Ben Nevis in winter

I made a lone walk to the Ben Nevis summit in early March, it’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while. Whilst the route is straight forward in summer it poses difficulties and hazards in winter conditions making it all the more rewarding. I find it a sublime landscape. In many hours of walking I experienced a whole range of conditions, changing rapidly, easy paths lower down with incredible views, driving sleet, steep snow covered slopes in low cloud higher up which make for a disorientating environment navigationally and glorious moments of alpine blue sky and clear views as I followed the line of cairns over the summit plateau. The hidden sheer gullies either side a constant presence. I’m particularly taken with these cairns, beautiful rime ice covered structures signifying safety and danger in one.

The first Cairns across the summit plateau guiding a safe passage through the gullies

Three cairns marking a change in direction near the summit

A beautiful light from the plateau

French climbers on the summit storm shelter

The light darkened during this snow flurry somewhere on the zig zags

I love this view of the half way lochan, last time I was here it was slate grey, surrounded by snow and partially frozed, on this occasion the beautiful low cloud in the middle distance caught my eye as it gently drifted across the landscape