Caradhras

Caradhras, also called the Redhorn (the literal English translation of the Sindarin name), is one of the mightiest peaks in the Misty Mountains.

The Redhorn Pass attempted by the Nine Walkers on their quest for Mount Doom lay beneath its slopes, linking the former Noldorin realm of Eregion in the west to the Dimrill Dale and hence the Vale of Anduin in the east.

After the fall of Khazad-Dum, this pass was predominantly used by elves travelling between Lothlorien and Rivendell.

Caradhras (Baranzibar in Khuzdul, the language of the Dwarves) was one of the Mountains of Moria, the three mountains which the great Dwarf palace of Khazad-dûm was built under. Caradhras was also the only site in Middle-earth where Mithril could be found. Unfortunately, mithril miners also found the Balrog of Moria and awakened him in the roots of the mountain.

Caradhras was called the Cruel by the Dwarves and had long had a bad reputation. The Redhorn Pass (also called the Redhorn Gate) was known to be treacherous. It was on this pass that Celebrian, the wife of Elrond, was captured by orcs. This was also the pass used by the hobbits migrating from Gladden Fields into Eriador. Apart from the attack upon Celebrian, due to the close proximity to the Gladden Fields, it is possible that the River-folk,(to which the creature Gollum, formerly Smeagol, belonged) may have passed through here, making it doubly significant to the trilogy.

In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring movie, when the Fellowship is trying to cross Caradhras, Saruman utters enchantments which cause violent snowstorms on the mountain. This differs from the book, in which it is suggested that an ancient evil born from the mountain itself was sending the foul weather to hinder their passage.