Sons saw dad fall to death while climbing near Ben Nevis

A hillwalker who fell to his death while climbing Ben Nevis was with his two sons at the time.

The man has been named as dentist Nathan Turner, who owned a practice in Hagley in Worcestershire near Birmingham.

Now it has been revealed the 66-year-old was with his two sons and a friend at the time of his death as they scaled Càrn Mòr Dearg on their way to Ben Nevis, which it is linked to by a ridge.

One of his sons told The Times his father had slipped between 30ft and 65ft through a “narrow gap” in misty conditions.

He said: “It’s more of a scramble than a hike. We got to the top, walking along the arête, and he slipped and fell.

“I went down to see where he’d fallen, so did my friend who was hiking with us. My brother was at the top of the ridge.

“The air ambulance was there within half an hour, but it felt like quite a bit longer from our perspective.

“They were fantastic, mountain rescue, hats off to them — they’re heroes. They got the helicopter in, right by this narrow gap where my dad had fallen.

“They ziplined down, pulled my dad up, then pulled me up and my friend up.”

Sons pay tribute to dad after Ben Nevis death

The sons paid tribute to their “adventurous” dad, who had recently retired and was looking forward to spending his time travelling with his wife.

One said: “He was outdoorsy, a family man, very loving and caring. He loved climbing mountains.”

The Ben Nevis death comes just weeks after three men died after failing to return from a trip in Glencoe.

A climber also died from their injuries after falling while in the northern Cuillins on Skye last month.

Last year Scottish Mountain Rescue teams were called out 843 times to 636 separate incidents across the country.

They involved 21 deaths with 11 of them involving mountaineering incidents.

Police have confirmed a report will be submitted regarding the death of Mr Turner.

A spokeswoman said: “Officers received a report of a man having fallen at Càrn Mòr Dearg near Fort William around 12.30pm on Sunday..

“Emergency services attended, and a 66-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene.

“There are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances and next of kin have been informed.

“A report will be sent to the procurator fiscal.”