Indicator Wall with Intermediate Start, Ben Nevis

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Today was my last scheduled day of winter work, which is rather convenient, as the weather is turning as of tomorrow.  I was working for Abacus Mountain Guides, and out with Peter, who was keen for a classic ice climb on Ben Nevis.  We walked in with an open plan, but knowing that there was a fair amount of awkward crust on a lot of the steeper ice, and on entering Observatory Gully, and seeing teams veer off to Hadrian’s Wall, Point 5, Tower Scoop and Smith’s Route, an ascent of Indicator Wall seemed to make perfect sense.

I did have in the back of my mind that having a look at one of the ice pitches directly below Indicator Wall (Lower Indicator Wall) would be a nice start, however, only the Intermediate Start (as per Godefroy Perroux’s excellent guidebook) was thick enough to climb.  It gave a nice, and quite steep, pitch of ice (a bit cruddy on the surface in places) for starters.

We then crossed the snow slopes to gain Indicator Wall itself, which was in reasonable condition, if again, a bit cruddy on the surface in places, and just required a bit more work to secure tools and feet.  It sounded like folk were experiencing similar conditions on Smith’s Route too.  One of the things I love about Indicator Wall is that it is the highest route in the UK, and tops out metres away from the summit cairn, which is then used as the final belay, much to the intrigue of folk who have walked up the mountain track.

Quite a few folk out making the most of the last good day for a while, with people on Smith’s Route, Tower Scoop, Hadrian’s Wall, Point 5 Gully (not sure what conditions it’s in), Tower Ridge and a fair few heading into Coire na Ciste too.

Do I think winter is over?  I doubt it, the upcoming milder air and rain will strip a lot of the loose snow, of which there is lots, and start to erode the ice,  but there are hints of cooler air sneaking in for the following weekend (http://www.wetterzentrale.de/pics/avnpanel1.html)…  Temperatures will still remain reasonably low, with the freezing levels hovering just above the summits, so the ice (where thicker) should survive until it cools down again… Time will tell!

Tower Ridge & SW Ridge, Ben Nevis

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Not both today I should add!  Yesterday, I was out with Malcolm and Gill on Tower Ridge.  Fresh overnight snows had transformed large sections of  the ridge into a beautifully sharp crest of snow, which whilst very pretty, was hard work, as much of the snow was unconsolidated.

For Malcolm and Gill, it was a step up from anything they had done on Ben Nevis previously, but they took it in their stride, and enjoyed the full winter experience up there.  Visibility was quite poor for much of the day, but we did spot tracks up and around Tower Scoop.  Voices also heard from around The White Line area.

Today, I was out with Justin, and having driven to look at Buachaille Etive Mor, which was black as the ace of spades (every other surrounding hill had plenty of snow), we hot footed back to Ben Nevis, where we climbed the SW Ridge of the Douglas Boulder, which was still holding a good amount of snow.  It was Justin’s first taste of using his tools in amongst rock, rather than ice, which took a bit of getting used to.  We saw a number of substantial sluffs cascading down Vanishing Gully and surrounding routes.

 

Hannah was also exploring Ben Nevis, with Harry.  They headed up towards Carn Dearg Meadhonach, before skiing into the corrie just north of the East Ridge, before climbing back up the East Ridge, which they reported to be excellent, and following the Carn Mor Dearg Arête round, dropping into Coire Leis, only finally taking their skis off at the CIC Hut.

Soft-shell day: Ledge Route & Carn Mor Dearg Arête

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Whilst southern England was getting battered by storm Katie, we enjoyed quite calm conditions up in The Highlands, so calm in fact that it was one of those rare ‘soft-shell days’, although we did get a few drops right at the end of the day.

I was out with Rob, who rather impressively, flew up last night from London, for a dose of winter mountaineering, before flying back this evening.  Talk about a quick hit!  Having not set foot on Ben Nevis before, he was keen to give the Carn Mor Dearg Arête a go, and with very little persuasion, we decided that to maximise the day we would head up Ledge Route, before taking in the summit of Ben Nevis, and descend via Carn Mor Dearg.

Not as quiet on the mountain today, with a number of teams venturing into both Coire na Ciste and Observatory Gully, however, only us and one other team on Ledge Route today.  The route generally had a good cover of snow, except of a thin patch above the Curtain.  It may be worth staying in No. 5 Gully for a bit longer at the moment, before traversing right to reach Ledge Route.  The rest of the route was very good.

The cloud, whilst thin, was enough to a) not give us too many views and b) trap heat in, so unfortunately, not many views from the summit, despite patches of blue sky.  We then continued round the Carn Mor Dearg Arête , which  had just enough snow on the crest to warrant crampons, although the snow was quite soft.  It did turn a bit wintry for a while during the afternoon, but didn’t last long.

It’s been an action packed 24hrs for Rob, who is now on his way to catch a delayed flight from Glasgow.  He’ll sleep well when he eventually gets home tonight!

Teams on Tower Ridge, SW Ridge, 1934 Route, The White Line and a soloist on Hadrian’s Wall amongst others.  Mixed reports as to how safe approaches were today, with at least one team backing away from routes on Goodeve’s Buttress…

 

Pays to start later! SW Ridge of the Douglas Boulder

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The day started with the rain lashing against the windows, and a thick blanket of cloud lying just a few metres above sea level, however, with a forecast suggesting a huge improvement from about 9ish, Andy, Hazel and I had a leisurely start, which was just as well, as they were therefore able to enjoy their cooked breakfast at the Lime Tree this morning.  By the time we were walking into Ben Nevis, the clouds had already lifted, revealing a very white mountain.

Plan A was the SW Ridge of the Douglas Boulder, which looked nice and white.  There was thin layer of windslab on the approach, but easily penetrable, down to the much older snow beneath.  The ridge was covered in fresh snow, so despite the lack of firm névé, was still very wintry. A bit of care was required with the odd loose block, but generally the climb relies on sinker hooks, and so didn’t require moves using loose blocks to make progress.

Andy and Hazel have mainly climbed ice when out in winter, so had to adapt some of their experiences to make the most of the cracks and tiny ledges for feet, as well as making the odd move with hands rather than axes.

It was eerily quiet on Ben Nevis today, with one team who headed round to NE Buttress, a set of tracks to and from the base of Hadrian’s Wall, one team who headed up to The Cascade and a couple of teams looking at skills in Coire na Ciste.  With the freezing level remaining at 800m or so for the next wee while, the snow will continue to consolidate, and should give good climbing conditions this week… Winter continues!

Another successful CIC Hut Week, Ben Nevis

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Over the past five days, Stu and I have been running our second CIC Hut Week of the season.  Being based in this alpine hut allows us unparalleled access to some of the finest winter climbs in the UK, and we certainly made the most of what turned out to be quite reasonable conditions and weather, even if visibility wasn’t great at times.  We were joined by Tom, Tim, Andy and Danny for the week.

On Monday, and to kick the week off, we all made an ascent of Tower Scoop, before Andy, Danny and myself climbed Indicator Wall, topping out on the very summit of Ben Nevis and using the summit cairn as the final belay.  The ice was in very good shape, if a little thin in a couple of patches on the first pitch, the second and third pitch were brilliant.  Stu, Tim and Tom climbed Good Friday Climb that afternoon, and also reported good conditions.

On Tuesday, we decided to go for a team ascent of Hadrian’s Wall Direct, which felt like a reasonable progression from the day before.  Tim had to disappear down to Edinburgh for the day, leaving Tom and I to climb the route as a pair, whilst Stu guided Andy and Danny.  The first couple of pitches were a bit damp, but conditions improved quickly with height.  Getting a sharp start ensured that we were ahead of the crowds, and found ourselves topping out in the sunshine, above thick cloud, before midday.  With plenty of time left, Tom and I abseiled into Tower Gully, and back into the murk, before finding our way to the base of Smith’s Route, which we then climbed.  Again, from about halfway up the second (main) pitch, we popped out above the clouds again.  The Icicle Variation was looking a little soft, however, the Original Route sported great ice throughout.  The summit was busy with plenty of climbers enjoying perhaps the only place in the Western Highlands to be in the sunshine.

Wednesday brought with it low lying cloud, so Tim, Tom and I headed into Coire na Ciste and up to a grade III lick of ice below and left of Raeburn’s Easy Route.  We climbed this, before making our way to the foot of the impressive icefall of The Cascade.  The ice on The Cascade was generally good, with a couple of more brittle patches low down, and some thinner patches towards the top.  Not sure why it gets the grade of IV,5 as it’s probably more sustained than the main pitch of Smith’s Route.  We then continued up the icy grooves of Expert’s Choice, of which the final pitch was particularly good.  We then descended back into Coire na Ciste via an abseil into No. 3 Gully.  Stu, Danny and Andy meanwhile, also enjoyed Smith’s Route and Good Friday Climb.

With a stormy start to Thursday, and with forecasts hinting at an improvement later in the morning, we opted for a 10.30am start, and made a team ascent of Green Gully.  Our late start paid off, with a marked decrease in both wind speed and precipitation.  The stormy weather had deposited a fair bit of fresh snow in the the corries, and particularly in the gullies, and so to avoid any avalanche hazards, we descended the Red Burn, and walked back via halfway Lochan and beneath the north wall of The Castle.  Nice to stretch the legs as well as the arms!

For our final day, with the wind speeds due to increase at midday, we started early, and again, stuck together, and made a swift team ascent of Tower Ridge, which was in great condition, with good snow cover throughout.   The winds started to increase as we topped out, and by the time we were enjoying lunch in Whetherspoons in Fort William, the weather had deteriorated quite a bit.

That’s it for our CIC Hut Week Courses this season, they’ve both been great fun, with good conditions and very enjoyable company.  Between the four teams over the two weeks, we’ve been able to climb plenty of brilliant routes, including: Cresta Direct/Moonwalk, Minus Two Gully, North East Buttress, The Curtain, Tower Ridge, Observatory Buttress, Orion Face Direct, Hadrian’s Wall Direct, Smith’s Route, Tower Scoop, Good Friday Climb, Indicator Wall, The Cascade, Expert’s Choice, Green Gully and Vanishing Gully.

Provisional dates for our CIC Hut Week long courses for next year are:

5-10 March 2017
19-24 March 2017

Don’t forget that we can also arrange private guided days based out of the CIC Hut too.  Please get in touch for further information.

Above the clouds on Tower Ridge, Ben Nevis

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If you were in Fort William today, you would have spent most of the day under a grey sky, however, it was a very different world up on Ben Nevis today.  The day did start off quite clear, but soon, the clouds rolled in, filling the glens, however, Ricky and I, along with almost everyone else on Ben Nevis today managed to remain above the clouds for much of the day and enjoyed yet another day of sunshine and views for miles around, although today very few peaks were poking through the thick band of cloud.

We climbed Tower Ridge in little more than softshells and a base layer.  The route has lost a lot of snow over the past week, but what is left, which is still significant, is bullet hard in places, and crampons were worn throughout.  The exit from Douglas Gap, most of the steeper steps on the Little Tower and Tower Gap were largely dry.

We had good views of climbers in Observatory Gully, Hadrian’s Wall, Smith’s and Tower Scoop were seeing a fair bit of traffic, Indicator Wall had one team on it, who were linking up the normal start with the second pitch of the R/H variation.  A team were on the second pitch of Point 5 Gully, but were seen retreating a little while later.  Tower Gully is steep at the top, but is being used in both ascent and descent, although care required, as a slip here would be bad news.

In Coire na Ciste, Tim was out with Martin.  They climbed Green Gully, and reported good conditions and no crowds either.  A team were in Glover’s Chimney, and seemed to be bombarded occasionally with falling ice.

Hannah and Steve were also enjoying being above the clouds with their group of 10 on the Carn Mor Dearg Arete. The crest is fairly bare of snow now, and the group didn’t need to use crampons until the final slopes up to the summit of Ben Nevis, which is now a meter higher, and stands at 1345m due to a recalculation carried out by Ordnance Survey.

Looking across from the CMD towards the north face of Ben Nevis

Looking across from the CMD towards the north face of Ben Nevis

Finally, Mark was out delivering a day of crevasse rescue and expedition skills to James and Rosy.  They were on Stob Coire nan Lochan today.

I’m off for our second CIC Hut Week tomorrow, fortunately things are looking to turn a bit more wintry, so it’s looking like a promising week ahead.  I’ll not blog through the week, but will post regular updates on our Facebook page.

 

Relaxed day on The White Line, Ben Nevis

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I was back out (working for Abacus Mountain Guides) with Vic today, who had enjoyed a relaxing day in Plockton yesterday.  Not wanting to completely destroy Vic’s relaxed mood, we heading back up Ben Nevis today, but rather than battle with crowds in Observatory Gully, made our way into Coire na Ciste, to climb The White Line, a route that I’ve been meaning to climb for years, but just hadn’t got round to it.  I knew it would be adventurous and good fun but not too tricky and so would be just right for Vic.

The ice on the first two pitches was excellent (grade IVish), with great axe placements, and plenty of opportunities for ice screws.  The ice was also much drier than on Hadrian’s a couple of days ago.  Further up, a couple of short steps were becoming a bit mixed, but asides from that, the route was in great condition.  No debris coming down in the vicinity either.

Plenty of routes still to go at over the weekend, before things cool down.  Teams on Green Gully, No. 2 Gully Buttress, The White Line, Tower Ridge, Hadrian’s, Indicator, Smiths and Good Friday Climb.  Comb Gully Buttress could be good to, but there are no tracks up it.  The Gutter looks fat, and would give a brilliant pitch of steeper ice.  Glover’s Chimney is doable, but the first pitch has a few holes in it, which can be avoided by starting to the right (The White Line original start), and traversing in.

Mid-range forecasts are pointing at a return to winter next week, with temperatures cooling down from Sunday onwards, before an increase in precipitation and wind speeds from mid-week onwards. It looks like winter is making a return in time for Easter.

 

 

 

Nice and quiet on Green Gully, Ben Nevis

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It was nice and quiet in Coire na Ciste this morning, everyone seemed to be piling into Observatory Gully.  Shaun and I were only one of three teams in the corrie, and with Green Gully looking complete and empty, our decision was made.  Shaun is off the back of a climbing course in the Cairngorms,  and wanted to experience a classic west coast winter route, both for his own enjoyment, but also in preparation for an upcoming trip to attempt Mera Peak, Island Peak and Lobuche East in the Khumbu Region of Nepal.

The initial pitch was a bit soft in places, but all there, with reasonable axe placements, and thereafter, the route was in good shape.  Don’t expect much in the way of ice screw placements until the direct final pitch, which gave the best climbing of the day.  Some rock gear has now been exposed by the steady thaw.

John was also out with John and Richard, they made an early start and had a great time on Indicator Wall. They reported good conditions, made all the better by having brilliant views of the cloud inversion from the summit.

So, what about these warm temperatures and conditions for the weekend?  The ice is deteriorating, but on the NW/N aspects, at a fairly slow rate, and what’s there should remain there for the next few days.  Easterly aspects are catching the morning sunshine, so whilst things look complete (North, South and Central Gullies of Creag Coire na Ciste), they are very prone to cornice collapse and falling debris, so probably worth avoiding, unless you’re going for night time ascent.

 

Still hanging on: Hadrian’s Wall Direct, Ben Nevis

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The warm daytime temperatures continue, however, this morning, in the shade, things still felt cool, particularly with a gentle breeze blowing.  The snow in Observatory Gully is firming up overnight, but not as hard as it was earlier this week.

I was working for Abacus Mountain Guides today, and out with Vic, who I last guided back in 2012, where we climbed Feathered Friend on Creag Meagaidh, a first winter ascent of a variation to Crow Road on Bellevue Buttress and Finger’s Ridge in The Cairngorms.  It was great to see Vic again, who is very enthusiastic when it comes to mountain adventures, both home and abroad, and so we decided that an early start to seek some ice on Ben Nevis would fit the bill today.

We did spot two teams, from a distance,  heading into Observatory Gully, but they were all headed to Tower Scoop, and with only one other team already above the main ice fall on Hadrian’s Wall Direct, things were looking promising.  At the very last minute someone traversed in from below Observatory Buttress, which at first was disappointing, until we realised that he was soloing, and was up and away before we had reached the base of the route.

The main icefall on Hadrian’s Wall Direct was in fairly good shape, with nice chewy ice all the way, and only a thin layer of softer ice on the surface.  The chimney on the second pitch was a bit soft, but after that, it was good conditions all the way, with the final ice fall being in great nick. There was a bit of debris coming down occasionally, but nothing to cause concern.  The same can’t be said for Point 5 Gully, which a team backed off from, having been bombarded with falling ice.  The ice in the gully looks good though!

A team were climbing Sickle alongside us, and reported reasonable conditions too.  They traversed in from a few meters up Hadrian’s Wall Direct, and had to make a few mixed moves to gain Sickle, but remained on the route thereafter.  Indicator Right Hand was climbed and reported to be a bit pokey due to poor ice in places.  Smith’s Route looked good, but I didn’t see anyone on it.  Plenty of teams enjoying Tower Ridge in alpine conditions.

 

Another stunning day: Dorsal Arete, Glencoe

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It’s been another stunning day in the Outdoor Capital of the UK, with wall to wall sunshine, firm snow and amazing, it was quite quiet on the hills today.

I was back out with Kevin and John, for their final day of coached leading, and we went to Stob Coire nan Lochan to climb Dorsal Arete, which I had heard was still in good nick.  It was.

We were the first of only a few teams in the corrie, and therefore had Dorsal Arete mostly to ourselves, the only others to climb the crest were Si and Becky (also part of Team Lowe Alpine), who soloed past with skis on their back, on their way to find a nice descent off Bidean.  What a great day for it!

The snow had once again firmed up overnight, and remained firm where in the shade, giving secure climbing all the way.  With the crux fin just in the sunshine, it would have been a shame to miss it out on such a day, so we took that in too, adding in some variety to an already great route.

It’s been a productive couple of days for Kevin and John, who have really got to grips with pitched climbing.  We’ve been able to look at a variety of belays and runner placements, they’ve now got a good understanding now of ropework and knots, and we’ve climbed two brilliant routes.

Very little in condition on Stob Coire nan Lochan now, Boomerang Gully looked ok, Langsam might be climbable, Forked, Broad and North Gullies are all complete.