Mountain Diary and Conditions

Welcome to the West Coast Mountain Guides diary and conditions page, which we will update regularly throughout the year.  During the winter, there will be plenty of up-to-date information and reports regarding the latest mixed and ice climbing and mountaineering conditions in the Scottish Highlands, and in particular, on Ben Nevis, Aonach Mor and in Glencoe.  We’ll also be posting accounts of our latest trips, both work and play. 

If you have any up-to-date conditions reports and photos that we can include in our blog, please drop us an email:
info@77.104.174.8

Sgurr Nan Gillean, Am Basteir and Bruach na Frithe

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I'm back on the Misty Isle again, running our last Skye Munros Course (run in conjunction with Steven Fallon Mountain Guiding) of the year.

It's no secret that the western Highlands are experiencing some changeable weather at the moment, so picking the right objective for the day can be quite tricky. With the winds due to ease from midday onwards, we decided to go for the northern 3 Munros; Sgurr Nan Gillean, Am Basteir and Bruach na Frithe.

This was a bit of a baptism of fire for the team, but everyone did well and managed the ascent and descent of Sgurr Nan Gillean's excellent West Ridge. From there, we tackled Am Bastier via its East Ridge, including the Bad Step, before finishing on Bruach na Frithe.

Drier but windier tomorrow…


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Troll Outdoors Ltd

Aonach Eagach – The Notched Ridge

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The day started off very promising for Peter, Geoff, Carl and myself today, as we made the steep ascent up Am Bodach to start the traverse of the Aonach Eagach in Glencoe today. We were treated to great views across Glen Coe, as well as to Ben Nevis and the Mamores to the north and we also passed a herd of wild goats on our way up.

As Peter, Geoff and Carl were all pretty experienced in the mountains, and with conditions being good underfoot, we made good progress, and soloed much of the ridge. The clouds held off for much of our traverse, but closed in after the final section of scrambling, and brought with it a bit of drizzle.

Still, a great day to be out in Glencoe, and a fine accomplishment for Peter, Geoff and Carl. The beauty with completing the Aonach Eagach is that it opens up a world of mountaineering and scrambling possibilities throughout the Highlands and on the Isle of Skye.

We've got plenty of availability throughout the autumn to guide you along the Aonach Eagach, for further information, visit: http://51.38.64.114/…/aonach-eagach…/

Tower Ridge, Ben Nevis

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It was nice to be back on Ben Nevis today. Mike and I headed straight for one of the longest climbs in the UK, Tower Ridge, and had a great day!

We made our way, carefully as ever, up the East Gully of the Douglas Boulder, before gaining the crest of Tower Ridge. The rock was a bit damp in places, but overall, conditions were pretty good. As we made our ascent, the clouds swirled around us and gave us glimpses up to the plateau and of the surrounding cliffs and two remaining snow patches, one beneath Point 5 Gully, and the other alongside Tower Scoop.

Mike made short work of Tower Ridge, and we soon found ourselves in the crux section, between the Eastern Traverse and the far side of Tower Gap. The exposure here is quite sensational, and is a good reminder not to switch off just yet!

Soon after, we were making our way round to the summit, which was quite busy, and completely in the cloud.

 

If you fancy tackling Tower Ridge this autumn, then please get in touch.
www.westcoast-mountainguides.co.uk/cours…/tower-ridge-guide/

Sgurr Nan Gillean, Am Basteir and Bruach na Frithe

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For our final day of our Skye Munros Course, Steve, myself and our team of 6 tackled the northern 3 Munros on the main Cuillin Ridge; Sgurr Nan Gillean, Am Basteir and Bruach na Frithe.

We ascended the brilliant West Ridge of Sgurr Nan Gillean before then ascending the East Ridge of Am Basteir. Sgurr Nan Gillean must be one of my favourite mountains in the UK, with three excellent ridges emanating from its lofty summit, none of them easy.

On the East Ridge of Am Basteir, we stayed close to the crest, and tackled the bad step in both directions, before finally cutting beneath Am Basteir and crossing the head of Fionn Choire and up our eleventh Munro; Bruach Na Frithe, the only Munro on the main Cuillin Ridge to feature a trig point.

The weather remained largely dry today, but we did have a sharp shower of hail. It definitely felt quite autumnal.



These courses are run in conjunction with Steven Fallon Mountain Guiding

Sgurr a'Ghreadaidh and Mhadaidh

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Wet, wet, wet today! With a rather sub-optimal weather forecast, Steve and I took our Skye Munros team to the Central section of the Cuillin Ridge and to Sgurr a'Ghreadaidh and Sgurr a'Mhadaidh.

The rain was with us from the off, so it was a case of keeping our hoods up and our heads down in order to tick off these two Munros, both of which have short sections of technical scrambling, but require full attention throughout.

That's eight Munros completed over the past three days, with three left to go on the main Cuillin Ridge.



These courses are run in conjunction with Steven Fallon Mountain Guiding

Sgurr Mhic Choinnich, The In Pinn and Sgurr na Banachdich

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For our second day of our Skye Munros Course, run in conjunction with Steven Fallon Mountain Guiding, Steve, myself and our team tackled Sgurr Mhic Choinnich, The In Pinn and Sgurr na Banachdich.

The weather remained largely dry, but it was definitely cooler and with more clouds than expected. That said, the rock was dry throughout. The team cruised over Sgurr Mhic Choinnich, and up the brown ramp beneath An Stac. The In Pinn, which for many Munroists, can prove to be a bit of a nemesis, was tackled with enthusiasm.

We then skirted over to Sgurr Na Banachdich in good time. It was quite a busy day, with a number of other teams on Sgurr Mhic Choinnich, but we were fortunate to have a clear run up the In Pinn.

Bit of a change in the weather for tomorrow, but with the forecasts not having been entirety accurate recently, it may not be quite so wet tomorrow…


Southern 3 Munros on the Cuillin Ridge

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Today, Steve and I kicked off our Skye Munros Course, run in conjunction with Steven Fallon Mountain Guiding, with an ascent of Sgurr Nan Eag, Sgurr Dubh Mor and Sgurr Alasdair.

The weather didn't quite turn out as expected, and we had quite a bit more cloud and drizzle than the forecasts were suggesting. We still managed to get some great views of the rest of the Cuillin Ridge, but they were definitely a bit more 'atmospheric'. The team did well with coping with the variable conditions underfoot, and as ever the descent of the Great Stone Chute had its fans and those that enjoyed it a little less. Its amazing how much it changes from week to week, and today if felt a bit more awkward than usual.


Wet day on the Clach Glas – Blaven traverse

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The day started off well today, but we were soon in the cloud, followed by quite a bit of rain. That didn't stop Simon, Catherine and I enjoying one of the best mountaineering routes on Skye, and hence the UK; the Clach Glas – Blaven traverse.

We gained the ridge in good time, but the wet rock thereafter slowed us down a bit. This sustained route takes a cunning line up the north ridge of Clach Glas, before descending the infamous Imposter and then weaves back and forth over the south ridge and eventually gains the Putting Green. The final section involves a short steep wall and finally a long pitch up a chockstone filled gully.

Well done to Simon and Catherine for putting in a huge amount of effort today!


Cuillin Ridge Traverse success yesterday and a wet day today

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Steve was out with Catherine and Mark on Thursday and Friday, and successfully completed one the best mountaineering challenges in the UK; a two day traverse of the Skye Cuillin Ridge. They started by catching the early morning speedboat from Elgol, and bivied just after the Three Teeth of Thormaid, before finishing the remainder of the ridge yesterday. Despite a damp start, the weather gods looked kindly down on them and soon the weather cleared and it remained dry, if a bit windy for the rest of their traverse. A huge well done to them all!

It was a bit of a different story of Skye today, with low cloud and rain for a good chunk of the day. I was out with Martin and Jean. Jean has already completed her round of the Munros, but Martin only has a handful left. Today, we ticked off Sgurr Mhic Choinnich, The In Pinn and Sgurr na Banachdich, leaving Martin with only 7 more to go. They did well, particularly considering the prevailing conditions. All the best to Martin in his quest to complete all 282 of them, not long to go now!


Pinnacle Ridge, Sgurr nan Gillean

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Simon, Catherine and I had an excellent day on Pinnacle Ridge on Sgurr nan Gillean today. The weather forecast for today was excellent, the weather first this morning wasn't, but fortunately, the early morning showers soon cleared, giving a largely dry and clear day.

The thing I particularly enjoy about Pinnacle Ridge is the huge variety of situations to be found en route, from steep buttresses and grooves, weaving in amongst towers and outcrops, narrow and exposed crests, not to mention the fantastically airy abseil off the summit of the Third Pinnacle, which Catherine did very well on, particularly as it was her first ever abseil. The route is sustained through-out and finishes right at the summit of Sgurr nan Gillean.

We had a bite to eat on the summit, before descending the West Ridge, which in itself is no pushover, rounding off a full day of mountaineering and probably one of the best single day outings in the UK.