I’ve been working on a winter mountaineering course at Glenmore Lodge this week where I’ve looked at reinforcing core winter skills and using a rope to provide security on steeper ground. The Cairngorms have been significantly drier than the West Coast and although the recent thaw has pushed the snow line up the mountains the easier gullies are full.
A murky day in Stob Coire nan Lochan yesterday. For my final day with Simon and Martin, I coached the guys in the difficult skill of moving together safely over mountaineering terrain. After having a good look at the snow pack and wandering around in the gloom, the guys slickly climbed Dorsal Arete getting to the top just as the wind was getting wild. A few brave climbers were heading up and down broad gully but we didn’t fancy it with plenty of windblown soft snow around.
I climbed Left Twin on the East Face of Aonach Mor with Simon and Martin today in stunning conditions. There has recently been a high avalanche risk in Lochaber and although things seem to be calming down we played it safe and abseiled in. Morwind was our original plan but the intial chimney proved too bold in its current state so we switched to plan B. Left Twin (III,4) was great but extremely difficult to protect.
I’ll be back in Scotland this winter running a full range of winter courses. I will be based just outside Fort William on the West Coast but with my intimate knowledge of the the highlands I will continue to be flexible and go wherever conditions are best whether that is the Cairngorms, Creag Meagaidh or the North West. As always I will deliver courses that my customers really want and not off the shelf packages that gives little consideration to previous experiences and are paced inappropriately. Have a look here for ideas.
Last winter was spectacular with plenty of snow, stable weather and many low ice routes in condition for the first time in years. I’ve attached a few photos as a reminder. Lets hope for the same this year…
I am offering a 10% discount off all courses booked before the end of December 2010.
I’ve had a few days climbing on the Eastern Edges this week. In between the occasional showers the grit has dried quickly in the breezes and the friction has been superb in the cooler temperatures. We ticked off a number of classics including the awesome Goliath’s Groove.
The photo on the left shows me leading Saul’s Arete at Stanage. This is graded VS 4b in the guide but I’ve done easier E1 5bs! Thanks to Gwyn Arnold for the photo.
Well its been a while since I last posted so its about time I wrote a quick update on what I’ve been up to. Its been a busy few weeks with another short trip to the Inner Hebrides, a guided 3 peaks long weekend (Ben Nevis, Scafell and Snowdon) and a number of climbing trips in the Peak District. Aside from work I’ve re-found a love for cycling and I’ve been putting some miles on the road bike (over 200miles in the last 2 weeks).
It may only be September but the Scottish hills have already had some snowfall and I’m already looking ahead to winter. I will be based back in the Highlands for the winter and offering a full range winter mountaineering and climbing courses. More on that to come…
I met Crispin, Mat and Nat at the Stanage Plantation car park yesterday and had a successful day on a number of superb routes. We started with a viscous warm-up by climbing Right Unconquerable (HVS 5b FA Joe Brown 1949) followed by ascents of Paradise Arete and Namenlos as well as a great top rope of Comet by Crispin. The grit was a bit greasy in places from recent rain and the midges where a nuisance once the breeze eased off but we stayed dry and aren’t too far off the grit season.
I’ve been trying to do a lot of climbing over the last few weeks but its been a challenge with the weather. We seem to have been dominated with a stream of Atlantic lows which has made finding consistently dry rock a challenge. First there was a trip to North Wales with Charlie to tick off some classics where we climbed at Tremadog (damp), Clogwyn y Grochan (drying) and Dinas Cromlech (until it started to rain). Regardless, we managed to climb Ivy Sepuchre and the 1st pitch of Cemetry Gates on the Cromlech before finally being washed home.
Then there was the much anticipated trip to Lundy with Crispin and Mat. This small Island in the Bristol Channel has an awesome reputation for adventurous granite climbing on its sea cliffs. Unfortunately the weather had other plans. The gales started as soon as we arrived and for the duration of our stay, torrential rain was only interspersed by light showers. After 3 days, all attempts at climbing had been twarted and with only one reasonable day forecast in the next 5 we escaped to the mainland.
The following day was that 1 reasonable day and so we spent the day climbing at Baggy Point before heading North. The headland between Croyde bay and Putsborough Sands is a great venue with slabby routes from VDiff upwards on grippy sandstone. We climbed a couple of the harder classics on ‘The Promontory’ before heading a bit further along to ‘The Long Rock’.
Last week’s climbing with Michael and Steven continued with visits to Horseshoe Quarry, Millstone and a return to Stanage. The boys progressed extremly well and by the end of the week were competently leading trad routes with very little input from me. The quantity of accessible quality routes in the peak makes it an excellent learning environment and a fun playground for the more experienced.
Michael and Steven have joined me this week for five days of outdoor climbing around the Peak District. The guys already have a fair bit of experience climbing indoors and I am working on giving them the skills to operate safely outdoors as well as having some great days on the crags! We’ve had two successful days so far climbing at Stanage on Monday and Froggatt yesterday. This morning’s rain has provided a welcome break for the arms to recover whilst we wait for the crags to dry. We’ll be out again this afternoon when it clears…
