. Drainage from all other parts of the mountain goes to the east coast as it forms part of the headwaters of the River Tay
.
bearing quartz
vein was discovered by the Irish firm Ennex International on the lower south eastern slopes of Beinn Chùirn just above Cononish Farm at Eas Anie. The company spent over £250,000 doing test drillings and were hopeful that the mine would be very productive. The gold, which is the most important deposit found in Scotland so far, occurs as minute particles inside Pyrite
and Galena
which in turn occur in the quartz vein. Despite claims that there are up to a million tonnes of ore present on the site which could produce five tonnes of gold and about 25 tonnes of silver, the location was only developed briefly in the 1990s when an adit (tunnel) of approx 1280 metres was driven into the hillside.
In 1994, The Caledonian Mining Company acquired the mineral exploration concession with the intention of putting it into production, however the falling price of gold meant that such a small deposit was uneconomic at the time. Higher gold prices in 2007 have led to renewed activity with Scotgold Resources of Perth, Western Australia, purchasing the mineral exploration concession and applying to extend the lease and start gold production within two years, for a period of eight years. To date there has been no gold production or bulk trial testing and projected output figures are based only on geochemical assay from borehole cores and samples from the tunnel. Permission to commence commercial gold production is yet to be granted by the Crown Estate
who owns the rights to all gold in the UK (excluding Sutherland) and by the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.
, the English Jacobite
Sir Robert Clifton owned the lease for the mine, the Argyle Militia suspected that Clifton was making the lead into bullets and sabotaged the workings and burned the miners' houses. In the ensuing years several firms tried to make a going concern of the mine including the Company of Mine Adventurers of England and the Scots Mining Company but turnover was greatly reduced by the end of the 19th century and the last lead was extracted in 1923.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
hill situated five kilometres west-southwest of Tyndrum
Tyndrum
Tyndrum is a small village in Scotland. Its Gaelic name translates as "the house on the ridge". It lies in Strathfillan, at the southern edge of Rannoch Moor.The village is notable mainly for being at an important crossroads of transport routes...
, it stands on the border of Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling is a registration county of Scotland, based around Stirling, the former county town. It borders Perthshire to the north, Clackmannanshire and West Lothian to the east, Lanarkshire to the south, and Dunbartonshire to the south-west.Until 1975 it was a county...
and Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
at the northern extremity of the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park
Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park
Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park is a national park in Scotland centred on Loch Lomond, and includes several ranges of hills, the Trossachs being the most famous...
.
Overview
Beinn Chùirn reaches a height of 880 metres (2887 feet) and qualifies as a Corbett and a MarilynMarilyn (hill)
A Marilyn is a mountain or hill in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland or Isle of Man with a relative height of at least 150 metres , regardless of absolute height or other merit...
. It stands in the Cononish valley in the company of three other mountains (Ben Lui
Ben Lui
Ben Lui is a mountain in the southern Highlands of Scotland, at the head of Glen Fyne. It has five well-defined ridges radiating out from the summit...
, Ben Oss
Ben Oss
Ben Oss is a Scottish mountain situated in the Stirling Council area, six kilometres south west of the village of Tyndrum within the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.- Overview :...
and Beinn Dubhchraig
Beinn Dubhchraig
Beinn Dubhchraig is a Scottish mountain that is situated eight kilometres west of Crianlarich in the northern part of the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.- Overview :...
which are all Munro
Munro
A Munro is a mountain in Scotland with a height over . They are named after Sir Hugh Munro, 4th Baronet , who produced the first list of such hills, known as Munros Tables, in 1891. A Munro top is a summit over 3,000 ft which is not regarded as a separate mountain...
s and tend to overshadow the smaller hill. When seen from the east Beinn Chùirn looks like a smaller version of the neighbouring Ben Lui, both having impressive east facing corries
Cirque
Cirque may refer to:* Cirque, a geological formation* Makhtesh, an erosional landform found in the Negev desert of Israel and Sinai of Egypt*Cirque , an album by Biosphere* Cirque Corporation, a company that makes touchpads...
, it is sometimes mistaken for Lui by motorists on the A82 road
A82 road
The A82 is a trunk road in Scotland. It is the principal route from Lowland Scotland to the western Scottish Highlands, running from Glasgow to Inverness, going by Loch Lomond, Glen Coe and Fort William. It is the second longest primary A-road in Scotland after the A9, which is the other...
in Strath Fillan. The hills name translates from the Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
language as “Cairn
Cairn
Cairn is a term used mainly in the English-speaking world for a man-made pile of stones. It comes from the or . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas...
Hill”. In recent years the hill has received some publicity after the discovery of a vein of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
on its slopes.
Geography
Beinn Chùirn has quite a high Topographic prominenceTopographic prominence
In topography, prominence, also known as autonomous height, relative height, shoulder drop , or prime factor , categorizes the height of the mountain's or hill's summit by the elevation between it and the lowest contour line encircling it and no higher summit...
of 446 metres being surrounded by glens and low cols
Mountain pass
A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...
. To the north is Glen Lochy and to the south is the Cononish valley. Two km to the east lies another Marilyn hill Meall Odhar to which it is connected by a col of 473 metres, while three km to the south west lies the Munro Ben Lui across a col of 434 metres. The hill has a fine east facing corrie, Coire na Saobhaidhe, which is small but has steep walls. Just north of the summit at a height of 810 metres is an unnamed circular loch
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
an about 100 metres in diameter.
A ridge that goes south east from the summit contains a gorge down which the Allt Eas Anie flows in a series of waterfalls, one of which is quite large and impressive. This gorge gives a challenging ice climbs when frozen in winter. The northern slopes which fall to Glen Lochy are clothed in coniferous woodland below the 350 metre contour. Drainage from this northern slope finds its way to the west coast of Scotland at Dalmally
Dalmally
Dalmally is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located near the A85 road and is served by Dalmally railway station....
via the rivers Lochy and Orchy. Drainage from all other parts of the mountain goes to the east coast as it forms part of the headwaters of the River Tay
River Tay
The River Tay is the longest river in Scotland and the seventh-longest in the United Kingdom. The Tay originates in western Scotland on the slopes of Ben Lui , then flows easterly across the Highlands, through Loch Dochhart, Loch Lubhair and Loch Tay, then continues east through Strathtay , in...
.
Gold mine
In 1984 a goldGold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
bearing quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
vein was discovered by the Irish firm Ennex International on the lower south eastern slopes of Beinn Chùirn just above Cononish Farm at Eas Anie. The company spent over £250,000 doing test drillings and were hopeful that the mine would be very productive. The gold, which is the most important deposit found in Scotland so far, occurs as minute particles inside Pyrite
Pyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...
and Galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
which in turn occur in the quartz vein. Despite claims that there are up to a million tonnes of ore present on the site which could produce five tonnes of gold and about 25 tonnes of silver, the location was only developed briefly in the 1990s when an adit (tunnel) of approx 1280 metres was driven into the hillside.
In 1994, The Caledonian Mining Company acquired the mineral exploration concession with the intention of putting it into production, however the falling price of gold meant that such a small deposit was uneconomic at the time. Higher gold prices in 2007 have led to renewed activity with Scotgold Resources of Perth, Western Australia, purchasing the mineral exploration concession and applying to extend the lease and start gold production within two years, for a period of eight years. To date there has been no gold production or bulk trial testing and projected output figures are based only on geochemical assay from borehole cores and samples from the tunnel. Permission to commence commercial gold production is yet to be granted by the Crown Estate
Crown Estate
In the United Kingdom, the Crown Estate is a property portfolio owned by the Crown. Although still belonging to the monarch and inherent with the accession of the throne, it is no longer the private property of the reigning monarch and cannot be sold by him/her, nor do the revenues from it belong...
who owns the rights to all gold in the UK (excluding Sutherland) and by the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.
Lead mining
The Eas Anie site was a major lead mining area from 1739 until 1923. The amount of lead mined led to a lead smelter being built in the mid 18th century in Strath Fillan just outside Tyndrum. The lead ore was brought off the hill and down directly to the smelter by a “gravity” track. At the time of the 1745 Jacobite risingJacobite rising
The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at returning James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was deposed by...
, the English Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
Sir Robert Clifton owned the lease for the mine, the Argyle Militia suspected that Clifton was making the lead into bullets and sabotaged the workings and burned the miners' houses. In the ensuing years several firms tried to make a going concern of the mine including the Company of Mine Adventurers of England and the Scots Mining Company but turnover was greatly reduced by the end of the 19th century and the last lead was extracted in 1923.