Assynt Mountain Rescue Team

Volunteering to save lives

The team was set up in 1976 following an incident on a local estate with a missing worker. As a result, a number of interested locals decided to try and set up some robust arrangements for search and rescue in the north. A meeting was called by Hugh Adcock, the local policeman at Bill Ritchies house, and with the help of some homebrew, the idea of a local MRT based in Assynt took root. Bill Ritchie became the first Team Leader. In the last 38 years, other team leaders have included John Ross, Phil Jones, Steve Heap-O'Neill, Willie Marshall and Graham McFadyen. In the mid 1980s some skilled mountaineers of the Caithness Mountaineering and Ski Club joined the team, to expand it to cover fully all of Caithness and Sutherland. Winter incidents on Ben Hope, Ben Klibreck and Foinaven in the late 1980s cemented these arrangements across the north.

VOLUNTEERS

We are all volunteers. We train monthly using our specialised rescue equipment and search and rescue techniques. This ensures we are ready to respond to any call out, any time. However training and equipment costs money, and we continually fund raise or accept donations and sponsorship to meet our needs.



MOUNTAINS OR URBAN

Assynt Mountain Rescue Team is ready to respond to any call out, 24 hours a day, all year in Caithness and Sutherland. We respond to requests from Police Scotland to assist in mountain searches, rescues or recoveries. We also assist with lower level countryside and urban incidents when required.

Our Partners

  • SARDA (search and rescue dog association) We're very lucky to have three fully trained dogs in our team.
  • HMS Coastguard in conjuction with Bristow SAR helicopters.
  • Scottish Ambulance Service.
  • Police Scotland.
  • SCAA (Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance).
  • SARAA (Search & Rescue Aerial Association).
  • SCRO (Scottish Cave Rescue Organisation).
  • RAF Search & Rescue.

Other Team Information

Working With Estates


Often we need to access some remote and difficult areas. We value the support given by estates to transport us by boat, argo or other means when a helicopter is not appropriate.

We often work with estates in our area when training, using their equipment and getting to know how we can help each other in times of emergencies.


SAR Helicopters


Much of our rescues are aided by helicopter. The Aeronatical Rescue Co-ordination Centre (ARCC) tasks and co-ordinates all aeronatical SAR activity across the UK. We can be working with the Sikorsky S92s based in Stornoway or Agusta Westland AW189s in Inverness.


AMRT Area


Assynt Mountain Rescue covers many popular hills in Sutherland and Caithness, from Suilven, Cul Mor and Ben Mor Assynt north to Ben Klibreck, Ben Hope and Ben Loyal. Although many of the mountains are not munro's, they are often remote and challenging.

There are also some remote coastlines and sea stacks such as Old Man of Stoer.