Ben Lawers

Ben Lawers is the highest mountain in the central Highlands at 1,214 metres, the tenth highest Munro, and the centrepiece of a National Nature Reserve of almost 4,500 hectares above Loch Tay that the National Trust for Scotland manages for its plants as much as its views. The slopes hold the most celebrated collection of arctic-alpine flowers in Britain, more than 600 kinds of lichen, and red deer, ptarmigan, ravens and ring ouzels, and seven Munros stand within the reserve, Meall nan Tarmachan among them. The car park on the hill road sits at around 400 metres and gives a head start on the summit path, and two waymarked nature trails from it suit families, passing the shielings where people once summered their cattle. Reviewers say the walks reward every level of effort and that the pay and display machine takes cards. Tips from regulars: parking is free for members, the car park is small and unsuitable for motorhomes, and keep dogs under close control because livestock graze the hill.