
The top icefall of Daft Laddie, a new Grade III in Coire Crom in Glen Affric, can be seen in the centre of the photo. The rest of the route is hidden below and left. (Photo Matt Smith)
Matt Smith had a fine adventure in Glen Affric on March 29:
“I went in to Coire Crom on the south side of Loch Affric thinking the west gully of Meall a’ Ghraidh might give a good solo and interesting way up the hill. However, once in the coire, it didn’t look great, but a couple of ice smears were visible to the right. I wandered up to have a look, and found the right branch of the Allt a’Choire Chruim to be sufficiently frozen so I headed up that.
Starting at about 470m (NH150203) as Grade I with Grade II (or III) steps available if you wanted, it got more interesting the higher I went (and with less scope for easy options). There was some water running behind, but mostly it was really solid ice all the way, which was nice and chewy in places. It finished at a nice wee ice fall that might be tech 4 taken direct, but since I was soloing, with my old blunt Raptors, B1s and blunt walking crampons, I took it left to right.
It was about 100m or so, and worth grade III, I think, and similar in difficulty to West Gully Beinn Udlaidh. It felt a bit pokey with blunt kit and not having told anyone where I was going, all sorts of scenarios were running through my head on the top icefall. ‘Daft Laddie’ sprung to mind as a route name!”