A climber was rescued unharmed after finding himself stuck on a Highland mountain for five hours.

The inexperienced winter mountaineer was told to stay put after calling police this morning. A rescue team was airlifted to the summit of Lochnagar, near Balmoral, and found the unnamed man, around 3pm this afternoon.

Grampian Police said the man was believed to have become stuck below a cornice on the Black Spout. Snow and rain were falling and there were high winds.

More than a dozen rescuers from Grampian Police, Braemar and Aberdeen Mountain Rescue Teams, as well as two Search and Rescue Dogs Association dogs, were involved in the rescue. A helicopter from RAF Lossiemouth lifted eight of the rescue team to within a kilometre of the mountain’s 1,154m summit, from where they made their way to the trapped climber.

He was rescued using ropes and was then walked off the mountain.

Sgt Andrew Todd of Grampian Police said:  “Due to the experience and training of the team this was a straightforward rescue with a happy ending. 

“The man concerned was uninjured and he is fine.”

He said the arrival of the helicopter had greatly assisted the rescue and speeded up the outcome.