REVEALED: Princess of Wales close to the high drama as exhausted hiker was rescued on Ben Nevis

Published: 18:30, 7 July 2026 | Updated: 18:40, 7 July 2026 The Princess of Wales was given an insight to a real-life rescue as she scaled Ben Nevis last week. While Catherine was around the 4,413ft summit, a blind military veteran further down was needing help. Ex-soldier John Banfield, 87, had successfully climbed Ben Nevis on Armed Forces Day last month to raise funds for the charity Blind Veterans UK. Guided by RAF veteran Gary Thomas, he reached the summit in five-and-a-half hours but at Half Way Lochan, Mr Banfield, from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, became exhausted and two members of Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team (MRT) got him off the hill using their all-terrain vehicle. A smiling Kate at the top of Ben Nevis Former soldier John Banfield, 87, scales Ben Nevis on Armed Forces Day Deputy team leader Astie Cameron said the Princess of Wales was 'absolutely amazing'  Meanwhile, Catherine, accompanied by two other members of Lochaber MRT, was more than 2,000 feet higher up listening to the drama below. Deputy team leader Astie Cameron said: ‘She would have been aware of the rescue because of the chatter on the team’s radios.  'She was absolutely amazing. She did the walk in just under five hours which is quick – especially after what she has gone through with cancer it was an incredible achievement.’ Catherine’s Three Peak challenge involved climbing the highest peaks in England, Scotland and Wales within 24 hours. The 44-year-old had called it a ‘chance to explore life beyond diagnosis and to give something back’. Photos from the Welsh summit of Yr Wyddfa released on social media at the weekend came with a caption: ‘A huge thank you to everybody who has supported The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.’ The princess paid tribute to the charity as ‘a place that holds great meaning for me and whose care and expertise are life changing for so many people’.