A HELENSBURGH youngster battled her way through snow to reach the summit of Ben Lomond recently.

Lauren May, 12, decided to climb the 974 metres to the summit to raise money for her trip to Hawaii with the Burgh-based Margaret Rose School of Dance in April.

Lauren has been dancing since the age of five and was keen to raise as much as she could for the trip.

After family and friends sponsored her she was determined to get to the top, even when conditions worsened.

Lauren’s dad, Paul, who climbed with her, said: “She was excited and nervous about the walk as Ben Lomond was covered in snow.

“The conditions were lovely until two thirds of the way up, when we got caught in a whiteout. We took shelter under a survival blanket for 15 minutes and thought about going back down.

“We met some nice climbers from Glasgow and joined them on the last section to the top. They also sponsored Lauren and encouraged her on.”

Lauren was delighted when she reached the top and even took the time to dance a highland fling in her kilt before making the descent.

The six hour challenge saw Lauren rewarded with a hot chocolate and a cake in Balmaha before heading home.

Paul said: “It took us six hours to get up and down. We could only stay at the top for a few minutes as it was so cold and windy.

“Both Lauren’s mum and I are very proud of her climbing Ben Lomond in winter.”

Thanks to her efforts and the support of family and friends who sponsored her, Lauren is now £400 closer to getting to Hawaii.

The dancers need to raise £300 towards their flight and the dancers and the dance school do other general fundraisers to pay for transport, accommodation and food.

Lauren’s next fundraiser is a raffle in a few weeks’ time.

Her dance teacher Margaret MacInnes, said: “That was an amazing climb for Lauren as it was the weekend we had the snow.

“Lauren works so hard at her classes and will do well at the Hawaii Highland Games.”

Ben Lomond is the most southerly of Scotland’s 282 Munros and attracts some 30,000 walkers every year.