Can you climb Ben Nevis with no experience?

The first thing to know is that there are two routes up and down Ben Nevis – the Mountain Track (or Tourist Track) and the Carn Mor Dearg Arête which is typically tackled by more experienced climbers. The Mountain Track is doable as a beginner if you have generally good fitness and go prepared for the conditions.



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Climbing Ben Nevis is the equivalent of climbing about 6,725 steps or nearly 700 flights of stairs, so you need to be relatively fit and have the appropriate clothing. It is also worth noting that some people believe coming down is just as hard as going up. The biggest factor that affects the difficulty is the weather.

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How long does the walk take? An average time to the summit and back is 7 – 8 hours. Walkers fit enough to try to climb The Three Peaks in 24 hours need to take 5 hours or less. The winner of The Ben Race each September gets to the summit and back in around 90 minutes.

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You need to be relatively fit to hike Ben Nevis. One way to illustrate the challenge involved would be to compare it to climbing stairs. Climbing Ben Nevis is the equivalent of climbing about 6,725 steps, or nearly 700 flights of stairs.

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You need to be reasonably fit before you consider making the ascent, and we wouldn't recommend a Ben Nevis walk for beginners. However, there is a path up Ben Nevis, and you won't need to do any scrambling.

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The first thing to know is that there are two routes up and down Ben Nevis – the Mountain Track (or Tourist Track) and the Carn Mor Dearg Arête which is typically tackled by more experienced climbers. The Mountain Track is doable as a beginner if you have generally good fitness and go prepared for the conditions.

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There are no toilets on the mountain, the only access you have to toilets is at the Ben Nevis Visitors center. The opening hours of these change during the year so it is worth checking with them if you have any questions.

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Yes. That's the short answer. I had a relatively straightforward (albeit it tiring) hike with my 7 year old to the summit of Ben Nevis. Of course, there are plenty of variables and things to consider.

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Mount Snowdon is instead, considered to be the easiest of the three. Scafell Pike is considered to be harder because it has a pretty steep incline. Part of the summit journey also involves a scree slope and this requires hikers to sort of scramble up. Therefore, it is tougher than Mount Snowdon and Ben Nevis.

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Be safe on Ben Nevis ! During the winter the mountain is cloaked in snow and ice and in these conditions only mountaineers equipped with ice axes and crampons should attempt the ascent. Winter conditions can occur from October to May.

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How much does it cost to climb Ben Nevis? Climbing Ben Nevis is free. There is, however, a charge to use the car park at the Glen Nevis Visitor Center, currently, £ 4 per car and £ 10 per minibus / motorhome / coach, per day.

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Ben Nevis is purportedly the hardest mountain (and highest peak) of the Three Peaks Challenge. That's why people tend to do it first if they're taking the 24 hour challenge.

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The North Face of the mountain offers the greatest challenges of all. The Ledge route is a non-climbing route, but it still has some sections of grade 1 scrambles. You may encounter pockets of snow even in early summer, so it's best to have some knowledge of using ice axes and crampons.

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The Gondola transports visitors from 100m to 650m up the mountain and takes approximately 15 minutes each way. The Doppelmayr Gondola system comprises of 80 six seat closed cabins running on a continuous 4.6km steel cable weighing 40 tonnes.

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The ordinary route up Ben Nevis, the 'Mountain Path' (also known as the 'Pony Track' and, misleadingly, the 'Tourist Path') is a technically easy path as these things go. Someone with a reasonable level of walking fitness should be able to ascend in 4-5 hours and descend in a further 2-3 hours.

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