Britain’s greatest ridges
From the Highlands of Scotland to Wales and the Lake District, this is our pick of the most exhilarating and awesome arêtes for hillwalkers.
e don’t know who first coined the phrase “If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much space.” It’s been attributed to everyone from authors to mountaineers, but equally sounds like the sort of thing an LA sleaze-rock band or a pushy estate agent might have come out with. It’s used as a motto of justification for following wild and often risky pursuits in the name of thrill-seeking, and while most of us are happier living a little further back from the edge, occupying slightly more ground and living to a ripe old age, there’s an inherent desire within some to occasionally peer over the brink.
Nowhere in the mountains is this philosophy of walking the fine line between safety and danger more apparent than a ridgeline. Here, the humble hillwalker with a good head for heights and a penchant for airy scrambling can be elevated into the realm of the mountaineer; traversing, climbing, and overcoming a narrow ribbon of rock with nothing but empty air either side. It’s a scene that will send shivers of fear down the spines of some, and an anticipatory flutter in the hearts of many.
Created and crafted by geology and meteorology, the UK mountains are full of ridges, and here we’ve collated 10 of the best. But due to the vast array and variation of British ridges we’ve had to set some rules. Firstly, we’re only letting ‘proper’ ridges onto this list. If you can’t stand on the crest and stare down the drop on both sides, it doesn’t count; sorry North Ridge of Tryfan, that rules you out. Secondly, we’re only including relatively accessible ridges. If you need to be a rock climber to complete it, it’s above and beyond our needs; Cuillin Ridge – you’re great but over-qualified. Finally it has to be, first and foremost, a scrambling route because, well, they’re the ridges we like the best; apologies Nantlle Ridge, you’re just a little too tame. So, with the parameters set and our loins girded for some knifeedge rock action, let’s take a look at the UK’s finest ridges…