A volunteer-run mountain rescue charity. 41 incidents featured here.
A walker was injured on the Stoer peninsula in Sutherland and was located by Assynt Mountain Rescue Team. The casualty was assessed and evacuated by stretcher to the roadhead for further medical care.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by stretcher for further medical care
A female hiker was injured near the summit of Ben Bhraggie and airlifted to hospital by coastguard rescue helicopter. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team members provided first aid and assisted in the evacuation, which occurred around midday on Monday with twelve team volunteers deployed.
Outcome: airlifted to hospital
A climber was injured near the summit of Cranstackie in north-west Sutherland on 9 July 2026. The casualty was airlifted to hospital by HM Coastguard helicopter, with 14 members of Assynt Mountain Rescue Team standing by to assist if needed.
Outcome: casualty airlifted to hospital by helicopter
Mountain rescue volunteers were called out to assist a walker who was struck by a falling rock near the summit of Conival. The injured individual was able to partially descend the mountain before meeting the rescue team and their medical unit.
Outcome: The casualty was able to walk out with the rescue team.
A search team located a dog that had fallen approximately 100 feet down a cliff ledge in Spidean Coinich after running off with its owners. After being coaxed with treats and guided by the team's torches, the dog was eventually safely lassoed and lifted to safety just after midnight.
Outcome: Rescued safely
Rescuers conducted a lengthy operation to retrieve a dog stranded on a precarious ledge on Quinag. After being reported missing, team members descended down a cliff face to reach the animal, eventually securing it after considerable effort. The dog was safely brought back to its owners near the top of the crag.
Outcome: Dog rescued and unharmed
The team completed an overnight stretcher rescue of a hiker with a lower leg injury on Ben Klibreck in difficult weather conditions. Following the initial rescue, the team also conducted searches for missing persons at Eas a' Chual Aluinn and assisted another local mountain rescue team earlier in the week.
Outcome: Casualty safely transported to lower slopes and onward care.
A Shropshire man was blown over by sudden wind on Ben Klibreck in Scotland on Friday evening, sustaining a broken ankle and becoming stranded in winter conditions. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team deployed approximately 40 members in a complex overnight operation, stretcher-carrying the casualty approximately 4.3 miles down the mountain through snow. He was transported to Inverness Hospital for surgery.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by stretcher to hospital
An experienced caver became stuck in Allt nan Uamh Stream Cave in Assynt, Sutherland, and was successfully rescued by Assynt Mountain Rescue Team working with a member of the Scottish Cave Rescue Organisation. The casualty was well equipped and uninjured, and was extracted using a flexible ladder and rope system.
Outcome: casualty safely extracted uninjured
A caver required rescue after becoming stuck within a cave system in the north-west Highlands. The extraction involved specialized equipment and was managed by local mountain rescue teams and experienced cavers. The team advised others on the necessity of checking weather forecasts and never undertaking caving trips alone.
Outcome: Rescued safely
Two climbers required rescue after a cornice collapsed in Aladdin's Couloir within Coire an t-Sneachda on Saturday. Members from the Assynt Mountain Rescue Team were first to the scene and provided initial treatment before transferring the individuals via helicopter.
Outcome: Rescued with injuries
Two walkers were rescued from Ben Hope in Sutherland after losing the path during their descent in darkness. The couple, who were well-equipped and less than 1 km from the car park, called for help and remained in place until Assynt Mountain Rescue Team located them and returned them safely to their vehicle.
Outcome: walkers returned safely to car park uninjured
A woman in her 50s suffered a lower leg injury while descending Ben Stack in Sutherland and was unable to continue. She was treated at the scene and stretchered to an all-terrain vehicle provided by the Reay Forest Estate, then transported by ambulance to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by stretcher and ambulance to hospital
A woman in her 50s fell and broke her ankle in three places while descending Ben Stack in September. She was rescued by a dozen members of Assynt Mountain Rescue Team, who carried out a rapid evacuation from the western slopes at approximately 1300 feet. Her husband is now fundraising £5000 for the team to purchase equipment and training.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by rescue team
A hiker suffered a suspected stroke at the remote Bone Caves near Ullapool in Sutherland. A fellow hiker used the satellite SOS function on their iPhone to alert emergency services, and the casualty was airlifted by coastguard helicopter from Stornoway to hospital.
Outcome: casualty airlifted by coastguard helicopter to hospital
A lone hillwalker suffered a suspected broken leg in remote terrain west of Merkland Lodge in the north-west Highlands and was airlifted to hospital by HM Coastguard helicopter. The walker activated a personal locator beacon and was praised for being well-equipped with shelter and extra clothing, which helped ensure their safety during the rescue.
Outcome: casualty airlifted by HM Coastguard helicopter and transported to hospital
Two walkers became lost in the dark near Eas a' Chual Aluinn waterfall in Sutherland and called 999 for assistance. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team used mobile phone tracking to locate them and safely escorted them back to their vehicle.
Outcome: walkers safely escorted back to vehicle
A landscape photographer fell 10 metres down a scree slope on Cul Mor in Sutherland on 22 October 2024 and was airlifted to hospital by Coastguard helicopter. Following his rescue by Assynt Mountain Rescue Team, he and a fellow photographer raised £23,461 for the team through a JustGiving page.
Outcome: airlifted to hospital by Coastguard helicopter, recovering well at home
A hillwalker was knocked off balance by a strong gust of wind on Cul Mor in Sutherland and fell down steep, loose ground near the summit. Due to potentially serious injuries, Assynt Mountain Rescue Team requested air support and the casualty was airlifted by Coastguard Rescue helicopter to hospital. The casualty's group was safely escorted back to their vehicles by rescue volunteers.
Outcome: airlifted by Coastguard Rescue helicopter to hospital
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team responded to two separate incidents within 24 hours. The first involved two lost walkers near Eas a' Chual Aluinn waterfall who were located with help from mobile phone tracking and escorted back to their car. The second saw the full team search for a missing walker in the Achfary area who was found safe in a local bothy.
Outcome: both walkers located safe and well, escorted back to car and bothy respectively
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team attended a walker who sustained a suspected lower leg fracture after a fall on a remote coastal path near Ardmore, Laxford Bridge. The casualty was assisted by staff at Ridgway Adventure and local residents before being evacuated by HM Coastguard helicopter and transported to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by helicopter to Raigmore Hospital
A two-year-old cane corso mastiff named Loki went missing near Kinlochbervie in the Highlands on 7 July after running away during a camping trip. He was found seven days later by a passer-by on a cliff ledge and rescued by Assynt Mountain Rescue Team on 14 July, appearing uninjured despite surviving on rainwater.
Outcome: dog rescued uninjured from cliff ledge
A woman in her 20s injured her ankle while attempting to cross a swollen burn south of Quinag car park during a rock spotting trip in Sutherland. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team attended with eleven members, provided pain relief, and evacuated her by stretcher to an awaiting ambulance.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by stretcher to ambulance
A geology student in her 20s sustained a lower leg injury after slipping on steep ground near Loch Assynt during field work. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team attended and evacuated her by stretcher to the roadside for medical care.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by stretcher to medical care
A walker suffered serious injuries after falling at the Bone Caves in Assynt on Thursday afternoon. She was rescued by Assynt Mountain Rescue Team and airlifted by Coastguard helicopter to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness. The team were also called out later that evening to assist with evacuating an ill elderly casualty near Rosehall.
Outcome: airlifted to hospital by Coastguard helicopter
A walker on the John O'Groats to Lands End route was reported missing in the Assynt area. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team used specialist search and rescue software to locate the person and guide them safely to the end of their journey leg.
Outcome: located and guided to safety
A 51-year-old man disappeared from the Lairg area of Sutherland on 29 March 2024. Assynt Mountain Rescue deployed 17 members, four search and rescue dogs, and a drone to assist Police Scotland in searching woodlands near Shin Falls over the Easter weekend.
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team responded to a lost and injured walker on Cul Beag in Coigach who had slipped and sustained a wrist injury. Three team members located the casualty and safely escorted her off the mountain to her accommodation in Ullapool.
Outcome: casualty escorted off mountain safely
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team responded to a lost and injured walker on Cul Beag in Coigach. The walker had slipped and injured her wrist and was safely escorted off the mountain and returned to her accommodation in Ullapool.
Outcome: casualty safely escorted off mountain and returned to accommodation
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team was called to assist an injured hillwalker experiencing knee problems on the descent from Inverkirkaig in Sutherland. The casualty was able to walk back to the Land Rover with assistance from 12 team members. The rescue occurred during a notable display of northern lights.
Outcome: casualty walked off with assistance
A couple in their 20s became lost and caught out by deteriorating weather on Ben More in Sutherland after taking a wrong turn from the summit. Eleven members of Assynt Mountain Rescue Team located them at 3,000 feet in poor visibility and walked them to safety over a six-and-a-half hour operation. The walkers were wet, cold and poorly equipped but did not require medical treatment.
Outcome: walked off uninjured after warming up
A mountaineer sustained a lower limb injury on Quinag and was airlifted to hospital. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team attended and provided medical treatment and pain relief before the casualty was transferred to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.
Outcome: casualty airlifted to Raigmore Hospital, Inverness
A 43-year-old man reported missing from the Carlisle area, believed to have travelled to Caithness on Christmas Day, was searched for by mountain rescue teams after his car was found abandoned near Dunnet Head. Multiple rescue agencies including Assynt Mountain Rescue Team, police, coastguard, lifeboat services and a helicopter conducted an extensive search of the Highlands coastline, but he was not located.
Outcome: not traced despite extensive search
A female walker in her 50s fell on Quinag in Sutherland on Friday afternoon and sustained serious leg injuries to her ankle and knee. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team located the casualty and stretchered her downhill, where she was airlifted by helicopter to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness for treatment.
Outcome: casualty airlifted to hospital by helicopter; fractured ankle and soft tissue damage diagnosed
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team was called out to search for missing man David Bennett on the northern shores of Loch Assynt. The team worked alongside police, coastguard and fire service, deploying thermal imaging drone technology. The man was traced and located during the operation.
Outcome: person traced and located
A 76-year-old man went missing on a walking tour in the Scottish Highlands near Oykel Bridge on 24 April 2022. Mountain rescue and search and rescue dogs were deployed to search the Cape Wrath Trail area north of Ben More Lodge over the weekend of 14-15 May.
Assynt Mountain Rescue Team was involved in an extensive multi-agency search for Finn Creaney (32), who went missing on 25 March 2022 after being dropped off at Loch Naver in Sutherland to begin a planned walking route. The search, which lasted at least six days, involved mountain rescue teams, coastguard helicopter, dogs, drones, RAF, and Police Scotland, with an appeal for dash-cam footage and public information.
Outcome: search ongoing at time of report
A walker with a lower leg injury was assisted by Assynt Mountain Rescue Team on Suilven. The casualty was extracted by Stornoway coastguard helicopter during a break in the clouds, and team members accompanied his wife to the car park.
Outcome: casualty evacuated by helicopter
Rescuers searching for a missing man found a body on Ben Loyal in Sutherland on Friday morning. The man had been reported missing on 27 July, with his car discovered at a walker car park the following day. A Coastguard helicopter assisted in recovering the body from the mountain.
Outcome: body recovered
A 33-year-old man from Dornoch was reported missing on 25 July 2020 after travelling to Ben Loyal for hill walking. Assynt Mountain Rescue Team joined family, friends and volunteers in an extensive search, focusing on steep rocky terrain on the north side of the mountain where his car was found at a trailhead.
Two hillwalkers died after falling on Ben Hope in Sutherland. Their bodies were discovered by a Coastguard helicopter crew on the north-west side of the mountain after concerns were raised on Tuesday afternoon. Multiple mountain rescue teams, police, and emergency services were involved in the search and recovery operation.
Outcome: two fatalities, bodies recovered