Aonach Eagach Traverse Had a fantastic day out on the Aonach Eagach ridge traverse with Ken guiding. I booked very last minute but found the company to be extremely accommodating of this. It was my first time doing any real scrambling and I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone else. I will definitely be booking further courses with West Coast Mountain Guides, including planning a Skye Cuillin traverse.
The quality of guiding... read moreHad a fantastic day out on the Aonach Eagach ridge traverse with Ken guiding. I booked very last minute but found the company to be extremely accommodating of this. It was my first time doing any real scrambling and I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone else. I will definitely be booking further courses with West Coast Mountain Guides, including planning a Skye Cuillin traverse.
The quality of guiding was excellent from both the side of ensuring everyone’s safety and confidence during the traverse, but also being general good company on the day out. read less

Skye Cuillins June 2019 First class mountain guiding with flexibility for changing dynamics in our mixed group and readiness to seize opportunities for good weather (always scarce on Skye). On our first morning on the Cuillins Ken got us all up the Inaccessible Pinnacle before we had a chance to get nervous about one of UK's premier mountaineering challenges. Ken is highly experienced, with rigorous attention to safety margins while pushing us... read moreFirst class mountain guiding with flexibility for changing dynamics in our mixed group and readiness to seize opportunities for good weather (always scarce on Skye). On our first morning on the Cuillins Ken got us all up the Inaccessible Pinnacle before we had a chance to get nervous about one of UK's premier mountaineering challenges. Ken is highly experienced, with rigorous attention to safety margins while pushing us all a bit to do our best. At 64 I was the oldest in group by at least 15 years (and the only non-Scot) but felt warmly included. Ken and fellow guide even helped with the (complex for solo travellers) logistics of getting to and from Skye. We achieved everything we set out to do and it was brilliant all round! read less

Cuillin Ridge Sept 2019 I had a fantastic experience going around the Cuillin ridge with Ken for a few days in Sept.
I had booked onto one of the courses but as the date got closer Ken had confirmed that I was the only person booked in, very refreshing to hear from Ken that he was more than happy for it just it be me and it was not an issue. Great customer service.... read moreI had a fantastic experience going around the Cuillin ridge with Ken for a few days in Sept.
I had booked onto one of the courses but as the date got closer Ken had confirmed that I was the only person booked in, very refreshing to hear from Ken that he was more than happy for it just it be me and it was not an issue. Great customer service.
Ken was awesome, knew every part of the ridge so well, weather wasn't the best at times but I felt confident around Ken and always felt safe.
I would highly recommend West Coast Guides, thanks again Ken for an amazing experience. read less

Brilliant Guiding Ali was a great guide, weather was poor but he still managed to get me up all 11 of the Cuillins in three days. Process of booking via WCMG was good and was kept informed throughout.

Great guides in challenging weather I have booked the Cuillin Munros course to add those 11 difficult munros to my Munro list. I was hoping for great weather in September, but Scottish weather has a mind of its own:D It was raining all the time and wind was very strong at times. We were a big group of 8 people - started as complete strangers - finished the mountains as a happy, great working team.... read moreI have booked the Cuillin Munros course to add those 11 difficult munros to my Munro list. I was hoping for great weather in September, but Scottish weather has a mind of its own:D It was raining all the time and wind was very strong at times. We were a big group of 8 people - started as complete strangers - finished the mountains as a happy, great working team. We had Ken , Ben and Annie as guides and they were excellent at their job! Despite the weather they kept the spirits up. Annie was very helpful, reassuring and professional - windy conditions made some scramble difficult and a bit scary, however she was amazing at encouraging her team (me included) to move on. Ken amended the dates slightly to make sure we access Inn Pinn in less windy weather and that we were all fine to carry on walking.
I would not be able to achieve it all in such extreme conditions on my own! I am so glad I booked those guides and pleased to have met some amazing people! read less

11 Munros on the Syke Cuillin Ridge with my son and Ken from WCM Guides Booked Ken from West Coast Mountain Guides for 3 days on the Skye Cuillin Ridge in July. Ken provided plenty of advice beforehand and booking was easy via the WCM Guides web-site. I had 11 Munros on Skye and 1 on Mull to complete my first Munro round. Met Ken at Sligachan to climb the first 3 Munros from there on Day 1 with my son and Ken. Second... read moreBooked Ken from West Coast Mountain Guides for 3 days on the Skye Cuillin Ridge in July. Ken provided plenty of advice beforehand and booking was easy via the WCM Guides web-site. I had 11 Munros on Skye and 1 on Mull to complete my first Munro round. Met Ken at Sligachan to climb the first 3 Munros from there on Day 1 with my son and Ken. Second day we climbed the middle 5 Munros including the In Pinn from Glen Brittle. Weather was misty and light rain on the first 2 days but the rock is rough and gives good holds. On the third day we climbed the last 3 Munros on the ridge from Gen Brittle including Sgurr Alasdair with superb weather and views. Ken was a fantastic guide with both my son and I feeling secure at all times. We only used ropes on the In Pinn and Sgurr nan Gillian but Ken always asked if we were comfortable or if a rope was required or content to scramble without ropes. Ken will assess you abilities and pace and adjust the routes to suit. I haven't used a guide before whilst climbing the Munros but essential if climbing the Cuillin Ridge unless you are a rock climber. Ken new the best routes. Also as a lot of the routes are on scree and rock with little or no paths further up so a guide in my... Booked Ken from West Coast Mountain Guides for 3 days on the Skye Cuillin Ridge in July. Ken provided plenty of advice beforehand and booking was easy via the WCM Guides web-site. I had 11 Munros on Skye and 1 on Mull to complete my first Munro round. Met Ken at Sligachan to climb the first 3 Munros from there on Day 1 with my son and Ken. Second day we climbed the middle 5 Munros including the In Pinn from Glen Brittle. Weather was misty and light rain on the first 2 days but the rock is rough and gives good holds. On the third day we climbed the last 3 Munros on the ridge from Gen Brittle including Sgurr Alasdair with superb weather and views.
Ken was a fantastic guide with both my son and I feeling secure at all times. We only used ropes on the In Pinn and Sgurr nan Gillian but Ken always asked if we were comfortable or if a rope was required or content to scramble without ropes. Ken will assess you abilities and pace and adjust the routes to suit.
I haven't used a guide before whilst climbing the Munros but essential if climbing the Cuillin Ridge unless you are a rock climber. Ken new the best routes. Also as a lot of the routes are on scree and rock with little or no paths further up so a guide in my view is essential especially in poor weather.
If I decide to climb the ridge again that I will definately use WCM Guides. Great Company and my thanks to Ken for a wonderfull 3 days. More read less

Fantastic ascent of the Choinnich and Inn Pinn For our first visit to the Isle of Skye we decided to look into booking a guide for a days walking in the Cuillins. Although, I have a fear of heights, we booked up the trip to the Inn Pinn, as it looked very scenic and exiting, and I was reassured by Ken at West Coast Mountain Guides that I could wait at the base while my husband did the... read moreFor our first visit to the Isle of Skye we decided to look into booking a guide for a days walking in the Cuillins. Although, I have a fear of heights, we booked up the trip to the Inn Pinn, as it looked very scenic and exiting, and I was reassured by Ken at West Coast Mountain Guides that I could wait at the base while my husband did the climb of the pinnacle, if I did not feel confident doing this at the time. Our guide, Mike Mason, was brilliant and we had a fantastic day which exceeded our expectations! Mike talked through different route options and we selected a more scenic and challenging route up the edge of a big screen slope (great stone Shute), building in some absail training on the route lower down down at my request. Mike had a very confident and reassuring presence, which made scrambling up the steep slope enjoyable, whereas I normally would have been very uncomfortable in such a terrain. The views were amazing all the way up, including views of Rhum. As we reached the ridge, the views to the surrounding Cuillin Munros were fantastic. Next we roped up for some grade 1 rock climbing going to the Choinnich. When we reached the top it felt like a brilliant achievement, as we have never attempted anything like this before and looking back at the terrain you have passed through, it... For our first visit to the Isle of Skye we decided to look into booking a guide for a days walking in the Cuillins. Although, I have a fear of heights, we booked up the trip to the Inn Pinn, as it looked very scenic and exiting, and I was reassured by Ken at West Coast Mountain Guides that I could wait at the base while my husband did the climb of the pinnacle, if I did not feel confident doing this at the time.
Our guide, Mike Mason, was brilliant and we had a fantastic day which exceeded our expectations! Mike talked through different route options and we selected a more scenic and challenging route up the edge of a big screen slope (great stone Shute), building in some absail training on the route lower down down at my request. Mike had a very confident and reassuring presence, which made scrambling up the steep slope enjoyable, whereas I normally would have been very uncomfortable in such a terrain. The views were amazing all the way up, including views of Rhum. As we reached the ridge, the views to the surrounding Cuillin Munros were fantastic. Next we roped up for some grade 1 rock climbing going to the Choinnich. When we reached the top it felt like a brilliant achievement, as we have never attempted anything like this before and looking back at the terrain you have passed through, it looks extremely rocky and treacherous at a great height. It was then time to make our way back along the ridge to the base of the Inn Pinn. When we got there we had it all to ourselves, but it looked extremely challenging and very scary due to the narrow ridge and steep drops both sides. Somehow my husband and Mike convinced me that I would be able to do it, despite my fear. Climbing it was certainly challenging, but focusing on one step up at a time and using the techniques Mike had thought us, we made it to the top. The absail down was a mental challenge, but Mikes guidance and patience helped and we both got back down safely. Heading back down from the mountains along a different route, we had stunning views across the north of Skye and all the way to the Hebredies. This is a trip we will never forget and, one of the best and most exiting experiences ever. It feels like a huge achievement and I did so many things I would never have thought I could do due to my fear of heights. We highly recommend West Coast Guiding and Mike - they are very professional and we would love to book up other adventures with them in the future. More read less

Ascent of the Inn Pinn The time on the Cuillins with Ollie was superb. Ollie was very knowledgable both of the area and of mountaineering in general. We picked up a lot of invaluable knowledge about mountain navigation, ropework/abseiling techniques, and also about the geography of Skye and surrounding islands that can be seen from the top of the Cuillins.
All in all a great experience and would recommend West Coast Mountain Guides and Ollie... read moreThe time on the Cuillins with Ollie was superb. Ollie was very knowledgable both of the area and of mountaineering in general. We picked up a lot of invaluable knowledge about mountain navigation, ropework/abseiling techniques, and also about the geography of Skye and surrounding islands that can be seen from the top of the Cuillins.
All in all a great experience and would recommend West Coast Mountain Guides and Ollie to anyone of any experience level. read less

Aonach Eagach and Curved Ridge delight! First the Aonach Eagach in August 2018 followed a few months later on (June 2019) by the Curved Ridge ascent as a 40th birthday present 🙂
The AO traverse went perfect! Couldn’t have asked for anything more! Iain’s knowledge of the route was obvious from the outset which helped me calm my nerves a little bit (couldn’t sleep the night before from the adrenaline coupled up with my worry that I’ll... read moreFirst the Aonach Eagach in August 2018 followed a few months later on (June 2019) by the Curved Ridge ascent as a 40th birthday present 🙂
The AO traverse went perfect! Couldn’t have asked for anything more! Iain’s knowledge of the route was obvious from the outset which helped me calm my nerves a little bit (couldn’t sleep the night before from the adrenaline coupled up with my worry that I’ll either slow down the party or put anyone in jeopardy - the common worries before you are about to take on a new challenge kind of thing).
I was looking to do things outside my comfort zone and the guided traverse of the AO with Iain did just that. Iain’s patience coupled up with a pace suited for the group was a welcoming comfort for me and I’m sure the other two guys (Scot and Ian) would agree with that. All in, an awesome experience which was a few months later on replicated by the ascent of the Curved Ridge on the Buachaille Etive Mor with Ken himself as a guide. What a fun and exhilarating day from start to finish! Once again, the route knowledge and professionalism stood out from the outset which helped to calm the nerves and helped us to get into "the zone" and allowed us to enjoy the beauty of the big Big Bookle 🙂
Thank you WCMG, Skye next year!! 😉 More read less

Skye High Big thanks to West Coast Mountain Guides for getting my Canadian visitors and myself up the Cuillins and up, over and back down the inaccessible pinnacle. Our guide Josh inspired confidence every step of the way. Getting us out of our comfort zones whilst taking in some of the most jaw dropping scenery made for a fantastic adventure!

Very reassuring guide We spent two days with Ken on Skye including Sgurr nan Gillian and Am Basteir together. It was challenging at times not helped by very wet weather at the start of both days but Ken made sure the group were kept confident and safe. Highly recommended.

So much more than simply showing us the way. Twice I've now been on the Cuillin ridge & used Ken & the guys from West Coast. Their knowledge of the ridge is excellent & they make sure routes chosen are suitable for the group. Their attention to everyone's safety is a priority & although on some pretty exposed areas, I never felt unsafe. They also considered each days weather & chose our days route accordingly.
I would have no hesitation... read moreTwice I've now been on the Cuillin ridge & used Ken & the guys from West Coast. Their knowledge of the ridge is excellent & they make sure routes chosen are suitable for the group. Their attention to everyone's safety is a priority & although on some pretty exposed areas, I never felt unsafe. They also considered each days weather & chose our days route accordingly.
I would have no hesitation in recommending these guys & shall use them again next time I'm on the ridge. read less