Winter – Page 40 – West Coast Mountain Guides

Brilliant week at the CIC Hut, Ben Nevis

March 12, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

Last week, Mark S and I ran one of our annual CIC Hut Weeks, based at the UK’s only true alpine hut, on Ben Nevis. The hut, which is well heated and makes for an extremely comfortable and convenient base, is situated at 650m above sea level, at the very foot of the north face of Ben Nevis. This means that approaches each day to many of the UK’s finest ice and mixed climbs are minimal, allowing for maximum climbing time and making the absolute most of the prevailing conditions… and making the absolute most of the prevailing conditions is exactly what Mark, Neil, Michael, Simon, Steve and myself were able to do.

Normally, the first day is a leisurely affair, with time for last minute food shopping and a stroll up to the CIC Hut in the afternoon, but with a mixed forecast for the week, we decided to head up to the hut sharpish and to climb a short route that afternoon, just in case we were faced with a hut-bound day later in the week. We made a mass ascent of the increasingly popular East Ridge of the Douglas Boulder, which gave us three interesting pitches of mixed climbing. The highlight of the route is the second pitch, which tackles a two tiered corner, which whilst strenuous, is not too technical, on great hooks and with good gear.

East Ridge of the Douglas Boulder

Second Pitch of the East Ridge

On Monday, team West Coast made another mass ascent, this time of the brilliant NE Buttress, which I still think is one of my favourite routes of its grade in the UK. The lack of consolidation made the climbing a bit trickier, but still great fun and was thoroughly enjoyed by all. The Mantrap was fairly dry and didn’t pose too much of a hurdle, however, the 40 Foot Corner above was a bit more awkward, with very little useful snow, ice or gear.

On NE Buttress

40 Ft Corner

Steve on the 40 Ft Corner

Tuesday saw Steve, Simon and I climbing the first icy pitch of Wendigo, on Creag Coire na Ciste. There was just enough ice to make for a secure and fun pitch. We did consider traversing into Central Gully R/H, but having not climbed the inviting mixed pitches of Wendigo before, we continued up the route. None of us were disappointed by the brilliantly absorbing and exposed climbing that makes a rising traverse to the final snow bowl and summit plateau. Meanwhile, further along Creag Coire na Ciste, Mark, Neil and Michael had fun on Lost The Place.

Wendigo

With the winds due to pick up on Wednesday afternoon, we all opted for a quick hit. Mark, Steve and Simon climbed the SW Ridge of the Douglas Boulder, whilst Michael and I climbed Jacknife to then join the SW Ridge. I had forgotten how good the main pitch of Jacknife was, having last climbed it in 2011. Sure enough, as we were descending the East Gully of the Douglas Boulder, the winds picked up and the temperature rose.

Looking up Jacknife

Wild weather whilst on Jacknife

Looking down the main pitch of Jacknife

SW Ridge, having climbed Jacknife

Abseiling off the Douglas Boulder

Thursday morning brought with it a degree of uncertainty, due to the thaw from the previous day and night, so to play it safe, we decided to all go for Tower Ridge and to let things settle down during the day. However, whilst gearing up at the foot of the East Gully of the Douglas Boulder, I did wonder whether the thaw might have caused the snow to become a bit more dense and therefore provide good footholds on the more difficult pitches of Observatory Ridge. With there only really being one way to find out, Michael and I soon found ourselves part way up the long and sustained Observatory Ridge. My theory applied to the first pitch or so of the ridge, thereafter, the thaw hadn’t really affected the snow and it was a case of clearing a lot of it from the ledges to uncover tiny ledges for crampons and to dig around for usable axe placements. Observatory Ridge is renown for being tough in these conditions, and I certainly can’t deny that it was hard work (but still enjoyable), but we both kept our foot down, and ploughed our way up. Above the difficulties, with still plenty of climbing still to go, a French couple, who were also staying at the hut, overtook us, and put in a welcome track up the final pitches of Zero Gully, which was largely full of soft-ish snow, with a couple of icy steps. Meanwhile, Steve and Simon enjoyed their day on Tower Ridge with Mark.

Looking up at Zero Gully from the start of Observatory Ridge

High on Observatory Ridge

Echo Wall and Tower Ridge

Digging required on Observatory Ridge

Looking across at Tower Ridge

Teams on Tower Ridge

Above the difficulties on Observatory Ridge

Looking down the final pitches of Zero Gully.

Final pitch of Zero Gully/Observatory Ridge

Steve and Simon, having had their fill of winter climbing for the week, headed down early. So, for the final day, with conditions once again due to deteriorate in the afternoon, an early start saw Mark and Neil climbing Jacknife on the Douglas Boulder, whilst Michael and I climbed the atmospheric chimney of Gutless, which is a brilliant route, with some great mixed climbing, particularly on the main second pitch (so long as you enjoy climbing chimneys). We were all back at the hut by 10am, just as the drizzle started, and enjoying fish and chips in Whetherspoons in Fort William by 1pm, finishing off another great course at the CIC Hut.

Above the main pitch of Gutless

Crypt Route, Bidean nam Bian

March 3, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

Wes and Sean were keen to step things up a notch from what they had climbed so far, so with another favourable forecast, and great mixed climbing conditions, we decided to head up to Church Door Buttress on Bidean nam Bian, and climb the brilliant and esoteric Crypt Route.

The technical crux is really the first 10m or so, which starts up a deep chimney, before the route disappears into the mountain, where it follows a series of chimneys, before what is probably the physical crux, fitting through a small window, which in my case, required taking the rack off. Both Wes and Sean managed to weasel their ways through the window, not without the occasional grunt and curse.

From here, the route crosses the amazing arch which I’m sure is only just about held together by a keystone, before tackling Raeburn’s Chimney and steady climbing above.

Brilliant weather in Glencoe!

February 28, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

We’ve been enjoying great weather in Glencoe over the past couple of days. I was out working on School House Ridge, above Ballachulish on Monday, and made a traverse of The Dragon’s Tooth above South Ballachulish today.

School House Ridge Winter Climbing Course

Above School House Ridge

Conditions on both routes were quite reasonable, with the snow starting to consolidate well in places as the current freeze penetrates the once thawed snowpack. The same can be said for the turf as well.

The Dragon’s Tooth

Practising an abseil before the main abseil

Great views to the south.

The Dragon's Tooth, Winter Climbing Course

The abseil on The Dragon’s Tooth

Hannah and Steve had good fun on Chimney Route on Stob Coire nan Lochan today. They reported ok conditions, but the some of the cracks were quite verglassed and a couple of key blocks were loose.

Late start, nice day: Dorsal Arete, Glencoe

February 25, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

Despite a pretty wild start to the day, it was a case of trusting the forecasts and having an intentionally late start to avoid the worst of it. All of our teams did just that this morning, and were treated to dry and reasonably clear days in Glencoe and the Mamores.

For the past couple of days, I’ve been out with George, who has a couple of attempts on Mount Everest under his belt. He was keen to get back into winter climbing, and so yesterday, with plenty of lying snow, not wanting to spend too much time wading, we made an ascent of the aesthetic and striking line of School House Ridge, above Ballachulish. It must be one of the most accessible routes in Lochaber! Plenty of other folk on the route. There was plenty of snow on the ridge, very little of it consolidated, unsurprisingly, as it had only fallen the day before. We topped out in good time, and bagged Sgorr Dhearg. After a clear, dry day, the weather turned rather abruptly at 3pm.

Wintry in Glencoe

Snowy on School House Ridge

Today, our late start meant only walking in the rain for 45 minutes or so. Thereafter, the day turned much cooler and drier and altogether very pleasant. George and I walked up along side a raging torrent, up to Coire nan Lochan, where we climbed Dorsal Arete. The rain had stripped a lot of the snow off the route, leaving it quite lean, but with a bit of care, it made for a fun climb. The turf up high was still frozen, and we did have a couple of snow flurries throughout the afternoon.

‘Bow in the Coe.

George above the crux

Bidean and Stob Coire nam Beith

Andy and Anthony enjoyed dry rock lower down on Curved Ridge today, meanwhile Dave, Stu and their two teams, as well as James with Clive and Philip opted for the East Ridge of the North Buttress of Stob Ban. Again, the snow had suffered, but this didn’t detract from the teams enjoying themselves. Finally, Henry was out with Rob and Kyle. They spent their day focusing on a variety of mountaineering skills with the aim of becoming more independent.

The thaw last night and this morning did strip a bit of snow, but it wasn’t too devastating, and with the temperatures now dropping, this will help to finally consolidate what’s there. The forecast for the foreseeable future looks quite favourable, with wintry conditions on the cards.

Storm Doris brings welcome snow

February 23, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

It was quite clear on waking up this morning that more snow had fallen than the forecasts had suggested, but I must admit, I was quite surprised when I saw exactly how much on the approach to Ben Nevis this morning. Clearly Storm Doris had pushed a bit further north than we had expected.

A winter wonderland on the approach this morning

German team breaking trail this morning

Wes, Sean and I had a number of ideas as to what to climb on Ben Nevis today, but as it dawned on us exactly how much snow had fallen and drifted on fresh winds, it was clear that progress into Coire na Ciste was going to be tough work and potentially avalanche prone, and so we quickly changed our plans to climb Castle Ridge instead. Both Wes and Sean had climbed Castle Ridge in summer conditions last year, and so having been transformed overnight into full winter garb, it was a logical choice.

Not wanting to snow plough uphill for too long, we opted to cut beneath Carn Dearg Buttress. The turf was starting to freeze, and there were quite a few dribbles of ice on the rocks throughout the route. None of which was particularly solid just yet. The majority of the route was as snowy as I’ve seen it this year, apart from the upper crux, which was quite clear of snow compared to the rest of the route. For Wes, this was his third of Ben Nevis’ ridges climbed in winter, whereas for Sean, his first.

Above the first groove

Sean on the crux of Castle Ridge

The descent down the northern flanks of Carn Dearg was straight forward, as we found a great line of soft snow to wade down.

Meanwhile, just around the corner, Steve was out with John and Gavin. They were on Ledge Route and getting some mileage in, in preparation for a trip to summit Mount Elbrus later this year. The Scottish Highlands are a great place for training for the Greater Ranges.

Hannah was out with Julia, who is over from Spain, preparing for her Winter Mountain Leader Assessment. They had a great day on the Ballachulish Horseshoe, and also got to enjoy wading through deep snow. It’s nice to finally have some snow again.

Julia navigating

Sheltered on Dorsal Arete, Glencoe

February 22, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

Last night was supposed to bring with it plenty of snow, and whilst it did precipitate quite heavily, the winds were so strong that much of the snow seems to have be sent back into the atmosphere. For Stuart’s second and final day, we drove down to Glencoe under what seemed to be quite clear skies, however, on arriving at the car park for Stob Coire nan Lochan, a fairly fierce squall of hail had us delaying our departure by five minutes. And that was it. Thereafter, whilst it was a little breezy for a couple of moments on the approach, overall, it was remarkably calm, helped by the fact that the crags of Stob Coire nan Lochan are very well sheltered from most winds.

Stob Coire nan Lochan, Winter Climbing Course

Snowing in Glencoe this morning

We climbed the classic Dorsal Arete, and whilst the direct start wasn’t quite frozen enough to climb, we took in all the awkward and tricky steps on the buttress above, and after the crux fin, climbed up a final groove on the left, which gave some fun chimneying before pulling into a narrow hanging groove which featured great hooks for the tools. Again, Stuart was keen to focus on building belays and ropework, but also got to practise his newly found mixed climbing skills in a variety of situations.

Clear day on Dorsal Arete

One of the upper grooves

Stuart about to start the crux

The left hand variation finish

Early bird catches the worm: No. 3 Gully Buttress

February 21, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

We’ve just had a cold snap, which started yesterday afternoon, and finished at about midday today. So with an earlyish start, Stuart and I made the most of the cold weather

window, and had fun climbing No. 3 Gully Buttress on Ben Nevis. On the approach, the sky had a reddish tinge, which is normally a sign of inclement weather in the pipeline.

Overnight, a light dusting of snow had fallen and things were looking a bit more wintry this morning as we approached Coire na Ciste. Whilst visibility was still quite poor once in the corrie, the icefall at the foot of No. 3 Gully Buttress was just about visible. Stuart was keen to step up his winter climbing and so we tackled the icefall direct, giving a brilliant step of grade 4 ice, which was in good condition. The ice on the shallower sections above was a bit hollow in places, but much of it could be avoided.

No. 3 Gully Buttress, Winter Climbing Course

Good ice on the fist pitch

Stuart above the icy step on pitch 1

After the crux step, we climbed the direct finish, which gives a fun pitch of mixed steps, grooves and corners, before a final squeeze chimney marked the end of the difficulties. It was all wintry enough from the overnight snow. We topped out just as the freezing level met the summit plateau, so aware that the winds were going to pick up, we descended No. 3 Gully, and spent some time looking at various snow and ice screw belays throughout our descent.

Looking down the direct finish

True to the saying ‘red sky in the morning, shepherd’s warning’, the winds and rain picked up dramatically early afternoon, but it’s going to turn quite wintry again this evening, and looks to stay cold for the foreseeable future… Winter’s not over yet!

Up No. 3 Gully, down Tower Gully, Ben Nevis

February 19, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

Today I was joined by Daniel and Peter, with the aim of reaching the summit of Ben Nevis via a fun, wintry and adventurous route. An ascent via No. 3 Gully seems to fit the bill nicely, and so we ventured up into Coire na Ciste and up No. 3 Gully, which was in good nick, with some firmer snow towards the top.

On the way up to No. 3 Gully

Ascending No. 3 Gully

The final steepening of No. 3 Gully

We wondered over to the summit, which felt like it could pop out of the clouds at any minute, but alas, it wasn’t clear enough, so we spent our time on the summit under a watery sun. That said, it was quite dry on the summit.

On the summit of Ben Nevis

On the way back, we had a peak down into Tower Gully, which looked quite inviting, with only faint steps in soft snow, so made our way down there. With the snow being quite soft underfoot, if felt very friendly. We were able to remain on the snow until quite low down in Observatory Gully. The combination of ascending No. 3 Gully up to the summit and then descending Tower Gully gave Peter and Daniel a great day of winter mountaineering, and allowed them to fully explore one of the finest mountains in the UK.

Looking up Tower Gully

Descending Tower Gully

Plenty of action! Glencoe, Ben Nevis & Beinn Dorain

February 15, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

There’s no denying that this winter, we’ve been lucky to enjoy plenty of cold, clear days. Yesterday was no exception. However, the SE winds were due to be quite bracing at times, so seeking shelter seemed to be part of most teams’ plans. For Nick, Keith and myself, as well as our Advanced Winter Climbing team; Mark, Jon and Spenser, Stob Coire nan Lochan was to provide that shelter for the day.

The cliffs of Stob Coire nan Lochan

Both teams started up the classic route of Twisting Gully, which whilst being a bit on the lean side, provided some great mixed climbing. We continued up the true line, whilst Mark and his team peeled off to finish up the upper chimneys of Twisting Grooves. Nick and I then went on to climb Pearly Gates, which starts part the way up Broad Gully. This gave us a couple of enjoyable and atmospheric pitches, with a grandstand view of the multiple teams on Dorsal Arete. From the top of Pearly Gates, with such clear skies, we couldn’t resist the temptation to head to the summit of Stob Coire nan Lochan to take in the views. Amazingly, despite some strong gusts whilst on Twisting Gully, it was completely still on the summit.

Spenser in one of the twisting grooves on Twisting Grooves

Nick on Twisting Gully

Clear views from Stob Coire nan Lochan

Further down Glencoe, Henry and his Introductory Winter Climbing team climbed Curved Ridge, which they reported to be in good condition. Whilst Stob Coire nan Lochan had lost much of its rime ice overnight, particularly from easterly aspects, Buchaille Etive Mor still seemed to be holding onto it well, particularly in sheltered locations such as in the vicinity of Crowberry Gully.

Andy was out with Ali and Max on the first of two Private Guiding days. They climbed Fawlty Tower on Ben Nevis and again, reported good conditions with plenty of frozen turf.

Good conditions on Fawlty Towers

Descending Tower Ridge after climbing Fawlty Towers

Lastly and by no means least, Hannah was out on a personal climbing day with Duncan and Steve. They headed down to Beinn Dorain, by the Bridge of Orchy, where they climbed the brilliant 3 star VII,7, The Messiah. You can read more about their day on Steve’s blog. Sterling effort by the trio, and a good decision to head south, as the mixed routes on Stob Coire nan Lochan were no longer in condition.

Hannah leading up to the crux pitch of The Messiah

Steve on the crux pitch

Duncan on the final pitch

Daim Buttress & Turf Walk, Aonach Mor

February 13, 2017/0 Comments/in News, Scotland, Winter

Mark and I were both back on Aonach Mor today, and whilst we were able to catch the gondola up in the morning, wind stopped play at some point this afternoon. I was out with Keith and Nick, two regulars that can’t get enough of the wild conditions that Scottish winter can throw at us. Last year, we climbed Western Rib, and so today, thinking that going high would be best to ensure frozen turf and cold conditions, and with the promise of an easterly wind (it turned out to be more southerly/south easterly), we headed for Daim Buttress, which runs parallel to Western Rib. The turf was generally very well frozen, and with plenty of rime on the rocks, it all felt very wintry. Not a hint of the temperature inversion that some forecasts were suggesting, although the freezing level did rise slightly throughout the day. After we had complete all the technical pitches, Nick took his turn on the sharp end, and lead the final couple of pitches, with me climbing alongside, to the summit. Nice to drop out of the cloud and escape the winds on the descent!

Keith enjoying the long and turfy Daim Buttress

Nick on the sharp end on Daim Buttress

Fleeting views looking across to Carn Mor Dearg

Meanwhile, Mark was on the opposite side of the mountain. He was delivering the first day of our Advanced Winter Climbing Course to Spenser (Jon, the other participant had to delay his start of the course by a day). They descended Easy Gully and enjoyed the frozen delights of Turf Walk, which they reported to be in good wintry nick. They also found their route to be quite sheltered today.

Finally, Henry was out with Ian and Anna, for an Introductory Winter Climbing Course. They spent their first day looking at some core winter skills before climbing the Dragon’s Tooth in Ballachulish. Henry said that they were reasonably well sheltered from the winds where they were today.