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After several fixture list congestion then weather enforced postponements, the Dundee Ben Nevis Conversion 2005 team finally left for Glen Nevis on the afternoon of Saturday 11th June.

First stop for the intrepid band was a “warm-up” event at the Falls of Bruar for a spot of cliff jumping into the icy waters at the well known beauty spot.

Cliff jumping at the Falls of Bruar

Suitably invigorated by their plunge, the party were in perfect mood to start preparing for the next morning’s exertions with a short tour of Fort William’s pubs and night spots. Quick thinking and the recruitment of a taxi driver located a rugby ball, generously donated by Lochaber Rugby Club, which local weekend revellers were offered the chance to sign for £1. A signing frenzy boosted funds by almost £300 and the team retired to hostel and camp site to get some sleep before the big climb.

Starting off at the foot of Ben Nevis

Torrential dawn rain thankfully cleared and once various midge repellent formulae were field tested the assault on Britain’s highest peak at 1343 metres or 4406 feet was launched.

Setting off from the Glen Nevis Hostel at 10.20am the team quickly got into their stride and made good time up the first steep few hundred metres. Keeping a good pace and bolstered by words of bewildered encouragement from fellow hikers on the path we were soon passing Lochan Meall an t-Suidhe (see 3D route map below). Working two men to a pole and rotating the load, the pace never dropped and as the team gained height the conditions began to deteriorate.

Shouldering the load on the way up

Rain then driving hail heralded the rock strewn approach to the summit plateau and the foul weather gear worn by walkers descending hinted at even worse ahead. But the pace never dropped and when the summit trig point loomed out of the cloud and snow the clock was stopped at 2 hours 50 for the ascent, an incredible achievement considering most of the party had never attempted anything like this before let alone carrying a full set of metal rugby posts.

3D route map shows the scale of hill

Damage to one of the uprights and the strong winds made erecting the posts a bit awkward and the substantial edifice of the trig point came in handy as the teetering and skewed bar was raised and balanced against it. Crowds of onlookers had delayed their descent to find out just what this seemingly insane bunch of Dundonians were trying to do and the first cheer of the day went up when Ross Lemon pinched one of the balls and launched a cheeky drop goal over the bar before Barry had even set up his kicking tee. But the official conversion was slotted with the same cool strike seen on perfect Mayfield turf never mind the treacherous boulder field that is the summit of Ben Nevis.

On the summit plateau

The cloud cleared briefly to afford a perfect view of the imposing North Face before the bone chilling wind dictated that descent was the prudent course of action and just before 2pm the posts were shouldered once more and the long journey down began.

Quicker progress and some imaginative methods for “lowering” the posts meant the conversion team were back in Glen Nevis for approximately 4.30pm.

The team with the posts on the Ben Nevis trig point

A big thanks to the friendly and generous hospitality of everyone we met in Fort William and to the dozens of walkers on the hill for their encouragement and interest in the project. Thanks also to Lochaber Rugby Club for providing a ball at such short notice for some impromptu fund-raising, Donald Edwards for the use of his truck to transport the posts and everyone who took part on the day.

The official time for the event was agreed at 5 hrs 57.5 mins.

The club wishes to express thanks to the John Muir Trust for their support in this venture. For more information on the Trust you can access their website at www.jmt.org

If you find this page useful you may also be interested in the following links:

The Team

Thanks

Permission for the Ben Nevis Conversion 2005 attempt and useful advice has been received from the following organisations

Donations and services have been gratefully received from

Donald Edwards

Lochaber Rugby Club