Ben Nevis diary

by Simon Hughes

11th to 13th May 2007

Following a departure from Glasgow Central railway station at 12.55pm on Friday 11 May, I finally arrived at the Nevis Bank Hotel in Fort William at 6.30pm.

During the journey to the hotel, I travelled through what could be said to be was some of the most spectacular scenery that southern and western Scotland has to offer, which included some good views of mountains, lakes, valleys and small waterfalls.

After being given time to settle into the hotel room and following dinner we were given a presentation by Richard, the lead guide. He told us what to expect in our attempts to scale Ben Nevis, as well as some background information regarding both the mountain and the old observatory located on the summit.

Saturday started early with a full Scottish breakfast at 7.00am, and following this we departed for Achintee and the foot of the Ben. Following photos, the walk itself commenced at around 8.45am.

The path that we followed was steep in places, very rocky and difficult to climb at times, while it levelled out in other places. During the walk however some of the views themselves were stunning, with views of lakes, rivers and waterfalls.

The path became very steep and rocky following the “Halfway Lochan” (the Lochan Meall an t’Suidhe), during which the path followed a series of zigzags.

Above roughly 1000m we started to hit snow and low cloud, which obscured the views and visibility considerably. The snow became increasingly thick, and despite falling over twice and struggling in the snow, I finally reached the old observatory at the summit of the Ben at 1.35pm.

The total ascent of the mountain (including breaks) took approximately four hours 50mins. I was tired but relieved to have conquered the highest mountain in Britain.

I departed the summit of Ben Nevis at around 2.15pm with the lead group, and despite initially struggling in the deep snow (and falling over once) we hit the more firmer parts of the path.

The walk down the mountain was anything but easy as the path was extremely hard under foot with the rocks and boulders on the path (some of which were uneven). A rain shower on the way down made things difficult as the rocks became slippery. Again, however, on the way down the views were spectacular, and included sights of the surrounding mountains, forests and even some of the sheep with their newborn lambs.

The journey itself seemed never ending at times but I finally reached ground control at 6.20pm. I was grateful for having those walking poles with me, particularly on the descent, as it was slippery and very rocky on many parts of the path. It was the end of a very long and tiring trek, but worth it!

Following dinner I, along with the other participants, was presented with a certificate of achievement from Ian Glassey, the event manager, for having conquered Ben Nevis in my attempts to raise money for Epilepsy Action.

Following breakfast on the Sunday morning and saying goodbye to fellow walkers and members of the Charitytrek and Epilepsy Action teams, I departed Fort William at around 10.30am, taking a slightly alternative route to Glasgow ready for my train home.

Simon Hughes

• Take part in the next Ben Nevis Challenge

• See our Ben Nevis challenge gallery on Flickr

What next?

If you would like to join us on Ben Nevis challenge, then please contact our fundraising department:

• by telephone on 0113 210 8800 (UK) or +44 (0)113 210 8800 (international)

• by email to funding@epilepsy.org.uk