A determined teenager has stunned hikers after donning five inch high heels to climb the UK’s highest mountain.
Ben Conway - who often slides on a pair of heels when going out - decided to scale Ben Nevis in stilettos after being asked in an art school scholarship application to create a project about one of his passions.
“I never really knew what I was passionate about before,” the 19-year-old told HuffPost UK.
“I don’t think anyone can say they are passionate about hurting their feet with shoes. So in the end it came down to the fact that I’m passionate about making people smile and laugh.”
Aiming to also raise money for LGBT rights charity Stonewall and Sal’s Shoes, which helps barefoot children across the world, the Enfield teen filmed the five hours he spent clambering up the mountain in heels.
“It was raining the whole time, pretty much,” Conway said. “There were times when there were 40 or 50 mile an hour winds.”
He also had to tape his shoe to his foot after the strap on one of his black heels broke mid-climb.
But the art student said that despite the difficult conditions, the reaction of hikers he met during the climb were “amazing”.
“That’s what pushed us on really,” Conway said.
“We had people donate halfway up the hill, we had other people meet us and donate on the page later.
“Even if it was a funny look or something, it still just made me smile. ”
Unfortunately, Conway and his group were forced to turn back after climbing 900 metres due to weather, with conditions getting “a little bit rough near the top”. The mountain’s highest peak is 1345m.
“We had been walking for so long and sometimes you just have to call it quits,” he said. “You have to think - we still achieved something.”
But the student’s stunt has still gained him some serious points with people who know the struggles of walking in heels, with supporters donating more than £200 to his charity fund.
A woman named Sue Curry commented on his GoFundMe page: “Well done Ben. What spirit, determination and strong ankles you have shown us!”
Another added: “I cannot even walk in high heels let alone climb in them!”
Conway, who has recently completed a foundation year in art and design at Ravensbourne University in London, hopes that the video will be enough to win him a scholarship at Brixton’s School of Communication Arts.
“All this publicity can’t be a bad thing,” he added.