I’ve attempted Ben Wyvis many times and for a while it was the bane of my existence as I was never able to summit successfully. When I first moved to Inverness, I naively assumed that it would be an easy climb and I’d have it ticked off no bother. The closest Munro to Inverness (a forty minute drive), Ben Wyvis stands tall over the city and the Moray Firth. On a clear day you can see its broad face for miles, a tall figure lurking in the background. 

As I’d always assumed I would climb this Munro, I was never really in a rush to, but one day I found myself heading over the Kessock Bridge in its general direction. The day was nothing special and clouds were coming in, but I naively wasn’t worried about navigation as the majority of Ben Wyvis’s ascent is up steep stone steps. G accompanied me, but at this point he had never climbed a Munro. Thinking I was an expert, I advised him that this was the best one to start with. 

The path up Ben Wyvis was clear from the beginning and we worked our way slowly up the stone steps. About half way up there is a large boulder which we reached relatively quickly. By this stage a cloud was attempting to creep in, but we could see other people climbing ahead of us so we continued. Nearer the top, the steps fizzled out and the climb turned into an almost scree-like scramble to a large cairn (this is not the summit). By now, the wind had picked up and was screaming down our thin layers of clothing. G was looking panicked and my shaky assurance wasn’t the most calming, but feeling we were near the summit I pushed on. 

At this first cairn we took shelter, reevaluating a) our lack of equipped attire, b) the increasing wind speed. Realising that this cairn was not the top and that we would have to traverse across a plane for another half an hour before reaching the summit made our decision not to continue easy. We swiftly made an ascent and were safely back down within the hour resulting in a good decision. However, it meant that Ben Wyvis remained unconquered.

We returned again, the following year, this time with two friends in tow. G and I were feeling fitter and braver the second time around, but unfortunately our two friends had just recovered from Covid and were not feeling up for the climb. Again, we reached the domineering boulder (the boulder of doom as we now refer to it) half-way up, but turned back shortly afterwards. Ben Wyvis, again, remained unconquered.

Third time lucky? Once more we attempted Ben Wyvis, this time in the snow. We had just invested in snow gear, ice axes, and I had purchased a pair of nifty Sealskinz gloves for a hefty price. However, once more the snow proved too thick, the wind too strong, and we found ourselves swiftly turning back at the boulder of doom. It is a skill to have the will to turn around when you’re near the top, so don’t view it as a failure. ‘Bagging’ a Munro is never worth jeopardising your health and you’ll always be able to return and conquer the mountain in the future. 

We returned to Ben Wyvis for the fourth and final time on an unusual day; the day after we had conquered The Glen Shiel Ridge. We awoke on Sunday morning, feeling stiff from our seven Munro hike the day before. We had a lazy morning, a fry-up, and watched a few episodes of whatever show we were watching at the time. But around 2pm I realised that the sun was still shining and I was keen to do something other than lie about in bed for the rest of the day. We thought quickly about where to go that would be easy and quick and Ben Wyvis cropped into our heads.

Due to it being summer, the light was still there so we packed swiftly and headed on our way. We reached the car park around 4pm and began to climb. Unlike our previous attempts, this evening was warm, the wind calm, and the sun was beginning to set. We still ached from the hike the day before, but it felt good to stretch our legs and we took the hike at a leisurely pace. We passed the previous cairn we had stopped at, reaching the actual summit in good time. We didn’t stay too long as the sun was setting and our bare legs were growing cold. We descended swiftly and were back at home in time for tea. I wish every Munro was a 40 minute drive away from Inverness, but it’s safe to say that Ben Wyvis was definitely worth the wait. Sometimes it takes four attempts to reach a summit…

Onwards and upward,

Róise