The son of mountaineer Robin Garton, whose body was found in Lochaber after he had been missing for eight months, yesterday praised the mountain rescue team that recovered his remains.
Will Garton said he and the rest of the family wished to sincerely thank Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team (MRT).
He said: “They are wonderful people who have done an amazing job and given up many, many hours.
“They are very dedicated, very professional and we hold them in the highest possible esteem.”
Mr Garton added that the team should be recognised for their efforts.
He said: “It is good to be able to close this chapter and I’m very grateful to Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team for everything they have done in helping to achieve this.”
Mr Garton snr, from Devizes in Wiltshire, was last seen when he checked out of the Kings House Hotel in Glencoe on September 25 heading for the Aonach Eagach Ridge.
The 69-year-old’s car was found at Achnambeithach, near the A82 Fort William to Glasgow road, but a major search operation failed to find any trace of him.
His body was found by members of the public in the Stob Coire nam Beith area on Wednesday afternoon.
Lochaber MRT has also praised Glencoe team members for their bravery during the recovery operation in Deep Cut Chimney and is calling for their efforts to be honoured.
Lochaber deputy team leader Donald Paterson said: “It is all too easy to take for granted the risks taken by volunteers in mountain rescue teams.
“In this case, we would like to acknowledge the professionalism and bravery of the Glencoe team in recovering the casualty and hope that they get the formal acknowledgement from the appropriate authorities.”
And he wholeheartedly agreed with a comment made by Glencoe MRT leader Andy Nelson following the incident in which he said: “Civilian ground teams remain the last line of defence, the team that always gets the job done, at times under extreme risk.”
Mr Nelson thanked the Lochaber team for their vote of confidence.
He said: “They recognise the difficulty of extracting casualties or fatalities from very difficult terrain and often it is the unpaid volunteers who reluctantly make it happen
“We understand each other, but it is nice to have that recognition.”
