3rd - 4th May 2013 - Aborted Exped in the Fisherfields

A Panoramic shot on the walk in

The team full of beans and enthusiasm

Our camp spot

The clouds are coming in. Lovely camp spot

Today (3rd) I met Steven Fallon and his team of five clients who were looking to knock off An Teallach and the 5 Fisherfield Munros over a 4 day expedition. Many of the guys are returning clients of Stevens and so we knew that these guys were up to the task.

Setting off at 9.30am, the weather was very fair - much better than the forecast had predicted, and we had a pleasant walk in to some of Scotlands most remote landscape. The mountains were capped in snow, but not worryingly so, and the wind was non existant: so far so good!

After passing a large team from Venture Trust, we carried on in to our camp spot, which is a terrific little area on the track towards Shenevall Bothy, sitting on a bend of the river Abhainn Loch an Nid and nestled in some lovely woodland. Before setting up, I took the opportunity to talk the guys through packing their bags a little more effectively, which they all found quite useful (some of the guys haven't camped in many years; it was one of the groups first time!!). Having covered any aspects the guys wanted to go over, we set up our tents, had a quick spot of lunch and then 4 of us headed off towards Shenevall to attempt An Teallach, leaving the two brothers behind at the camp.

No sooner had we set off than the heavens opened, relentlessly pounding us as we ventured up into Coire Ghamhna, following the deer fence and getting a glimpse of the superb hidden waterfall and gorge which nestles therein. The guys were slipping and sliding, holding onto the deer fence for dear life as the heavy precipitation turned from rain to heavy snow, and given the time it took us to reach the corner of the deer fence, and the deteriorating conditions and light, I chose to get us back down again.

The small burns we had crossed on the long walk in were now torrents, and we had some difficulty crossing them. After a brief respite in the shelter of the bothy, we cracked on for 'home', soaked to the bone. Finally, on our last crossing, one of the party lost his balance and fell side long into the river, getting soaked instantly. We managed to pluck him out, and even recovered the pole he dropped which had been flushed away towards the river.

Back at camp we hurried to get some food cooked, and after making sure everyone was alright (especially the chap who had taken an early bath! I was then able to get into my own tent, and sort out my soaking wet kit in an attempt to help it dry.

After a reasonable night sleep, I got up to find the snow level was no higher than 100m above our camp, which meant there was a lot of fresh snow on top of the previous snow pack which didn't bode well. The team got up and had some breakfast, and with the weather report on the radio forecasting more persistent rain and high winds, I left the team to discuss what they wanted to do. They unanimously opted to pull out of the venture, and so we packed up and walked back out.

On the walk out we say some hefty snow scouring and dumping, some fresh avalanche debris and a team of 5 reach 500 metres on An Teallach before being beaten back down - we had definately made the right decision! Unfortunate for the guys and certainly dissapointing but safety is always a priority, and it is so much better if everyone enjoys their hard work!

I was working for Steven Fallon Mountain Guides.