Mixed weather: Western Rib, Aonach Mor

Today, I was out with Nick, Andy and Allan, who I've been out with a number of times over the years. We decided that Western Rib on the west face of Aonach Mor would give us a good mountaineering day out. It also gave us a good deal of trail breaking to get round there! Fortunately, the snow was quite firm for the final 100m of ascent up to the base of the route.

The route is quite snowy at the moment and in good condition. There was very little bare rock visible for much of the route and some sharp crests of snow on some of the upper sections, all adding to the atmosphere.

The day started off quite clear, with great views across to Carn Mor Dearg and into Glen Nevis. By the time we topped out, the winds had picked up and the clouds had descended, so we didn't hang around on the summit. We were all pretty pleased to descend into the ski area to find plenty of skiers about and more importantly, the gondola still running!