Twenty feet from stardom

More hills around the nation that need to step out from someone’s shadow…

COW HILL, HIGHLANDS

Not exactly a stirring name, is it? But this grassy, heathery hill just above Fort William has some very stirring moments for the walker who cares to climb it. First of all, it is a small, achievable hill – something you don’t get too much of in this part of the Highlands where most things are large and spiky. It’s an easy walk, much of it on forest tracks.

Secondly, it has a sublime view down over Loch Linnhe, the vast sea-loch whose waters mark the southern end of the Great Glen.

And thirdly – it’s Ben Nevis’ little brother. Look east from the summit across Glen Nevis, and there’s Britain’s highest mountain gazing back at you. Take binocs and you can watch the ant-like hordes toiling up the Pony Track across its vast grey flank. No toil for you, though; this is a gentle little hill, one for a bright, clear day after tougher exertions, when you can relax and gawp at The Big One in all its muscular glory. WALK HERE: Download Cow Hill at www.lfto.com/bonusroutes

FAN FAWR, BRECON BEACONS

Fan Fawr is the forgotten Brecon Beacon. It stands across Cwm Taf from the holy trinity of Corn Du, Pen y Fan and Cribyn, staring forlornly as the superstar trio. It even looks a bit like them, with its smooth lines and flat-top summit.

But compared with the motorways of the Beacons Horseshoe, the paths up Fan Fawr are scant and sometimes scrappy. Its visitor numbers are a fraction of those you’ll find across the valley.

In fairness, it’s part of a separate geological massif, Fforest Fawr, rather than being part of the main Beacons range. And it’s a wilder walk than the carefully-managed Beacons, being a steep little climb over sometimes trackless ground. So you’ve really got to want to climb it. But you should, because the view it presents to the Beacons is fabulous.

Just ask the fabled panther that’s meant to live somewhere up there. He likes the view, and he likes it quiet.

WALK HERE: See Walk 21 in this issue

GRAGARETH, YORKSHIRE DALES

Ingleborough, Whernside, Gragareth. Trips off the tongue, doesn’t it? Well, no it doesn’t, because Pen-y-ghent is the third Three Peak of Yorkshire and not Gragareth. But it could be. Gragareth looks exactly like Whernside. It’s right behind Whernside. It has a commanding view of both Whernside and Ingleborough. It has interest and intrigue all the way, from limestone pavements lower down to an assortment of stone oddities along its flank and summit (chiefly the Cheese Press Stone and the enigmatic triple cairn known as the Three Men of Gragareth).

And if you like geographical quirks, Gragareth has ’em. It’s the highest point in the county of Lancashire, but last year it also became part of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, making it a sort of mish-mash of Red Rose and White Rose. A Pink Rose perhaps.

A lovely, lonely hill in need of some affection, and we’re very proud to give it.

WALK HERE: Download Gragareth at www.lfto.com/bonusroutes

BEINN DUBH, LOCH LOMOND

“Beinn Dubh packs a panoramic punch without the hordes,” says CW’s Scottish guru Keith Fergus.

“On a good warm day you can look across at Ben Lomond and know that the world and his wife will be up there. Beinn Dubh you can have to yourself.”

Beinn Dubh, or ‘Black Hill’, stands on the eastern shore of Loch Lomond, with a scorching view right across the loch to the big Ben. The route is beautifully simple – straight up from the pretty lochside village of Luss onto Beinn Dubh and round in a mini-horseshoe to Coire na h-Eanachan and Mid Hill, before dropping down into the magnificently-named Glen Striddle.

And quite apart from the ben and the loch, the view is awesome: it takes in Ben Vorlich, the picturesque Luss Hills and the Arrochar Alps, topped off by the distinctive knobbles of The Cobbler.

WALK HERE: Download Beinn Dubh at www.lfto.com/bonusroutes