I’m about to depart on a short Scottish history ramble and as it takes me through Ft William decided to give Ben Nevis a try.
Unfortunately, I dropped my KX2 at home and it’s not operating to full spec which means Ben Nevis will be a 2m only operation. Looking at past activations this seems viable.
For any GM or GI based operators that have 2m FM capability and are free, do please try and get me over the 4 Q count.
Any tips or pointers on parking, trail etc are always welcome. Looking at Google Maps, it was ambiguous whether a Starbucks or pub is on the peak.
Paul
M0SNA now and soon to be W6PNG again
www.nomadic.blog
Hi Paul
I parked at the visitor centre and walked up on the tourist path. I only managed 3 x 2m contacts on my two visits but I had HF to bail me out on my second trip. I had very good visibility but it is probably a much more difficult prospect in poor conditions. The visitor centre has a guide that will give you information about when to turn near the summit. Anyway good luck on your trip!
For a long but simple ascent, the tourist track is the best option. The car park is a little way up Glen Nevis. Allow a full day, as you are climbing the full height of the mountain from nearly sea level.
For more adventure, start at the North Face car park and take in GM/WS-003 Carn Mor Dearg, as well as the arete linking the two mountains.
an alternative starting point for the tourist path is Achintee Farm, on the east side of the River Nevis. The car park is not huge so get there early. The path is well marked so possible even in poor visibility.
The benefit is that there is a public house for a well deserved pint when you get back down to the car!
That looks tempting. If I were to undertake that iron man duet, am I better off starting with WS-003 and then doing WS-001? Also, is the North Face trail easy to follow/find (maybe not easy to do)?
Thanks for the heads up on the parking. Reading up it appears that the parking lot has 80 or so spaces which sounds like a lot until I think how popular Ben Nevis is.
Any thoughts on availability of spaces at say 5am versus 6:30am?
Yes, climb Carn Mor Dearg first. The arete is a mild scramble. Nothing difficult, but it is airy! Then it’s a steep but straightforward climb to the summit of the Ben. You have to descend the tourist path to the half way lochan and then peel off to rejoin your ascent path.
In places it is only a few feet wide with cliffs on the right and slabs on the left, there are a few pinnacles to go over or around at first but mostly it feels like walking along the ridge of a giant roof. The views of the cliffs of the Ben are spectacular.
