This is an account of brasher's Product Manager Philippe's recent day spent on Ben Nevis.

"Alarm clock went off...it's 4am. Every time I have to get up at a ridiculous time like this, I ask myself, Why am I doing this, I'm on vacation! 
After hours of effort fighting the cold, 3 hours of approach with 2 spent in the darkness and a good 4 hours climbing, I finally found my answer.
I just needed to look at the incredible smile and happiness of my climbing partner Steven who fulfilled an old dream - winter climbing on Ben Nevis.
These seconds of sincerity and achievements are all I need to erase the pain and sweat to get up early and climb a mountain.

There is nothing better than starting a new year with the highest mountain in Great Britain, climbing on Friday 2nd January a route called 'Good Friday'.
This climb finishes only a few metres from the summit and is a nice introduction to Ben Nevis.

Steven and I left the car park at 6am and reached the top at 1pm. The conditions were perfect, with little spindrift (small avalanches), snow, ice and very cold temperatures. At the top we were greeted by a hazy sunshine...and freezing wind...but delighted to spend a great day out. We had the route to ourselves as it seemed that everyone had piled up on the major classic: point 5 gully.

On a personal note, The Ben - as it is called by those who regularly visit - is a magical place. I have spent a lot of time in the French Alps, but this mountain represents a great challenge and deserves respect.
Weather can be great one minute changing to awfully cold in seconds. It's a mountain and it's moderate altitude doesn't remove the technical difficulty of some of the climbs when conditions are not perfect.

I will be back again and again. So many routes to explore, so many lines to climb and happy moments to remember.

You can see more of Philippe's photo's on flickr.