Torridonian Peak Misses By A Metre

Munro baggers can relax again with the news that Beinn Dearg in Wester Ross has failed in its bid to become a Munro after surveyors measured it at a mere 2,997 feet, just a yard short of the magic mark.

The uppity Torridonian peak was one of two contenders for Munro status announced earlier this year - the other, Foinaven, was measured using advanced new satellite technology in May and found to be just 2,988 feet high.

Now Beinn Dearg has also fallen short of the mark by less than a metre. Two surveyors from CMCR Ltd climbed to the summit of the mountain on Saturday 25 August together with 13 mountaineers - cue: 'How many mountaineers does it take to measure a Munro?' jokes - and calculated the height of the mountain as 913.675 metres.

We're sure Bein D would have pronounced himself 'gutted', but for the existing 'compleatists', who've scaled all 284 of the Munros, the decision must be quite gratifying.