It was a dream come true for an Edinburgh woman who reached the top of Britain's highest mountain in her motorised wheelchair.

Sally Hyder, 49, and her team of friends, family, military personnel and Edinburgh fire fighters started their assault on Ben Nevis in Fort William at 4am Thursday, June 23. Seven hours later, the group reached the summit.

It was a poignant moment for Sally after a previous attempt in June 2010 to scale the mountain ended in failure.

With Lochaber spread below her, Sally said: “I’m experiencing a complete conflict of emotions. I feel absolutely ecstatic that I’m here. I can’t quite believe I’m here. I’m trying very hard not to cry.

“I wish my kids could be here and Harmony, my dog. I’m so touched by how hard everyone worked to get me here because it was hard going.

“It was incredible when I first reached the summit. Everybody was clapping and cheering when I got there. It was such a fantastic feeling.”

Weather forecasts the day before had predicted torrential rain at one stage, but the mother of three was determined to continue.

On the day itself, the sky was bright and clear. The group hit low level cloud after the halfway point at about 700ft and remained engulfed for the trip to the top.

The path was littered with boulders in a steep section above 700ft and there was snow on route to the top but even these difficult and varied conditions did not dishearten Sally and her team.

Sally said: “It was a huge challenge physically and mentally. On the way down I thought ‘I really don’t know how I going to carry on’ because my hands, and arms were being to go and my legs were in pain.

“On the way up, I wasn’t sure I was going to make it because the latter third is very challenging terrain.

“I felt confident that this attempt was going to be the best chance I’d have to get to the top - I just wasn’t sure if I’d actually make it. But the teams were determined that I was going to see the summit.”

The adventure wheelchair, a Boma 7 scaled the track with relative ease. There was constant support from 16 Royal Navy elite and six fire fighters from Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service who steadied the chair, lifted and pulled where necessary.

“If I hadn’t been for the Edinburgh fire-fighters pulling me across the bog and all the whole team helping me with all of the rocks, I wouldn’t have done it,” Sally said.

“The trail is not designed for wheelchairs and coming down, while the view was stunning, there were some very steep shaley bits which were quite scary.

“But the whole experience was magnificent and tribute has to be paid to the fire-fighters and the Royal Navy for helping me, and of course Molten Rock who provided the Boma.”

Sally used the off-road wheelchair in her first expedition, but was forced to turn back halfway after the chair drained its batteries too rapidly. Jon Anders, co-creator of the Boma chair, has since modified its design to improve its motor efficiency.

Jon said: “I am pleased with its performance. There were a few occasions were it needed a helping hand round some large rocks and boulders and some tight squeezes through narrow channels, but it has done brilliantly well.”

Marine Roger Palin played a major role in planning the trek and coordinating the teams that accompanied Sally to the top. An avid climber, he spent ten years working as a mountain guide and has scaled Ben Nevis countless times.

Roger said: “It was a big challenge to plan around quite a few unknowns. We used the knowledge gained from last year’s try and spoke with Molten Rock to try and figure out how far the vehicle could travel on each battery.

“If the weather been against us that would have affected everyone, not just Sally. We were also very lucky as we were climbing in very close proximity of this substantial chair on very rough terrain.

“It bounced around at times and the chances of it running over somebody’s foot or smashing someone’s leg were very real. Adding a casualty on the mountain, on top of the challenge we were already undertaking, would have been a serious problem.

“However, it was fantastic to see Sally reach the top. I work in quite a high risk environment and I enjoy that. Society emphasises risk-avoidance world right now, and then somebody like Sally comes along who throws caution to the wind and tries things even if others tell her she can’t.

“I’m glad to be involved with people who are trying to break those moulds and change people’s thoughts on what is achievable and what is safe and what isn’t.

“Getting Sally to the top was a big thing for her, and also a totally different big thing for me.”

Although she has accomplished a feat most who struggle with, Sally lives with MS and has used a wheelchair for the last nine years. Over time her mobility has continued to deteriorate.

The mother of three celebrated her 49th birthday at the weekend and vowed to make her 50th year one to remember - starting with conquering Ben Nevis.

She intends to complete 50 amazing challenges within 12 months - these have not all been selected but she has ticked off her first one.

Sally said: “I’m going to do lots of other adventures. Some of them won’t be as extreme as Ben Nevis, but I’m hoping to do an abseil and a zipwire.

“I want to do all sorts of things because it makes me feel alive when I’m stuck in the wheelchair in the house.”

IN DETAIL

• Sally on last year's aborted attempt
• Canine Partners, who train assistance dogs for those with disabilities