Three hikers found dead on Highlands mountain ridge

Three hillwalkers have been found dead on a mountain ridge in Scotland after they failed to return from a hike.

The bodies of two men and a woman were found on the Aonach Eagach ridge in Glencoe, after the alarm was raised shortly after 9pm on Saturday night.

It followed police being alerted that the group, none of whom have been identified, had failed to return from their hike in the Highlands.

The Aonach Eagach ridge has gained a reputation as the narrowest on mainland Britain.

A major search operation was launched to find the hillwalkers, resulting in their bodies being found on the mountain, with rescuers initially hampered by low visibility due to mist and fog.

The search included a coastguard helicopter from Inverness and mountain rescue teams.

Humza Yousaf, the First Minister, said he was “deeply saddened” by the deaths, adding: “my thoughts with the family, and the loved ones of those who have tragically died.”

Kate Forbes, the MSP whose constituency covers Glencoe, said that the deaths were “horrendous news”.

She added: “My thoughts are with the families. My sincere appreciation to mountain rescue, as always, and the emergency services.”

‘No suspicious circumstances’ over deaths

Police Scotland said “there do not appear to be any suspicious circumstances” surrounding the deaths.

A spokesman for the force said on Monday: “We were made aware of concern for a group of three hillwalkers who had not returned from the Aonach Eagach ridge in Glencoe shortly after 9.05pm on Saturday, 5 August.

“A search was carried out and the bodies of three people were found. HM Coastguard as well as Glencoe and RAF mountain rescue teams assisted with the recovery operation.”

The Aonach Eagach ridge is known to be particularly treacherous, with a climber being airlifted to hospital only last month after a fall.

It was described as a “scrambling” route, meaning climbers are required to use their hands as well as feet when negotiating the terrain.

Last September, another climber aged 36 died after falling more than 650 feet on the mountain when he lost grip on a rock.

Several days earlier, the body of Alan Taylor, from Dundee, who went missing almost a year earlier was found in a gully near the ridge.

‘Narrowest ridge in Britain’

Walk Highlands says on its website that Aonach Eagach is “famed as the narrowest ridge on the British mainland” and involves “probably the trickiest scrambling” on any of the organisation’s routes, advising hikers that “if in any doubt, it is best to hire a guide”.

The ridge stretches from east to west for several miles and includes two Munro summits: Sgorr nam Fiannaidh at 967 metres (3,173 feet) high, and Meall Dearg at 952 metres (3,123 feet) high.

It contains sharp rocks with steep grass and scree slopes either side, which themselves conceal even steeper slopes which culminate in cliffs to the north and south sides of the ridge

Police Scotland said that a report would be sent to the Procurator Fiscal, which investigates accidental deaths north of the border.