A second man who died on Aonach Eagach Ridge in Glencoe has been named as experienced mountain guide Dave Fowler.
Mr Fowler, 39, was hiking along the notoriously narrow ridge with two others, 60-year-old Graham Cox and a still-to-be-identified 64-year-old woman.
It is understood the trio had been roped together and fell from the ridge on the evening of August 5, with emergency services scrambled to find them.
Police, Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team and coastguard crews were all sent to find the climbers.
Their bodies were eventually discovered early on August 6.
Following the incident, police confirmed there were no “suspicious circumstances” and a report had been submitted to the procurator fiscal.
Graham Cox, from Southport, was the first person to be named, with friends and loved ones paying tribute to the “adventurous” family man online.
‘A great character, ever talkative and cheerful’
Originally from Llanberis, in Gwynedd, Wales, Mr Fowler has been involved with West Coast Mountain Guides based at Fort William for years.
It is understood he would guide people around the Scottish mountains, which is what he may have been doing at the weekend.
Online tributes have been made to Mr Fowler following the news of his death.
James Coutts from Inverness spent four days climbing Cuillin Ridge on Skye with the mountaineer.
Describing him as a “true inspiration”, he said he will treasure the experiences they shared.
In post, published on social media, he wrote: “Such sad news this week, I recently spent four days on the Skye Cuillin Ridge with Dave. He was a true inspiration and taught me so much about the mountains. Memories that will last with me forever.
“Dave has been a big part of my Munro journey, taking me over my 200th Munro and helping me in creating some films along the way. He was just a pleasure to be around, his love for the outdoors was clear.
“My thoughts are with his friends and family at this time and also with the other two people that sadly lost their lives in Glencoe. RIP Dave.”
Ed Casey said he was “shocked and saddened to hear of his passing.
He added: “Dave guided me and Sharon for three days in the Highlands only a few weeks ago, a brilliant experience mainly thanks to Dave’s expertise. We felt completely safe for the entire weekend and would have had no hesitation recommending him to others or booking with him again.
“A tragic accident – my condolences to Dave’s partner and family and to the families of those he was walking with.”
Mark Horrell, who climbed alongside Mr Fowler back in 2020, also paid tribute to the mountaineer.
In a post, he wrote: “Very sad to hear that Dave Fowler, who guided us in the Cuillin in 2020, was one of those who died on Aonach Eagach last weekend.
“Dave was a great character, ever talkative and cheerful, flexible, well organised and extremely careful as a guide.
“I would gladly have climbed with him again.”
West Coast Mountain Guides have paused bookings on their website due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
The procurator fiscal confirmed an investigation into what happened is still ongoing.
Darkness and terrain hampers rescue operation
Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team have detailed how the rescue operation unfolded.
They said the Inverness Coastguard helicopter was scrambled to assist those on the ground searching the ridge on Saturday night.
Two of the team found the trio in the early hours of Sunday morning, but they had already died from their injuries.
The darkness and terrain made the recovery operation difficult and it was postponed until first light.
In a statement, posted on their Facebook page, a spokesman from Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team said: “On Sunday morning volunteers met with Rescue 199 and were flown up onto the hill a short distance from the casualties.
“All three were then stretchered by Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team members to a spot that was safe for Rescue 199 to winch from. A team of RAF mountain rescue kindly volunteered to be on stand-by in case the helicopter was unavailable.”
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