Ben Nevis

Yesterday, I left the boat securely tied to the dock at Oban Marina and met Chris Adams for a day in the mountains. Jocelyn happily stayed behind with Chris’s better half, Ann, for a day in town, and Emily and Imogen joined Chris and me for the day.

For our mountain experience, we chose an ascent of Ben Nevis, Scotland’s tallest mountain and at 4,409 feet, the highest point in the entire United Kingdom. We drove 50 miles right back to Fort William where we had exited the canal only a few days before. The trailhead starts just outside of town at 45 feet elevation, making the total elevation gain for the hike more than that of many of Colorado’s “Fourteeners.”

We started in around 9:30 a.m. and climbed steadily through alpine heath along a well-worn footpath called the Pony Track. We shared the trail with many other climbers on one of the most beautiful days of the summer, with warm temperatures and a few puffy clouds wafting around the summit. Quite a number of languages were heard as accompaniment to the prevailing Scottish brogue.

At around 1,500 feet, the trail leveled out alongside a small alpine loch as we enjoyed a brief respite from the steady uphill slog. Shortly, the climb resumed up, up, up, switching back across the north shoulder of the mountain.

After an eternity with head down and sweat dripping from the brow, the trail leveled off on the summit ridge. The mountain fell off gradually to the south, but to the north, a steep cliff formed a clear hazard. Ahead, the summit beckoned in the mist.

We arrived on top of Ben Nevis around 1:30 p.m., experiencing that feeling of accomplishment that comes with achieving a hard won goal. A party atmosphere prevailed, what with at least one hundred others enjoying the grand views and giddy feeling at altitude. We took in the views, snapped pictures, and enjoyed a lunch of crackers, cheese, sardines, and chicken. Afterwards, we explored the ruins of an observatory staffed on the summit between 1883 and 1904.

After having our fill of the summit, we started down, reaching the bottom two hours later. We indulged in a pint drawn from the Ben Nevis pub at the trailhead in celebration of the day.