The Mamores is a compact group of mountains linked by a long ridge that lies between Loch Leven and Glen Nevis. The majority of the tops are high, steep and craggy and with the high connecting ridges, the range offers some excellant day walks - or potentially very long days traversing the ridges. With six tops above 1000m and a further five classed as Munros the area is extremely popular and you will be most unlikely to have the tops to yourself all day.
Access to the ridges is gained either from the south at Kinlochleven, or from the north in Glen Nevis. A series of excellant stalkers paths serve the southern approaches giving pathed access to several cols on the ridge. A landrover track runs along the entire southern side from Loch Eilde Mor through to Fort William. This passes the Mamore Lodge hotel, sited 200m (600ft) above Kinlochleven, which provides an 'advanced' base where cars can be left for a small charge. The West Highland Way runs along the track heading to Fort William - climbing from the village and joining the track just to the west of the telephone relay mast. Glen Nevis approaches start either from Polludh, or from the car park at the end of the road using the path past the falls on the Water of Nevis to gain the wire bridge crossing at Steall.
A summer bus service runs up Glen Nevis as far as Polldubh in the summer months and this could be used to save the walk back along the glen to Fort William (although not if you are off the mountains late in the day). A regular bus between Fort William and Kinlochleven (including evenings) does allow a traverse of the ridges and a return to your starting point without the need of two cars.
We have had several forays onto the ridge during various visits to the area. We have also used the paths as a starting point for walks east into the remote areas below the Grey Corries and on to Courrour and Rannoch. These longer distance walks have also become quite popular - using the railway to gain easy access to the heart of this remote region. Even so, the difference between these paths and the (very) heavily used West Highland Way is most dramatic. On the path from Fort William you will count the other walkers by the hundred - to the east you will meet only a handful and on the lesser tops you will meet no-one.
However high, craggy mountains that offer excellant views and alot of fun cannot be ignored and the pages record some of the days out we have had. At the time of posting we had recorded only the day we spent on the tops in the summer of 2002 within these pages - further pages will be added as the notes and photos are dusted off.