Ben Lomond, Scotland

Some hill-walkers would dismiss Ben Lomond as "tame", says Christopher Somerville in the Daily Telegraph, but looks can be deceiving. This "fine, shapely hump that beckons seductively across Loch Lomond" delivers walkers fairly easily up its 3,192ft on sunny days, but when the weather is "dreich", it can challenge even experienced Munro baggers. In summer, it attracts "all the world and its walking poles", but you can avoid them by opting for the steeper,

less used path that "hugs" the west flank. On the ascent, Loch Lomond glows a "deep silky blue" and looks close enough to jump into, slowly receding as you climb, while the summit looms purple over your head. At the top, you're rewarded with a 100-mile view "round the compass": the Ochil Hills to the south, running down to the Firth of Forth; to the east, the "Highlands-in-miniature" of the Trossachs; and to the west, over the sea, you can make out the Inner Hebrides and the "upthrust Paps of Jura". It's practically the whole of Scotland "spreadeagled in all its glory".

Visit Scotland. Maps: OS Explorer 364, Landranger 56.