Bealach na Ba, Applecross
-
We're back with ten more of the UK's steepest climbs (pic: Jake_Oulsnam, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
The White Down climb is one of the steepest in Surrey (pic: sarflondondunc, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
Bwlch-y-Groes is known in English as Hellfire Pass - with good reason (pic: SimonPix, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
Bealach na Ba is said to be the UK's toughest climb (pic: Englishpointers, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
The Rake hosts one of the longest-running hill climbs in the country (pic: Martin Hefner, Flickr Creative Commons)
-
Long Mynd is a painful climb of Asterton Bank (pic: John Spooner, Flickr Creative Commons)
-
Carlton Bank in Teesside offers stunning views and brutal pitches (pic: Natural England, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
Devil's Staircase in Powys is an aptly hellish climb (pic: John Spooner, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
Bushcombe Lane kicks up several times with fierce gradients (pic: Tejvan Pettinger, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
The Struggle is the toughest of three routes up the Kirkstone Pass (pic: Mark Kent, via Flickr Creative Commons)
-
The Lecht is a stunning Scottish ascent to the ski station of the same name (pic: Dolk, via Flickr Creative Commons)
Bealach na Ba, Applecross
The ‘UK’s toughest climb’ goes against the grain of many of the other British climbs, in that it is fearsome both in length and gradient.
Perhaps the closest to an Alpine pass you will find on these shores, the hairpins are coiled on top of each other on an epic ascent which climbs 623m in total over the course of 8.9km.
Boasting an average gradient of seven per cent, the fierce road kicks up to much more than that with some of the steepest sections close to the summit.
Bealach na Ba has earned its fearsome reputation with good reason and for many it is rightly considered the holy grail of British climbs.
Vital statistics
Length: 8.9km
Elevation: 623m
Average gradient: Seven per cent
Maximum gradient: 20 per cent
Share