Winter Climbing Conditions January 2003

31st January 2003

As it turned out, today was not the best day of the week. The snow and wind came in sooner than thought and it turned out to be quite a blizzard on the Forchan Ridge of the Saddle in Glen Shiel where Lex, Dave, Steve and I had a great day. It's just over an hour's drive from Fort William and is a fine long ridge, grade II, especially when the snow is down to the road like today. It was warmer than yesterday with summit temperatures only just below freezing and it is now 3celcius at sea level. It's staying cold over the weekend but the wind will be strong from the W with more snow.

30th January 2003

The E face of Aonach Mor held up to last weekend's thaw quite well and it was certainly freezing today with summit temperatures of -11celcius! A little snow fell and the wind was not too bad. There is a fair amount of soft snow in Easy Gully which avalanched yesterday thanks to Stew doing the SAIS report. There were teams on Morwind (III,4) and Forgotten Twin (II) and we enjoyed The Web (II/III). As the turf is frozen most buttress routes are possible and the gullies are thin but climbable.

29th January 2003

It started snowing on Monday night, yesterday it snowed some more but most people stayed indoors due to the strong W wind, and today was a great day. On Stob Coire nan Lochan the buttresses were well snowed up and begining to get rimed. The turf was surprisingly frozen as well but there is of course a lot of snow needed for the gullies to fill. Broad Gully is broken at the top and the slopes beneath the crag are mostly uncovered. Alex, Jo and Catherine led their way up Dorsal Arete behind Alan Kimber, so expect the same pictures on his web site tonight! Continuing cold til the weekend and Friday should be a very nice day.

26th January 2003
With summit temperatures of 5 celcius and heavy rain the snow pack has taken a beating over the weekend. Most folk were out on the easier rocky ridges, Dorsal Arete, Broad Buttress and North Buttress, and even some of these were abandoned. Donald went to the Cairngorms to find some snow (still 2m deep on the Great Slab) as the remaining patches here are a long way away from the road. The temperature will drop during tomorrow though and we will get snow throughout the week.

23rd January 2003

Yesterday the snow fell to 500m and today was a great day. Stob Coire nan Laoigh is rimed and frozen although the turf is still dry. The easy gullies still need more snow to fill up. I went up a grade II ridge on the NE face of Beinn na Socaich to explore the area. Aonach Mor is plastered and Left Twin (III) has been climbed but can feel hard when not formed well. So we need some consolidation of the new snow and more of it. We'll get the thaw at least with wild warmer weather tomorrow and Saturday but cooling down again next week. The bad weather has already started to come in and perhaps it will put down some snow before it warms up too much.

21st January 2003

Today was surprisingly good with fresh snow down to 700m and a good frosty start to the day. Andy took Neil up North Buttress (IV) on Buachaille Etive Mor which has been reported to feel more like V,6 when it is in thin condition. Not today though, the bottom pitches were very dry and there was little riming higher up. Stob Coire nan Lochain looks white from the road. On Ben Nevis there is a good covering of fresh snow over all the buttresses. More snow will fall tomorrow down to 300m and the N wind will be very strong but as the wind turns back to SW on Friday it will warm up again.

19th January 2003
The weekend was not too bad as it turned out. Yesterday the snow was at 700m, the wind dropped and the clouds lifted to about 900m. Donald had a great day on Curved Ridge (III) on Buachaille Etive Mor with Leon and Josh. Today was slightly warmer but with only light showers and little wind to speak of. There is no riming of the rocks yet although there was a lot of verglas about. Mountaineering routes are worth going for at the moment and this week should see temperatures slowly lowering so bringing in to condition more routes.

17th January 2003

Another wild and windy day but again it cooled down enough for snow to lie down to 700m. On the ridge of Stob Ban the wind was steady 70mph but you don't spend much time exposed when approaching from Glen Nevis. Given more snow there are some great easy gullies and moderate mixed climbs on Stob Ban. The E ridge of the N top is also great if sporting in current conditions. Continuing blustery and mixed weather over the weekend should start to build up some kind of layer of snow at least.

15th January 2003
130mph winds battered the Nevis Range top gondola station today but, with the sea level temperature at 5 celcius, at least there was a little snow down to 800m. There was also thunder and lightening which is not too common here. The weather will remain wild and unsettled over the next few days and the weekend but hopefully staying cold enough for snow on the hills. Saturday might be a slightly better day but when it changes so quickly it is very hard to predict.

12th January 2003
The temperature was above 9 celcius in my garden today so the freezing level would be at 1350m on an avarage day and higher still today because it was so humid. No new snow just rain on the summits. The thaw is washing away ice quite impressively but will hopefully only last until wednesday.

11th January 2003

The cloud was down to the CIC Hut today and there was a little fresh snowfall for Andy, Robert, Donald and Malcolm as they practiced leading on grade III ice below Number Two Gully (II) before climbing it. Garadh Gully is complete with water ice and was being climbed at grade IV. In Glen Coe The Screen (IV,5) looked very steep and serious but complete and Neanderthal was climbed by Andy, Blair and Jonny yesterday. Heavy snow showers and strong westerly winds are expected overnight and during Sunday. Monday and Tuesday will be warmer possibly with more snow but cooling again on Wednesday.

9th January 2003

Despite being much warmer last night and today, not too much rime and ice has melted away, possibly due to the low humidity. Donald, Malcolm and I went into Coire nam Beith where they climbed The Hash (III) as The Gash (IV) didn't have any ice in the chimney. I went up Hourglass Gully, a great grade I snow gully with brilliant rock architecture, worth walking all the way in to make an interesting ascent of Bidean nam Bian. The Bidean Buttresses are just about rimed up, Crypt Route and Western Chimney would be great, but Stob Coire nan Lochain was not good enough for one team to climb Central Grooves although it was climbed yesterday. Eas Annie at Tyndrum was also climbed yesterday but it had water running both underneath and on top. It is colder again now and will be cold through till Sunday when we hopefully will get some snow.

7th January 2003
This morning was very lightly warmer and it was very windy on the tops, perhaps it is a sign of a change in the weather. It should stay good enough into the weekend though. Andy and Jonny climbed Tilt (VI,7) but be cautious - Jonny pulled off a block the size of two footballs which fell into the chimney section of the first pitch and wedged there. It may be stuck solid, it may not be, so take care. Inclination was climbed by Blair and Crest Route was climbed also. On the Lost Valley Buttress, Dave and Andy climbed Neanderthal (VII,7) and John and Robert report that Stob Coire an Laoigh is in great condition. They climbed Taliballan (V,6) and were raving about it's quality, every pitch a winner and sustained right to the top. So the choice is still between easy gullies, classic ridges, hard mixed climbs or frozen water courses like Sgurr Finnisg-aig.

6th January 2003

Some more pictures from yesterday on Ben Nevis. Great Gully on Buachaille Etive Mor has some grade IV water ice to give an easy day out. The good weather will hold to the weekend when I've been promised snow!

5th January 2003

Tristan and Richard were leading grade III ice below Number Two Gully today before going up it to the summit of Ben Nevis in perfectly still conditions. There were some people on Comb Gully Buttress, snowed up rock giving hard climbing conditions, and a team was having some interest on Garadh Gully! Piranha (VII,8) on Aonach Mor was repeated today by Ben and Gowan Hill (VI,7) was climbed by Dave and Kevin. On Stob Coire nan Lochain Central Buttress (VII,7) was climbed by Ali and Andy and Tilt (VI,7) by Es and partner. It's all there for the climbing - if you are tired of wading through fresh snow to crowded buttresses in the Northern Coires then head west!

4th January 2003

Donald had Tristan and Richard leading themselves around the ice bulges on Aonach Mor E face today, again in very cold, sunny weather. They found good grade III and IV three pitch climbs on water ice and frozen turf. It will be cold and dry until wednesday as the high pressure sits over us - by then things like Sgurr Finnisg Aig waterfall will be frozen. Plenty of snow now in the east.

3rd January 2003
Up on Tower Ridge on Ben Nevis Donald, Kate and Ken had a great day in perfect weather. There is a dusting of snow down to 500m and ice is forming rapidly in the watercourses - not surprising considering it was minus 7.5 degrees on the top with a lot of wind chill. There were many parties on Aonach Mor, mostly on the ice bulges on the way to Stirling Bridge, and Alan had a good day on the NE Ridge of Aonach Beag. The most reliable climbing is still in the easy gullies and classic ridges but the Bridge of Orchy hills are probably worth considering now. Maybe more snow over night and the freeze will continue for another couple of days at least. Happy New Year!