800m. Almost certainly the finest winter climb in the UK available to weekend warriors, and certainly the longest. Tower ridge continues to fascinate and compel, with a magnificent mix of wall, ridge, and traverse lines taking the boldest classic alpine route almost to the very summit of Britain's highest mountain. The two crux pitches, the eastern traverse and the Tower Gap are formidable obstacles in any conditions, and many a party has been benighted attempting to solve their mysteries. On a ridge like this, route finding should be obvious, but in poor weather it can be a nightmare. Worth remembering is the Tower Ridge Rulebook (Cold Climbs) quote "Go up to the Great Tower until it gets really steep before traversing left" - not knowing this has led to many epics, several mentioned below.Feedback
J.N.Collie, G.A.Solly, J.Collier 30/Mar/1894.
Ticklists
Cold Climbs, Ben Nevis Ridges, Mountaineering in Scotland: in the footsteps of WH Murray, 3 star Scottish winter, MUMC Ticklist, The best the UK has to offer for mere mortals (apart from the lakes cos its always wet), Chasing the Ephemeral, Winter Aspirations, Big Routes, The Great Gumclub Ticklist, Magical mysterious and unusual beasts of rock & myth, Cold Climbs (slimmed down), EUMC - Must do climbs, Scottish Winter Climbs, 4 Star Scottish Winter, Must climb at crags
Feedback
| User | Date | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| dunky | 29 Aug, 2019 |
Show βeta
βeta: Walking from the quarry carpark after a relaxed and late start we arrived at the Douglas gap to find few people about and nobody on the ridge. A glorious scramble with exposure and good holds the whole way I loved every minute, with huge wall all around really added to the flavour of the route. Sun finally came out when we reached the top, want to do it again. | ||
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Show beta
βeta: Walking from the quarry carpark after a relaxed and late start we arrived at the Douglas gap to find few people about and nobody on the ridge. A glorious scramble with exposure and good holds the whole way I loved every minute, with huge wall all around really added to the flavour of the route. Sun finally came out when we reached the top, want to do it again. |
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| hoppojoe7 | 27 Aug, 2019 |
Show βeta
βeta: (Summer)Lovely sustained grade 2/3 scramble, if you can handle exposure it’s a breeze. There’s always a good hold In reach even though rocks were wet you get good grip! Walk in 75mins climb 50mins, descended as the crow flys back to north face car park. Not recommended. Very loose and tiresome. Better to abseil if you have rope but 2nd best, follow the walking path down the south side and branch off right back into the Nevis valley | ||
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Show beta
βeta: (Summer)Lovely sustained grade 2/3 scramble, if you can handle exposure it’s a breeze. There’s always a good hold In reach even though rocks were wet you get good grip! Walk in 75mins climb 50mins, descended as the crow flys back to north face car park. Not recommended. Very loose and tiresome. Better to abseil if you have rope but 2nd best, follow the walking path down the south side and branch off right back into the Nevis valley |
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Route of Interest
North East Buttress
Grade: IV 5 ***(Ben Nevis)