Beinn a' Chaorainn's summit ridge is approximately 1.5 km in length and made up of three high points. The middle of the three tops is now regarded as the highest point, the South Top (1049 metres) was regarded as the highest point until 1974 when re-surveying downgraded it to a Top in the Munros Tables and elevated the middle of the pinnacles to the recognised summit. The North Top (1044 metres) is also a Top in the tables and has been so ever since they were first published in 1891. The summit ridge of Beinn a' Chaorainn has the reputation as a potentially dangerous place for walkers under winter conditions with at least one fatality in 1994. The problem arises with certain sections of the eastern corrie which bite far back into the ridge and can be snow covered in winter forming cornices. Walkers taking direct compass bearings between the high points on the summit ridge have fallen through the cornices by underestimating the distance that the corrie bites into the ridge.