December 2004 Conditions Reports

28th December 2004

Not a day to remember for me! Good conditions, cold and snowy but very windy on Aonach Mor. Unfortunately I got avalanched out of Forgotten Twin from the top of the ice fall pitch that regulary forms as a direct entry to the gully. I fell 40m, was held by an ice screw and some good belaying but sustained multiple fractures to my ankle, pelvis, lower spine and ribs. I owe a huge debt to my clients Peter and Corinne and to Lochaber MR Team for rescuing me. It can happen to anyone and just serves as a reminder of how serious the E Face of Aonach Mor can be when the wind is blowing the snow around.

26th December 2004
Still snowy and cold on the west coast with a few inches of snow having fallen down to sea level. It will warm up tomorrow to consolidate the snow and the theme for the next few days will be stormy with major thaw freeze cylces.

25th December 2004

24th December 2004
Fresh snow started falling yesterday down to 1000m and today we had wet snow showers in Fort William with the snow line sitting a couple of hundred metres above sea level. It is now very cold on the summits and very snowy. Mixed lines will come rapidly in to condition when the turf freezes and ice is forming quickly. A proper White Christmas!

22nd December 2004
The thaw last night was quite impressive with 50mm rain and +5 celcius on the summits! By the end of tomorrow it will be freezing again on the tops and it'll be -5 celcius by Friday! The snow in the gullies will be well frozen in place ready to be built on when the next snow comes. The barometric charts are showing a seriously cold, strong airstream coming down from the arctic over the Christmas period with some fronts that will bring snow. A huge high pressure system over the atlantic will then drift over the UK! Happy Christmas!

20th December 2004

Rain has cleared the snow below 250m but added more snow above. It did warm up a bit today though - it was above freezing on the Aonach Eagach but the snow wasn't melting, it just got soggy ready to freeze well when it next gets cold. The ridge was well covered and the ground had started to freeze. A good bum slide down into Glen Coe allowed us to descend in 1hr. Altogether it was a good day.

18th December 2004

Much more snow last night fell down to sea level making it very slow going today on Ben Nevis. At times we were wading through thigh deep snow and the general coverage must be 20 to 30cm. All the buttresses are well covered and rimed above 1000m. Ice is forming rapidly in all the drainage lines - Gemini, Waterfall Gully, Vanishing Gully, Garadh Gully, The Curtain etc. - not enough to climb yet but it's good to see. We dug a trench in the snow all the way up Ledge Route and had a fantastic day. Considering it is a real crest of a ridge there was a huge amount of snow on it. Cornices are starting to form and the gullies are filling up. Cold and dry tomorrow, a great day to get out climbing.

17th December 2004

Snow down to 200m is covering northern Scotland. The Cairngorms have had their share and the wind has formed some great wind slab on E facing slopes, thankfully anchored well to the bolders underneath in the main. Most areas have been fairly well scoured though and there is more snow down in the coires than on the tops. Very cold with ice forming rapidly, as it will carry on doing tomorrow.

16th December 2004

There was a dusting on the hills yesterday and today there has been a lot of snow down to 800m. Very strong winds though and even some thunder and lightning this morning! We climbed the East Ridge of Beinn a'Chaorainn which is very sheltered from W winds and gives a great grade I ridge climb. Some good navigation practice on the summit thrown in as well. The freezing level appeared to be at about 1000m, the rocks were well iced and building rime fast but the turf, of course, was very soggy and not at all frozen. Should be colder over the next couple of days though.

14th December 2004
Today saw the start of some weather systems that will bury the hills in snow! There are a few depressions waiting NW of the UK that will track over us during the next five days. They will bring a lot of precipitation with winds from the NW making summit temperatures stay continually below freezing. At last we might see some snow and ice forming. Today was very wet indeed and raining on the summits so there is plenty of water draining through the hills, ready to freeze where it comes out and form beautiful ice climbs!

11th December 2004
Nothing wintry has been happening in the hills over the last few days. Today was slightly cooler but a warm front will drift up from England and raise the temperatures slightly. Should be some snow and colder conditions by the end of the coming week hopefully.

7th December 2004

Warm, wet and wild again yesterday but a good day today and slightly cooler. There is a thin dusting of snow above 1000m and the freezing level will remain around the highest tops over the next few days.

5th December 2004

It's been a disappointing weekend. Yesterday was very wet and windy and washed away most of the snow that was left on the gullies. Today was quite nice weather but the snow showers only reached down to 1100m with a very light dusting. The Lochaber MRT was getting some training today, we climbed the N Buttress of Stob Ban in the Mamores. This is a great grade 3 scramble and grade III winter climb that doesn't see much traffic bu gives 200m of climbing and a fantastic arrete to finish on.

3rd December 2004
The fronts that moved over Scotland last night had just about cleared away by this morning leaving some quite pleasant weather. Although the freezing level went above the summits it wasn't a drastic thaw and there is still a reasonable covering of snow on the less steep buttresses such as The Orion Face. Stob Coire nan Laoigh, being steeper was black though today. Cooling slightly again for tomorrow.

1st December 2004

The first day of December turned out to be beautiful. A good covering of snow is sitting on the hills down to 900m and it was cold today. With clear skies and the promise of a frost it looks like the settled weather might have arrived already.