Scott Kirkhope Mountaineering

A brief return to winter.

2012-02-24T06:55:00.000-08:00

I was out on the Bauchaille yesterday with Hannah and Davie just working through a few things ready for next month. The snow line had gone up quite a way since I was there on Saturday. There is now only snow at the back of Coire na Tuilach for the last 80-100m before you reach the Bealach. There was water running every where and unsurprisingly we were all saturated by about 2pm so ran away for coffee and cake in Glen Coe village.

The temps have dropped today and there is fresh snow lying above 900m but it is forecast to warm up again tomorrow evening for a few days. People will be out today and I'm sure it won't be long before we get an idea of what is left to do on the Ben. In Stob Coire nan Lochan the snow is now patchy up to the very foot of broad gully and there was no snow on any of the Buttress'. Over in the Cairngorms things aren't looking too good either. Have a look at Al's and Max's blogs for photos. I'm sure winter is not over yet and we will see some more snow and ice building again but it does look a bit depressing at the moment.

Ben Nevis Winter Skills Weekend.

2012-02-20T03:37:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend I was running a course with Rich for Maximum Adventure. On Saturday we made our way into Coire na Tuilach on the Bauchaille hoping to find some shelter from the strong winds and it is a quick walk up to the snow line. We survived the day looking at skills and went on a bit of a tour of the coire.

Yesterday was a completely different day with blue Sky's and very little wind which was great for our day on the Ben, although it did cloud over later in the day. We walked up a pretty busy tourist path passing a lot of people who were not prepared for the rock hard neve and ice on the plateau. We had a bit of a tour round having a look over to the North face, more so I could see what was getting done but the group were impressed with the climbers too.

Looking down No.3 Gully.

A busy Summit.

Lots of people out and we saw teams on Ledge route, Gargoyle wall, Babylon (I think), the Cascades, Glover's chimney, Smith's route and Indicator wall. We saw the chopper about too but didn't hear the unfortunate news of the accident on Zero gully until we got home.

Tour de Ben Nevis.

2012-02-17T03:09:00.002-08:00

Today was the last day of the Abacus Mountain Guides course and it as an opportunity for the guys to put their new skills into practise. Unfortunately Shelly had to drop out because of a bad knee. We had planned on Ledge route hoping to be done before the worst of the weather came in but on the walk in the wind seemed to have already picked up so we changed our plan and headed for Moonlight gully. The guys lead themselves up the first two pitches then we descended the broken ground to the side and traversed round to Douglas Boulder where we did more of the same up West Gully and then Abseiled down East gully. A week of mixed weather but a nice group of people and a fun course to run.

Spring in the Coe!

2012-02-16T13:17:00.000-08:00

Today on the Abacus Mountain Guides course was all about the rock. With rain forecast at all levels and strong winds we stayed low and headed to the Ziz Zags. This route is great if you want a shorter day or want to stay low and away from the worst of the weather. This does mean however that it seems like I'm always on this route in pretty nasty weather which could start to make me feel a little jaded about the route but thankfully after a slightly damp start the rain stopped and the sun came out and we spent most of the afternoon scrambling on dry rock with stunning views. Reminded me how nice a way up it is through some impressive rock scenery.

We spent the day looking at introducing the guys to some basic rock climbing, looking at pitching, moving together and abseiling. Final day tomorrow and a chance for the guys to put everything they've learnt this week into practise.

Soggy snow anchors

2012-02-15T12:45:00.000-08:00

Today on the Abacus Mountain Guides Winter Mountaineering course we headed up in to Coire na Tulaich on the Bauchaille to look at snow anchors. It doesn't take long before you hit the snow so the short approach meant we made the most of the day. Lots of digging done today and although the top few inches of snow are wet and soft there were some icy layers lower down making digging hard work at times today. The team did well and we made lots of short pitches looking at all of the different anchors we have in our tool box and when to use them.

Creag Meagaidh.

2012-02-14T12:31:00.000-08:00

Day 2 of the Abacus Mountain Guides Winter Mountaineering Course and we headed into Creag Meagaidh. On the walk-in we concentrated on Navigation so the guys could get used to some contour interpretation and breaking things down into smaller legs ready for us heading onto the tops. Unfortunately due to a couple of niggles we had to turn round but spent the rest of the day looking at emergency shelters.

The ice seems to be holding on but there are a few holes appearing in some of the routes. We didn't hit firm snow until we were in the Inner corrie where a couple of routes were getting done. I would imagine the ice at the bottom of the routes on the Post face is going to be close to useless at the moment and the ice higher up has seen some lower temps but the rock still looked damp today.

Skills round the Nid

2012-02-13T11:58:00.000-08:00

I'm running a Winter Mountaineering course this week for Abacus Mountain Guides and today was day one. We took the Gondola up Nevis range and walked round to the Nid and here the group had there first chance to use some of their shiny kit. We spent the day looking at all of the skills that are available to us to move around on varying terrain and went on a bit of a journey taking in some steeper ground. We finished the day off by looking at Ice Axe arrest.

Good ice on Green!

2012-02-12T12:31:00.000-08:00

Day two with Rory and James for Abacus Mountain Guides and after the boys performance on the Pumpkin yesterday they fancied something of a similar grade and wanted to be down at a decent time ready for their drive south. The forecast was for the freezing levels to drop overnight but it didn't really feel like that was the case as we left the car this morning. It was a busy walk in to the CIC and passing a few people who were turning round too which never really fills you with hope. As we hit the floor of the Ciste the snow was starting to firm up nicely and the cloud had lifted a bit which gave us the opportunity to see what was free. Plan A was out with a team at the bottom of the route but Green gully was free so we headed up to the first belay and from then on up the route was in great condition. Bomber placements and even some good screws and after the last few days of milder temps there is a lot of rock gear available too. We topped out into an inversion and enjoyed the sun before we headed down the Red Burn. Lots of teams out today, too many to list and no photos I'm afraid.

Pumpkin soup!

2012-02-11T11:46:00.000-08:00

I'm out with Rory and James this weekend for Abacus Mountain Guides and they were heading up from Edinburgh this morning so we decided to meet at Creag Meagaidh. Mike had been on the Pumpkin yesterday and had reported that it was a bit damp but still there so me made our way up to the Inner coire. We had the Inner coire to ourselves and there were only a couple of other teams visible which I found surprising given reports on UKC. The first pitch was pretty damp and sugary and not brilliant for screws but axe placements were ok once you'd done some digging. The ice did improve with height but the upper part of the route is almost snow free but on good frozen turf. The freezing level is due to drop tonight to about 900m which will help to improve the ice but it does need some new snow. Other teams were on Staghorn gully and one team headed up Reaburn's but I didn't see where they went.

The Post face.

The inner coire with Pumpkin on the left and the Wand and Diadem on the right.

James after the crux.

A team on the crux of Staghorn gully.

A last minute change of plans.

2012-02-07T09:17:00.000-08:00

Plenty of ice in Left twin.

I was supposed to be taking Jo and Matt mountaineering today but Matt text me this morning to say he wasn't well so Jo and I changed our plans and caught the 9am Gondola up onto Aonach Mor. We descended down to a very sunny East face and it felt more like spring than February as we carried on round towards typhoon but it didn't look to be holding much ice so we climbed Siamese twin instead. The first pitch of this had been in the morning sun and was starting to look a bit crusty so we climbed the first pitch of left twin and then moved back right to finish up the crux of Siamese. We topped out into the sun and had a bite of lunch and then headed back down the Morwind abseils and climbed the last two pitches of this just to finish the day off. Another glorious day if climbing in the sun!

The ice on the East face is good at the moment but the last couple of days of sun have taken there toll on the more Southerly aspects of the coire, with snow melting quickly and turf starting to poke back through. The crags around Stirling Bridge still look very white as they don't catch the sun.

The crux of Siamese twin.

Western Rib on the West face of Aonach Mor.

2012-02-06T06:12:00.000-08:00

Yesterdays forecast was much better but after all of the recent snow fall the Avalanche forecast was not looking so promising apart from on Western aspects so we headed round to the summit ribs to climb Western Rib. I was expecting to find this face to be pretty scoured of fresh snow but as we climbed higher the going got slower and slower as we dug ourselves a trench to the summit. A good route though and with lots of variation to be had if you want to make it even more interesting. Every time I've climbed on this face I've been the only group there but others obviously had the same idea as we saw a couple of teams on the walk in that were picking their way up some ground just to the North of the summit, one team climbed Diam buttress I think and Zac was out with his team on Golden oldy.

Today I was working for Abacus Mountain guides.

Fawlty towers.

2012-02-06T05:55:00.000-08:00

Saturday wasn't a nice day to be out. After a week of glorious sunshine and light winds the weather returned to what we have seen a lot of this winter, strong winds, milder temps and heavy precipitation. So Gary, Angus and I headed to the west flank of Tower ridge to try and get some shelter from the winds and avoid all of the fresh snow that was lying further up the mountain. At the CIC hut we chatted to a pair that had just dodged an avalanche below the Orion face and had decided to head back for a brew instead.

We headed up towards West gully with the plan of climbing the South West Ridge but Chris and another team had beaten us to it so we opted for Fawlty Towers with a variation. The first pitch is usually a nice pitch of ice but all I found was a layer of cruddy ice and soft snow which made the climbing feel a little harder than it should. Further up and conditions didn't really improve too much but at least the turf was frozen. This gave us four pitches of what normally is about grade III but was more like IV,5. We topped out onto Tower ridge and descended down the East flank into Observatory gully where there was more evidence of a slide coming from below Point 5.

Rich Bentley climbed a line next to us and one pair managed to make it up to and back from Central gully right hand. Today I was working for Abacus Mountain Guides.

Another stunning day!

2012-02-03T13:33:00.000-08:00

With ice conditions so good at the moment Matt and I decided to head up high on the Ben and see what was about. We arrived in Coire na ciste to see a team heading for Green gully and Two step corner and had seen a team heading round the corner towards Combe gully but they were quite a way ahead of us so we chose to follow them round. It looks like they had headed for Combe gully buttress because we had Combe gully to ourselves and it was in fantastic condition today with first time placements the whole way up. The ice may not have been so good for screws but the climbing was so secure I was happy to run it out a bit. We topped out at 1pm and had some lunch in the sun before heading down.

Reasonably quiet in the Ciste today but teams were on the routes already mentioned plus No.3 gully buttress, the white line, Reaburns route, North gully and Tower face of the Combe. I did see one team finishing off Hadrians wall as we walked out.

The Combe and No.3 gully buttress.

Creag Coire na Ciste

No.5 gully and Carn Dearg.

Milder and windy tomorrow so we'll see what happens with climbing conditions over the next couple of days but I would think the snow ice routes will hold on well and mixed climbs should be back in condition with routes riming up in the moister air.

Aonach Mor in the sunshine.

2012-02-01T13:38:00.000-08:00

I met up with Matt and Jo this morning at Nevis range at 10am. A nice lazy start for me as Jo didn't finish work till 9am but both of the lads had to be back to start work at 5pm so we were planning on a quick blast. Unfortunately the quad chair wasn't running due to the winds so our window for climbing was now even smaller. We walked up to the summit into a cold and biting southerly wind and finally got high enough to see some sun. We geared up and abseiled into Easy gully along with Ed and Max who were out with clients from Jagged globe. It was now after midday, so as we traversed along the bottom of the crag we saw teams on Whiteshark/Aquafresh and could see a team on Morwind. knowing it would probably be busy around the twins area too we spotted an empty and partially sun bathed Tunnel Vision. Decision made and we climbed it in 3 pitches with the middle being the crux but with solid axe placements all the way although not fantastic for screws but well worth a visit for the grade. We topped out into the sun and fantastic views across the whole of Lochaber. A quick bite to eat and back at the cars for 3pm. It was a nice day to be out no matter what you were doing today and looks set to continue for another couple of days.

Back into Stob Coire nan Lochan.

2012-01-31T13:07:00.000-08:00

Pitch 2. It's steeper than it looks.

I woke up this morning feeling a little tired and a bit spaced out still fighting the back of this cold but was keen to get out and enjoy the climbing conditions. A big cup of coffee and I thought I was feeling more awake but that wasn't the case as when I got to Glen Coe I found out I had forgotten the insoles to my boots. It didn't really cause me too much of a problem but the walk out was a bit painful.

Ian and I just decided to see what was available or looked good when we got there but we had a few things in mind. Arriving in the coire the buttress' looked a bit blacker than yesterday. Summit buttress looked a bit whiter so we headed for Spectre. This gave us two good pitches but felt stiff for V,6, I would say it felt more like VI,6. One more pitch of about III/IV and we abseiled back into Broad gully. Good neve on the ledges and the turf is frozen solid but a lot of the cracks were quite icy.

Lots of teams out today doing Moonshadow, Reaburns route, Dorsal Arete, Forked gully, Twisting grooves and Ken was on Twisting gully

Stob Coire nan Lochan.

2012-01-30T10:31:00.000-08:00

Last day of the guys mountaineering course for West Coast Mountain Guides today and we headed up to SCnL to cover some more rope work and look at how they would pitch more difficult sections of climbing and protect each other on descent. We stuck to the broken ground just to the left of Boomerang gully and you can pick any line really from grade I-III. Other teams out in the corrie climbed Central Grooves, Something on North Buttress maybe Crest route or one of the lines just to the left. Max and Ed were out with their teams and climbed Twisting gully and NC gully.

Ledge route on Day 2.

2012-01-29T09:54:00.000-08:00

After yesterdays day of skills we decided to go and actually get a route in so headed for Ledge route. I lead the way for most of the route talking the guys through anchor selection and looking at quick ways to switch between appropriate techniques. We finished the last bit of the ridge with the guys going solo and then we descended down No.4 Gully.

Teams out on Combe, Green and a very amenable two-step corner. One team made an ascent of Vanishing gully which I would say is there but probably not at the guide book grade yet. The mixed routes in the Ciste looked in great condition and will probably last as there is no real thaw forecast until later in the week. Today I was working for West Coast Mountain Guides.

Looking up to No.3 Gully.

Winter Mountaineering.

2012-01-28T11:29:00.000-08:00

Day 1 of three working for West Coast Mountain Guides today and Kamil, Chris and I took the gondola up onto Aonach Mor and spent the day looking at skills in preparation for the next couple of days of mountaineering. It was busy on the Nid today with another couple of skills groups out and an AMI CPD day with the SAIS. No photos, I forgot to charge the camera.

Ben Nevis winter skills weekend.

2012-01-23T12:17:00.000-08:00

This weekend I was working along side Ken for Maximum Adventure on their Ben Nevis winter skills weekend. On Saturday with a pretty nasty forecast we decided to stay as low as we could and out of the wind as much as possible so we headed to Coire na Tulaich on Buachaille Etive Mor. We spent the day covering the basic skills and the group did well to concentrate on what was a very nasty day.

Day 2 and with strong winds still forecast we decided to try and make the summit of the Ben keeping an open mind to the possibility that we might not get there. Fortunately the winds never really materialised and it turned into a reasonable day so we made it to the top in a steady time of 4 hours.

Climbing conditions looked great for today but unfortunately I've been struck down with the 'man flu' and it sounds like Ken and Guy had a good day on Aonach Mor. Back on the Ben and by what I saw of indicator wall area on Sunday the freeze/thaw cycles we have been getting have done some good as it definitely looked whiter than when I saw it earlier in the week.

North Buttress, Buachaille Etive Mor

2012-01-20T11:59:00.000-08:00

Today Ken, Ian and I headed for North Buttress with the thinking that we would get some shelter from the wind and that the turf should still be frozen and thankfully we were right. We chose this route so we could get some practise rope work in and the route has complicated ground on the approach and descent making for a good day. North Buttress itself is a fantastic route and gives some sustained and technical climbing for IV,4. The freezing level stayed below us for most of the day but it did start to creep up just as we topped out. We descended via Coire Na Tulaich which today was a safe way down as all of the new snow was easy to spot and avoid. The forecast for the week looks to be windy but at least we are getting the snow we have been waiting for.

Short roping workshop on Aonach Mor

2012-01-18T01:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was on an Association of Mountaineering Instructors CPD day being run by Tim Blakemore. The six of us plus Tim made our way up round the Nid and spent the day looking at making our short rope techniques slicker and learning a few new tricks. It's always good to be out with peers too and to see and hear about the way they do things as we all tend to spend most of our time working alone.

The freezing level did rise yesterday but it was much drier than had been forecast so the snow and ice was showing very little sign of thawing. The freezing level has dropped again this morning and snow is forecast for the next couple of days. What Ice there is should stay in good condition and the mixed routes should be an option when the snow arrives as the ground is still frozen solid above 700m.

Back to work.

2012-01-16T10:21:00.000-08:00

So the weather over the last few days have been fantastic in Lochaber. Good hard frosts and mostly sunny. Unfortunately I had other commitments but I was back at work today. Lots of people have been out climbing over the last few days and I'm sure you've seen it on other peoples blogs so I won't give you a run down. Fair to say though that people have been reporting good conditions if a little thin in some places.

Today I was working with David who is doing a winter 3 peaks and it was definitely winter today, it was freezing in the Glen when we set of this morning and only got colder as the wind started to pick up but the sun was shining for most of the day and we got some fantastic views today. I had a few peeks over to the North face and saw teams on Tower ridge, Combe gully, No.2 gully and Max popped up onto the plateau from Smith's route just as i was taking some photos of Indicator wall. Looks like conditions are set to stay this way for a couple more days, though with more cloud and some precipitation which should rime up some of the higher mixed routes.

The Great tower (with a team at the gap), South Trident Buttress and Ledge route.

Indicator wall area. Still thin in places.

Max just popping onto the Plateau from Smith's route.

Aonach Mor East Face

2012-01-12T00:56:00.000-08:00

I was working for Abacus Mountain Guides yesterday with a couple on Aonach Mor. We headed round under the Nid and continued round under the back Coires chair lift. On the way round we concentrated on movement skills including kicking steps and walking/climbing in crampons. We carried on up the ridge bounding the North side of Coire an Lochain towards the climbers col. By this time the temperature had risen and the rain had set in. We climbed the broken ground on the left of the ridge at about grade II and topped out into some pretty strong winds.

The crags on the East face still look to be holding some ice as Guy and Kenny reported a couple of days ago and the turf is still frozen. Given the drop in temps today I would think there would be some routes worth doing over the weekend. All we need is some fresh snow and the buttress routes would be good too. A word of warning though, there are some very big cornices at the moment and unless you want to spend hours digging through you might want to try and pick a route that would be relatively clear for the top out.

Where has the winter gone?

2012-01-10T11:58:00.000-08:00

Fiacaill Buttress.

Ken and I headed over to the Cairngorms this morning to meet Joe and head into the Northern coires to practise some mountaineering work in preparation for assessments later in the winter. It was a constructive day but not that wintry. The snow cover in Coire an t Sneachda is minimal. Even the easy gullies aren't complete. Coire na Lochain has much more snow and I'd guess you would find the gullies in there to be complete. We just couldn't believe how little snow there was, all of the buttress are bare and if you fancied it you could quite happily get a summer route in and probably avoid taking any winter kit at all. On the plus side the ground is still mostly frozen so fresh snow will bring the mixed back into condition.

Mess of Pottage

Aladdin's and Fluted Buttress

Some winter cragging.

2012-01-06T02:11:00.000-08:00

Last day of The Abacus Mountain Guides, Winter Mountaineering Course and the guys had said that they wanted to take another look at pitching, abseiling and some more rope work. So with a thaw forecast to set in again during the day, instead of walking up into the snow to have a wet cold day we decided to go cragging in Glen Nevis. We started the day going over constructing belays again and looked at placing some gear. After that we headed up to the Gutter and made a mass ascent putting it all into practise and then finished the day by abseiling off the tree.

I've got a few days off now to catch up with a few people and jobs. I'll be back out on Tuesday with some condition reports hopefully.

Ledge route and a nice day, finally.

2012-01-05T13:41:00.000-08:00

Day 4 of the Abacus Mountain Guides Winter Mountaineering Course and today always looked to be the best day of the week on paper and it was. A nice cold day with very little precipitation and the wind wasn't as bad as the forecast had suggested again. We had decided today we would make best use of this and go and do a classic mountaineering route. We headed up to Ledge route followed by a couple of other teams who we kindly let past. More so they could put a staircase in for us and make our day a little easier. We followed their steps up the route with the guys moving together as a team of three for most of the route. They did well and the big grins on their faces as we topped out said a lot. A good day to be out in the mountains today and it seems like such a long time since we have had one.

Mixed conditions on the mountain looked great today. Frozen turf and a good covering of Rime. Not many people ventured into Coire na Ciste but a couple of teams did routes on Number 3 gully buttress and lower down the Douglas boulder was busy. Ice is starting to form very quickly on the larger drainage lines with the Curtain and the Shroud looking white but not there yet. Higher up the cascades next to No. 2 gully were there and Glover's chimney looked like it was reasonably well formed. I didn't get a look into Observatory gully and Indicator wall but by the look of the Orion and Minus faces very little ice has formed here with just lots of snow on the ledges but I could be wrong.

All set to change again tomorrow with freezing levels forecast at 2000m. In the long run though there is loads of snow on the mountain and I think very little damage will be done by the rain and the moisture will only help the ice.

Wet, wet, wet.

2012-01-04T11:00:00.000-08:00

A very damp day today. Not too much to say about conditions really, we stayed low in an attempt to stay out of the forecast wind again. We headed up and down the zig zags looking at rope work and decision making whilst moving over mountaineering terrain. Heavy rain fell all day down to about 600m, the snow pack is heavily saturated at this level but higher up more snow fell maintaining the 'High' avalanche forecast for tomorrow. All of this snow and fluctuating temps might make for difficult conditions at the moment but it looks promising for the rest of the winter. No photos today it was just too wet to get the camera out. Today was day 3 of the Abacus Mountain Guides Winter Mountaineering course.

Not that bad actually!

2012-01-03T12:24:00.000-08:00

Day two of the Mountaineering course for Abacus Mountain Guides and today we headed into Ben Nevis with the plan of staying low and trying to find some shelter. Turned out that wasn't really an issue, there was some wind about but nowhere near the kind of speeds that had been forecast. There were some very heavy showers and our footprints were filling in very quickly as we moved about. We spent the day under the Douglas Boulder looking at snow anchors and ice axe arrest. The only other group we saw on the mountain kindly did the hard work for us and dug some shelters and we just went and looked at how and why we might choose to dig or use one.

The team working up a sweat digging bucket seats.

Conditions wise, Douglas boulder area could be worth a look tomorrow with ice starting to form and frozen turf where it is exposed. Ice is trying to form again on the lower ice routes but with the freezing level due to rise again through tomorrow it might not last too long. Higher up the mountain though I think the ice will be coming along nicely and harder mixed lines would be worth a shot. There is a lot of snow up there at the moment but with the strong winds there are definitely areas of snow erosion and deposition going on and it maybe possible to get something done if you go in with an open mind and are careful with the route you choose.

Winter has returned and it looks like it means business.

2012-01-02T11:38:00.000-08:00

Today was the first day of a 5 day Mountaineering Course I'm running for Abacus Mountain Guides. The plan for today was to cover basic skills with the three guys who between them have some experience of winter but were definitely keen to learn more. We headed up towards Stob Ban looking at Navigation on the way in and keeping our eyes open for the signs of snow being shifted around which there was a lot of. We arrived at the back of the corrie and by now we were taking it in turns to break trail with drifts up to our waist and still heavy snow falling. We spent some time here looking at the snow pack and talking about avalanches, digging some hasty pits and getting to know as much about the snow as we could. There was a lot of snow around which meant we didn't get to cover some of the things we had hoped but there is plenty of time. We carried on up to the summit and then finished off by Scrambling down the North Ridge. A fine mountain day out and although it involved a lot of hard work from the guys they did well in difficult conditions.

Things are starting to fill in nicely again with all of the fresh snow but there is a lot of wind slab around and we came across some very deep and not that well bonded stuff that had been deposited by cross loading. The old snow is starting to firm up nicely and the turf is almost frozen and Rime was starting to build on the rocks above 900m. There should be some good mixed climbing conditions to be had if only it wasn't for the weather and getting to the bottom of the crags that might be the biggest problem over the next few days. I apologise I forgot my camera again. I must remember to take it out of the airing cupboard, I'm sure it's dry by now.

Turned out better than I thought.

2012-01-01T10:58:00.000-08:00

I'll admit I wasn't looking forward to getting soaked to the skin again today and the drive into Glen Coe didn't exactly fill me with joy. As Donald and I got out of our cars to get the group from Warwick Uni sorted it was lashing it down with rain and a strong cold wind was driving through the glen but at least we could see it was white on the tops. We made good time up to the corrie floor and spent the day looking at moving around on the snow, Ice axe arrest and lots of other things along the way. We decided to stay in the corrie and stay off the ridges as the wind was quite strong. Today I was working for Abacus Mountain Guides.

New snow lying above about 650m in Glen Coe today, still quite wet though but the freezing level did seem to drop as the day went on and the old snow is starting to firm up again. Al Halewood was climbing and has a report on conditions (and photos as I forgot my camera). It is set to continue being cold on the tops for the next couple of days and I don't think it'll be long before ice is forming as there is so much water about.The turfs not frozen yet and I think with all this fresh snow it will take a while unless it is exposed.

Another day of climbing in the rain.

2011-12-31T12:17:00.000-08:00

Grahams last day today and he wanted to just do more of the same as yesterday just to consolidate what he had learnt. We decided to take a wonder up to the Ben but it wasn't long before we saw the extent of last nights rain. Nearly all of the fresh snow was stripped back right up to the bottom of Coire na Ciste with water pouring over or out of anything it possibly could. We didn't see the upper part of the mountain but I can't imagine it would have been much better. Graham also wanted a reasonably early finish so he could start his drive back to London.

We made our way up towards the South-West ridge of Douglas Boulder thinking we'd be better just not trying to find anything to climb in winter that is but it turned out West gully was pretty much complete. So up we went using short pitches so Graham could practise some more rope work at the stance and change overs. At the top we had a quick look at abseiling and headed down East gully and traversed into Observatory gully.

Set to get colder again with more snow forecast for the next couple of days which should greatly improve climbing conditions. There was still ice hanging on today. The curtain and the bottom of Hadrian's and Point 5 were still iced but not climbable at the moment. Today I was working for West Coast Mountain Guides.

Shame it isn't going to last.

2011-12-30T12:29:00.000-08:00

Day 3 of working for West Coast Mountain Guides and after having spent the last two days making the best of the weather, today we were keen to get out into the snow and do some climbing. Both of the guys were chomping at the bit to get on the sharp end and put some learning into practise. We headed up to Stob Coire Nan Lochain to see what was about for us to do.

Arriving in the Corrie we saw a couple of teams high up on Dorsal Arete and that was it. So we made are way up to the start of the climb and both Graham and Richard did well. Four pitches later they had climbed the whole route by themselves with me just soloing along side. The conditions did worsen as the day went on and a lot of snow fell. The forecasted temperature rise was definitely happening as the snow in the bottom of the corrie was wet on our way back down.

It got a bit wild later on.

Other teams out on Ordinary route, Original summer route, NC gully and one brave team went up Broad gully. There was wind slab around today but the strong winds of yesterday meant that moving around was fairly easy as there were either very deep areas of snow or a shallow layer of fresh stuff on the firm old snow. All set to change again with warmer temps and rain overnight and into tomorrow. As I write this the Aonach Mor summit weather station is reading 3.8 degrees.

Wet and wild again but at least winter has returned.

2011-12-29T12:10:00.000-08:00

I'm working a 4 day climbing course this week for West Coast Mountain Guides and the weather hasn't been ideal so far. With strong winds and rain forecast pretty much up to the summits yesterday we opted to depend the day looking at rope work and theory sessions before we headed up to Glen Nevis to put some of this into practise and looked at Glacier travel techniques too.

Not a nice day to be outside.

Today was set to be a better day but not by much and with the recent conditions meaning there was little or no ice to climb we decided to hit the Ice Factor this morning giving Richard and Graham a chance to actually climb some ice. We spent a lot of time looking at technique and movement and finished the session looking at placing ice screws.

After lunch we headed to Ballachulish Bridge to go Dry tooling and get an idea of what some harder mixed climbing would be like. A good couple of sessions with a lot of things learnt and ready to put into practise tomorrow when we head out.

Starting to get the pump going with some dry tooling.

There were people out climbing today but as would be expected they reported difficult conditions with the wind and a lot of snow, some releasing very easily.

Fat Boy Slim and Ben Nevis Conditions

2011-12-18T11:40:00.000-08:00

John arrived at mine late last night (late for me any way) so we opted on a later start and a shorter day because there was still a lot of unconsolidated snow higher on the mountain. So at the CIC we had a discussion about what to do and we had friends that had done Fat Boy Slim over the last couple of weeks and they had said it was at least worth a look. So off we headed avoiding a couple of patches of windslab on the way up and geared up before we went up the steeper grade 1 ground to the bottom of the route.

John on the crux pitch.

It's a nice route and definitely worth doing if you are in that neck of the woods but it is just a one pitch wonder really. We abseiled back down 1934 and back to the bags. Good frozen turf at this level and with some helpful ice in places but cruddy in others. A couple of teams out today with routes on Douglas boulder seeing the most traffic, probably because it requires less trail breaking. There was a team up under Slingsby's chimney but I didn't see were they went and one team braved the walk up to Gargoyle wall but said the cracks on the first pitch where heavily iced so they changed their mind and went for Lost the place.

Looking into the Ciste.

The snow is still largely unconsolidated on the higher part of the mountain with pockets of windslab around even at around 800m. More heavy snow forecast tonight and tomorrow before a slight thaw and cold again on Tuesday before the weather really turns on Wednesday.

A very wintery scene at the CIC.

Winter skills on Stob Ban.

2011-12-15T11:59:00.000-08:00

Descending the rocky step just below the summit.

I was out with a group today from West Coast Mountain Guides who wanted a day of basic skills and to try and get a peak in. We opted for Stob Ban from Glen Nevis and with the snow level reasonably low it wasn't long before we were starting to look at how to move around on the snow. We carried on up to the head of the glen and found a good area to look at Ice Axe arrest and then carried on to the summit from there, putting the crampons on not far after the bealach. The conditions are good at the moment for looking at moving around in the mountains and avoiding areas that might be an issue and looking at the snow pack too. The snow is starting to show some signs of consolidation at about 900-1000m with an icy crust but there are still weak layers within the snow pack that would be of concern on steeper ground on N-E aspects and a couple of pockets in other places.

You can see the amount of snow on the slopes on the right.

Ice Axe arrest practise.

Wild and wet again.

2011-12-13T06:59:00.000-08:00

So after a period of calmer weather and a bit of freeze thaw to help consolidate some of the snow we are back to stormy weather. It rained heavily overnight in Fort William and hasn't stopped all day. This has been falling as snow above about 200-300m. We also have strong winds at the moment with the Aonach Mor weather station currently showing a gust of 94mph blowing from the South-west.

So it looks like when it does settle down we'll be back to wading through deep snow to get to the routes. It might seem difficult at the moment but all of this snow hopefully will help the winter be a long and fruitful one. Again the East seems to be getting less snow and there was a lot of action in the Cairngorms over the weekend.

Route I Direct, Carn Dearg, Ben Nevis.

2011-12-10T10:33:00.000-08:00

With a nice forecast today after the wild weather of the last few days Ken and I were keen to get out. The snow high up on the Ben didn't really have a chance to consolidate over the last couple of days but the conditions lower down on the mountain are much improved and with a really good cover of snow above 500m we decided to stay low again. We decided on Route I Direct (VI,6), which turned out to be in brilliant condition. A lot of the cracks were full of ice so gear needed some digging out but this ice was also very helpful giving first time placements and good, secure hooks. The guide book breaks this route down into 8 pitches but we did it in 4 and had no problems. All 4 pitches gave some fantastic climbing with every pitch having at least one move of tech 6.

Ken on Pitch 1.

The conditions on the mountain are shaping up well. The amount of snow cover for this time of year is fantastic. Ice is starting to form in most places on the mountain with routes like Vanishing gully, Italian climb and the CIC cascades filling in nicely. The mixed routes are still in great 'nick' too with frozen turf and a good covering of rime and helpful neve. Snow conditions on the ground are variable. There is a hard crust to the snow on the lower part of the mountain which at times does break through making for harder going. As for higher up the mountain, I haven't been there myself but I would guess there is still a lot of unconsolidated snow lying around. It was quiet today with a couple of teams going up Ledge Route and a group doing winter skills. Other than that we saw no-one else really. The closure of the A82 this weekend probably has something to do with it.

The smile on his face says it all.

Avalanche Hazard Evaluation Workshop.

2011-12-09T08:35:00.000-08:00

I was over in the Cairngorms again yesterday but on a training workshop on Avalanche Hazard Evaluation being run by Mark Diggins from the SportScotland Avalanche Information Service. Despite the weather we still managed to spend some out on the hill and it was a good day with lots of knowledge being shared and a good opportunity to refresh things before the winter season really kicks off.

The storms of yesterday have passed but there is still a lot going on with the roads, buildings and many other repairs going on. With regards to the hill conditions the snow pack has been through some changes and there is currently a 'Considerable' risk here in Lochaber and 'High' over in the Cairngorms. The avalanche forecasts weren't supposed to start until the 15th but they have started early in these two areas. So remember to keep up to date with this information before you go out onto the hill and keep your eyes open whilst you're out.

Wild weather in the Northern Corries. Pot of Gold.

2011-12-07T11:05:00.000-08:00

After wading through the snow on the Ben yesterday Ken and I decided to give our legs an easier day. An interesting drive over to the Cairngorms this morning and a nice gentle walk in got us into Coire an t'Sneachda. We had planned to head to Aladdin's Buttress but this looked a bit black and the Mess of Pottage looked white and was quiet. We decided on Pot of Gold (V,6), which takes the groove line to the right of the Message. Out of the three pitches it gave two very good pitches and in some challenging conditions. The cracks are still very iced as a lot people have blogged over the last few days but there was a strong, cold wind today and heavy snow at times, a very Scottish day.

Pitch 3.

It was very quiet in the corrie today with only 3/4 other teams that we saw. Matt and Keith climbed Droidless, Jon and his friend climbed the Message and the Honey pot and there was a team on Original Summer route.

I'm back over in the Cairngorms again tomorrow but on an AMI CPD day.

Jacknife, Douglas Boulder

2011-12-06T09:18:00.000-08:00

With a good forecast today and more snow forecast for tonight Ken and I decided to take a walk up to the Ben. There was a faint track heading up from the bottom car park but it wasn't long before we were breaking trail through deep snow. It took us 2 1/2 hours to get to the CIC hut and from here we could see that the routes high up on the mountain looked in brilliant condition but getting there was going to be the issue. We made a decision to head toward Moonlight gully Buttress but very quickly changed that to Douglas Boulder due to the depth of the snow.

Ken on the Main pitch of Jacknife.

Both of us have done a couple of routes here but neither of us had done Jacknife (V,6) before so it was decided. This is a short route and only really had one pitch of worth but a good one at that. The exposed turf is frozen but on the larger ledges the snow has insulated it. There were only two other teams out today with one team on Cutlass and the other headed round towards the area of Fat Boy Slim but didn't actually see were they went.

The team on Cutlass.

There is now a trench up to the CIC but it is snowing heavily again in Fort William as I write this so I don't think it'll be there for long. Might head East tomorrow but we'll have to wait and see what the roads are like in the morning.

More snow!

2011-12-04T10:42:00.000-08:00

Day 2 of our Maximum Adventure course and we headed up the Ben just up the tourist path. There was heavy snow overnight and it continued to fall today with 3-4 hours of constant snow. There are a lot of drifts even on the windward slopes, where the fresh snow has been blown away the old snow is now very firm. There is now a good cover of snow above 500m and the turf was frozen at 700m.

There is more snow forecast overnight and tomorrow so staying low would be a good option. Areas like the Douglas boulder, the west flank of Tower ridge, Cairn Dearg or Stob Coire Nan Lochan in Glencoe might me a possibility. There has been a lot of action in The Northern Corries which I think has seen less snow.

Winter skills and Ben Nevis conditions.

2011-12-03T09:42:00.000-08:00

First days of winter work this weekend and today was always going to be an interesting day judging by the forecast. We were looking for somewhere to do some skills and get out of the wind. There has been a lot of fresh snow on the West coast over the last week so I was expecting to spend the weekend swimming. Last night though the freezing level went up to about 1300m and dropped again early this morning so I was hoping we might find some firm snow. There is a lot of old snow still around but it hasn't really frozen solid yet and was more like it had a rain crust.

Coire na Ciste

We headed up into Coire na Ciste to see what we could find and managed to cover a few things despite the conditions. There was alot of fresh snow been blown around today and large areas of soft wind slab was forming below the Trident buttress', there was also evidence of an avalanche here and under No.3 gully. The exposed turf at this level was frozen and there was a good amount of icing going on too. The freeze-thaw lines such as Mega route X and the Shroud were visible but still a long way off being climbable. The higher buttress' were white and there was a couple of teams on No.3 gully Buttress and a team on Trident buttress climbing the Minge, I think.

NE Buttress and the Orion face.

Tomorrow is set to be a better day in terms of the wind but tomorrow night and Monday heavy snow is forecast only adding to the fresh snow that is already there. Getting to the routes may well be the most difficult part of the day. There is no Avalanche forecast at the moment so remember to pay attention to the weather forecasts and keep an eye out for what is going on around you.

Winter is here.

2011-11-30T12:12:00.000-08:00

So the forecasts turned out to be right and we've had snow and rain falling on the mountains in the Highlands this week. Yesterday and today though there has been much more snow falling. James Thacker has been out in the Cairngorms along with other people enjoying the Northern Corries. It has been a bit wilder on the West but things are due to ease off a bit tomorrow before it gets really wild on Saturday. The snow is just in time too as I'm working on a winter skills weekend on Saturday and Sunday but the wind might be a bit of a problem.

Looks like winter might be on its way.

2011-11-24T07:19:00.000-08:00

So there has been talk for the last couple of weeks about colder temps at the end of the month leading into December. Looks like this is still on the cards. The Met office synoptic charts are showing a no. of 'lows' passing just to the North of Scotland. These 'lows' are bringing in a no. of both warm and cold fronts over the next few days. These are going to be responsible for the fluctuating temps but are also bringing in moist air from the West ready to fall as it hits the West coast of Scotland. So as a lot of forecast are suggesting there may well be some snow starting to accumulate on the hills and we may well see some action out on the hills over the next week. You can have a look at the synoptics here. http://www.mwis.org.uk/synoptic.php

An early season Coire na Ciste from November 2009

I was hoping I might get a chance to get a route in this week but it is looking less likely and next week when it is looking more promising I'm running a course at Outward Bound. Oh well, I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to come. Like most people I have some personal goals for this winter with regards to progressing as a winter climber. I was hoping that early snows in November would give me a chance to ease myself into winter but I may now just have to hit it running before things start to get busy in January.

A quick round of the Bauchaille.

2011-11-22T10:16:00.000-08:00

It dawned foggy this morning in Corpach but with a good forecast I figured it would be nice if I headed high. So after enjoying a couple of cups of coffee and sending some emails I decided to head to Glen Coe and Bauchaille Etive Mor. Sure enough as I hit Corran the fog cleared and the Sun came out as it quite often does on this stretch of the road.

Looking down the glen towards Loch Linnhe and Ardgour.

I was planning on going up North Buttress so I made my way up the lower part of the Buttress to just level with Crowberry basin but as I got here I looked round to see the shadow of Curved ridge and Crowberry Tower cast over the glen beside me. That was it I changed my mind and headed for the sun. I traversed in just below the luncheon spot and enjoyed climbing in the sun to the top of the ridge. I decided to make a quick ascent of Crowberry tower which on the North and West side the rock was still covered in frost but it just added to the fun. At the summit in just under 2 hours from the car. The cloud was starting to build and the wind was cold and increasing in strength so I decided to make a quick descent down Coire na Tulaich. Around trip of just under 3 hours and a couple of new lines that I hadn't noticed before that look like they would be nice in winter.

On the drive back the morning fog had lifted and there was a fantastic view when I got home of the Ben and the Aonachs with a dusting of snow.

Observatory Ridge and the missing marker.

2011-11-13T10:36:00.000-08:00

After a failed attempt at a day out on Skye yesterday Dave and I were keen to stretch our legs today so we decided on Observatory Ridge. The summit was clear of clouds first thing this morning but as we walked in the wind picked up and the cloud came in. The route was reasonably dry with just a few wet streaks in the lower part but as we gained height the rock became much greasier and had obviously picked up some moister from the clouds. We moved together placing runners or with hand coils for much of the route and only stopped and pitched a couple of times.

Looking down from high up on Observatory ridge.

The big yellow taxi just about to land on the summit.

Thankfully by the time we hit the summit the cloud had lifted and we were greeted with the kind of view that reminds you why you live in the Highlands, especially after the long wet summer. We were also treated to a fly-by by the big yellow taxi that was dropping some MRT guys off at the summit with some supplies.

Notice anything missing?

We decided to descend Ledge route and avoid the tourist track and I wanted to see if James Roddie's blog post was true. Sure enough it is. The No. 4 gully marker post has been removed. I know the John Muir Trust has spent a lot of time in consultation with the MCofS, Guides, Mountaineering Instructors and I'm sure many other people that use the mountain. I don't know the final outcome of this but I do know there was an overwhelming majority that believed the marker was a part of the mountains history and should remain.

I find it hard to believe that they would ignore this but I also can't imagine that they would remove the marker without publicising this decision. So what has happened to it? Maybe they have removed the bent old flag and plan to replace it with something more substantial than an aluminium pole shoved into a pile of boulders or maybe someone has decided it would look good on the wall of their living room. Whatever the answer I'm sure we'll find out soon enough.

A possible new line?

2011-11-09T08:44:00.000-08:00

It's Autumn and my thoughts should be on the winter in front of me and they have been until my days cragging in the sun on Monday. It just made me realise how much I'd missed the rock this summer. So sat at home dreaming of rock climbing and future goals for next season and a thought about a line I had spotted high up in the Glen popped into my head. Bags packed and off I went.It doesn't look like it is too hard but the last third of the route looks very run out so I had planned to ab down and just check that there was gear in the final break before the finishing slab. As I peered over I saw that the upper slab didn't really look that difficult. So I changed my mind and decided I didn't want to see anymore. I do know now that the crux is in the middle part of the route and not the top as I had first thought. So next Spring I'll be on it as soon as I can. Or if it stays like this maybe I should just get it done.

Ardnamurchan ring crags. A nice surprise.

2011-11-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

As anyone who visits this blog, or any blog of anyone living in Scotland knows that the summer has been a bit of a let down in terms of dry rock. So when Al gave me a text yesterday looking for a partner I was keen to say the least. We packed the car and got a reasonably early start to make the most of the daylight. Arriving at the crag it was clear there were still quite a few wet streaks about (not surprising really). So we decided to warm up on Vulcan. A nice two pitch VS which took us upto the upper tier. Al then lead on up through a groove which he hadn't climbed before but was interesting at S 4b and took us to the top.

Al reaching a good rest after the tech crux of Dead ringer.

Back at the bottom of the crag and it was now midday and alot of the streaks had disappeared so we headed on up Dead ringer(E1 5b) which was nice and balancy on the first pitch followed by some bold slab climbing on the second pitch.

We decided to finish the day off with 'Ring of fire' that Al had pointed me at and it was a nice route but felt more like HVS 5b rather than 5a. A nice day to be out on the rock and in such a beautiful setting.

Al pulling through the crux of Ring of fire

Come on snow.

2011-11-04T09:18:00.000-07:00

Well the warm weather seems set to continue for a while which is a bit frustrating. After having had a stint of work at Outward Bound over the last couple of weeks and a day on the Ben for Maximum Adventure things are quiet for the next month which is a good thing as it means I normally get to enjoy the early snows but not this year it seems. They will come eventually it just means I'm spending my time reminiscing and doing pull ups for when it does.

Winter work is starting to come in for after the New year and things are looking set for another good winter. Here's a video from last winter to 'wet the whistle'.

3 Peaks weekend.

2011-10-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

This weekend I was working on a 3 peaks challenge for Maximum Adventure. I met my nice small group of 4 on the Friday night and gave them a brief for what looked to be a wild weekend ahead. Saturday morning we set off up the Ben in heavy rain and strong winds but the team still managed a good time of 5 hours and 15 mins. Off to Scafell Pike and despite the dark and rain again we were back at the van after 3 hours and 45 mins. Snowdon was again wet, in fact very wet and we put in a good time again to come in just under the 24 hour mark.

Summer Mountain Leader training

2011-10-21T03:39:00.000-07:00

I've been shadowing a Summer ML this week run by Bill Strachan of Scotch on the rocks. The course has been based out of the UHI campus in Fort William. It has been an interesting week of weather and learning. The weather was wild for most of the week with strong winds and heavy rain/snow. It was good for me to watch some other MI's as in this profession you quite often find yourself working alone and there were plenty of tips for me to pick up with Sandy Paterson, Mike Pescod and Ben Wallace also working during the week. Despite the weather a lot of learning for the group in terms of navigation, steep ground, rope work and river crossings along with so many other areas. No photo's I'm afraid as the forecast for the first three days was so wild I didn't want to break the camera and when there was a better forecast I forgot it.

Wet on the Ben.

2011-10-15T11:07:00.000-07:00

I was working for Ptarmigan events today with a very large group on the Ben. The weather was fowl and everyone did well to cope with it and maintain their enthusiasm. Out of a 100 participants 94 made it to the top and back down again and raised lots of money for Kidney research.

Scottish Tooling Series

2011-10-08T10:53:00.000-07:00

Autumn can be a difficult time of year in Fort William. The summer seems like a distant memory and the winter hasn't yet arrived, so keeping the fitness up and maintaining the enthusiasm to go outside whilst the wind is howling and the rain is hammering down can be difficult. So this year I decided to enter the Scottish Tooling Series for a bit of fun and for some winter training. I had a great day thanks to the welcoming nature of the regulars that attend the series and had plenty of opportunities to learn new things. I might of got a bit over excited once I had finished the three routes in the Ice wall and tired myself out too quickly but the banter amongst the entrants was enough to make up for it.

Dry tooling at Newtyle Quarry.

2011-10-04T12:02:00.000-07:00

So with the forecast for the West a bit rubbish again Ken and I decided to take a long drive over to Newtyle Quarry near Dunkeld for a bit of winter prep. This quarry is a strange venue, firstly being slate which is unusual for Scotland but also has trad, sport and aid routes there as well as dry tooling. Once we'd found the place we decided to head for the easier lines for a bit of a warm up and neither of us had actually lead a tooling route outside so we didn't want to bite off more than we could chew.

We spent the rest of the day leading and top roping some of the routes and getting used to the feel of axes and crampons on rock again. A word of warning though, some of the rock on the doorjam slab area is very suspect. As you would expect for a quarry but a reasonable sized block just spontaneously came off whilst we were coiling the ropes at the end of the day. Thankfully missing both of us.

SMC Skye Cuillin guide book

2011-10-01T11:12:00.000-07:00

So the new SMC guide to Skye is in the shops and I received a phone call from a mate the other day to give me some good news. Both of us have a photo in the new guide and neither of us new about it until he got his hands on a copy. See the photos below. Having now had a flick through the guide I can say it is fantastic. The SMC with Mike Lates have done it again. Lots of great photo topos and inspiring shots and now a complete and up to date guide including the more recent harder mixed lines in the area. I can't wait for the winter now, to give some of these routes a shot.

Myself on Vulcan wall.

Alex on Stormy Petrel.

Escaped to the East.

2011-09-26T01:08:00.000-07:00

Today I was working with Pete and Al who wanted to have a look at improving their ropework, multi pitch belays and using half ropes. With all of the rain we've had recently most of the multi pitch crags are still quite damp and the forecast was for the rain to move in slowly from the West. So we headed East to Kingussie and made best use of the crags there breaking some of the longer single pitch routes into two pitches. We only had a couple of little showers through the day but nothing that stopped play. It started rain though at about 4.30 just as we were topping out on our last climb. A good day out.

I haven't seen that before.

2011-09-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

So I've had a week off and had some family up to visit but back to work today on the Ben. I met the Maximum Adventure group at 8am this morning and they were fired up for their 3 Peaks Challenge. We made good progress and were at the summit in 3 hours and started to make our way down. On the way down we passed the usual crowds and people dressed in all sorts of strange ways. Just when you think you've probably seen everything you possibly can on this path something strange appears in front of you. Firstly there was a group carrying a gas boiler up the mountain, I didn't have time to ask. Then just as we were getting over that sight we turned a corner to see this man.

I know it's been a wet summer but i don't think he'll need that. In fact he was carrying the boat to the top to raise awareness for cancer research. I hope he manages it. In fact he's probably still doing it as I write this.

Anyway it was a dry day today with only one little shower that hit us on the mountain. Got a climbing course to run tomorrow so hopefully it stays that way.

Getting psyched for winter.

2011-09-18T09:00:00.000-07:00

It doesn't matter I many times I watch this video, it's brilliant every time and it just gets me excited for the first winter route. If you've seen it before you'll know what I mean. If you haven't, enjoy!

It's a Saturday, must mean a trip up the Ben then.

2011-09-17T11:20:00.000-07:00

So after another week at Outward Bound I was out on the Ben again today. It's been a regular thing this year with some long and short days. Today I was working with a group of 8 from Maximum Adventure. We started off from the Youth hostel at 8.45am and were back down by 5pm. Everyone did well and the weather was thankfully better than forecast.

Wet and wild.

2011-09-11T09:09:00.000-07:00

After an interesting week working at Outward Bound with an expedition on Tuesday in the pouring rain and howling wind, I was working on the Ben yesterday in similar conditions. I was working for Charity Trek with 42 participants all looking to complete the challenge and raise money for their different charities. Everyone did well in some challenging weather.

The long term forecast for the next couple of weeks doesn't show there to be much of an improvement. On the plus side, long term forecasts are looking good for the winter so why not get ready now and get in touch to discuss your needs for this winter.

Day on the Ben.

2011-09-04T02:08:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was working on the Ben for West Coast Mountain Guides with a group from Wild Green Travel. It was a busy day with the usual 3 peaks challengers and the Ben Race with nearly 500 competitors running up and down. The weather was very Autumnal with persistent rain and feeling very cold on the summit but the team did well.

Alps trip.

2011-08-27T12:30:00.000-07:00

The veiw from the top of the Coolidge couloir, just below the summit.

Descending down the Violettes Glacier.

So summer in Scotland this year hasn't been horrific but not the best either so Ken and I have been looking foreword to this trip for a while. We both finished work on the Monday evening and finished packing and jumped into the van for the long drive to Ailefroide. We arrived late on the Tuesday night and got a fresh start on the Wednesday. I could talk you through the whole trip but I would be here forever and I'm not sure most of you would bother reading on.

The approach to the Glacier Blanc hut.

Mont Pelvoux from the Glacier Blanc hut.

So we spent about a week and a half based in Ailefroide and did a number of great rock routes in the valley and also managed a trav. of Mont Pelvoux which for PD takes you through some impressive scenery although the descent is knee breaking back to the valley. We also did a rock route on Pic de Glacier Blanc called Le Communard which was fantastic if a little bit tedious through the easy ground in the middle of the route, spending most of your time looking for the next bolt rather than climbing.

Ken on top of the Pic du Glacier Blanc with the Barre des Ecrin in the background.

After Ailefroide we had planned to go round to La Berarde but with the power of technology we found out that people had been doing some routes on the North face of La Meije. So we headed round to La Grave and caught the Telepherique up and approached via the a very interesting Facile. The bivi was in a fantastic place with awesome views of the face. During the evening and night the sound of Serac and rock fall was all around us but we kept our fingers crossed for colder temps over night. At 4am we left the bivi and all was quiet but it soon became obvious that things hadn't cooled down enough. Unfortunately after Ken fell through a thankfully very small snow bridge we called it a day as we still had far more complex ground to cross so we headed back to the bivi for a cup of tea and watch the sun rise.

The veiw from the bivi at the foot of La Meije.

We carried on round to La Berarde and bagged a route in in the valley and then headed up to the Soreiller hut to tackle the Voie Madier on the Aiguille Dibona. This is a fantastic route and my favourite of the trip, 400m of clean Granite and it turned out to be bolted for most of the way. After that we headed down to Bourg d'oisans and bagged another route the next day. Unfortunately the weather was set to change so we decided to head home early and break the drive home up.

Our first veiw of the Aiguille Dibona.

Abseil no2 I think, on the Cascade de Villard.

All in all a good trip with some fantastic climbing in a beautful part of the Alps but it is good to be back.

Kingussie, Learning to lead.

2011-08-08T10:52:00.000-07:00

Day 2 with David and Al and after yesterdays very wet day of climbing we were looking for somewhere dry and where the guys could get their first leads in, so Kingussie it was. Both of the guys did great and we had a good day building up their skills and confidence and working through the grades slowly. We had to crag to ourselves until lunch when a group from the Lodge turned up and only had to stop play for five minutes due to rain but the sun and breeze soon dried the crag off. Since then they have had a good couple of trips to the peaks to climb some more. Good luck to them.

Wet EVERYWHERE!

2011-08-07T11:17:00.000-07:00

Day 1 of two days working with David and Alex for Mountain Plan. Both have them have led indoors and wanted to look at how they would move on to real rock. With a bad forecast everywhere in Scotland and even some Severe weather warnings it didn't really make a difference where we went. So to try and make the most of the day we headed into Glen Nevis to do some multi pitch. With water pouring down the crags we headed for the gutter to try and concentrate on rope work and placing gear. We did well and managed to get four pitches in before lunch but the rain got worse as the morning progressed. At lunch we decided we had had enough of the rain and the midge and ran away to the Ice Factor.

Pitch two of the gutter. Note the waterproofs and midge nets.

Here we looked at consolidating the ropework, in the dry and then spent some time climbing and looking at some movement skills. It was very busy and who could be blamed for wanting to be inside on a day like today.

The In Pinn and the Cioch.

2011-08-05T13:42:00.000-07:00

The Cuillin when I arrived on Wednesday evening.

Just back from two days on Skye with Jenni and Gordon working for West Coast Mountain guides. I met them yesterday morning and the rain wasn't forecast to start until about lunch but as we set off from the car the rain started and the cloud came in and it stayed like that for the rest of the day. We set off up the South west ridge of Sgurr Dearg and made quick time up to the base of the In Pinn. Jennie and Gordon did well with the pouring rain and a stiff breeze. We abseiled of the East ridge and quickly ran away back down Coire Banachdich. No photos today, there really was nothing to see.

The Cioch appearing out of the cloud.

This morning with a better forecast we decided to head up towards the Cioch and have a look at some teaching climbing on the slab. As we entered Coire Lagan the cloud started to lift and we got a view up to the Cioch but the cloud never cleared above the summits. We traversed in to the base of the slab and did three pitches of climbing to get ourselves onto the top of the Cioch but unfortunately the cloud had come in again and we weren't treated to a view. We then carried on over to East gully and continued up this to the top of Sron Na Ciche. A good couple of days despite the weather and both Jenni and Gordon coped well with the 'summer' weather.

Jenni and Gordon looking after themselves on a very damp Cioch slab.

A catch up!

2011-08-01T07:55:00.000-07:00

I've been a bit slack with the blog lately so here is a bit of a catch up. On Saturday 23rd I was working for Maximum Adventure again on the Ben Nevis leg of the three peaks. Most of the team were successful with the front runners coming in at 5 hours but unfortunately two of the team had to turn round at the three hour mark as they hadn't reached the summit.

The Challenge group descending from Cairn Mor Dearg.

Last week I was Outward Bound again working on a government funded course called 'The Challenge'. This was the first week of three for the group and it was designed as an opportunity for them to bond as a group and face some personal challenges before they go onto the second and third week of their course nearer home.

They arrived on the Sunday night and I threw them straight into the deep end on Monday morning as we set off on Expedition. We left the top car park at 11am and made our way up onto Cairn Mor Dearg. The weather was fantastic if a little warm in the midday heat so we were glad to be up high. From there we carried on round the C.M.D Arete to the Abseil posts on Ben Nevis. It was a little late in the day at this point so we decided not to go up the Ben and started to drop down towards Coire Guishagen and Spent the night bivvying out on a grassy shoulder a couple of hundred meters down. It was a beautiful night and the stars were out and the group really enjoyed their night out in the wild.

Day 2 and we carried on descending and made our way out past Steall falls to our pick up.

Not a bad veiw to wake up to.

The next couple of days were spent climbing in Glen Nevis and Gorging in Glen Dubhlighe. The group did really well on what was a tiring week with the heat and some very strong bonds were built between the members. Good luck to them for their next two weeks.

On Saturday I was working for West Coast Mountain Guides marshaling a Marie Curie event which saw 52 participants walking from the King House in Glen Coe to Glen Nevis. Almost 23 miles in again very hot temperatures. Everyone but one person made the finish line and the one gentlemen who didn't make it was a 74 year old local that gave it a damn good shot.

A couple of days off to start packing before my Alps trip next week and then I'm away doing some work right up until my departure.

A busy week.

2011-07-16T08:58:00.000-07:00

The classic course that I have been instructing over the last three weeks came to an end today and the group left this morning. It was a busy week for them as they had their final expedition from Monday to Thursday. They did well and thankfully had a dry expedition, walking from Kinlochleven to Corrour station up to Lariag Leagach bothy then onto the water of Nevis and finished with a jump into the Nevis. So over the week I have been checking on them to make sure that they were ok, other than that they were on their own.

On Wednesday I also had a days work for West Coast Mountain Guides. Myself and Dan, Max, Jamie, Isi and a couple more instructors were guiding parties from a organised Harry Potter tour up to Steall.

Gorging in the Glen.

2011-07-09T13:06:00.000-07:00

The weather in Fort William has been good over the last couple of days with glorious sunshine in the morning but it has clouded over in the afternoon with some showers. The group at Outward Bound are coming on well and are almost ready for their final unaccompanied Exped which starts on Monday. So to break to the course we went gorging yesterday in Scimitar gorge in Glen Nevis. A great little gorge with some big jumps and because the air temp was so high we were able to stay in the gorge for a while.

The Grey Corries and the Aonachs.

2011-07-04T09:39:00.000-07:00

The first full view of our planned route.

So it was the groups second expedition over the last three days and this time it was in the mountains. We set the bar high and decided to see if we could traverse all of the peaks on this long and spectacular range. We set off late Saturday morning in what can only be described as uncomfortable heat, especially when you're carrying an exped pack. We made slow but steady progress up to Stob Coire Gaibhre from there we could finally see our whole objective laid out before us and it looked big. By now it was evening and the temp had dropped so the climb up to Stob Choire Claurigh and Stob a'Choire Leith were much more comfortable. We decided to drop off the ridge her to camp next to a lochain on the South side of the ridge which was a beautiful spot with stunning views towards the Buachille.

The group arriving at Sgurr Choinnich Mor.

Day 2 and we had a lot to get done We continued west ticking off the rest of the Peaks and descended to the Bealach between Aonach Beag and Sgurr Choinnich Beag. Here the group decided to continue and try to get all of the peaks in even though it was now 4 o'clock and they were tired. We made the steep climb up to Stob Coire Bhealaich and then carried on to the summit of Aonach Beag. A long and hard day for the group and they did well to keep going. We camped at the Bealach leaving us only Aonach Mor to tick off this morning on our way out to Nevis range.

The summit of Aonach Mor and our final one.

Ledge route.

2011-07-01T12:49:00.000-07:00

So I'm at the end of the first week of the Outward Bound classic course and today we were up Ledge route on the Ben in fantastic conditions. The group made speedy progress up to the CIC and the cloud started to clear as we loaded up on water and started making our way up to Coire na Ciste. From here we traversed right above Moonlight gully buttress across No.5 gully to the perched block. This is a nice way onto ledge route and avoids the wet slabs and the loose gully.

We had some lunch in the sun and continued up the route to the plateau. The group had made quick enough progress that we had time to join the mass' on the summit and then headed down the Tourist path to the top car park.

Off on a three day exped tomorrow and hopefully we'll traverse the Grey Corries and if we're going well, we'll go for the Aonachs too.

Something different!

2011-06-29T03:06:00.000-07:00

One of the guys enjoying the swell with Eigg and Rhum behind.

So at the moment I'm instructing a three week Classic course at Outward Bound Loch Eil which has a bit of everything. The course started on Saturday and after a couple of days of getting to know the group and them getting to know each other we set off on the first of their three expeditions. Their first expedition was a sea kayak exped and we put in on Loch Moidart and had a little explore of this area before we headed out to sea along the North Channel at high tide. Once out of the channel we got some fantastic views out to Eigg, Rhum, Skye, Muck and Ardnamurchan. We paddled round the coast a little bit further as the swell started to pick up and made for the white sands of Smisary beach.

The view from my tent, I can see why people enjoy this Sea kayaking stuff.

This first exped is a good opportunity to take a first look at camp with the group and cover a lot of skills that they will need on their final unaccompanied exped. There was quite a bit of cloud around so we didn't get to see a spectacular sunset but as always the west cost didn't let us down with a beautiful orange light covering the campsite for the evening. The next day we continued North and made our way round to Glenuig to meet our pick up.

Enjoying the evening sun from the beach.

Bouldering in the Glen.

2011-06-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

After spending most of the day feeling a bit lethargic I finally manged to muster up enough energy to go up the Glen. Dan joined me too and we headed to the Cameron stone. We both had a bit of a play on this but after a good session in Alan's wall yesterday our arms were feeling it and we decided to go for something a bit slabbier. We headed up the road a bit and did a couple of routes on a slab by the road but nothing too challenging.

Success on Hoy.

2011-06-22T09:44:00.000-07:00

Dave MacLeod and Andy Turner have completed the Longhope project on Hoy. Check out Dave's blog for more information.

Press release.

2011-06-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

I helped out The Outdoor Capital a couple of months ago with a press release that they had with Outdoor Enthusiast Magazine. Well the magazine has hit the shelves or you can veiw it on line here. Some of you might notice that they have kindly promoted me to the lofty heights of 'Mountain Guide'. If only becoming a Guide was that easy.

Sun in the South.

2011-06-21T05:35:00.000-07:00

With the weather in Fort William so changeable at the moment and a quite spell before a very busy period I used the opportunity to head down to the Lakes and catch up with the family. Yesterday I had a full day to kill and with the weather out the window looking fantastic I headed to Hutton roof just south of Kendal. This little limestone crag has a lot to offer, with a short walk in and catching the sun all day. I spent most of the morning and early afternoon soloing and managed to tick off about 15 routes from Diff to VS. The nature of the crag means that most of the crux's on the routes are in the first couple of meters with easier climbing to the top.

The piece and quite was disturbed by a group from Morecombe High School so with my plan at the end of the day to head back North of the border I headed for Carrock Fell near Penrith. These Boulders are situated right next to the road and are Gabbro so have amazing friction. I spent a couple of hours here working on some old problems before I carried on North to Ayr.

Back in Fort William today and back to the rain. I've got a couple more days off before I start a Classic course at Outward Bound.

A dry start, and a damp finish.

2011-06-18T11:21:00.000-07:00

I was working on the Ben again today for Maximum Adventure with a couple who were just out for the day. It started fine this morning, better than was forecast and stayed like that until about 2pm. From then on it just rained and rained and it's still falling. That hasn't deterred the crowds again with the usual busy Saturday traffic on the mountain.

It stayed dry!

2011-06-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

So the forecast for today here in Lochaber was for thundery showers to start about lunch but we haven't had a drop yet. So I headed into the Glen for a boulder just after lunch. Unfortunately my shoulder is playing up again and started to shout at me as I moved onto the very strenuous over hanging moves, so I packed up my bag and decided to go for a bit of a solo instead. I soloed some of my usual trade routes and bumped into Al who was out with a couple of folk. Whilst on the gutter I came across a new bit of ab tat on the small Birch tree on the first pitch. I thought about removing it but had second thoughts thinking that Polldubh Climbing Club might have put it there. The tree would probably be fine to ab on but it won't be around for long if it gets used heavily. A beautiful day in the end and with the forecast similar for tomorrow it is hard to know what to plan for.

Looking down pitch one of the Gutter with the 'new' tat around the tree.

North face wings.

2011-06-14T01:37:00.000-07:00

Ross is an old friend of mine and we catch up every now and then, whilst we were trying to decide what to do he mentioned that he had never been up Tower ridge or the North face and with a forecast for clear Sky's it was decided.

We met in the Torlundy car park at 10.30am and headed on up to the CIC. (They have started building the new section of path this summer which will lead all the way to the CIC.) There were quite a few teams out already with people on Tower ridge, Ledge Route, Observatory ridge and a team that looked like they were heading round to do N.E. Buttress.

We decided to traverse into the ridge above Douglas gap and continued to solo up to the Great tower where we stuck on a rope to get onto the Tower and across the gap. We made good time and were topping out at 2.30pm.

A bit of traffic at the gap.

The views today were fantastic with clear site of the Cuillin, the Cairngorms, the Trossachs and the Lawers hills. We had planned to descend via Ledge route but we wanted to make the most of the weather and the visibility so we decided on the CMD arete to take us back to the car park. 6 1/2 Hours in all, so a good day for my fitness and Ross' first day on the North face.

Descending from the summit to the start of the CMD. Steall falls down in the glen.

Looking back from Cairn Mor Dearg.

Feels like summer might be here at last.

2011-06-11T07:28:00.000-07:00

Another early start today for the first leg of the 3 peaks for Maximum Adventure. Today I was working with Steve and we met the group at the Glen Nevis visitors centre at 7am and made reasonable progress to get to the summit in just under 3 hours with most of the group finishing the Ben leg in under 6 hours. It was a fantastic morning with hardly a cloud in the sky and I spent most of the day in just a short sleeved t-shirt for the first time this year. The cloud has been building during the day and it looks like we might get a shower or two later today but a nice day otherwise.

Looking down onto Tower ridge with Cairn Dearg Buttress bathed in the sun.

Dry rock? Believe it!

2011-06-09T09:56:00.000-07:00

So any plans I had for climbing this morning were put on hold when I looked out the window to see a wet road and more of it falling from the sky. So after a lazy start I headed to Alan's for a training session on the wall. After an hour and a half I felt pretty tired so headed home for some lunch.

As the afternoon went on the road outside the house started to dry up and the sky started to turn blue. (which is a colour we haven't seen much of recently) So I thought why not, packed a bag just as Dan arrived home and we decided to head for the Glen.

We were feeling lazy so headed for Heather hat which still has a few damp spots but was mostly dry. We both had a go at the arete problems but I was feeling tired from my morning session and then headed up to find a problem Dan remembered from a few years back under Dundee Buttress.

The forecast is hard to read at the moment with showers predicted but not always happening. Hopefully get out again tomorrow.

Two laps of the Ben.

2011-06-05T07:40:00.000-07:00

It was busy on the Ben yesterday as per usual for a Saturday, I was working for Maximum Adventure on their 3 Peaks Challenge. There were already teams on the mountain when we set off at 4.45am and a queue of people waiting in the car park. The first team I was with were from Next and were working to raise money for Asthma UK. They were raring to go and made good time and gave me a run for my money hitting the 4 hour mark up and down.

Round two was yet another three peaks but with a small group of three. We started at midday and they made good time also being back at the bus for just after half five. No pics I'm afraid only because both teams were going so well I didn't really have time to stop.

It is forecast to be much drier this week so hopefully I'll manage to get out on some rock.

Discounted Mountaineering courses this June.

2011-06-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

Ledge Route on Ben Nevis.

This June we are offering discounted prices on any of our Scrambling or Lochaber Classic ridges Courses. Whether you want to learn how to look after yourselves in the mountains or sample some, or all of the Classic ridges we have on our door step. Daily rates are now £160 a day with discounts offered on multi day courses booked over consecutive days.

Tower Ridge.

28 days later.

2011-06-01T06:10:00.000-07:00

There is an old joke: There are two seasons in Scotland, May and the rest of the year. Unfortunately this May in Lochaber has been like the rest of the year. As a climber based in Fort William, times like this can be frustrating but we must be due some good weather at some point. 28 days of rain in a row can put a bit of a damper on your climbing ambitions for the summer. There is due to be a change over the next couple of days but more of the same is forecast for next week. I have some time off on June so I may have to go further a field in search of dry rock.

Wet and windy.

2011-05-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

I was working for Charity Trek yesterday on a very wet and wild day on the Ben. It was a wet start and it only got wetter as the day went on. Most of the snow from the day before had gone but there was still a lot of snow lying on the summit.

The Cobbler, an old stomping ground.

2011-05-20T05:05:00.000-07:00

Day 2 with Alan working for Mountain plan and with the forecast looking wetter than yesterday we decided to go for a day of mountaineering rather than standing at the bottom of a wet crag. We headed to the Cobbler by Arrochar to do the traverse of the South and Central peaks. This is a mountain I know well as I spent a year in this area a few years back when I got my first job in the outdoors at Ardroy OEC (which needs saving) and it was nice to be back with lots of familiar views.

The Cobblers three peaks with a snow covered Ben Ime in the distance.

We had spent the night camping at Ardgarten campsite and when we woke in the morning we were surprised to see snow down to about 700m. Thankfully the snow line was retreating as we ate our breakfast so we were happy that most of it would have gone by the time we got there. We headed up the path to the dam crossed the river and made our way up the broad ridge line to the base of the south peak.

The final pitch up to the central summit. The south peak and Loch Long in the background.

The route starts up some pretty wet and greasy grass covered ledges but soon improves and gives some nice pitches of grade 3 scrambling linked by sections of grass and finishes on top of the south summit which has some fantastic views towards the Central and North peaks. A 20m abseil from this top takes you onto a lower ledge which then joins the main path up to the start of the scrambling on the centre peak. There is an obvious abseil point off the very top but there is a possibility your rope might get stuck. If you make a couple of difficult moves down to a lower ledge there are many more better options or you could down climb the very green and wet ordinary route.

Threading the eye on the central summit with an approaching snow shower in the distance.

The next section can be avoided and is escapable but why would you as the exposure increases and you get to stand on the true summit. We finished of this summit by threading the summit stone and back on to the main path again. The weather had been mixed today with spells of sunshine and spells of driving hail and snow. Despite all this it is a fantastic route with some fantastic positions and I'm sure a continuation down from the North summit would be possible making it an even better day out all it needs is a bit more traffic.

Climbing in Knapdale.

2011-05-19T03:30:00.000-07:00

Day 1 of two today working with Alan for Mountain Plan. Alan had been on Islay for a few days and wanted to get some climbing in and look at improving his overall skills base. The weather wasn't looking favourable and the driest area was the South-west away from the mountains so we headed to Knapdale crag near Lochgilphead. I had heard a lot of good things about this crag and some of the routes looked fantastic on beautiful clean, rough rock. Unfortunately the routes in the lower grades weren't as clean.

Alan on our first route of the day.

So with the rock still feeling a little greasy from the last shower we went up a slabby route on the left side of the crag and looked at building belays and rope work. At the top the cloud had cleared and the rock had dried so we headed to the opposite side of the crag so Alan could have a go at leading some easier routes and some coaching. It took us nearly half an hour to walk from one side of the crag to the other only to find some well protected but not the cleanest routes.

Alan led a couple of routes and did very well with taking on board what we had covered earlier. We had now ran out of routes at the right grade that looked climbable. So instead of descending back to the bottom of the crag and taking forever to cross the wet, greasy boulder field I put a top rope on some of the routes so Alan could get a bit more millage.

Alan climbing Pocketed wall.

This is a good little crag to spend a day at if your out with a mate with a hand full of good routes up to E2. The only real issue is access to the routes which is difficult to say the least. There had been some showers passing during the day but not enough to stop us climbing.

What happened to the summer?

2011-05-15T05:28:00.000-07:00

A quite couple of weeks since my last post. The long spell of sunny dry weather broke over a week ago and since then we've had some heavy rain and even 7/8" of snow on the highest tops. There has been the odd opportunity to go bouldering in the Glen between some of the showers but no other climbing has really been happening. The last two Saturdays I have been up the Ben by the tourist track either as part of a three peaks or just for the day. Last week I was working for Mountain Sense and Yesterday I was working for West Coast Mountain Guides.

Bank Holiday weekend.

2011-05-02T04:29:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I was working for West Coast Mountain Guides Again. This time I was working with Max Hunter and a group that were on the first part of their 3 Peaks Bank Holiday Bonanza. The weather was perfect for them and the early start meant we managed to get to the summit before the midday heat. There was a strong breeze how ever and you soon got cold once you stopped. There where hundreds of people on the Ben today with a very steady stream of people heading up and down all day.

Yesterday Alex and I headed up to Carn Dearg Buttress on Ben Nevis to do The Bullroar(HVS5a). This route makes a fantastically wild traverse across the slabs of the Buttress and at times can feel very lonely for the leader as the world drops away from your feet.

Alex starting off out on the traverse of pitch 3.

A couple of pitches got us established on the slabs and Alex made the first but short traverse out into the middle of the slabs. I then set off on pitch 4 which had some really nice moves and at time was quite bold with just a rusty peg as protection for quite a few metres. Alex set off along the next set of slabs and took us up to easier ground. One more pitch and we were at the abseil above titan wall. The upper part of this route is far more complex than the guide book might suggest with a lot of options and none of them looking that well travelled and a lot of loose rock. So we made the two abseils back to the ground on 50m ropes.

Me continuing the traverse across the slabs on pitch 4.

Tower ridge.

2011-04-29T03:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was working for West Coast Mountain guides and spent the day with Julia and Chris. Both of them have done a lot of easy scrambling in the Lakes and North Wales but nothing in Scotland. Neither of them had been up the Ben either and wanted and adventurous way up to avoid the crowds. So we headed for Tower ridge. We made quick progress up to the little tower were I stepped of the rope and gave them an opportunity to do a couple of quick easy pitches of climbing and the chance to look and some simple scrambling techniques they might use to look after themselves.

Julia leading a pitch on the Little tower.

Once over the little tower we headed on up to the Great tower and the Eastern traverse. This is now free of snow on the traverse, although there is still snow in the cave it can still be climbed without winter kit or if you want avoid it on the left. A couple of pitches later and we're stood on top of the Great tower just as the cloud starts to lift. We made it across the gap and then very quickly made to the exit gully just below the plateau. This still has some snow and ice in it but all of this can be avoided by climbing the rib on the right.

We joined the masses to walk over to the summit for a bite to eat and then descended via the tourist path.

The cave pitch at the end of the Eastern traverse.

Sun on the slabs.

2011-04-26T02:23:00.000-07:00

Ken and I headed up to The Etive slabs today to have a look at The Long Reach (E15b). Both have us have done all of the route here at or below this grade and this was the last one to do. It is a long and sustained route with seven pitches and five of them are given 5b. We started up the first pitch which gave a nice 30m pitch and low in the grade. Thankfully all the talk of the rock fall last year having possibly altered the grade was wrong. Pitch 2 was a sustained pitch and took us up to the overlap. The 5a moves over this are entertaining and nothing like the rest of the climbing on the lower part of the route. Pitch 4 unfortunately turned out to be a bit more run out than we would of liked. The guide book talks a bout a niche that you need to head to and if missed ups the grade to E2. We found the niche but there was still no gear to be had. So after a lot of looking and a lot of talking we decided that the only options were to make the move with a possible 30m fall, try and down climb 15m of 5a padding on the slabs or run away. So we ran away and traversed onto the Pause on our right and finished up this.

Ken padding through the crux of pitch 1.

Solitude in Glen Nevis.

2011-04-22T04:49:00.000-07:00

So the sun is still shining in Fort William and after spending a couple of days on Skye getting the kit ready for the first traverse in a couple of weeks I was back in Glen Nevis yesterday. Jordan is on an Outdoor course at Lochaber College and has spent a lot of time climbing in doors in the past but has never really been out on the rock. So with the sun shining and crowds on the lower crags we headed up to High crag to do Autobahnausfart. This is a nice route with some fantastic slab climbing high up on the hill side. It is a little dirty in places where the trees are but improves with height.

So we had a look at building belays as a refresher and talked about protecting the belay as you leave the stances. Five pitches later and we topped out high in the Glen. We walked back to the bags and then headed down to the Gutter so Jordan could get his first lead in. Plenty of people out today with classics like Secretaries and Pinnacle Ridge getting done.

Jordan on pitch 2 of Autobahnausfart.

A week of rock.

2011-04-19T05:00:00.000-07:00

Well the forecasted showers didn't materialise so the weather in Lochaber this week has been stunning. Apart from a couple of showers on Sunday evening it has been sunny and dry. I've spent most of the time bouldering in Glen Nevis and trying to find some new venues with some success. I've also been spending some time with the lads top roping some of their projects higher up the hill side.

Kev top roping the E5 up on Nameless crag.

Yesterday after waiting in for a delivery I headed up the road again to meet up with Craig, Johann and G. Craig and I did three route on Dundee buttress and Jo and G did Storm and another route on Cavalry Crack buttress.

Craig pulling through the crux on one of the HVS on Dundee.

Craig again but on the sharp end this time.

Off to Skye tonight to help Alan and Spike get the kit sorted for the Cuillin Traverses.

Dry rock. But for how long?

2011-04-14T03:20:00.000-07:00

Well the morning showers died out and come 2 o'clock this afternoon the road outside the house was dry and the temperature had risen a little so after taking care of some emails I headed into Glen Nevis for a quick work out.
I'd had my eye on an E15c on lower pinnacle since I was there last week. This route is a bit of an eliminate and more of a boulder problem really. It gives some fine delicate climbing up the steep wall between Severe crack and Pinnacle ridge. So after a bit of finding out were the holds were I went for it and thankfully made it to the pull back onto pinnacle ridge at the top.
Spring is back in the air and the Glen was full of Violets and flowering Wood Sorrel but thankfully no midges yet.

Pulling up on the starting crimps.

A breif return to winter.

2011-04-12T11:13:00.000-07:00

Looking up at Observatory gully.

After the warm weekend the temperature has dropped and we have had some showers falling as snow over the tops. As climbing was out I thought I would take a wonder up to the Ben this afternoon. There was fresh snow down to just above the CIC hut and the highest crags looked wintery again. Most of the ice has gone. 0.5, Hadrians and zero have vanished. There is no ice at all on the orion face. Observatory ridge is clear of snow most of the way (once this bit of fresh stuff has gone). Tower Ridge is rock up until the eastern trav. In Coire na ciste the easier gully's remain and there looked to be some ice in central gully right hand. I only saw four other people out today but I saw no one on any of the routes.

Coire na Ciste.

A warm weekend.

2011-04-11T05:29:00.000-07:00

A long with the rest of the UK the weekend in Lochaber was stunning. Temperatures reached a barmy 23C and there was a light wind which helped with making it feel a little cooler. I along with many people where climbing in Glen Nevis this weekend enjoying the rock which even after last weeks torential rain had very few wet streaks. It was as busy as I have ever seen it on Saturday and a lot of the Polldubh classics were getting traffic and Johann finally completed his project on Upper Scimitar. "Bad life choices" E6/7 6b takes a line right up the middle of the slab. Well done mate. Have a look at Kev's blog for more info.

Finally the rain stopped.

2011-04-07T07:31:00.000-07:00

After almost a whole week of rain it started to disappear this morning. Today I was just heading up the Tourist path of the Ben. The path is free of snow now until you hit the plateau and even here it has thinned a lot. We did need crampons today as what snow and ice is left was rock hard. There were many teams turning back that didn't have crampons and the visibility was still pretty low.

I had a quick look over onto the last couple of pitches of Indicator wall and Good friday climb. They were still complete as far as I could see and I would think you would still get up Good friday climb.

Happy Birthday and well done to Chris today who has wanted to get up the Ben for a long time.

Gyhll Scrambling on the Zig Zags

2011-04-04T10:38:00.000-07:00

After my last bit of winter work last weekend I took some time off to catch up with friends and rest after the winter. Come Friday I was raring to go again, unfortunately it hasn't really stopped raining since then. Over the last few days we have had some dry weather but just when you think the rock should be just about dry in comes another heavy shower and it starts all over again. I've had a couple of wasted trips into Glen Nevis thinking I was going to get on the rock only for it to start raining either when I got out of the car or just as I turned onto the road into the Glen.

Anyway back to today. I was out with John Sparks today who is a freelance outdoors journalist that is writing a piece on The Outdoor Capital for Outdoor Enthusiast magazine. He has been in Fort William for a couple of days now and had already been mountain biking at Nevis Range and spent some time with other local outdoor people taking photos. Unfortunately the weather today was not the greatest. It had been raining heavily for most of the night and was forecast to keep raining until the evening. So I decided a short blast would probably be a better idea. We got out the car in Glencoe and it wasn't long till we were stood at the foot of the Zig Zags watching the water pouring down the slab. At the end of the first terrace there is a well polished corner that takes you up to the next terrace but only today it was like a river. We swam our way up it with water pouring down our sleeves and running over our legs and then continued to the cairn on Gearr Aonach.

By now the rain had turned to heavy sleet and we were no longer sheltered from the wind so we got our heads down and walked to Coire nan Lochain against the driving sleet and rain. I think we were both glad when we made it back to the car. A good day representing, the delights of the Outdoor Capital but still a fun one. No photos today as I didn't want to trash my camera, I'm already a phone down from the rain today.

Reports of winter climbing are getting thin now but there was heavy snowfall today above 1000m but the temperature has gone up this afternoon and from the looks of the Ben a lot of it has been stripped back already. People have been on good friday climb, ledge route and smiths. The high ice might hold on for a bit longer but with all this heavy rain and higher temps, I'm not sure how long.

The Ben is hanging on in.

2011-03-28T03:59:00.000-07:00

I spent the weekend working for West Coast Mountain guides climbing with Anne. Anne had climbed some of the classic routes on the Ben already so already our choice of routes was starting to shrink. On Saturday morning after a bit of a chat we decided on Green gully. This is a fine route going through some good scenery giving a no. of good pitches on ice. We arrived at the bottom of the route at the same time as another team but there was enough room for us to climb it at the same time which made it a very sociable outing. The first pitch of this route is the crux but at this time of year it is banked out giving a very short and straight forward pitch. The ice was in excellent condition and had seen a lot of traffic in the past week meaning we just had to hook our way up the route hardly ever having to swing. We finished by the direct route which gave another fantastic pitch. The Freezing level was above the summit all day which made for a slightly damp day but other than that a good one.

Anne enjoying good ice on Green gully.

After chatting with Alan on the Saturday evening we decided to head up to Indicator wall on the Sunday. About half way up Observatory gully the snow started to firm up showing that the freezing level had dropped from the previous day. We made our way to the foot of indicator wall and pitched round the corner because of the steep firm snow. I could see one team at the foot of our route and was happy to wait a little but as I arrived at the belay I saw a team of three that were waiting around the corner. So with a very long wait on our hands we made a decision to climb The good Friday climb instead. This is another Ben Classic which at the moment has a very good 30m pitch of ice at grade III.

Anne at the top of the crux ice pitch on The Good Friday climb.

Other teams this weekend have been on Point 5, Smiths, Hadrian's(looking a bit thin now), Indicator wall, Tower scoop, Tower ridge, Glover's chimney, The whit line, The cascade, Combe gully, Central gully left and right. There is still plenty of ice to go at you just need to go high and start early.

A beautiful day.

2011-03-24T11:14:00.000-07:00

I was out on the Ben today just walking up the tourist track with a couple for Abacus Mountaineering. It was a cloudy start but it soon started to brighten up We made our way up into the cloud and popped back out of it into blue skies. The summit of the Ben was the only thing sticking above the clouds and the view was spectacular.

The snow was soft most of the way and had only refrozen in the last couple of hundred metres. I spoke to one pair that had been on Tower ridge and said it was almost alpine with firm snow and dry rock for most of the way. Mike climbed Combe gully and said it was in surprisingly good condition.

Routes high up on the mountain would be your best bet at the moment or even routes like Tower ridge and N.E. Buttress would be worth a look too. It is supposed to cool down over the weekend which should firm up the ice nicely.

A weekend of rest.

2011-03-20T08:18:00.000-07:00

My work for the weekend fell through which means I've taken the opportunity to rest, repair some kit and catch up with some domestic chores. I repaired all of the kit yesterday and ended up dodging the chores by making a small movie this morning. Anything to avoid doing what actually needs doing.
With this thaw starting it almost feels like winter is coming to an end. It still has a way to go yet but it has been going for 5 months for me any way. Apparently it was busy on the Ben yesterday with a lot of teams on the Orion face but still no one really venturing into Coire na Ciste.