Ben Nevis by Mountain Path | Fort William, Scotland
Website: https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk › fortwilliam › bennevis
Know Before You Go: Weather in Scotland changes in an instant. We started this hike in sunshine, experienced pelting rain halfway up, which changed to snow then hail at the very, very foggy summit. Rain makes the rocky trail VERY slippery so good hiking boots are recommended. In bad weather such as fog, snow, or rain, it’s easy to get turned around in the scree field near the summit so a navigational tool is strongly recommended - we used the Walk Highlands app and it was great. Take cash to pay the parking meter in case the credit card machine is broken.
Length: 11 miles
Time: 7-9 hours
Difficulty: Difficult: ascends 1352 feet. This is the highest peak in Britain.
Terrain: Rocky, steep stairs, scree, dirt/grass.
Dog-Friendly: Yes
Kid-Friendly: Yes
Ben Nevis is the tallest peak in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and the British Isles. It stands at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Highlands near Fort William. The beginning of the hike takes you up stairs, rocks, and aggregate path to journey between two mountains. You wind your way past a little lake around a third of the way up the mountain, then turn to the right to start hiking up Ben Nevis. The hike takes you through a waterfall that can get VERY challenging in heavy rain. As you journey upwards, take the time to enjoy the spectacular views of the surrounding countryside.
When you reach the scree field, you are almost to the top. Be sure to stay to the trail. There are steep drop-offs in some places, and without the cairns left by trail maintenance, it would be difficult to pick your way through parts of it. At the top, you find the ruins of old structures and the remnants of what now serves as a small warming shack for hikers.
We almost didn’t finish this hike. We started in clear weather but were unprepared for the drastic weather changes for which Scotland is famous. Partway up, it started raining on us - and Scottish rain is the cold, soaking kind. Hiking pants that would do fine in the U.S. or even Ireland were soon drenched through and freezing. After we waded through the waterfall, the soles came off my 20-year-old hiking boots. The rain turned to sleet and then to hail and eventually snow. The fog made visibility difficult. My son had run ahead because he was cold, and if we hadn’t planned to meet him at the summit, we might have turned around because we were getting so cold and thought it wasn’t worth it to finish. But we trudged on, connected with my son at the top, took a quick look around at the ruins and stone structures, and headed back down the mountain. Luckily my son had a spare pare of running shoes that I used to descend the mountain. The rocks were slick with rain and running shoe soles were not grippy enough to keep me from slipping a couple of times, but we made it down safely.
We now look back on this hike as a challenge we met amidst gorgeous scenery.
Website: https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk › fortwilliam › bennevis
Know Before You Go: Weather in Scotland changes in an instant. We started this hike in sunshine, experienced pelting rain halfway up, which changed to snow then hail at the very, very foggy summit. Rain makes the rocky trail VERY slippery so good hiking boots are recommended. In bad weather such as fog, snow, or rain, it’s easy to get turned around in the scree field near the summit so a navigational tool is strongly recommended - we used the Walk Highlands app and it was great. Take cash to pay the parking meter in case the credit card machine is broken.
Length: 11 miles
Time: 7-9 hours
Difficulty: Difficult: ascends 1352 feet. This is the highest peak in Britain.
Terrain: Rocky, steep stairs, scree, dirt/grass.
Dog-Friendly: Yes
Kid-Friendly: Yes
Ben Nevis is the tallest peak in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and the British Isles. It stands at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Highlands near Fort William. The beginning of the hike takes you up stairs, rocks, and aggregate path to journey between two mountains. You wind your way past a little lake around a third of the way up the mountain, then turn to the right to start hiking up Ben Nevis. The hike takes you through a waterfall that can get VERY challenging in heavy rain. As you journey upwards, take the time to enjoy the spectacular views of the surrounding countryside.
When you reach the scree field, you are almost to the top. Be sure to stay to the trail. There are steep drop-offs in some places, and without the cairns left by trail maintenance, it would be difficult to pick your way through parts of it. At the top, you find the ruins of old structures and the remnants of what now serves as a small warming shack for hikers.
We almost didn’t finish this hike. We started in clear weather but were unprepared for the drastic weather changes for which Scotland is famous. Partway up, it started raining on us - and Scottish rain is the cold, soaking kind. Hiking pants that would do fine in the U.S. or even Ireland were soon drenched through and freezing. After we waded through the waterfall, the soles came off my 20-year-old hiking boots. The rain turned to sleet and then to hail and eventually snow. The fog made visibility difficult. My son had run ahead because he was cold, and if we hadn’t planned to meet him at the summit, we might have turned around because we were getting so cold and thought it wasn’t worth it to finish. But we trudged on, connected with my son at the top, took a quick look around at the ruins and stone structures, and headed back down the mountain. Luckily my son had a spare pare of running shoes that I used to descend the mountain. The rocks were slick with rain and running shoe soles were not grippy enough to keep me from slipping a couple of times, but we made it down safely.
We now look back on this hike as a challenge we met amidst gorgeous scenery.
