67 days of 'winter'

Well it wasn't a great season this year, that's for sure. I normally get a good bit of personal climbing done in the early season but a family holiday in early December and a lack of conditions scuppered that. In the New Year work was as busy as ever but this year a series of 'winter awareness' courses for TV mast engineers and being involved with my first MIC trainings and assessments meant I had a very different feeling year to past seasons. Of course conditions (or a lack of) made it quite a challenge too. Variety is good though.

Here's hoping that the recent stunning weather is repeated plenty more times this summer. Hope you enjoy the video as much as I enjoyed getting the footage for it!

CWA and away...

Today I was looking out of the window at the dry weather whilst directing the second day of a Climbing Wall Award training for WHC.

Now I'm just finishing up the electronic work before an early departure tomorrow to Greenland via Iceland. For the next 3 weeks I'm working for Tangent Expeditions guiding a ski traverse of the Liverpool Land mountains.

More snow in next 3 weeks I suspect than I've seen all winter!!!

North East Buttress and sunburn

Looking good

Getting steeper

Looking down at the lower part of Observatory Gully

Above the 'mantrap'

The way down

Scotland has had record breaking temperatures for March for three days running and it felt like it today.

I was out with Ruraidh and Alan gain today and after a sweaty walk in we enjoyed the warmth of the sun (and every now and again the cool of the shade) as we made our way briskly up the route followed by Dave and his team. There is a little snow but nothing that can't be stepped over or around.

We lunched on the summit before making our way down to the end of the CMD Arete (we went on the snow but it is easily avoidable) and then onwards down Coire Leis on snow that was soft in the sun and firmer in the shade. Another grand day out.

A day off

Aaaaah Reiff

Warming up

In the zone aged 3 and 3/4

Dad's turn

Hi Brazil

Black Pig

Climbers on Tystie Slab

Some climbing venues just have an atomsphere....temenos I think the ancient Greeks called it. A 'sense of place'. Well for me Reiff is always associated with warm weather, great rock, sunshine and relaxing.

After arriving late last night Sandy was keen to do a little climbing and after warming up on a Diff managed his first Severe on a top rope and then climbed up the smeary slab in the middle of the main face on the pinnacle.

He and mum then went off to enjoy the strengthening sun leaving Isi and I to take in a few routes in the Pinnacle area and at Black Rocks and The Orange Walls. The rock in each of these areas is uniformly great to climb on and the weather only got better.

Then it was back to the Am Fhuaran Bar and their great campsite for dinner, beer and medals.

NOW it feels like spring has properly sprung.

Yesterday

A short video of yesterday on Ben Nevis:

Last Scoop

The big ridges

Coire na Ciste

Observatory Gully

Tower Scoop

A belay with some shelter from the ice from above

The 'U bend' in Gardyloo

Sally on the lead

Today I was out with Sally who is one of the students from UHI West Highland College where I work on a regular basis. The objective of the day was to get some winter climbing in and a little leading for her if possible. Ben was out with 2 other students too.

I suggested we head up towards the top of Observatory Gully in the hopes of finding some remains of winter for us to enjoy- especially after a cold night last night. So after a stunning sunny start to the day we were all soon sweating as we set a scorching pace on the walk in.

As we came into Observatory there was a team well up on Tower Scoop and no-one else in sight. The route looked very thin at one point but it looked worth a shot so I took Sal up that first.

I honestly can't recommend it any more. The narrows turned out to be a short break which now has a very thin tongue of ice with a good gap behind leading to it. A gingerly tiptoed over this and took a belay offering maximum protection from the ice skittering down from above where I guessed, correctly as it turned out, that the team we had seen were now on the Tower Gully Cascade.

Sally followed confidently and soon arrived at my belay before I lead the short, steeper but fatter last section. We then shed the rope to traverse across to the base of Gardyloo.

I lead the first 2 pitches quickly which are little more than grade 1. By now it was warming up and we were getting nervous about the thawing ice overhanging the left of the gully in particular. As it turned out the bits that did come down came from high on the right but passed us safely. I let Sally lead the fun bit. The 'u bend' tube is still there and gives off a great ice blue colour as you peer under the chockstone. When I reached her screw belay I let her take us out the top too so that we'd had 2 pitches each.

There was a mild breeze on top blowing a cap of cloud over the summit plateau. We had momentary whiteout and clear sunshine and 1 second brocken spectre back in the gully where the last of Ben's team was emerging- his students having swung leads up Gardyloo. On the way down the biggest indication of spring was perhaps the 2 Eastern European ladies Ben saw in skin tight jeans with huge leather handbags. One had the smoothes of soled trainers on whilst the other had leather shoes with half inch platform heels!!

I reckon that is pretty much it for winter now. The continuing thaw is slowly but surely stripping the ice and whilst there might be a route or 2 to be done at the weekend I'd be almost as worried about the approaches or the possibility of someone else above me as the condition of the ice now.

And I'm off to Reiff to hit the rock :-)