A Highland rescue team battled horrendous weather and difficult terrain to save the lives of more than 140 people stranded on the north’s most daring peaks last year.
Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team answered separate 120 callouts in 2022, with almost two thirds of rescues unfolding on Ben Nevis alone.
A total of 143 people lived to tell the tale of their ordeals, however, tragically, nine mountaineers also lost their lives.
And in one incident, they were even called out to rescue a 35kg Turkish dog who hurt her paws.
A year of rescues on Ben Nevis
Members of the 55-strong group of volunteer mountaineers scaled the 4,400ft peak on 73 separate occasions to rescue both amateur and experienced mountaineers.
Donald Paterson, leader of Lochaber MRT, said that level of demand is “normal” but admits modern technology has had a huge part to play in inspiring people to take on the great outdoors.
He said: “These figures are about normal for us now, although the last couple of years the numbers were lower due to the pandemic.
“The sheer volume of people that are now going into the outdoors, some more prepared than others, it has a lot to do with the mobile phone and people’s expectations nowadays.
“From the numbers that go up and down the Ben in a year, way more get away with it than those who get caught out.”
More lives lost on Ben Nevis
In March, the team faced a challenging rescue operation following reports of a fallen walker.
An eight-hour rescue operation was launched after Samuel Crawford, from Belfast, fell 1,000ft to his death.
The group of climbers Mr Crawford was part of was attempting to make its way off Ben Nevis when tragedy struck at Red Burn, on the west side of the mountain.
Members of the group got into difficulty, followed by a small number of soldiers who happened to be in the area and tried to help.
Looking back, Mr Paterson described conditions on the peak as “horrific.”
Brodie Hood has been a member of Lochaber MRT for around five years.
Reflecting on the rescue operation, he described it as “full on” due to the horrendous weather and the level of confusion about what was happening.
Mr Hood said: “One person had fallen down the gully, hit rock and he died and two other people had followed his footprints and slid down.
“It was pretty full-on. There was a bunch of soldiers that had to get walked off the hill as well because they didn’t have enough equipment.”
Emotional loss
Five months later, the team faced an emotional operation following the death of experienced mountaineer Rob Brown.
The 33-year-old had been climbing on the north face of Ben Nevis on July 29 when the tragic accident occurred.
Team leader Mr Hood said when the call came through, he didn’t originally make the connection between the Rob Brown he knew.
He said: “I got the call and then they mentioned the name. I didn’t put two and two together initially because it was a Robert rather than Rob. Of course, as you go along and you start to organise things, it clicks.”
Lochaber MRT was involved in retrieving Mr Brown and his belongings.
The team leader said an emotionally charged operation of this nature takes its toll on all involved.
“If it is somebody local then generally there will be a connection with the team somewhere along the line and as it was with Rob, there was a close link to the team,” he added.
“Although he had never been a member of the team, he was the partner of a member of the team so that was a tough one to swallow for the whole outdoor community.
“It affects the team members for sure.”
Climber dies in avalanche
As 2022 drew to a close, a 49-year-old male climber became the ninth person to die on Ben Nevis after falling 2,000ft during an avalanche.
The tragedy happened on December 30 as a group of four people were scaling Number Two Gully.
Teacher and outdoors enthusiast Mark Bessell, 48, from Bristol, died after nearly 2,000ft in an avalanche, while his climbing partner was taking to Belford Hospital in Fort William with serious injuries.
More than 40 volunteers from Lochaber MRT and Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team battled the weather to get to the men.
Mr Paterson said: “It appears they were near the top and their weight made a cornice (an overhanging ledge of snow) give way and that triggered the avalanche.
“The wind conditions meant that the helicopter couldn’t get in so the teams found the pair on top of the snow and stretchered them off the mountain.
“They must have fallen 600 metres (1,968ft) and the chap who survived was very lucky.”
‘All you need to hit is one rock and you’re in trouble’
Other climbers have been rescued with broken bones, such as the pelvis – but Mr Paterson said it was down to pure chance.
Mr Paterson recalled: “There was a nasty call-out in Green Gully on Ben Nevis as a man had fallen a good 300ft. Two of them were winter climbing at the time. One walked away and one half-smashed his pelvis to bits.
“There was another lassie who suffered a similar incident.
“She stopped to put her harness on and because it was bulletproof frozen snow, she just lost her balance and off she went. She suffered injuries to her pelvis, face, and head.”
Mr Paterson added: “It’s a bit like falling off a motorbike. You can fall off and walk away from it but you can also fall off and kill yourself, depending on what you hit on the way down.
“It is exactly the same on the hill in the winter time. You can fall down 1,000ft and not hit a thing and walk away with a couple of abrasions but then all you need to do is hit one rock and you’re in trouble.”
Walkers had ‘bitten off more than they could chew’
One of the more unusual rescues of 2022 involved a 35kg Turkish dog – and came after a packed day of five call-outs for the team.
Maggie, a Akbash dog became stranded on the summit of Ben Nevis in August after hurting her paws.
The three women scaling the peak attempted to carry her down when she became unable to move. However, as darkness fell, the group called for help.
Mr Paterson said it is one rescue that he will remember for years to come.
“That rescue was pretty unique,” he said.
“These girls had clearly bitten off more than they could chew. It was the hottest day of the year and they obviously had this big Turkish mountain dog. The name suggests it would be used for the mountains but she just had no idea what Ben Nevis was and what the ground was like.
“I have to say that is one that will stick in my mind just because of what it was.”