John MacLeod making the first winter ascent of Canopy (VI,6) on Blaven in Skye. The big overhanging second pitch can be seen looming above. (Photo Michael Barnard)
Michael Barnard and John MacLeod made one of the finest first winter ascents this season when they ascended Canopy (VI,6), a Severe chimney-line on Blaven. The route was first climbed by Ian Clough and party in a productive Skye trip in 1968. Michael had tried this line during the Skye Winter Festival in January, but the fourth pitch involves a slight traverse and a split decision meant an abseil off and a need to return as soon as possible.
“With a promising forecast for last Friday (February 24), John was happy to join me for a rematch and a request to bring as many slings and extenders as he could muster,” Michael told me. “We walked in to find the freezing level somewhat higher than expected, but a good layer of snow was coating the cliff and with the weather dry and calm the only real sign of the slow thaw was the occasional drip (and the gloves getting wet quicker than usual).
The big second pitch was as good as remembered and the squeeze section as tight as remembered (I had to empty my pockets this time). Above this the summer chimney-line looks a no-go (hard and gear-less), but a slabby traverse left promises the possibility of an alternative way up around the corner. I love this sort of thing with new routing – following your nose and moving left/right as the cliff dictates. Of course it involves some degree of uncertainty in the outcome, but this is surely what climbing or ‘adventure’ is all about?
From the ledges after the traverse pitch a shallow groove had looked promising, but now on closer inspection turned out to be crack-less and slabby. A good edge encouraged me to start though, and led up to the top bulge, two metres from the top. Plan A didn’t look likely from here, but a long traverse right to the other end of the bulge kept some hope alive. A cluster of pegs eventually encouraged some tricky moves up the right arete to reach easier ground, much to the relief of John who’d been shivering a fair bit by now. We were now past the freezing level and the weather had started to come in.
We walked down later in pouring rain and through now-swollen rivers. Scottish winter eh?”
Slovenian Exchange
Marko Prezelj climbing Central Grooves (VII,7) in Stob Coire nan Lochan in Glen Coe. This was one of several high standard classics climbed during the meet. (Photo Ian Parnell)
From February 12 to 19, eight Slovenian climbers visited Scotland and teamed up with British climbers to sample the ‘delights’ of Scottish winter. They caught the end of the February cold snap and enjoyed excellent mixed climbing for the first couple of days, and then as the temperatures rose, they resorted to runs, walks and scrambles for the rest of the meet. ”This seems like the ‘real’ Scottish experience,” UK climber Tom Livingstone wrote on his blog. “A week of perfect conditions wouldn’t have felt like Scotland at all!”
The week was organised by Ian Parnell, Nick Colton and the BMC, and was the first half of an exchange meet. Later in the year the British climbers will visit Slovenia in return. The visiting Slovenians, mentored by ace alpinist Marko Prezelj, are all part of the Slovenian Alpine Team, a three-year programme, which creates safer, more knowledgeable and experienced alpinists.
On February 13 the meet visited Stob Coire nan Lochan in Glen Coe. The highlights were ascents of East Face Direct (VII,7) by Tom Livingstone and Matija Volontar, Scabbard Chimney and Crest Route by Will Harris and Andrej Jez, and Central Grooves (VII,7) by Ian Parnell and Marko Prezelj. The following day Will Harris and Andrej Jez climbed Neanderthal (VII,7) on Lost Valley Buttress, and Ian and Marko joined Iain Small for the second ascent of Iain’s route The Past is Close Behind (VIII,8) on the North Wall of Carn Dearg on Ben Nevis. Despite the limited climbing opportunities, the meet was a great success in making contacts and exchanging ideas with the Slovenians.
Several countries, such as New Zealand, France, Italy, Slovenia and the USA run alpine mentorship programmes. Three winters ago I made the first (recorded) winter ascent of the East Ridge of the Douglas Boulder with Rose Pearson who was on the New Zealand programme at the time. Rose was clearly a very capable climber, and led the tricky second pitch of the route, but I was delighted to see that she has now progressed on to far sterner stuff with the first ascent of the West Ridge of Taulliraju in the Cordillera Blanca last summer. This was truly a world-class prize on one of the finest mountains in the range.
Tom Livingstone describes the exchange in more detail on his blog, and makes the case for the UK setting up its own alpine mentorship scheme.