Busy June on Skye & in Lochaber

We’ve enjoyed a busy June, with a number of teams out and about, both on the Isle of Skye and in and around Lochaber. Here’s a quick summary of what’s been going on…

Despite a rather damp and windy day at the back end of May, Michael and I still enjoyed ourselves on a traverse of The Cobbler, one of the finest Corbetts in the Highlands. We took the classic route, ascending the SE Ridge of the South Peak, abseiled the Original Route, wandered over to the Central Peak where we climbed The Arete before snaking our way down the Doorway Route, before threading the needle and gaining easier ground. To complete the traverse, we also bagged the North Peak too.

Ian was out guiding Steven at the beginning of June. They had a couple of brilliant days on Skye, where they tackled the Dubh Ridge on Sgurr Dubh Beag and Pinnacle Ridge on Sgurr nan Gillean. The former is often said to be the best easy climb on Skye and a contender for the best easy climb in Britain. The latter is often compared to Tower Ridge on Ben Nevis for it’s scale and challenge.

Scott was out with Peter and Martin. Over four days, they reached the summit of all 11 of the Munros that lie along the main Cuillin Ridge. One of the challenges of these 4 day courses is picking the right route for the right day, particularly with a mixed forecast, but Scott and the team played their cards perfectly and made the most of the first couple of dry days, leaving them with the slightly easier Munros for when the conditions turned damp.

Meanwhile, Steve was out with John, Mark, Jacqueline and Donald. They had two contrasting days, with blue skies and dry rock for the Inaccessible Pinnacle, Sgurr Mhic Choinnich and a descent of Bomb Ally on their first day and a rather wet ascent of Bruach na Frithe on the second day. It doesn’t matter what the weather does on Skye, there are always great adventures to be had!

Both Caspar and Ian were then out guiding the In Pinn. Ian was out with Yael and Andrew, who were over from Germany, Caspar was out with Manus. Caspar and Manus then went on to complete the Laggan Round ( in reverse, which considering the conditions, was a sterling effort on both of their parts.

Steve was then back out out for us, this time guiding John in the Cuillins, Skye. For them, the weather improved throughout the day and they made the most of it by climbing Pinnacle Ridge on Sgurr Nan Gillean. They continued down the West Ridge before tackling Am Basteir and descending the atmospheric King’s Cave Chimney.

Lena returned again this year to the Highlands, and was out with Scott again. They made their way up Coire Leis and up to the summit of Ben Nevis. This was a step up from what Lena had done in the past, and she took it easily within her stride. Curved Ridge or Ledge Route next Lena?

Finally, this weekend gone, Dave was out with Phil. Phil, who is originally from Utah, had two goals in mind. Firstly to reach the summit of Ben Nevis and another Munro, and secondly, to spend a day on a classic scramble and a day on a classic rock climb.  Dave and Phil achieved both, by climbing Tower Ridge on Ben Nevis on day one, and the classic Agag’s Groove on Stob Dearg (Buachaille Etive Mor, Glencoe) on day two.