Heaven or hellish...scotland’s
Rise to the very serious challenge of Ben Nevis
The Venomous Mountain or the Hill of Heaven – two possible translations for the name Ben Nevis.
Having climbed and walked many times on “the Ben” – the UK’S highest mountain – I reckon both names apply. The confusion is because the name has been so corrupted from the original Gaelic. It first appears as “Neevush” in the 1530s, then “Novesh” in 1595, not being written as “Nevis” until 1640.
Most commonly, the name is believed to come from the Gaelic “nibheis” – “venomous” or “evil”. It probably refers to the horrendous weather that frequently engulfs the mountain.
Naturalist Seton Gordon wrote that a popular traditional name was “the Hill of Heaven”. “Nevis” could be some corruption of the Gaelic “nèamhaidh” (heavenly).
Ben Nevis is also one of the most popular hills in Scotland, with 100,000 reaching the summit each year. The vast majority walk there via the “Mountain Track”, the name officially given in 2004 to the route popularly known as the “Tourist Path”.
By any route, Ben Nevis is a serious day out – the weather even in midsummer can be very cold, wet and windy. I’ve always thought it’s a shame the most popular route is the least inspiring – the Mountain Track is a dull four-hour trudge. With scores – sometime hundreds – of walkers, it’s also a very busy trudge.
Hidden from their view is the north face of the Ben – a dramatic arena of soaring cliffs, riven by great gullies and bolstered by towering rocky ridges. It’s a sight that can be thrilling and terrifying, and on an awesome scale that is befitting of our biggest mountain. The north face is a world-famous rock and ice-climbing venue, with routes of all grades.
The summit is a large plateau, often snow-covered deep into summer. On top of the observatory ruins sits a small emergency shelter for those caught out by the ferocious conditions that can lash the summit year-round.