A walker has been blasted as “incredibly stupid” by rescuers after he called for help trying to scale in thick snow and ice the UK’s highest mountain in work boots.
The man was found slipping and sliding on Ben Nevis by two other walkers.
They raised the alarm at around 1.50pm.
The stranded walker, who was on the main path, was airlifted off the 4411-ft high mountain by the Inverness-based Coastguard search and rescue helicopter – but not before John Stevenson, leader of Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team, gave him “piece of my mind.”
“He was totally ill equipped for the conditions. I spoke to him on the phone as well as the two guys who came across him slipping and sliding down the mountain.
“His fingernails must be damaged because he was hanging on at one point to stop him sliding away. He had no crampons, no ice axe.
“The mountain is full of snow and is very icy – it is as hard as iron. Yet this chap attempted to climb it wearing work boots and insufficient other gear.
“He had a jacket and gloves but not much else. You are asking for trouble. He has been incredibly stupid.
“He didn’t even make it to the top. He said he could not get down – he was at about 4000 feet – and I’m not surprised. He was not injured, just stupid. I could not believe he was up there without the proper kit. You only had to look at the mountain to see the risks.”
A Police Scotland spokesman added:”The walker was spoken to by police and given the appropriate advice.”
In March 2016, a 28-year-old woman came close to perishing after scaling Ben Nevis in shorts and tights.
In the summer of 2014 rescuers on Ben Nevis’s sister peak, Aonach Mor, had to carry a man to safety when he slipped and hurt his ankle – while wearing flip-flops. The walker’s two companions, who said they came from Asia to Scotland to “see the snow”, were in bare feet and trainers.