Your home in the Highlands
Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Britain at 1,345 metres, rises above Fort William less than an hour north of us. Every year thousands of walkers make it to the summit, and on a clear day the view from the top is one you never forget. It is a wonderful day out, but it is a big, serious hill, so it pays to go prepared.
The big one
Climbing the Ben
The usual way up is the Mountain Track, once known as the Pony Track or Tourist Route, which starts in Glen Nevis and zig-zags its way to the top. It is the most straightforward line, though the other routes are for experienced hillwalkers and climbers only. Allow around ten hours there and back and treat it as a full, serious day on the hill. Over the years people have carried all sorts to the summit, from pianos to a car, but for most of us reaching the cairn on our own two feet is achievement enough.
Before you set off
Treat it with respect
Ben Nevis catches people out every year, so a little planning goes a long way. Set off by eight or nine in the morning, check the mountain forecast and only go if it is good, and carry warm layers, food and water, a map and compass and some emergency kit.
The upper slopes hold snow and cloud well into summer, it is cold at the top whatever the season, and mist can drop quickly and hide the path. The visitor centre in Glen Nevis is a good first stop for the week's weather and the kit you will need. If in doubt, save it for a better day.
At the top
The summit, and the view
The summit is a broad plateau of nearly a hundred acres, with a cairn and the ruins of the old observatory. On a clear day, with no mist or cloud, the view stretches for something like a hundred miles, as far as Skye and, now and then, across to Ireland. The mountain and its estate have been cared for since 2000 by the John Muir Trust, the Scottish conservation charity.
For the very fit
The Ben Nevis Race
Every September, runners tackle the Ben Nevis Race, from Claggan Park just outside Fort William to the summit and back, around ten miles with well over four thousand feet of climbing. Would you believe the record, set back in 1984, still stands at just over an hour and twenty-five minutes? You have to be quick even to enter, with a cut-off at the summit, or you are turned back down.