North East Buttress

North East Buttress

The North East Buttress of Ben Nevis

Today ticked a lot of boxes for David. It was his final day of preparation before departing for an attempt on the North East ridge of Everest but with the poor weather of the past few days he'd had to abort two attempts on the classic North East Buttress (IV, 4). We made an early start and made a quick ascent summiting in a white out at 1.30pm. The slabs up to the first platform were thinly iced but the Mantrap was bare rock and the 40' Corner contained plenty of good ice. Today I was working for Alan Kimber & West Coast Mountain Guides.

David approaching the Second Platform.

North East Buttress

The North East Buttress of Ben Nevis

An early start saw us first at the foot of the classic North East Buttress (IV,4). The easy traverse to the first platform felt pretty insecure but once on the ridge conditions were perfect. The Mantrap was dry and in very easy condition. The 40' Corner contained very little ice but still felt bold. We topped out under blue skies for lunch on the summit. There is now an easy zig zag track down in to Coire Leis by the Abseil Posts. The Ben was fairly busy today with teams on Minus 3 Gully, Orion Face, Point 5 Gully, Tower Ridge, Vanishing Gully, Glover's Chimney and Comb Gully.

Traversing to the First Platform.

Traversing to the First Platform.

Grade III climbing on the ridge.

The final stunning snow arete.

Topping out a few feet from the summit.

Lunch on top of the Ben.