Today I had a late start and decided to take a plod up the Ben in full kit for fitness sake. In the late morning the wind was quite low, and until around 400 m any precipitation was rain. Above this point, however, there was plenty of white stuff falling though in the form of grauppel which is a bit minging! At the path junction I spied a reasonable looking patch of snow to the left of Red Burn which I stomped up to in order to practice some snow anchors again, putting to practice some handy hints which Stu Johnston passed on to me.
I am still amazed at the variety of people you get up the Ben in all conditions. On my descent, the wind picked up considerably and drove hail straight into my face, and yet there were still droves of folk heading up in jeans and sandals. Please do not underestimate the Scottish hills, as the weather can change dramatically and most weather forecasts are for built up areas, not mountainous areas, where conditions can be much different. Refer to MWIS for more accurate forecasts.
Hoping to get out on Creag Meagaidh tomorrow for some nav practice and possibly look at emergency shelters and choosing a suitable snow hole location. If anyone is free and fancies coming along please get in touch.
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