| Ben Lawers | |
|---|---|
| Beinn Labhair | |
 Ben Lawers seen from Beinn Ghlas | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 1,214 m (3,983 ft)[1] |
| Prominence | c. 915 m Ranked 11th in British Isles |
| Parent peak | Ben Nevis |
| Listing | Munro, Marilyn, Council top (Perth and Kinross), County top (Perthshire) |
| Coordinates | 56°32′44″N 4°13′15″W / 56.54556°N 4.22083°W |
| Naming | |
| English translation | mountain of the loud stream[2] |
| Pronunciation | Scottish Gaelic: [peɲ ˈl̪ˠavɪɾʲ] |
| Geography | |
 | |
| Location | Perth and Kinross, Scotland |
| Parent range | Grampian Mountains |
| OS grid | NN636414 |
| Topo map | OS Landranger 51 |
Ben Lawers (Scottish Gaelic: Beinn Labhair)[2] is the highest mountain in the Breadalbane region of the Scottish Highlands. It lies north of Loch Tay and is the highest peak of the 'Ben Lawers group', a ridge that includes six other Munros: Beinn Ghlas, Meall Garbh, Meall Corranaich, An Stùc, Meall Greigh and Meall a' Choire Leith.[3] It is also the highest peak in Perthshire,[4] and the tenth highest Munro in Scotland. Ben Lawers was long thought to be over 4,000 feet (1,219 metres) in height, but accurate measurement in the 1870s showed it to be only 3,983 feet (1,214 m).[5] It is formed of metamorphic rock, most notably calcareous mica-schists, and lower down, schistose grits.[6]
Ben Lawers lies on the watershed between the rivers Tay and Lyon. Since the 1950s, water has been captured from the numerous burns on the south face of Ben Lawers and Meall nan Tarmachan as part of the Breadalbane Hydro-Electric Scheme. The water is diverted to the Lochan na Lairige, from where it is piped to drive hydro-electric turbines at Finlarig on the banks of Loch Tay.[4] The level of the Lochan na Lairige was raised by the construction of the 344-metre-long Lawers Dam, a buttress-type dam that is 42 m high.
Due to its high elevation and underlying geology, Ben Lawers is home to an exceptionally rich selection of arctic-alpine plant species and habitats. Since 1964, it has been designated as a National Nature Reserve (NNR).[4]
- ^ "Ben Lawers (Beinn Labhair)". Hill Bagging - the online version of the Database of British and Irish Hills (DoBIH). 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
- ^ a b "Ben Lawers". Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba: Gaelic Place-Names of Scotland.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
munrowas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference
sssi-mngwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ D. Bennet (ed.) The Southern Highlands. Scottish Mountaineering Club District Guides - Scottish Mountaineering Trust. 2nd edition (August 1986). p. 161
- ^ Johnstone, Scott (1986). "Formation of the Ben Lawers Range". In Mardon, David (ed.). Ben Lawers (Revised ed.). Edinburgh: The National Trust for Scotland. pp. 8–9. ISBN 090162554X.