Coire Gabhail by members of Clan Macdonald to hide cattle and other livestock, whether their own or stolen from others. Like other clans in the area, cattle were the mainstay of their economy, both herding and raiding: young men boastfully sang of getting cows from the Mearns. The wide flat glen is well suited for this purpose since from Glen Coe it appears to be a normal v-shaped glen approached only by a steep narrow gorge. The Macdonalds commonly had feuds with Clan Campbell. This culminated tragically in the 1692 massacre of Glencoe when Campbell soldiers turned on Macdonald clansfolk who fled
Glen Coe being less than wide, narrowing sharply at the "Pass of Glen Coe". The entrance to the glen from the west is below the foot of Buachaille Etive Beag just west of Lochan na Fola, from where waters run east to Loch Leven via the River Coe. The river — Ossian's "dark Cona" — passes over waterfalls at the Pass of Glen Coe before flowing down to the small Loch Achtriochtan. Loch Achtriochtan is "Loch Trychardan" (loch of the three friends or relatives) in Timothy Pont's map of the area. After the loch the river turns north west, passing through Glencoe