This area covers the mountains between Fort William, Loch Leven (to the south) and Loch Treig (to the east). The area includes Ben Nevis and Carn Mor Dearg, The Mamores, The Aonachs and The Grey Corries. An impressive 20 Munros are split equally by Glen Nevis and the waters of Abhainn Rath. Relatively accessible from the A82, these mountains hold some classic walking and climbing routes such as The Ring of Steall in the Mamores and Point Five Gully on Ben Nevis. Includes all major peaks above 600m.
My biggest challenge as a Mountain Leader so far. The Ring of Steall leading a group of 15 for the charity Tumour Support Scotland. I conceived this as having a maximum of 8 experienced walkers, but as the numbers grew I found it difficult to refuse the extras, and felt that with my two capable lieutenants, and an option to truncate the day after the Devil’s Ridge, the risk assessment was acceptable. On the day, conditions conspired to up the ante: the previous week or so had been settled, fine and warm, but as Sunday approached, the inevitable deterioration appeared to be on the cards, ironically for that day alone! We left Edinburgh around 6am on a clear sunny morning, but by the time we’d been dropped at the Lower Falls car park the hills were shrouded in mist. Drizzle continued throughout, turning to heavier rain at times, and we had cold, gusty North Westerlies on most of the tops and ridge lines. Combined with the greasy quartzite underfoot, this constituted a serious test for some on the scrambling sections. I had to deploy some occasional spotting, but happily the rope stayed in the sack all day. To add to the stress, one of the group slipped and sustained nasty bruising and a bloody nose, but luckily was not concussed and was able to complete the walk, albeit at a slow pace.
