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Winter Climbing on Ben Nevis and Glencoe

Winter climbing on Ben Nevis is a specialist outdoor sport. For or a winter climbing holiday the Fort William area has lots of mountain guide specialists

In winter, Ben Nevis can present opportunities for mountaineering and climbing of the highest quality. Ben Nevis ice is renowned throughout the world for its ability to provide superb placements for ice axes and crampons.
 
The reason for this high quality ice is the frequent 'freeze - thaw' activity which can take place throughout the winter. The temperature often hovers around zero degrees and the ice is continuously changing from gentle melting to hard freezing. This produces a 'toffee-like' consistency which makes climbing ice an invigorating and satisfying experience.
 
There are routes of all lengths and difficulties. The classic ridges, which in summer can be relatively straightforward, provide winter excursions requiring all the skills of mountaineering - route finding, axe and crampon work, belaying in a variety of situations, moving together and finally navigating safely off the mountain.
 
The first ice climbs were done during the end of the last century and activity has continued until the present day with new routes being climbed every year. Many of the hard routes of the late 1950's and early 1960's have now become classics with frequent ascents each winter.
 
The three most popular classic ice climbs are Point Five Gully, Zero Gully and the Orion Face Direct. Modern equipment and technology have brought the ascent of these routes within the grasp of many modern climbers and on a good clear day with a hard frost and a plentiful supply of ice, the north face of 'The Ben' is covered with enthusiastic climbers completing routes and creating memories which will last for the rest of their lives.
 
Ben Nevis in winter is no place for the unprepared - make sure you have the necessary experience or go with an experienced mountaineer or mountain guide. Mountain rescue services in the UK is not free - it costs a considerable amount of public money to operate the Search and Rescue Service.  Contact a mountain guide below.

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Hunter Mountaineering
First Class, friendly Mountain Guiding & Instruction on British Walking, Climbing, Scrambling and Mountaineering. Summer and Winter Private Guiding and Courses. From Walking up Ben Nevis to Climbing in Glencoe. Based in Fort William. We pride ourselves on our excellent customer feedback (Find us on Trip Advisor). We offer Private Guiding and the Courses that follow - Private Guiding, all year round: Our most popular choice is a bespoke service. This is the solution if you want to 'tick' specific climbs or summits, or work on particular skills. Do you want to Climb Ben Nevis via the mountain track, Tower Ridge or Ledge Route? Do you want to become more independent as a mountaineer, or develop your trad or winter leading? Or do you want to complete a particular climb, e.g. Aonach Eagach, Curved Ridge? Get in touch and we can start to make your plan happen. Summer Courses or ideas for Private Guiding could include - 1  Ben Nevis Walk 2  Munro Summits 3  Hill Walking, Navigation and Safety 4  Scrambling and Mountaineering 5  Rock Climbing 6  The CMD Ridge or Ledge route on the North Face 7  Tower Ridge, or other North Face Ridges 8  Aonach Eagach, Curved Ridge or other Glencoe Classics Winter Courses or ideas for Private Gudiing could include - 1  Winter Skills and Safety 2  Walking the Winter Munros 3  Winter Mountaineering 4  Introduction to Winter Climbing 5  Winter Climbing Hunter Mountaineering is run by myself, Max Hunter. I hold the Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor award (the WMCI - the highest professional certification for Mountaineering & Climbing in Great Britain), and am a member of the Association of Mountaineering Instructors (AMI) and the Mountain Training Association (MTA). I am also a qualified and experienced school teacher.
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