Nowhere on my plan did I write “Oh yeah and climb England’s tallest peak.”
Nowhere!
Still, that’s what I did while visiting Fort Williams in western Scotland, on the border of the highlands. From near sea level it’s a persistent climb over several miles as you climb to the peak. At the base they were warning people off due to bad weather but when was I going to come back? Not any time soon so I put on all the layers of clothes I had and set out. It was rewarding.
I considered renaming this page “To Ben Nevis” but decided against it. Originally this day was to be like many other days: a driving tour with many stops to see ruins, mountains, coastline, and other sites of interest. However, from my early days of planning this trip up to the night before driving to Fort Williams, everything pointed to my climbing the mountain.
Ben Nevis is the tallest mountain in the British Isles. At its base you’re at 33 feet above sea level and by the time you reach the top you’re at 4,406 feet. To get to the top and back you have to walk 10 miles. Though I’m a moderately experienced hiker, this sounded challenging and I also thought it sounded memorable … so I climbed it!
To make such a hike, I was fairly prepared with the right supplies. I packed lots of layers of clothing, rain gear, food and water into my a backpack. Thankfully I had a knitted cap which I bought as a souvenir at Loch Ness. Tennis shoes weren’t the best for hiking and I had no gloves but I figured I could get by and I was right.
In the end, though I’m sore all through my legs, I’m glad I climbed Ben Nevis.
This will be a memory I’ll keep forever.
by 
