Ben Vane

A day of firsts on a challenging walk.

Mount Keen in The Grampians was our planned destination but recent heavy snowfall made the access road to that Mountain likely to be inaccessible so we opted for our 2nd choice and headed west to Ben Vane, part of the Arrochar Alps. The 'we' on this occasion were my Brother Liam, his good friend and walking buddy Michael and an old friend of mine, Ciaron, himself an experienced Munro climber. My 1st ascent as a four.

An early start saw us set off from the car park at Inveruglas on the shores of Loch Lomond at 7am, following the track to the electric substation and the Cairn marking the start of the route. At this stage Ben Vorlich emerges on the right and the more elegant looking A'Chrois looms large on the left. After some heavy bog trotting we soon started our ascent on gnarly, icy rocks and scree. Only just attaining Munro status Ben Vane was reputed to be a cracking climb and we were already beginning to see why - A pyramid of rock and grass with bags of character and steep rough sides.

Only just attaining Munro Status at 3002ft, Ben Vane translates as 'Middle Mountain', sitting as it does in between Ben Ime and Ben Vorlich within the Arrochar Alps

It wasn't too long before we reached the snow line and stopped to pick out a route ahead. Ciaron's experience came to the fore here, picking out for us what looked like the hardest option of almost impossible steepness which, a few hours farther on turned out to be the correct route.

Crampons, Ice Axe and not so steely nerves

My 1st proper use of crampons and ice axe beckoned and my enthusiasm at this stage was palpable - this was going to be a tough nut to crack and even at only half way up the sense of achievement was growing. This was tempered somewhat by our first small scramble where I struggled badly. Coming up last I had great difficulty in getting over a small section where my short legs made following the others a tricky proposition. With a bit of support, guidance and hauling up by Ciaron I was up and over.

Where's Wally? Spot the climbers (and that's not even the summit)

Now within touching distance of the summit, a short steep section demanded caution as the snow gave little away in terms of foot or hand holds blanketing a rocky surface which made axe holds difficult to find. This caution was underlined by fellow walkers en-route down who advised that a from here onwards was awkward and mildly hazardous. I was very aware that a slip would be an awful scenario as below us was a slope of no more than 30 feet before a steep drop of 70 or so feet. It's fair to say that I was the least confident at this stage to the point of being very uncomfortable with the position I found myself in. That said, the care and caution with which we proceeded along with the physical and moral support shared among us all saw us reach the summit. The views eluded us as we were greeted with snow, wind and a thick frozen fog which gave the sun an other worldly haze. Salutations were given, selfies taken and we began our descent.

Ice axes, summit Cairn and hazy winter sun

As my blog has often conveyed, reaching the summit may feel like the end game but the descent is often more dangerous, more difficult, more time consuming and energy sapping but ultimately more enjoyable than the ascent and this was certainly one of those occasions.

This was Munro Number 20 for me and by far the most challenging and enjoyable yet. This really was beginning to take hold and on the quiet drive home I resolved to up my game in terms of fitness, knowledge and preparation.