Known affectionately by hill walkers and climbers as 'The Ben' the origin of the name 'Ben Nevis' is disputed. Ben Nevis" is an anglicisation of the Gaelic 'Beinn Nibheis'. A beinn is a mountain - fair enough - but the definitive meaning of Nibheis is elusive being variously understood as 'malicious' or a derivation of 'neamh-bhathais' (from Neamh meaning 'heavens' or 'clouds' and 'bathais' meaning 'top of the head'. A literal translation of neamh-bathais would therefore be "the mountain with its head in the clouds'. The people of Fort William and particularly those who work in the local distillery will tell you it means "Mountain of Heaven" and since its waters are used to produce the Dew of Ben Nevis whisky, perhaps they are right.
The first recorded ascent of Ben Nevis was made on 17 August 1771 by James Robertson, an Edinburgh botanist. John Keats climbed the mountain in 1818, and remarked that it was like climbing "ten St. Pauls without the convenience of a staircase". Surprisingly it was not until 1847 that Ben Nevis was confirmed by the Ordnance Survey as the highest mountain in Britain ending an age old rivalry with Ben Macdui in the Cairngorms to the east.
There is quite a lot of summit furniture on the top including a storm shelter and the ruins of an observatory which was built in the summer of 1883, and which was in use for the next 21 years. Recently there has been a major effort to clean up the summit and a memorial cairn which had been expanding with all kinds of plaques and odd mementos of people's lost and loved ones has been removed. Towards the end of the nineteenth century several proposals were advanced for a rack and pinion railway to the summit similar to that on Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon). Thankfully none of these ever came to fruition. In 2000 the Ben Nevis Estate, comprising all of the south side of the mountain including the summit, was bought by the Scottish conservation charity the John Muir Trust. Hopefully this ensures that a railway will never be built. The Trust maintain the paths which receive heavy use throughout the year, partly because of the hugely popular appeal of the 'Three Peaks Challenge' and have been involved in the clean up of the Ben. They recently made a public appeal for people to stop leaving the remains of their picnic bananas on the summit as the brown and yellow skins are in danger of outnumbering the rocks.
Though there are literally hundreds of routes to the summit of Ben Nevis, the vast majority of these are for climbers only. For the walker there are basically just two, though they each have several alternate starts.
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Getting To Fort William |
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The vast majority of visitors will approach from the South, most likely through Glasgow, and certainly this will be the route of 'Three Peakers' heading to or from Scafell Pike.
It is best to go through the centre of Glasgow on the elevated M8 and then leave this motorway at junction 30 to cross the Erskine suspension bridge.
A terrific journey along the western shore of Loch Lomond takes you to Crianlarich. Here you join the A85 coming from Stirling which is the principal route if coming from the south-east via Edinburgh.
At Tyndrum turn onto the A82 and enter the Highlands. You cross the wild reaches of Rannoch Moor and drop into the sensational Glen Coe to reach Ballachullish and the bridge across Loch Leven. The A82 then hugs the eastern shore of Loch Linnhe into Fort William.
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The Routes |
Route 1. The 'Tourist Path'. 5 miles. 4,388 feet of ascent. Grade I (MAP.1)
The 'Tourist path' which starts in Glen Nevis is the route by which the vast majority of Ben summiteers climb the mountain. It is also the only practical route for the 24 hour challenge. The path was built in 1883 at the same time as the summit observatory and was designed to allow ponies to carry up supplies, with a maximum gradient of one in five. Following the arrival of the West Highland Railway in Fort William in 1894 this path began to be used to convey a new wave of urban visitor to the roof of Britain. The name was a natural development and has stuck ever since. However you should not let this name nor the gentle gradient lull you into a false sense of security. It is a long way to the top and weather conditions at the summit can be very harsh even when quite benign in the valley. No-one should attempt this climb without the proper equipment and the necessary navigation skills to get safely down in thick cloud.
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Descending from the summit Plateau on the Tourist path towards Meall an t'Suidhe with Loch Linnhe and Loch Eil in the distance.
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Left: The summit of the Ben showing some of the structures that adorn the top of Britain's highest point.
Right: Looking down the North face into Corrie Leis.
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There are three possible starts to the Tourist Path. The most used is from the Visitor centre in Glen Nevis. From here follow the River Nevis downstream to a suspension bridge and on the other side walk back upstream to reach a stile and path up to Achintee. The track continues up Glen Nevis, gradually gaining height until a steeper climb takes you onto the saddle between Meall an t-Suidhe and the Ben itself. Care is needed here not to follow the path which crosses the saddle and eventually descends to the Allt a' Mhuilinn. The path to the Ben turns through 180 degrees and climbs to cross the burn before starting the famous and seemingly never ending zig zags to the summit plateau. Once on the top there are spectacular views down the north face. In all but the worst weather the summit cannot be missed owing to the extraordinary amount of clutter it holds which includes the ruined observatory, a first world war memorial, an emergency shelter, and an impressive summit cairn topped with an O.S. trig point.
There are two alternative starts for the Tourist Route, one from the Glen Nevis Youth Hostel which involves an initial steep climb to join the route, and the other from the Ben Nevis Inn which is accessed from the Achintee road (the first turning right on the A82 after the Glen Nevis turning).
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Map 1. From Glen Nevis Looking East
Map 2. Looking SE from the A82
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The map on the left shows the 'Tourist Path' (upper section in red). The three alternative starts to this route are all from Glen Nevis. As can be clearly seen in this 3D version of the map, the impressive North face remains hidden during the ascent by this route, except for a spectacular glimpse from the plateau down into Corrie Leis. |
Looking into the valley of the Allt a' Mhuilinn towards the North Face. The 'Tourist Path' is marked in red. The blue track marks the route via the Carn Mor Dearg Arete with alternative starts from Tolmundy or the Nevis Distillery on the A82 (marked in green) or dropping into the Alt a' Mhuilinn (blue). |
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Route 2. Carn Mor Dearg Arete. 6 ½ miles. 5,733 feet of ascent. Grade I (MAP.1)
For the more discerning trekker, the route across the Carn Mor Dearg (pronounced 'carn more jerrag') is a superb way to reach the summit of the Ben. Basically this route climbs Carn Beag Dearg (3314ft.) from the valley of the Allt a' Mhuillin and then follows the ridge over Carn Dearg Meadhonach (3868ft.) to Carn Mor Dearg (4003ft.). From here a sharp arete with some scrambling climbs to the summit plateau of the Ben emerging close to the ruined observatory. |
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The superb Carn Mor Dearg arete with the Mamores behind. Passing across Carn Dearg Meadhonach to Carn Mor Dearg, the route follows the knife edge arete up to the summit plateau of the Ben, emerging just south of the ruins of the old observatory.
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There are several alternative starts for this route. The classic walk begins at the distillery at Victoria Bridge on the A82 to the left of the sheds where the whisky barrels are stored. Cross the railway and follow an often muddy path through woods which climbs to meet a dirt road. Now turn left and follow this for approximately 200 metres to join another track that leads via more woods to a second dirt road. Cross the Allt a' Mhuillin on a bridge and follow the track upstream for a further quarter mile. This track follows the stream up to the CIC climbers hut below the north face. You however, now leave the path and slog somewhat tediously up the slopes of Carn Beag Dearg. Once this summit is reached the rest, as described above is pure delight. An alternative start to this route is from Tolmundy further along the A82 and as this track is currently undergoing improvement it is likely to be the preferred route in the future.
It is also possible to do the Carn Mor dearg arete starting from Glen Nevis. In this case head up the Tourist path using any of the three starting points described in route 1. Once on the saddle of Meall an t'Suidhe continue north and descend to the Allt a' Mhuilinn. You can then cross the river either just below the waterfall at NN164727 or continue on the track to the CIC hut and cross just above here. A steep climb on scree covered slopes is now required in order to reach the ridge between Carn Dearg Meachonach and carn Mor Dearg with fantastic views into the gullies and buttresses of the great North face behind you. |
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Looking down the Alt a Mhuilinn |
Carn Dearg Meadhonach |
The summit ridge to the Ben |
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Safety on the Ben
On a fine summer's day with a line of people coming up and going down, it may seem a simple feat to get safely off the Ben on the right track. However, in conditions of dense cloud or when the trail is covered in snow, the Ben can be a dangerous place. The map extract below illustrates the potential hazards involved in navigating on the summit plateau of Ben Nevis. On the north side is the precipitous north face and to the south, the ground drops away steeply to Coire Eoghainn and Five Finger Gully. When descending from the summit (where there is a Trig Point and Emergency Shelter) it is essential to navigate well clear of the top of Gardyloo Gully (150 metres on a Grid Bearing of 231°) before turning to a Grid Bearing of 282°. The ability to follow a compass bearing and estimate distance travelled are essential mountain navigation skills. Always take a map (not just this extract) and compass and develop navigation skills on less serious terrain before going onto the high tops. Alternatively, go with an experienced guide and concentrate on the enjoyment of your surroundings.
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