Cloud on the summit of Ben Nevis broke up as Allan and I walked up from Achintee. There are snow patches on the Pony Track up to 1000m where it is continuous snow cover to the top. With it being slightly colder last night the snow was quite firm but softening in the sunshine. The warm summit temperatures over the last few days have been melting the snow but only very slowly. There is still 3m depth on the summit and for once standing in the trig point is easy!

There is still a very good amount of ice on the crags too. Many cornices look quite stable now but there are a few hanging lumps of snow still to drop off, most notably above Indicator Wall. The slide down the Red Burn is in great condition too! Allan did great on his first taste of winter walking. It was good to have the crampons and ice axe with us but low down on the way back it felt more like summer than winter.