Day 2 in Spain

Sunny but a very strong wind today on The Glasgow Academy's Costa Blanca sport climbing trip. We took a team to Salen for some easy sheltered sunny lead climbing (also a good deal of sunbathing and post climb paddling and ice cream eating on the beach). Meanwhile Neal was in the Canyon D'Inferno tackling the marmites and piggy backing his team over the only deep pool (he didn't drop any of them- he resisted the temptation)

TGA Costa Blanca Sport Climbing trip from Alan Halewood on Vimeo.

First day in Spain.

Today was our first full day's climbing in Spain with The Glasgow Academy. Sally and I took a team to Montesa, possibly the busiest crag in Spain on a Sunday! We also had quite a job getting the people carriers through town as the normal access route is closed. There was a lot of dodging and weaving and Sally was up and down routes arranging ropes so that the group could get plenty of climbing in on topropes, and leading too. A fine sunny day and another one forecast for tomorrow.

Away to Spain for the week

Well the crutches are gone and I'm walking around again. Off on a week's work to Spain from tomorrow and back round Fort William sunday the 20th. That week and the weekend of the 25th and 26th I've availability for work. Then its 2 more weeks at Glenmore Lodge. In the meantime here is a quick film of images from the first part of this winter.

The first half of winter 2010-11 from Alan Halewood on Vimeo.

Enjoy what has been and what is to come....

And many thanks for everyone who voted for us on the Berghaus Adventure Challenge- looks like we won some money and equipment towwards our Greenland Expedition in April!
Finally enjoy the Fort William Mountain Festival whilst I'm away.

Crutches

All sympathy gratefully received!

Laid up and more votes required!

I'm not very good at being injured but it could have been worse... When I turned up in casualty in Inverness on friday morning they were talking about hip to foot casts for 8 weeks. As it is I hopped out on crutches with orders to rest for a week or two. Achilles feels stronger already but I'm still hopping around. Still its an opportunity to catch up on admin. that never seems to get done in winter and I'll get to see Jane and Sandy when they get back from a week in the Lakes.
More votes required for The Berghaus Adventure Challenge please. Vote for my geeky adventure! 4 of us are going on an exploratory ski mountaineering trip to the Geikie Plateau of Volkaarts Boons coast (gotta be worth a trip just for that name). PLEASE take 2 minutes to vote for us on the Berghaus Adventure Challenge website- tell your friends. We'll be taking a skidoo across Scoresbysund (if its frozen enough) to a camp on the coast before climbing up onto the plateau to try to bag some new peaks. I promise to put up a video of me on planks falling over lots!
Al

Yesterday's video

As promised... take a look at the weather as we top out... and that's before it got really bad!

Jacobs Left Edge from Alan Halewood on Vimeo.

Biblical!

Day 4 of the Glenmore Lodge Intro. to Winter Climbing Course and the weather began sunny with high winds higher up and lots of obvious blown snow streaming off of the Fiacaill Ridge and whirling 'snow devils' visible.
We headed for the scoured side of the Coire to the Mess of Pottage. We watched a team ascending Jacob's Ladder, out onto the Slant and to the base of Hidden Chimney with about 15ft of rope between them and no runners. On the hard snow there today the rope seemed pretty pointless. This isn't 'moving together' or 'simul climbing' - both of which involve runners. It's not short roping where the rope is used to prevent a slip turning into anything more serious on mountaineering ground (involving the use of appropriate defensive movement, braced stances and quick belays of various types). This has sometimes been dubbed 'death roping'- 2 or more people climbing simultaneously on ground where a slip could result in a fall and where one person falling would pull other attached to them off. IF climbers feel the need to move that quickly then they should either solo or place runners on serious ground. Rant over.
The guys led me up Jacob's Left Edge in 4 pitches and it was only on the last pitch that the weather turned. On the plateau we were staggering around in a whiteout so we quickly located 'windy col' and I lowered the guys over the edge. Lower down it was a bit calmer so we dug a bollard and made an abseil. On the coire floor we headed to a convenient and oft used boulder to look at placing pegs.
Now the wind and snow was getting pretty serious so we turned and headed out with all speed. It was a good job too as the weather turned 'biblical in proportion. A Lodge team coming out assisted a large group in the car park when their minibus door was torn off!
Been a bit busy around here tonight and I've sprained my ankle pretty badly in a snow covered drain on the walkout. Video of conditions tomorrow.