30th January 2009
Even more wind today which was whirling around Glen Coe furiously. With the obvious thaw as well Scott, Caroline and I decided to go to Glen Nevis to look at some core rock climbing skills. This worked out very well as it was dry for much of the day and the temperature went up to +13 celcius! Pinnacle Ridge and Repton's Buttress had the trees at their bases cut back, a project coordinated by The Nevis Partnership, which will make a huge difference in terms of drying out the rock and keeping the midges away in the summer with no visual impact from the road at all. All the dead wood will be left in place as well to provide habitats for all sorts of wild creatures. The thaw will continue over night but it will cool down again tomorrow so, without too much rain, I think this will be just the right level of thaw before the refreeze on Sunday to saturate the snow without taking away too much of it. Cold and dry easterly winds will then provide fantastic ice climbing conditions next week!
29th January 2009
Today was dry but very windy and warm. Scott, Caroline and I went up to The Dragon's Tooth in Glenachulish to go over some introductory climbing skills. Starting out with buried axe anchors and dynamic belays we climbed the gully on the east side of the ridge. The horizontal crest then leads back to Sgorr Dhonuill over a couple of towers, one of which is best abseiled. We didn't go any where near the summit due to the strong and gusting wind. Instead we traversed into the corrie to the left (east) staying below the main ridge crest and made an easy descent. There are a couple of large cornices on the ridge and an impressive crown wall where a slab avalanche released a few days ago. The snow today was very wet and soft, tomorrow it will be even more wet as rain moves in.
28th January 2009
Another dry and very nice day. David and I walked in to Ben Nevis in great weather and climbed Tower Ridge. The snow is showing good signs of settling down and consolidating but there is still plenty of soft snow around. After wading up Tower Ridge on Saturday I was very pleased to follow the steps of the BMG Winter Training Course. They left a brilliant trail and we found the climb easy going today! There is plenty of snow on the buttresses and ice is forming well. The gullies are very well filled and the cascade ice climbs (Waterfall Gully, Gemini, The Shroud and The Curtain) are all forming ice. The BMG has a new website and logo, click the logo to have a look at the new site. There is lots of good information including advice on what to do if you fancy a career as a Mountain Guide.
27th January 2009
We've had a gentle thaw over the last couple of days which have also been refreshingly calm. We've lost some snow up to around 700m but above that it has just got wet and soft. It did cool down slightly today, there was a thin icy crust on the snow on Stob Ban and the soft snow in the gullies is consolidating. David and I climbed the East Ridge of North Buttress before descending the gully to its right (north) and climbing Foxtrot (III) up the next buttress along. Both of these routes are very nice with mixed climbing in turfy grooves. The turf was still frozen higher up and the views across to Ben Nevis and down Glen Nevis were fantastic. Lots and lots of snow around still but a thaw over the next few days before colder weather at the weekend will firm up the snowpack and produce some great ice climbing conditions.
24th January 2009
Not too many people were on Ben Nevis today. Richard, John and I climbed Tower Ridge which was quite a battle with the deep snow and required some very careful judgement to make it sufficiently safe. Getting on to the ridge is the first problem - the usual gully to Douglas Gap was full of windslab so we went up the east side for a short way to a ramp leading right onto the ridge at the first horizontal section. There is usually a nice snow crest here but today it had metre high cornices and ridges along it! All along the first half of the ridge we had to be very careful with the snow and it was very tough going wading through the deep drifts. From The Little Tower it got a bit easier but it was a tough day out. We have very difficult conditions on the hills at the moment with great depths of snow on the hills making travel very hard work and the avalanche hazard very high. More snow is forecast over the next few days and the wind is due to change to an easterly tomorrow loading up even more slope aspects. Big avalanches are happening and, very sadly, people have been hurt in them. Please be very careful.
23rd January 2009
After a bright start we had a period of a couple of hours of snowfall today. The temperature went up by a couple of degrees during the day and the snow on the bottom half of the hills started to get a bit wet. John, Richard and I climbed D Gully Buttress next to Curved Ridge on Buachaille Etive Mor which is a great climb with two quite tricky mixed climbing sections. After four pitches it joins Curved Ridge at the crux tower where we used the deep trail in the snow from several parties ahead. The basin at the top of the ridge is heavily loaded with snow but it is easily outflanked on the right side. There is also quick a good trail down the ridge of Coire na Tulloch which is certainly the best way down at the moment. It's hard work getting anywhere at the moment with all this soft snow but the buttresses are well covered in snow and rime and the mixed climbing conditions are very good although posibly a bit too snowy!
21st January 2009
A nice day today, mostly dry with relatively light winds. The clouds and snowfall arrived on cue at 3pm but before that we had sunshine and fantastic views. I took my Mum and Dad for their annual winter climb on the Zig Zags on Gearr Aonach. Having seen Donald's pictures from yesterday I thought I should go and climb it. I've never seen as much snow on this route and it would have been very hard work without the trail. Donald and his team were breaking trail all the way along the Aonach Eagach, working hard but having a fantastic time. After a quick warmer spell over night tonight that will help settle down all this soft snow, more snow and very strong winds are expected tomorrow.
20th January 2009
The Zig Zags on Gearr Aonach in Glen Coe is a nice little scramble in summer and a very safe, sheltered route on the few occasions when it is covered in snow in winter. Working for Highland Guides Donald, Tom, Gavin, Carl and Stephan climbed it by wading through the 40cm of snow! Donald was quite spooked by some of the windslab which had built up on many aspects and was up to 60cm deep. It comes to something when even the safest of routes is becoming slightly suspect! The team used every safe travel technique they know when they descended by Coire nan Lochan. There were teams on Ordinary Route, Central Buttress and Central Grooves up on Stob Coire nan Lochan and the lower cliffs were plastered in snow as well. It's great conditions for buttress climbing so long as you can get there and back down safely - don't go into the gullies or across open slopes until after thursday's slight thaw which might just settle down the snow a bit.
19th January 2009
A much calmer day than expected with some more snowfall, moderate winds and a little sunshine. Working for Highland Guides Donald took Tom, Gavin, Carl and Stephan to Mullach nan Coirean in the Mamores for their first day of a winter mountaineering course. Avalanche awareness was easily covered along with some ropework skills for ridge scrambling and descending including abseiling from snow bollards. There is some difference in the weather forecasts at the moment, mostly in the strength of the wind. The last two days have been far more reasonable than expected though. Nevis Range is now open for skiing and more snow is expected over the rest of the week.
18th January 2009
The SAIS forecast promised a significant snow event today and we certainly got one! It snowed for much of last night and all of today down to just about sea level. The wind seemed not to be as strong as forecast though and Radek and I had a great time on Ben Nevis. The avalanche hazard (unsurprisingly) was very high so we went for Fawlty Towers on the west flank of the very bottom of Tower Ridge. This route, along with the SW Ridge of Douglas Boulder, is quick and safe to approach, gives four pitches of really nice climbing and is very safe. The chimneys can hold ice and neve but today it was mixed climbing under a metre or so of soft snow! An abseil and easy descent into Observatory Gully got us back down easily. It was well below freezing today and ice is forming rapidly as snow is blown onto the dribbles of water running down the routes. There weren't too many other people around today and it would be wise to avoid the gullies until the snow has settled down. Given that the next few days could be just as cold and snowy, the snow might not settle down for quite a while!
17th January 2009
Lots more snow fell overnight and was blown into the gullies by strong SW winds. However, by the time Radek and I got to Buachaille Etive Mor it had stopped and we climbed Curved Ridge in excellent weather with significant spells of sunshine. The ridge was covered in 10cm to 20cm of snow and Rannoch Wall was plastered as well. On top we could see the bad weather approaching fast so we got down quickly and made it to the car before it started raining at 3pm. It was definitely the calm before the storm - the wind is howling outside as I write this and heavy rain will be falling as snow down to a few hundred metres. Donald, Kenny and Ginge climbed Tower Ridge today which was also covered in fresh snow. They saw a team climb into Number Four Gully before being avalanched a couple of hundred metres back out again. Shortly afterwards they saw a team descending Number Four Gully which was very lucky not to be avalanched as well. A third team was intent on climbing Gardyloo Gully until they heard of the avalanches happening elsewhere and were persuaded to turn back. It seemed that everyone walked out unhurt but they were all incredibly lucky to do so. When snow is blown over the plateau into the gullies at such a rate they fill up very quickly and are very dangerous places to be. Grade I gullies are perfect for forming very high avalanche hazards. Make sure you check the Scottish Avalanche Information Service report and continue assessing the hazard out on the hills. Even better, go on an Avalanche Course. Challenging weather tomorrow with lots and lots of snow.
16th January 2009
The temperature dropped a bit over night so when we walked in to Coire na Ciste on Ben Nevis there was already a frozen crust on the surface of yesterday's wet snow. This is a good sign that the snow has stabilised and is less likely to avalanche. Many ice routes are in great shape just now - Smiths Route, Point Five Gully, Good Friday Climb, Green and Comb Gullies, Glover's Chimney, the Creag Coire na Ciste gullies and others. Team Abacus took over Number Three Gully Buttress so we could be sociable and so we weren't in a gully for when it started snowing which, with very strong winds again, produced lots of spindrift this afternoon. Oisin and James climbed the standard route, I took Ginge and Gareth up the first half of Quickstep to join the standard route and Kenny took Connor up Thompson's Route. All the routes were in good condition, the neve is a little soft in some places but bomber in others. Lots of snow was being blown over the top today and the gullies will be filling rapidly. In fact we are forecast persistent heavy snow fall over the next several days. Also, tomorrow afternoon, extreme winds will arrive quite quickly so make sure you are down well before dark.
15th January 2009
Yesterday was a nice day with snow down to a few hundred metres and last night (11pm) heavy snowfall was making driving accross Rannoch Moor (300m) a real challenge! This morning however it was all change and it was thawing to the tops with steady rain. There will have been some sizeable avalanches as the fresh snow warmed up and was saturated by the rain. With our team from Limerick University we stayed clear of it all on North Buttress of Buachaille Etive Mor. This is a good choice in any weather and is sheltered from the strong S wind we had today. Unfortunately all the snow had melted off it by the time we started but it gave us a good chance to cover lots of multi-pitch climbing tactics to make things smooth and efficient. We abseiled back down the climb and came back a bit soggy but happy to have done a good climb! The Ice Factor was busy today I imagine!
13th January 2009
The wind dropped throughout the day and there was plenty of blue sky. There is a light cover of snow on the hills down to 650m and some of the gully lines and large ice patches survived the thaw. Kenny was on Aonach Mor East face where White Shark (IV,4) was climbed and the Twins were still there. The buttresses are getting rimed up which, along with the light snow cover, made the buttresses in good wintry condition. The turf is still frozen and the rocks very cold from the prolonged freeze we had over New Year and it takes more than one wet and warm weekend to thaw it all out. Good and cold weather again tomorrow followed by a period of sustained windy, cold and snowy weather over the weekend which will fill in the gaps we have in the climbing routes.
12th January 2009
Freezing conditions returned to the tops by first light today and the fresh snowfall sat on the hills at 1000m coming down to 900m this afternoon. We lost some snow and ice yesterday but it is forecast cold enough with some snow for the next couple of days followed by rapid freeze thaw cycles at the end of the week. So, while things are rebuilding, here's a quick reminder about the Fort William Mountain Festival 6th to 14th March 2009.
11th January 2009
A good day to stay indoors today! +5 celcius on top with heavy rain until mid afternoon. However it will cool down tomorrow and be cold with quite good weather on Tuesday and Wednesday. There is still snow up there and I'm sure there is ice left as well.
10th January 2009
With bad weather very rapidly approaching from the west Donald, Andy, Mark and Neil headed east to the Monadhliadh today. Starting at Newtonmore they walked the 2.5 hour approach to Loch Dubh on Carn Dearg (630 015), the home of Wee Team Gully. This route wasn't formed but they consolled themselves with 200m of grade III water ice on Loch Dubh Waterslide and another grade III next to Wee Team Gully. As the temperature rose in the early afternoon they headed out and had an exciting river crossing with big chunks of ice floating downstream! On the west coast the rain started mid morning and didn't stop all day. It warmed up to above zero on the tops by lunchtime and it's been ferociously windy!
9th January 2009
Another dry and breezy day today that started off cool. Some fresh snow fell last night down to around 900m and the tops are very wintry. We still have lots of water ice in many gullies and open hillsides. The Ben Nevis mountain track is covered in ice around the Red Burn crossing and walking in the hills is still quite hard going. Some of this ice provides very good climbing if you know where to look for it. Very strong winds tomorrow with snow turning to heavy rain and a very wet and warm day on Sunday will certainly take away some ice and snow but it is due to cool down again during Monday with more snow next week. In fact a rapid thaw could be useful so long as it does cool down again afterwards. We still have some free space in January and February if you'd like to do some training or tick some classic climbs.
8th January 2009
It stayed dry today on Stob Coire nan Lochan and the snow had firmed up a little. The wind was less strong than forecast as well so all in all it was a nice day. Elliott and Jaimie led themselves up NC Gully to reinforce the training we did yesterday. The gully is complete apart from the usual rock step half way up and there is no cornice. The rocks are well covered in snow and the cracks are well ice up with verglas on the them so the mixed climbing will be quite tough at the moment.
7th January 2009
Monday was another crystal clear, cold and sunny day but yesterday a cold front moved south over the area bringing snowfall turning to light rain on the summits last night. By first thing this morning it had cooled down again and the path along the Allt a'Mhuillin was quite icy. The fresh snow already had a frozen crust on the surface which is usually a good sign of it being quite stable so the Avalanche Forecast was bang on. There were a few teams in Coire na Ciste but Number Three Gully Buttress was free so Elliott, Jaimie and I climbed it as their first winter climb. There seems to be less ice on the routes but the gullies have filled in a bit. There was about 30cm of fresh snow at the bottom of the buttress and quite a good cover all the way up. So the gullies just now will be good (Comb Gully, Green Gully, Point Five Gully etc.) but the ice smears will be a bit thinner (Smiths Route, The Cascade etc.). The buttresses had a thin coating of rime and the big ridges will be very wintery. There were teams on Glovers Chimney, Green Gully, Number Two Gully, Garadh Gully and Thompson's Route today. Looks like we're in for a slow warm up for the next few days.
4th January 2009
It was a bit more like Scottish weather today rather than the alpine weather we've enjoyed for the last week. Cloud and light snow but cold and light winds. Only about 1cm of snow fell all day above around 700m and the freezing level was around 900m. Very little ice has been building because there has been no water available. The drainage line cascades have only just started to look interesting - Garadh Gully, Compression Crack and Waterfall Gully are both complete but The Curtain and Gemini still have a way to go. Today's snow and humidity will hopefully release some water in the rocks so the icefalls can build some more ice. Radek and I were the only team in Observatory Gully today and we climbed Good Friday Climb. From the narrows of Observatory Gully we climbed two 60m pitches straight up to the start of Indicator wall. Not only does this avoid the traverse to Good Friday Climb but there is some really nice climbing too. The crux ice pitch can be taken direct and the final gully of Indicator Wall reached with a little sideways travel to the right making 300m of climbing with two sections of grade IV. The rocks are well rimed up and tomorrow will be a nice day again with good mixed climbing conditions as well as the ice.
3rd January 2009
With great ice and good weather on a weekend it was busy today on Ben Nevis. I collected Radek from the excellent sleeper train in Spean Bridge before heading up to Coire na Ciste where most of the routes in conditions were being climbed! One free line was the first step of Two Step Corner on Number Three Gully Buttress which gave us two long pitches of very nice ice climbing to the big snow ramp of the ordinary route. The second step is iced up but there would be a few very steep moves through the crux. Unfortunately we managed to lose a crampon so we had to abseil back down! Cloudy with the chance of a little snow tomorrow but staying cold and settled for another week by the look of it. We have guides free next week so if you want to take advantage of the good early season conditions get in touch.
2nd January 2009
Some cloud drifted over the western hills yesterday and last night giving the rocks on Buachaille Etive Mor a coating of delicate rime. This made our ascent of Curved Ridge quite a bit more wintry with the ice crystals sparkling in the sunshime. There is lots of water ice on the path and in the screes on the way to the ridge and in fact at all levels all over the hill. With little snow cover the ice is very awkward as wearing crampons on the rocks is a pain but the ice covers large enough areas to warrant wearing them. Still, the climb was great and with only one other team on it we were able to take our time and do some more training in alpine skills, moving together and making the whole ascent slick and fluid. The weekend might be a bit cloudy and we might get a little snow to whiten the hills but it is forecast to stay cold with little change to the climbing conditions - very hard snow in the big gullies but little cover elsewhere, great ice climbing on Ben Nevis and Aonach Mor.
1st January 2009
Happy New Year! It was a mellow day on Ben Nevis with few people around, calm cold weather and great conditions. Doug and I started off the new year in fine style with an ascent of Tower Ridge. Wanting to practice his alpine climbing skills, Tower Ridge was perfect today with dry rock, hard snow and ice on the ledges and in the grooves and a blue sky overhead! It's in the kind of condition you'd expect in April and great for looking at moving together alpine style, decision making and quick changes in rope technique. There were a few ropes at the bottom left behind after quite an epic about a week ago by the looks of it. There were a couple of teams in Point Five Gully and Smiths Route was climbed again. Indicator Wall looks OK but a bit thin as well. Good weather tomorrow and the next day but there is a bit of a question mark over Sunday's weather.
