Scottishwinter.com

Great Mountain Days in Scotland has recently been published by Cicerone. This attractive hill walking guide by Dan Bailey covers terrain likely to be encountered by Scottish winter climbers looking to climb away from the well-known venues. The cover depicts An Sgurr from Seana Bhraigh’s summit. (Photo courtesy Cicerone)

Dan Bailey first appeared on the publishing scene in 2006 with Scotland’s Mountain Ridges. This appealing and attractive guidebook (more like a medium format book), which is well illustrated with OS-style maps and good colour illustrations, brings together the finest ridge climbs and scrambles across the Highlands. Quite deservedly, the book was well received, and building on this success Dan has written The Ridges of England, Wales and Ireland and now Great Mountain Days on Scotland, all based on the same format, and published by Cicerone.

Subtitled 50 Classic Hillwalking Challenges, this book describes mountain expeditions in Scotland that offer a degree of challenge due to their length or amount of ascent and descent. All the well-known outings are here such as the Lochaber Traverse, Fisherfield Six and Cairngorm 4000ers, but there are also a number of routes that Dan has devised himself such as the The Sgurr na Ciche Range in Knoydart. Rather than tackle this ‘Rough Bounds round’ via Glen Dessary, he describes a longer itinerary via Loch Quoich. This makes it easier to include Ben Aden (described as the ‘the roughest (and best) of all Corbetts’) but it also ‘offers an aesthetic advantage, too, as the skyline to be traversed is visible for most of the approach.’

For the most part these are lengthy expeditions that can be accomplished in a day in summer with fell running shoes, but in winter they will be demanding two-day expeditions. Dan favours this more relaxed approach even in summer, and in the Introduction he states that he considered Great Mountain Days and Wild Nights Out as an alternative title for the book. Beautifully produced, Great Mountain Days in Scotland can be considered the modern day equivalent of the Big Walks, first published by Ken Wilson and the Diadem Press in the 1908s.

Although not immediately obvious, the content of this book has a strong cross over with Scottish winter climbing, as even the most hardened mixed climber will likely spend time walking in the Scottish hills, whether it be to check out alternative venues or get fit for the coming season.Certainly when next autumn sets in, and the rock boots are put away and the hills beckon, I’ll be turning to Dan Bailey’s latest volume for inspiration.

Guy Robertson on the second ascent of Swallow Tail Pillar (VII,8) in Coire an Lochain, Northern Corries. This route, which lies between Deep Throat and Gaffer’s Groove, and was first climbed in winter by M.Walker, A.Gilmore and R.Rosedale in March 2008. Robertson has had a successful run of April routes in the Northern Corries in recent years and has become a champion of late season mixed when many folk have put their tools away for the summer. (Photo Andy Inglis)

Cool temperatures and consistent snowfalls late last week resulted in some worthwhile late season mixed climbing conditions last weekend. Confirmed winter addict Guy Robertson tempted Andy Inglis out for some late season Northern Corries action on Sunday April 29 resulting in a probable second ascent of Swallow Tail Pillar (VII,8).

“Conditions were very challenging,” Guy told me, “as the cliff was either completely black or Patagonian white! Obviously we had to choose an area that was the latter, so we opted for Swallow Tail Pillar. This gave two good thought-provoking pitches, and I thought Andy did a particularly fine job of digging out and sending the top pitch, which was probably the crux. Overall the route was similar in difficulty to Prore so VII,7 or VII,8 about right – it’s always hard to judge these things when the rock is so deeply buried. As ever at this time of year the late start and wonderful light was as much of an attraction as the climbing itself – it was a really stunning day with full cover above 800m; almost certainly the best days skiing so far this season. It isn’t over yet either!”

Across on Ben Nevis, Pete Flanagan and Ben Giles had a productive day with an early repeat of Spartacus (VI,7) on South Trident Buttress on Friday April 27. As to be expected on this south-east facing crag, the ascent was a race against the sun which unhelpfully emerged from behind the clouds on occasion. Late season climbing has many benefits – late starts, long evenings and often benign weather conditions but any sunshine can be an unwelcome addition!

Spring conditions in Garbh Choire on Beinn a’Bhuird. Strong easterly winds five days before had deposited significant quantities of snow on westerly aspects. The Simulator (VII,8) starts in North-West Gully on the right side of Mitre Ridge (on far right side of photo) and climbs steep cracks between Primate and Blue Deacon to an exit up snowy shelves. (Photo Simon Richardson)

On Sunday April 22, Guy Robertson and I made a trip into Garbh Choire on Beinn a’Bhuird. This is always a special place to visit, especially so in winter, and we had a long day climbing a route on the West Wall of Mitre Ridge. Conditions were challenging with deep soft snow, and higher than forecast temperatures meant that North-West Gully – the approach to our route – regularly avalanched throughout the day. It was as though someone behind the scenes was pressing a button every 20 minutes. This led to a rather perverse line of thought about an artificially controlled climbing environment where climbers’ fitness and skill are put to the test like gladiators in a ring (with apologies to The Hunger Games)…

“Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to The Simulator. Using state of the art climate control technology we can continuously adjust multiple environmental factors in our computer-controlled climbing arena to assess the skills and competence of individual climbers. Today we test performance to late season Scottish winter conditions:

Date: 22 April 2012

Climbers: Guy Robertson, Simon Richardson

Arena: Beinn a’Bhuird, Cairngorms. West Wall of Mitre Ridge

Route: Attempt at a new line between Primate and Blue Deacon

Computer-Controlled Factors

Weather: Snow showers, light wind

Freezing level: Above the summits (Forecast 750m)

Visibility: Deteriorating

Approach: Deep soft snow

Icing: None

Snow: Unconsolidated and wet

Turf: Lightly frozen. Weight-bearing if used wisely

Cracks: Dry and ice-free

Avalanches: Snow slides down approach gully

Objective Hazards: Large loose block near top of first pitch

Outcome

Route: Completed. Two falls.

Time: 16 hours car to car

Judges Verdict: The team demonstrated some lateral thinking by abseiling down the approach gully to avoid the snow slides, but jamming the knot in a snow drift below the cornice was an elementary mistake. The Controllers tested fitness by rapidly increasing the depth of soft snow above the 900m-contour so the approach took six hours, and implementing the turf-rip function at the crux sections of the first two pitches ensured both climbers took leader falls. The whiteout on the plateau after finishing the route was a nice touch. Overall, an unconvincing performance, and both climbers need more practice dealing with the variety of conditions likely to be encountered in the Scottish mountains.”

Looking down the Rok Finish to Hobgoblin on Number Three Gully Buttress on Ben Nevis. This steep pitch was climbed as a finish to a three-pitch VI,7 link-up of Babylon, Gargoyle Wall and the Rok Finish by Peter Flanagan and Ben Giles. (Photo Peter Flanagan)

Winter has returned with a vengeance to the Scottish hills and there have been a variety of routes climbed in the Cairngorns and on Ben Nevis. In the Northern Corries, Fallout Corner, The Message, Fingers Ridge and Sidewinder have all seen ascents, although conditions have not always been good, with some teams reporting poorly frozen turf.

Across on Ben Nevis, Tower Ridge and Northeast Buttress have been climbed together with high up ice routes such as Gardyloo Gully, Good Friday Climb and Tower Scoop.

The most innovative climb fell to Peter Flanagan and Ben Giles on April 20 who started up Babylon before trending left to join Hobgoblin and Gargoyle Wall. Above the Gargoyle Cracks, the pair took the Rok Finish to Hobgoblin, which was first climbed by Es Tressider and Rok Zalokar from Slovenia during the BMC Winter Meet in February 2007. This steep pitch is rarely climbed, and the route that Pete and Ben followed provides a very direct line up the cliff.

Guy Robertson making the first winter ascent of Sniffer Buttress (VIII,8) on Beinn a’Bhuird. The twin cracks crux looms ominously above. This is Robertson’s fourth winter addition to the imposing Bloodhound Buttress area in Coire an Dubh Lochain. Previous successes include The Scent (IX,8), The Whip (VII,8) and Bloodsport (VI,7). (Photo Simon Richardson)

Almost without fail there is a cold snap at the end of every winter season. This year, the length and severity of it has come as a bit of a shock, especially after the warm weather at the end of March, but there is no question that we are back in winter mode again, with blizzards and sub zero temperatures on the mountains.

Like many folk, I’d put away my winter gear for the season but Guy Robertson persuaded me to dig it out again for a route in the Cairngorms. Piotr Wisthal (aka ‘Polish Pete’) joined us too, and after running through various options we decided to visit Beinn a’Bhuird on Sunday April 15. At this time of year it is important to select a cliff that is north-facing, because the sun rises high in the sky and quickly strips other aspects. We had plans in Garbh Choire, but walking in we quickly realised that the strong dry northerlies would have blown the fresh snow away from this exposed cliff, so after passing under a bare-looking Coire na Ciche we changed venue to Coire an Dubh Lochain.

Here our efforts were rewarded. The deep semi-circular corrie bowl cuts deep into the plateau and had retained sizeable quantities of old snow as well as collecting fresh windblown powder. As we made our way up Main Rake, Bloodhound Buttress looked attractively wintry and we settled on trying a winter ascent of Sniffer Buttress, which was first climbed at HVS 5b by Andy Nisbet and Neil Spink in June 1978. It is a fine feature, but I doubt it has ever been repeated in summer as the guidebook dismisses it as a poor climb

Guy made a powerful lead of the guarding entry wall but was unable to find a belay below the next section – a pair of twin cracks. With no other option, he carried on only to find that the cracks were rounded seams, with few positive holds and limited protection. Guy placed a couple of runners, launched up the left-hand crack and made a bold mantelshelf onto a sloping edge. Fully committed, he was hoping for better cracks above, but the rounded seam continued. In an a remarkable display of composure and determination, Guy eventually found a Pecker placement in the right hand crack which gave him the confidence to make another thin sequence of moves to reach Thank God turf and a good ledge.

An overhanging offwidth hung above us. It didn’t look too difficult from afar, but as I climbed into it I quickly realised that I was too broad to squeeze into it and was completely flummoxed how to proceed. Slithering back down the crack I realised that a long reach to a patch of turf would allow me to swing up the wall to its left. It was a short lead but it opened the way to a turfy slab leading up into the exit gully. As I emerged on the plateau, the sun broke through the clouds lighting up the Cairngorms massif stretched out in front. Looking down the cliff from this point on the plateau in the past I’d always wondered about the origin of this exit gully so prominently positioned between Main Rake and Tantalus Gully. Now I knew that it stemmed from a hairline crack in a rounded seam a third of the way up the buttress.

Guy and Pete came up, we shook hands and slapped backs (it was Pete’s second only winter route), before starting the long return over A’Chioch, down Glen Quoich and into the Fairy Glen. We finally reached the cars nearly 15 hours after leaving them earlier in the morning. It had been a long and satisfying day.

Joel Paterson on the crux tower of Ghost Dance (V,6), on The Cathedral, Lochnagar. This route has enjoyed a fair degree of popularity recently, and together with Quick Dash Crack (IV,5) and Magic Pillar (IV,5), it is one of the most climbed mixed routes in the Southern Sector. (Photo Craig Lamb)

On Wednesday April 4, Craig Lamb and Joel Paterson took advantage of the recent icy blast with a well-timed visit to the Southern Sector on Lochnagar. After the recent warm temperatures (the week before folk were rock climbing on Dubh Loch) conditions were highly uncertain, but as always in Scottish winter climbing it always pays to go and have a look.

“It was slow going into the corrie with deep drifts to contend with,” Craig told me. “It took four hours from the car to start of climb, but we arrived at the Meikle Pap, thankful at the sight of well plastered cliffs. We elected for a shot at your route Ghost Dance, after speaking to you in Cotswold Aberdeen about the route being easier than it looked. The crux tower up top didn’t disappoint; good steep climbing, good situation and the promised good hooks with a fitting finish on top of the pinnacle. Perseverance was the name of the game on Wednesday, as the clouds which lingered all day eventually broke around 7pm, leaving us with a fantastic moonlight walk back down to Glen Muick.”

Skye Sea-Cliffs & Outcrops, authored by Mark Hudson, has recently been published by the Scottish Mountaineering Club. Although this is primarily a rock climbing guide, it is the only guidebook to describe the recently developed winter climbing on The Storr and Coire Scamadal. The cover photo shows Mike Hutton’s photo of Man of Straw (VS 4c) on Neist Point. (Reproduced with permission of the Scottish Mountaineering Club)

Hard on the heels of Skye The Cuillin, the SMC have recently published a new guidebook to the outcrops and sea cliffs of Skye. Authored by Mark Hudson, this is a carefully written and beautifully illustrated book that opens up a myriad of climbing opportunities on this fascinating island. Like many SMC guidebooks this is a labour of love and Mark’s enthusiasm for the island, and its huge variety of climbing, jumps off every page.

Although mainly a rock climbing guide, a review of this book does have a place on this blog as it includes descriptions of the winter climbing in Coire Scamadal. This recently developed venue is considered by several well-travelled ice warriors to be the finest ice climbing venue in Scotland. The carefully researched History section explains that Vertigo Gully (VI,7) was the given its technical grade by the first ascensionists (Martin Welch and Stewart Anderson) because “it was harder than any Scottish [ice] route or any WI,6 on the continent that the team had climbed. It makes this the hardest pure ice in Britain but will clearly vary with conditions.” Is this route set to be the modern equivalent if West Central Gully on Beinn Eighe, long thought to be the hardest gully climb in the land?

Naturally the guidebook details well-known rock venues such as Kilt Rock and Elgol, but also included are the excellent-looking mountain dolerite cliffs of Carn Liath in Trotternish, which have been developed over the years by Mark Hudson and Roger Brown. I was particularly struck by the number of superb looking climbs on the sea cliffs at Neist. Like many climbers I’d visited the area years ago, and climbed the classic Supercharger on Stallion’s head, but not realised that Colin Moody and friends had been busy opening up hundreds of excellent looking routes on peerless looking rock on the adjacent cliffs.

Skye sports a complex and rugged coastline with several dozen sea stacks. This is the first book that gives these a comprehensive treatment, and will open up the challenges of these spectacular formations to a wider audience. Mark has even included a tick list of stacks at the back of the book, and I was tickled to see that Stac an Tuill, which Mark Robson and I reached with an epic 800m swim, is described as one of the most inaccessible stacks in Scotland and “it would be quite unsporting to use a boat.” Who needs winter when you can continue ‘mountaineering’ through the summer with objectives like these!

Andy Huntington leading the second (crux) pitch of The Curse of the Hobgoblin (V,7) on Sgurr Thearlaich on Skye. The route starts just right of E Gully and climbs the obvious steep groove before stepping right to a steep blind crack. (Photo Mike Lates)

Andy Huntington, Mike Lates and Robin Clothier snatched a good new route in the Cuillin on Sunday (March 4). Andy takes up the story:

“I was over at Elgol with Robin on Saturday and we did a route before the tide came in and the rollers threatened take Robin off the belay. We were generally bemoaning the end of winter and trying to not get too depressed. As usual Robin was talking about the Ben and ‘how we could be climbing Hobgoblin [on Number Three Gully Buttress] today’.

Early next morning Mike pokes his head out the door and sniffs the air. It’s coldish and there’s a dusting on the tops. A flurry of activity and we’re chucking the tools into the car and heading for Glen Brittle, Sgurr Thearlaich and the Great Stone Shoot – Mike’s current favourite crag.

The day and night before was squally rain showers and then a snap-freeze overnight down to 550m.  That’s all this crag needs to come into nick, and on Sunday it was fantastic! It’s dolerite with very little turf to freeze and the rock gives great fun mixed climbing.

Unfortunately Robin was snoozing under the route and got hit on the leg by the only unfrozen block that fell from the crag -  The Curse of the Hobgoblin.”

The Pineapple Cliff on Beinn Eighe (in summer conditions) with the line of Jammy Dodger (III,5) marked. The gully is much deeper than it appears from below and the grade could be lower with a good build-up. (Photo Andy Nisbet)

Andy Nisbet had an exciting adventure in Torridon today (March 5):

“You just never know how jammy you might be until the last moment. Things weren’t looking good. I’d postponed my client’s visit because of the lack of snow, then my replacement partner Dave had decided to buy a house on the best day of the week. So I’d been racking my brains for a good solo venue and with the rainfall radar suggesting there had been a fair bit of snow in the north-west, I decided to go to the Pineapple Cliff on Beinn Eighe to try a gully line I spotted a few years ago. The guidebook photo showed some short steep chimneys so I thought I ought to take 25m of rope and a half rack.

But arrival in Torridon was worrying; there really didn’t seem to be much snow. I was asked by some folk in the car park whether the big Grade I gullies on Liathach were complete and I had to admit they weren’t. But I’ve been pleasantly surprised by snow conditions on Beinn Eighe before, even when the hillside facing the car has been completely black as it was today. And I was rather committed. So I set off in warm sunshine just to have a look.

It was better in Coire Mhic Fhearchair but not fully winter and as I set off down towards the Pineapple Cliff, still in warm sunshine, even the rock was dry. Still, at least I could make a summer ascent of the gully. At least the cliff was out of the sun but the rock walls were bare. It was a bit of a surprise to find a large patch of neve under my gully, probably the largest patch on the whole of Beinn Eighe and still frozen in the shade. So crampons on and up into the gully. I was really amazed how deep it was, and as it snaked into the steep cliff the deeper it got, always with a base of neve. As I climbed up, I remembered an old report about the last unclimbed easy gully in Scotland and thought smugly how wrong it had been (this was it, maybe?). But then I felt a bit disappointed that it was long way to come for a Grade I, especially bringing a rope.

But you just never know, and at the last turn the gully suddenly ended in a deep cave enclosed by smooth walls and topped by a big roof with icicle stalactites. It suddenly made sense. I remember abseiling into a deep gully with Brian Davison after we’d been avalanched many years ago after making the first winter ascent of Sidestep. Fortunately we didn’t like the snow conditions and had kept the rope on while Brian set off up from the top of the cliff towards the summit above. Soon the slope avalanched and Brian was swept back over the cliff. I took some force too but my single nut belay held, at least partly because the rope caught in a crack. About three metres of rope sheath was torn off and Brian sprained his ankle. It was also dark by this time and the weather was deteriorating. The slope above was several hundred metres of high angle windslab, so we took the only option of abseiling back down the cliff to a very long walk out. One abseil into a hopeful gully saved us, before Brian had to limp for several hours and I had to carry both rucksacks up over the ridge of Beinn Eighe and back to the car. There was so much snow by this time that we couldn’t even find the path and ended up a few hundred metres down the valley from the car park.

It had puzzled me for years where this gully was, and as time went on, I just assumed the excitement had exaggerated its depth. Now I’d found it again and it looked like it was having the last laugh. I really had no idea how I was going to finish and a retreat with the long walk loomed. But there had to be a way; I did have a rope and some gear, even a couple of pegs, which are good for back-rope belays as they take an upward pull. There was a hopeful groove on the left of the cave, but when I climbed into the cave, it took an unfortunate resemblance to the crux groove of Sassenach. A ledge on the right wall did look more hopeful but I wasn’t sure how I would get on to it, whether I could stand in balance on it and what there was to pull out on to a bigger ledge above. The rock in the cave was rotten but after about ten minutes I did manage to get a reasonable peg where its wall met the roof and a slightly hollow nut below.

I admit I was thinking more of aiding out but I did realise that my belay was actually higher than the ledge and wondered if I could tension on to it. As I planned this manoeuvre, I found out that I could just bridge the gully enough to get a leg on to the ledge. But I was still uncomfortably stretched across the gully and a hopeful crack was just out of reach. After an enforced retreat to give my legs a rest, I found a better position and could just reach the good crack. Two nuts in this meant I now had a rope above me in two directions, so there was no excuse for not making a simple step despite the commitment. As soon as I made the step, everything fell into place. The turf-topped crack had an embedded chockstone so a big pull was possible and the turf above was semi-frozen, just enough to take my axes.

I don’t think it was that hard, more my nerves, and it would probably bank out to Grade II. So Grade III,5 and I think I was a jammy dodger today. After that hour for 10ft, it was a stroll back up into the sun and the thought that actually I’d had a good day and bagged a rather good “Internet Route” – by definition a route which is too obscure and far from the road to ever make it into overcrowded future guidebooks, but would sit on the pages of the Internet in case anyone was ever inspired.”

Pete Macpherson moving up towards the overlap and crux ramp of The Mummy (VIII,8), a winter version of Mullahmaloumouktou on Lochnagar. “Pete drew the short straw and was soon absorbed in some rather intricate, wobbly and quite pokey climbing to mantel into the right-trending ramp, which led past a token Pecker and shaky peg to a committing mantel onto a little pedestal at its top,” Guy wrote later on his blog. (Photo Guy Robertson)

Some late news – on January 23 Guy Robertson and Pete Macpherson made the first ascent of The Mummy (VIII,8) on The Cathedral on the Southern Sector of Lochnagar.

The Mummy is a winter version of Mullahmaloumouktou, a summer E2 first climbed by Dore Green and myself in July 1999. The route follows the zigzag ramps on the mummy-shaped tower at the left end of the crag, and when climbing it in summer I was aware that it would make a good winter climb. I returned the following February with Chris Cartwright (we were on good form and had made the first winter ascent of The Crack on Ben Nevis two weeks before) but after I had pulled over the overlap on the first pitch I was unable to make any further progress. The ramp was covered in a uniform layer of powder and I couldn’t find any placements or cracks for protection. Reversing the overlap was not an option, and teetering on tiny holds it was only a matter of time before I fell off.

When I eventually fell I was surprised how long it took before the rope came tight, and I came to a stop just above the belay. Three runners had pulled and I was held by a Hex 9. Fortunately I was unhurt (although my back felt jarred for several days afterwards) and we scurried off right and climbed Sepulchre (V,6), an excellent Greg Strange-Brian Findlay addition from 1987.

The fall made me reassess my approach to winter climbing as I’d taken a long fall the previous season from Red Guard on Carn Etchachan when an axe failed. Once again, several pieces of gear ripped and I fell a long way and was lucky to escape with just a few bruises. These are the only two (significant) winter falls I’ve ever taken and I’ve been particularly careful ever since. The disturbing lesson from my two experiences was that even apparently good protection can pull if the cracks are at all icy.

Guy and Pete had no problem, of course, on their ascent of The Mummy, although I was a little relieved to hear Guy describe the ramp pitch that I fell off as the crux of the route and rather spicy!