Ben Nevis
|
|
Template:Infobox british hills
Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in the British Isles. It is situated in the west of Scotland, close to the town of Fort William (Template:Coor dms). This imposing colossus is one of 284 Munros (mountains in Scotland that reach an elevation of 3,000 feet or more).
Ben Nevis is somewhat infamous for its inclement weather. The summit boasts the following statistics:
- 355 days a year cloud-covered, on average.Template:Ref
- 261 full gales per year, on average.
- 4,350 mm of rainfall per year, compared to only 2,050 mm in Fort William, just a few miles away.Template:Ref
The draw of the highest peak in the British Isles attracts over 100,000 ascents a year.Template:Ref A significant number of these visitors have little experience of mountains, and many are caught out each year by the quickly changing weather. Between 1990 and 1995 alone there were 13 fatalities on the mountain.Template:Ref (Eight of these were due to falls while rock climbing.)
Ben_Nevis_Tourist_Route.jpg
There is a relatively simple route to the summit known as the 'Tourist Route' that begins at the Glen Nevis Visitor Centre about one mile from Fort William town centre. A path from the youth hostel joins this route a short distance up the mountain. Another popular route is from Steal further up Glen Nevis, it is shorter and steeper, and tends to be used by climbers with a modicum of experience.
Controversy continues to rage about the placing of navigation poles near the summit. The poles were placed upon the advice on Lochaber Mountain Rescue, as an aid for climbers or walkers in bad weather—the descent from summit plateaux having proven deadly in foggy conditions. Currently they have been cut down by environmentally conscious climbers who object to the aesthetic intrusion.
The origins of the name of the mountain are unclear. The word ben is certainly the Gaelic for peak, and Ben Nevis is sometimes referred to as 'The Ben'. However several possibilities for the meaning of nevis have been suggested. This include 'venomous', 'burst' or 'flow' (from neb) and 'brow of keen air' (from neamh meaning 'keeness of air' and bhathais meaning 'brow'). Finally a locally popular suggestion is that the name derives from naomh meaning 'heaven'. However this etymology is rejected by linguists. Ben Nevis is also a brand name of whisky distillery in the nearby town of Fort William.
Ben Nevis is one of three British mountains climbed as part of the (National) Three Peaks Challenge.
BenNevisruins.jpg
A meteorological observatory on the summit was permanently manned between October 1883 and October 1904. In September 1894 CTR Wilson was employed for a couple of weeks as temporary relief for one of the permanent staff. It was during this sojourn that his attention was caught by the Brocken Spectre. His subsequent experimental work aimed at understanding this optical phenomenon eventually led to his invention of the cloud chamber.
Ben Nevis consists of igneous rock dating from the Devonian period of geological history.
The north face attains a maximum height of 2,000 feet and extends for 2 miles. It is the most impressive mountain face in the United Kingdom and has many famous mountaineering routes, from Tower Ridge (grade II) to Centurion (grade VIII.8). This face holds snow until quite late in the year, and in a good year routes may remain in winter condition until mid-spring.
There is an annual Grade A fell race [1] (http://www.mhrrc.org/199803kop.html) to the summit of Ben Nevis from Fort William and back again. The fastest recorded time for men is 1 hour and 25 minutes, and 1 hour 43 minutes for women.
A peak in New Zealand's Remarkables range of mountains is named after Ben Nevis.
See also
External links
- Edinburgh Geological Society; Ben Nevis geology (http://www.edinburghgeolsoc.org/z_43_02.html)
- Ben Nevis web cam (http://visit-fortwilliam.co.uk/webcam/)
- Ben Nevis at Peakware (http://www.peakware.com/encyclopedia/peaks/bennevis.htm); photos
- Ben Nevis Whisky distillery (http://www.bennevisdistillery.com/)
References
- Template:Note BBC News (2002), "Appeal to tidy up Ben Nevis". Online, accessed April 12, 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/2315729.stm
- Template:Note Eric Langmuir (1995), "Mountaincraft and Leadership (Third edition)", SportScotland, Edinburgh.
- Template:Note Suzanne Miller (2004), "Ben Nevis Geology", The Edinburgh Geologist, Autumn, No. 43. Online, accessed April 12, 2005. http://www.edinburghgeolsoc.org/z_43_02.html
- Template:NoteThe Mountaineering Council of Scotland (1997) "Ben Nevis — The Future" Newsletter No. 33, August. Online, accessed April 12, 2005. http://www.mountaineering-scotland.org.uk/nl/33b.htmlde:Ben Nevis