The John Muir Trust is consulting with the Mountaineering Council of Scotland’s Safety Committee and Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team to determine what, if anything, should be done with both the top marker post on the lip of Coire Leis and the No 4 Gully Marker on the summit plateau of Ben Nevis.
As a wild land charity the Trust has a presumption against structures, way markers and poles on the summit. Currently there are numerous structures and poles which have been placed there over the years. If there isn’t a clear reason for these to remain then the Trust says it aims to remove them, after consultation with relevant bodies.
The Trust feels that the Coire Leis marker post could reasonably be replaced with a cairn, similar to those which lead to the summit from the main path. The Trust said that, “The position with the Number 4 Gully Marker appears to be more complex and needs to be discussed with both the MCofS and Lochaber MRT.”
“Once we’ve formed a proposal we’ll invite comments from our members and anyone with an interest in the summit of the Ben, whether they are guides, rescuers, walkers or climbers. We’ll aim to publicise this as widely as we can so that people have a chance to comment before a decision is made.”