Editing Ben Nevis (section)

==Outdoor recreation==

=== Hiking and climbing ===
[[File:Path Up Ben Nevis.JPG|thumb|right|An old postcard view showing the path up Ben Nevis]]

Ben Nevis is a popular hiking destination, with 150,000 people a year visiting the peak.<ref name=bbcVisitors>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20180320-what-scotlands-ben-nevis-can-teach-us-about-climate-change|publisher=BBC|title=The hidden history of the UK's highest peak|date=26 March 2018|first=David|last=Cox}}</ref>

The 1883 Pony Track to the summit (also known as the ''Ben Path'', the ''Mountain Path'' or the ''Tourist Route'') remains the simplest and most popular route of ascent. It begins at [[Achintee, Fort William|Achintee]] on the east side of Glen Nevis about {{convert|2|km|mi|abbr=on}} from Fort William town centre, at around {{convert|20|m|ft|abbr=off}} above sea level. Bridges from the Visitor Centre and the [[youth hostel]] now allow access from the west side of Glen Nevis.<ref name="Ordnance Survey 2002">{{harvnb|Ordnance Survey|2002}}</ref><ref name="Butterfield 1986 97">{{harvnb|Butterfield|1986|p=97}}</ref> The path climbs steeply to the saddle by Lochan Meall an t-Suidhe (colloquially known as the 'Halfway Lochan') at 570&nbsp;m, then ascends the remaining {{convert|700|m|ft|abbr=off}} up the stony west flank of Ben Nevis in a series of zig-zags.<ref name="Ordnance Survey 2002">{{harvnb|Ordnance Survey|2002}}</ref>

[[File:Cic-2.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Charles Inglis Clark Memorial Hut with the Carn Dearg Buttress behind]]
A route popular with experienced [[hillwalking|hillwalkers]] starts at Torlundy, a few miles north-east of Fort William on the [[A82 road]], and follows the path alongside the {{lang|gd|italic=no|Allt a' Mhuilinn}}. It can also be reached from Glen Nevis by following the Pony Track as far as {{lang|gd|italic=no|Lochan Meall an t-Suidhe}}, then descending slightly to the [[Charles Inglis Clark Memorial Hut]] (known as the CIC Hut), a private [[mountain hut]] {{convert|680|m}} above sea level, owned by the [[Scottish Mountaineering Club]]<ref name="CIC"/> The route then ascends {{lang|gd|italic=no|Càrn Mòr Dearg}} and continues along the {{lang|gd|italic=no|Càrn Mòr Dearg}} Arête ("CMD Arête") before climbing steeply to the summit of Ben Nevis. This route involves a total of {{convert|1,500|m|ft|abbr=off}} of ascent and requires modest scrambling ability and a [[head for heights]].<ref>{{harvnb|Butterfield|1986|p=98}}</ref> In common with other approaches on this side of the mountain, it has the advantage of giving an extensive view of the cliffs of the north face, which are hidden from the Pony Track.<ref name="Butterfield 1986 97"/>

The north face of Ben Nevis is riven with buttresses, ridges, towers and pinnacles, and contains many classic scrambles and rock climbs. It is of major importance for British winter climbing, with many of its routes holding snow often until late April. It was one of the first places in Scotland to receive the attention of serious mountaineers; a partial ascent and, the following day, a complete descent of [[Tower Ridge]] in early September 1892 is the earliest documented climbing expedition on Ben Nevis.<ref>{{cite journal | journal = Alpine Journal | url= https://alpinejournal.org.uk/Contents/Contents_1895_files/AJ%201895%20Vol%2017%20520-527%20Alpine%20Notes.pdf  |date =1895 | volume =17 | pages= 520–521| access-date = 6 March 2025 | title = Alpine Notes }}</ref><ref name="Adby">{{cite book|author1=Terry Adby  |author2=Stuart Johnston |name-list-style=amp |year=2003|title=The Hillwalker's Guide to Mountaineering|publisher=Cicerone|location=Milnthorpe|isbn=978-1-85284-393-9|pages=240–247}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Hodgkiss|1994|p=119}}</ref> (It was not climbed from bottom to top in entirety for another two years). The Scottish Mountaineering Club's Charles Inglis Clark hut was built below the north face in Coire Leis in 1929. Because of its remote location, it is said to be the only genuine [[Mountain hut|alpine hut]] in Britain.<ref name="CIC"/>

Tower Ridge is the longest of the north face's four main [[ridges]], with around {{convert|600|m|ft|abbr=off}} of ascent. It is not technically demanding (its [[grade (climbing)#British|grade]] is Difficult), and most pitches can be tackled unroped by competent climbers, but it is committing and very exposed.<ref name="Adby"/> Castle Ridge (Moderate), the northernmost of the main ridges, is an easier scramble, while Observatory Ridge (Very Difficult),<ref>{{harvnb|Hodgkiss|1994|p=126}}</ref> the closest ridge to the summit, is "technically the hardest of the Nevis ridges in summer and winter".<ref name="Crocket 2009 100">{{harvnb|Crocket|Richardson|2009|p=100}}</ref> Between the Tower and Observatory Ridges are the Tower and Gardyloo Gullies; the latter takes its name from the cry of {{lang|fr|"garde à l'eau"}} (French for "watch out for the water") formerly used in Scottish cities as a warning when householders threw their waste out of a [[tenement]] window into the street. The gully's top wall was the refuse pit for the summit observatory.<ref name="Murray 1977"/>

The north face contains dozens of graded rock climbs along its entire length, with particular concentrations on the {{lang|gd|italic=no|Càrn Dearg}} Buttress (below the [[Munro]] top of {{lang|gd|italic=no|Càrn Dearg}} NW) and around the North-east Buttress and Observatory Ridge. Classic rock routes include ''Rubicon Wall'' on Observatory Buttress (Severe)&nbsp;– whose second ascent in 1937, when it was considered the hardest route on the mountain, is described by [[W. H. Murray]] in ''Mountaineering in Scotland''<ref name="Murray 1977"/>&nbsp;– and, on {{lang|gd|italic=no|Càrn Dearg}}, ''Centurion'' and ''The Bullroar'' (both HVS), ''Torro'' (E2), and ''Titan's Wall'' (E3), these four described in the [[Scottish Mountaineering Club|SMC]]'s guide as among "the best climbs of their class in Scotland".<ref name="Richardson 2002 53">{{harvnb|Richardson|2002|p=53}}</ref>
[[File:A climber nearing the top of No 5 Gulley - geograph.org.uk - 1104524.jpg|thumb|right|An ice-climber exiting Number Five Gully (450m I). [[Tower Ridge|Tower Gap]] can be discerned in the background.]]

Many seminal lines were recorded before the [[First World War]] by pioneering [[Scottish Mountaineering Club|Scottish climbers]] like J. N. Collie, Willie Naismith, [[Harold Raeburn]], and William and [[Ladies' Scottish Climbing Club|Jane]] Inglis Clark. Other classic routes were put up by G. Graham Macphee, Dr [[J. H. B. Bell|James H. B. Bell]] and others between the Wars; these include Bell's "Long Climb", at {{convert|1400|ft|m|abbr=on}} reputedly the longest sustained climb on the British mainland. In summer 1943 conscientious objector [[Brian Pinder Kellett|Brian Kellett]] made a phenomenal seventy-four repeat climbs and seventeen first ascents including fourteen solos,<ref name="Crocket 2009 100"/> returning in 1944 to add fifteen more new lines, eleven solo, including his eponymous HVS on Gardyloo buttress. Much more recently, an extreme and as yet ungraded climb on Echo Wall was completed by [[Dave MacLeod]] in 2008 after two years of preparation.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web08x/newswire-echo-wall-macleod |title=MacLeod's Boldest: Echo Wall |publisher=Alpinist.com| access-date = 22 February 2006}}</ref>

The north face is also one of Scotland's foremost venues for winter mountaineering and ice climbing and holds snow until quite late in the year; in a good year, routes may remain in winter condition until mid-spring. Most of the possible rock routes are also suitable as winter climbs, including the four main ridges; Tower Ridge, for example, is grade IV on the [[Scottish winter grade]], having been upgraded in 2009 by the Scottish Mountaineering Club after requests by the local Mountain Rescue Team, there being numerous benightments and incidents every winter season.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scotclimb.org.uk/bennevis.shtml |title=Climbing on Ben Nevis |publisher=Scottish Climbing Archive | access-date = 26 October 2006| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060924044416/http://scotclimb.org.uk/bennevis.shtml| archive-date= 24 September 2006 | url-status= live}}</ref>

In February 1960 James R. Marshall and Robin Clark Smith recorded six major new ice routes in only eight days including Orion Direct (V,5 400m); this winter version of Bell's Long Climb was "the climax of a magnificent week's climbing by Smith and Marshall, and the highpoint of the [[Glossary of climbing terms#step cutting|step-cutting]] era".<ref name="Richardson 2002 53"/>

=== Hill running ===
{{Main|Ben Nevis Race}}
[[File:Image29 jpg ben race 1979.jpg|thumb|right|1979 Ben Nevis Race]]

The history of [[hill running]] on Ben Nevis dates back to 1895. William Swan, a barber from Fort William, made the first recorded timed ascent up the mountain on or around 27 September of that year, when he ran from the old post office in Fort William to the summit and back in 2 hours 41 minutes.<ref name="MacLennan">{{cite journal |author=Hugh Dan MacLennan |date=November 1998 |title=The Ben Race: The supreme test of athletic fitness |journal=The Sports Historian |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=131–147 |url=http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/SportsHistorian/1998/sh182j.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/SportsHistorian/1998/sh182j.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=2 June 2009 |doi=10.1080/17460269809445800}}</ref>
The following years saw several improvements on Swan's record, but the first competitive race was held on 3 June 1898 under Scottish Amateur Athletic Association rules. Ten competitors ran the course, which started at the Lochiel Arms Hotel in [[Banavie]] and was thus longer than the route from Fort William; the winner was 21-year-old Hugh Kennedy, a gamekeeper at Tor Castle, who finished (coincidentally with Swan's original run) in 2&nbsp;hours 41&nbsp;minutes.<ref name="MacLennan"/>

Regular races were organised until 1903, when two events were held; these were the last for 24&nbsp;years, perhaps due to the closure of the summit observatory the following year.<ref name="MacLennan"/> The first was from [[Achintee]], at the foot of the Pony Track, and finished at the summit; It was won in just over an hour by Ewen MacKenzie, the observatory roadman.<ref name="MacLennan"/> The second race ran from new Fort William post office, and MacKenzie lowered the record to 2&nbsp;hours 10&nbsp;minutes, a record he held for 34&nbsp;years.<ref name="MacLennan"/>

The Ben Nevis Race has been run in its current form since 1937. It now takes place on the first Saturday in September every year, with a maximum of 500&nbsp;competitors taking part.<ref name="FWO">{{cite web|url=http://www.visit-fortwilliam.co.uk/mf_race.html|title=Ben Nevis Race – a brief history|access-date=25 November 2006|publisher=Fort William Online| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070102174814/http://visit-fortwilliam.co.uk/mf_race.html| archive-date= 2 January 2007 | url-status= live}}</ref> It starts and finishes at the [[Claggan Park, Fort William|Claggan Park]] football ground on the outskirts of Fort William, and is {{convert|14|km}} long with {{convert|1340|m}} of ascent.<ref name="SHR">{{cite web|url=http://www.scottishhillracing.co.uk/RaceDetails.aspx?RaceID=RA-0098|title=Ben Nevis Race|website=www.scottishhillracing.co.uk|access-date=2 January 2019}}</ref> Due to the seriousness of the mountain environment, entry is restricted to those who have completed three hill races, and runners must carry waterproofs, a hat, gloves and a whistle; anyone who has not reached the summit after two hours is turned back.<ref name="kopac">{{cite web|url=http://www.mhrrc.org/kopacs_corner/other_races/199803_ben_nevis.html|title=For Sport Alone: The Ben Nevis Race|access-date=2009-06-02|author=Bob Kopac|publisher=MHRRC Online|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603222427/http://www.mhrrc.org/kopacs_corner/other_races/199803_ben_nevis.html|archive-date=3 June 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> As of 2018, the record for the men's race has stood unbroken since 1984, when [[Kenny Stuart]] of [[Keswick, Cumbria|Keswick]] Athletic Club won with a time of 1:25:34. The record for the women's race of 1:43:01 was set in 2018 by [[Victoria Wilkinson]].<ref name="SHR"/>

=== Extreme sports ===
Ben Nevis is becoming popular with ski mountaineers and boarders. The Red Burn ({{lang|gd|italic=no|Allt Coire na h-Urcaire}}) just to the North of the tourist path gives the easiest descent, but most if not all of the easier gullies on the North Face have been skied, as has the slope once adorned by the abseil poles into {{lang|gd|italic=no|Coire Leis}}. No 4 gully is probably the most skied. Although Tower scoop makes it a no-fall zone, Tower Gully is becoming popular, especially in May and June when there is spring snow.<ref>Kenny Biggin, ''Scottish Offpiste Skiing and Snowboarding: Nevis Range and Ben Nevis'' (Spean Bridge: Skimountain, 2013), pp. 64–84</ref>

[[File:Ski Ben Nevis.jpg|thumb|A skier [[Ski skins|skinning]] towards the summit]]

In 2018 Jöttnar pro team member Tim Howell BASE jumped off Ben Nevis which was covered by BBC Scotland.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-scotland-47214717/base-jumper-tim-howell-leaps-from-ben-nevis "Base jumper Tim Howell leaps from Ben Nevis"]. ''BBC Scotland'', 12 February 2019</ref>

In May 2019, a team of highliners completed a crossing above the Gardyloo Gully, a new altitude record for the UK.<ref>{{cite news |title=In pictures: UK's highest altitude highline completed on Ben Nevis |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-48880463 |access-date=6 July 2019 |work=BBC News |agency=BBC |date=5 July 2019}}</ref> Also in May 2019, a team of 12, led by Dundee artist [[Douglas Roulston]] carried a {{convert|1.5|m|ft|abbr=off|adj=on}} tall statue of the DC Thomson character [[Oor Wullie]] to the top of the mountain. The statue, which had been painted by Roulston with a 360-degree scene of the view from the summit was later sold at the Oor Wullie Big Bucket Trail charity auction to raise money for a number of Scottish children's charities.<ref name="rooney">{{cite news |last1=Rooney |first1=Richard |title=Oor Wullie on Ben Nevis: How a 'superstar' team united two Scottish icons for charity |url=https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/entertainment/whats-on/890741/oor-wullie-on-ben-nevis-how-a-superstar-team-united-two-scottish-icons-for-charity/ |access-date=27 October 2024 |work=The Courier |date=14 May 2019}}</ref><ref name="maclennan">{{cite news |last1=MacLennan |first1=Chris |title=Oor Wullie statue which was taken to top of Ben Nevis finds new home in Inverness |url=https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands-islands/1775156/oor-wullie-statue-which-was-taken-to-top-of-ben-nevis-finds-new-home-in-inverness/ |access-date=27 October 2024 |work=Press and Journal |date=17 June 2019}}</ref>

Ben Nevis is one of the three mountains climbed in the [[National Three Peaks Challenge]], where participants aim to climb Ben Nevis, [[Scafell Pike]] and [[Snowdon]], often within 24 hours and using motor transport between them. The total height climbed is {{cvt|3064|m}} and the distance walked {{cvt|23|miles}}, with about {{cvt|460|miles}} of driving.<ref>{{cite web |title=National Three Peaks Challenge |url=https://www.threepeakschallenge.uk/national-three-peaks-challenge/ |publisher=Three Peaks Challenge Ltd |access-date=12 November 2024}}</ref> It has been estimated that some 30,000 people attempt the challenge each year, often as part of organised groups, and the impact on the local areas has been criticised.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Three Peaks Challenge – what do you think? |url=https://services.thebmc.co.uk/the-three-peaks-challenge--what-do-you-think |website=services.thebmc.co.uk |publisher=British Mountaineering Club |access-date=12 November 2024 |date=4 October 2013}}</ref> Various records have been set for the challenge, including James Forrest's fastest self-supported completion in 16 days, 13 hours, 59 mins in 2021<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bailey |first1=Dan |title=James Forrest on the Self-Supported 3 Peaks Record |url=https://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/features/james_forrest_on_the_self-supported_3_peaks_record-14046 |access-date=12 November 2024 |work=www.ukhillwalking.com |date=6 December 2021 |language=en}}</ref> and Imogen Boddy's fastest female completion on foot, with support, in 6 days 5 hours 43 mins, in 2024.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Pilastro |first1=Eleonora |title=UK runner completes National Three Peaks Challenge in less than a week |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2024/6/uk-runner-completes-national-three-peaks-challenge-in-less-than-a-week |publisher=Guinness World Records |access-date=12 November 2024 |date=26 June 2024}}</ref> In 2022 the Nevis Landscape Trust introduced a registration system for charity events on Ben Nevis.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ben Nevis registration system for charity walks |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-63135016 |access-date=12 November 2024 |work=BBC News |date=4 October 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Organised Events |url=https://www.nevislandscape.co.uk/visiting-the-area/group-events |website=www.nevislandscape.co.uk |publisher=Nevis Landscape Partnership |access-date=12 November 2024 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Safety ===
{{see also|Mountains and hills of Scotland#Injuries and deaths|Buachaille Etive Mòr#Injuries and deaths}}
Ben Nevis's popularity, climate and complex [[topography]] contribute to a high number of [[mountain rescue]] incidents resulting in several deaths annually on Ben Nevis.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Arnette |first=Alan |title=About Ben Nevis |url=http://www.alanarnette.com/climbs/bennevisfaq.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703044922/http://www.alanarnette.com/climbs/bennevisfaq.php |archive-date=3 July 2022 |access-date=3 July 2022}}</ref> There have been over 100 fatalities recorded on the mountain since record keeping began in 1849.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ben Nevis Deaths - Ben Nevis |url=https://bennevis.co.uk/deaths/ |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=bennevis.co.uk |language=en-GB}}</ref> Fatalities on the mountain occur most regularly due to avalanches and climbing accidents on more difficult routes. In March 2025, a 22-year-old climber died after falling in the Moonlight Gully in challenging weather conditions.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-03-31 |title=Climber, 22, dies after falling from Ben Nevis |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq5weeglq3jo |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Avalanches occur regularly in the winter season. In December 1998, an avalanche resulted in the deaths of four climbers on Aonach Mor. Three climbers survived after being trapped under snow for 16 hours. Another climber was killed days later after slipping on the ice.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Seenan |first=Gerard |last2= |first2= |last3= |first3= |date=1999-01-02 |title=1,500ft fall on Ben Nevis brings death toll to five |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/jan/02/gerardseenan |access-date=2025-04-21 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Two [[avalanche]]s occurred on Ben Nevis in 2009<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/dec/30/ben-nevis-avalanche-kills-climbers|title=Ben Nevis avalanche kills two climbers|last=Carrell|first=Severin|date=30 December 2009|work=The Guardian|access-date=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703054600/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/dec/30/ben-nevis-avalanche-kills-climbers|archive-date=3 July 2022}}</ref> and 2016,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14381209.missing-ben-nevis-couple-hit-massive-avalanche/|title=Missing Ben Nevis couple were hit by 'massive avalanche'|date=24 March 2016|work=The Herald (Glasgow)|access-date=4 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220704031625/https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14381209.missing-ben-nevis-couple-hit-massive-avalanche/|archive-date=4 July 2022}}</ref> causing the deaths of two people on each occasion. In another two avalanches that occurred in 1970<ref name="scotsman 25 Jan 2009">{{cite news |url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/rescuer-tells-of-horror-as-glencoe-avalanche-kills-three-climbers-there-were-hundreds-of-tons-of-snow-1-1303498 |title=Rescuer tells of horror as Glencoe avalanche kills three climbers: "There were hundreds of tons of snow" |work=The Scotsman |date=25 Jan 2009 |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-date=24 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224103057/http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/rescuer-tells-of-horror-as-glencoe-avalanche-kills-three-climbers-there-were-hundreds-of-tons-of-snow-1-1303498 |url-status=live }}</ref> and 2019,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/mar/12/ben-nevis-avalanche-climbers-police-scotland|title=Ben Nevis avalanche kills three people|last=Carrell|first=Severin|date=12 March 2019|work=The Guardian|access-date=3 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703055612/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/mar/12/ben-nevis-avalanche-climbers-police-scotland|archive-date=3 July 2022}}</ref> three people died on each occasion. A climber died in an avalanche on the north face of the mountain in 2022,<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 January 2023 |title=Bristol teacher killed in Ben Nevis avalanche |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-64169190 |access-date=5 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105153101/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-64169190 |archive-date=5 January 2023}}</ref> and an experienced Ben Nevis mountain guide was killed in an avalanche in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Driscoll |first=Alex |date=2024-04-13 |title=Thousands raised in memory of Bristol teacher killed in avalanche |url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-teacher-killed-ben-nevis-9211557 |access-date=2025-04-21 |website=Bristol Live |language=en}}</ref>

==== Navigation ====
[[File:Ben Nevis cornice.jpg|thumb|right|View south-west from the summit in early April. When the cliff edges are [[cornice (climbing)|corniced]], accurate navigation is critical.]]
Some incidents arise over difficulties in [[navigation|navigating]] to or from the summit,<ref name="MCofS Newsletter"/> especially in poor visibility. The problem stems from the fact that the summit plateau is roughly [[kidney]]-shaped and surrounded by cliffs on three sides; the danger is particularly accentuated when the main path is obscured by snow. Two precise [[compass]] [[bearing (navigation)|bearings]] taken in succession are necessary to navigate from the summit cairn to the west flank, from where a descent can be made on the Pony Track in relative safety.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mcofs.org.uk/ben-nevis-navigation.asp |title=Navigation on Ben Nevis  |publisher=[[Mountaineering Scotland]] |website=www.mcofs.org.uk |access-date=30 October 2016}}</ref>

In the late 1990s, Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team erected two posts on the summit plateau to assist walkers attempting the descent in [[fog]]gy conditions. These posts were subsequently cut down by climbers, sparking controversy in mountaineering circles on the ethics of such additions.<ref name="MCofS Newsletter">{{cite journal |author=The Mountaineering Council of Scotland |year=1997 |title=Ben Nevis—The Future |journal=Newsletter |volume=33 |url=http://www.mountaineering-scotland.org.uk/nl/33b.html}}</ref><ref name="Cairns debate">{{cite web |url= http://www.mountaineering-scotland.org.uk/bendebate/index.html|title= Summit Safety and Ben Nevis Cairns: The MCofS seeks a resolution |access-date= 26 October 2006 |author= The Mountaineering Council of Scotland |format=also see sub-pages| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060927152330/http://www.mountaineering-scotland.org.uk/bendebate/index.html| archive-date= 27 September 2006 | url-status= live}}</ref> Critics argued that cairns and posts are an unnecessary man-made intrusion into the natural landscape, which create a false sense of security and could lessen mountaineers' sense of responsibility for their own safety.<ref name="Cairns debate"/>

In 2009, the Nevis Partnership moved and erected a number of {{convert|6|ft|m|adj=on}}-tall [[cairn]]s on the summit plateau to aid navigation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2009/10/ben_nevis_navigation_-_cairns_moved-49797|title=Ben Nevis Navigation - Cairns Moved|author=Nevis Partnership|publisher=UK Climbing|date=14 October 2009}}</ref> Subsequently, the John Muir Trust cleared a number of smaller informal cairns in 2016 which had been erected by visitors, which were seen as dangerous as they could confuse walkers using them for navigation.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shute |first1=Joe |title=The deadly secret of Ben Nevis's man-made cairns |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/countryside/12182557/The-deadly-secret-of-Ben-Neviss-man-made-cairns.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/countryside/12182557/The-deadly-secret-of-Ben-Neviss-man-made-cairns.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |date=6 March 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref>