2nd April 2014 - Ben Nevis with Outward Bound

Negotiating the Red Burn, still a little tricky

The Half-Way Lochan, the teams camp spot

Looking toward Meall an-t and Loch Linnhe & Loch Eil

Martin leading the group over a snow patch

Luke James Partridge leading his clients towards MacLeans Steep

Looking towards Mull and Lismore down Loch Linnhe

Glorious conditions with scattered cloud

A view from the way back down. Is there anywhere I'd rather have been? Probably not...

Today I was up on Ben Nevis helping to guide a group of Outward Bound students from Harrogate. The team had camped at the half-way lochan with their instructor, Martin, and I was to meet them there at 9am. Having completely mis-timed the ferry (still adjusting to the ferry element of my commute) I was running a bit late, and set off from Achintee at 8:15, 45 minutes to get there seemed pretty tight (I'm not a hill runner either, so moving THAT fast isn't usually on my agenda. Chastising myself throughout the climb up, I slowly began to realise that it was going to be a glorious day. To my amazement, I got to the meeting point just shy of the Red Burn pretty much bang on time, which with a full winter pack and heavy winter boots was good going for me!

I met the group, and chatted to Martin about the plan before setting off, managing the group over the remaining snow at the Red Burn. The going was pretty steady, with some struggling more than others, but working effectively and caringly as a team. At Corner 4 we donned crampons and after a little lesson in crampon management, we set off. We left the path just after corner 5, and made our own route to the stone circle. The views were stunning in between blasts of cloud, and things only got better as we got higher. After plenty of co-ercing and encouragement for one or two of the students we managed to make the summit, where we had lunch, took some photos and relaxed a bit.

We made super fast progress heading back down, keeping the crampons on and blasting down as far as we could on the snow - the kids loved it! With such a spectacular and dramatic view in front of us the whole way down, who wouldn't want to have been on a mountain today??

Martin and his enthused team left me to go pack up their tents, and I made a swift descent of the bottom half of the mountain. Glad to be down, but equally glad to have had such a great opportunity to share a brilliant mountain day with Martin and his group of young adults - well done guys. You didn't just climb Ben Nevis, you climbed Ben Nevis IN WINTER!

26th & 27th March 2014 - Two Day Winter Skills Course

Loch Linnhe and Loch Eil from Aonach Mor

John visualising his self arrest

John practicing his self arrest

Digging a hasty pit

Enjoying a stunning first day

A lovely panoramic shot

The weather looking grim on Day 2

The crux peeking out between showers

Putting on crampons

John negotiating the narrow section of the ridge

Evidence of cornice collapse on Stob Ban

The weather clearing a little bit

The weather coming back in....again

I think its safe to say it has been an interesting winter. Interesting by the fact that the climbing conditions have been mostly rubbish, the avalanche count has been sky high and the number of days I have had off have been far too few!!! I have been running skills courses for West Highland college, and working at Outward Bound and Kilbowie in the meantime.

However, on Wednesday and Thursday I was out working with John, who I had the pleasure of guiding over the CMD arete during the summer. He had come back up to Bonnie Scotland from the Lake District for a 2 day Winter Skills course, and he was keen to be treated like a complete amateur. With this in mind, and with a decent forecast, we opted to take the easy route up Aonach Mor using the gondola. At the car park, we spent some time looking at winter kit and how I personally pack it in my bag and why. On the gondola we discussed pre-planning each winter day we go on, and discussed the necessity to look at weather and avalanche forecasts and to understand snow conditions in the lead up to your trip out.

Once we got out of the Gondola station we made our way towards the Nid Ridge, looking at boot skills, weather and snow interpretation and walking axe use. At the base of the ridge we found a likely spot to look at self-belays, which we practiced a few times, before progressing onto self-arrest techniques which we spent quite a lot of time practicing and refining. John certainly seemed to have great fun sliding around in the snow in all directions!

We had a quick snack and headed off up the ridge towards the fence posts, looking at different tactics when moving on snow (including avalanche prone slopes). We discussed avalanche awareness, and techniques to analyse the snow pack, including hasty pits, trench tests, axe plunges, slope angle and basic snow pack interpretation. John was thirsty for as much information as possible and we certainly crammed loads in.

We then made our way back down the line of the ski lift, looking at descent techniques and possible hazards under the snow. Time for tea and cake, and a recap of the day before discussing plans for Thursdays mountain day.

On Thursday, I picked John up nice and early, and we headed up Glen Nevis to have a look at our target of Stob Ban. It looked in reasonable condition, with enough snow cover to tick the final learning boxes which we required.

We made steady work going up the steep north face, finally reaching the top where the ground eases off. The wind was quite full on at times, with strong gusts making walking and talking a bit difficult. As we approached the crux of the ridge, we got our crampons and helmets out and discussed the different types of crampons, and the boot/crampon compatibility issues. After a bit of practice moving around in the crampons, we made our way up the mixed terrain and onto the short narrow section above. John took this all in his stride, easily overcoming the difficulties and thoroughly enjoying the challenge the ridge provided.

A quick jaunt up and onto the summit of Stob Ban for a spot of lunch, from which we enjoyed some fine views and a few more strengthening gusts of wind. Then down on our way to Mullach nan Corraine. We had great opportunities to discuss crampon and ice axe limitations, where and when to use this equipment and practicing putting them on and taking them off.

We made the summit of Corraine, and made a hasty exit as the wind and hail increased, making things a bit more difficult. A long stroll saw us safely back down to the car, where we had a bit of a recap of the two days to ensure that John had his expectations met by the course.

It was great to see John again, and we had a really enjoyable two days in the Scottish hills. It was lively, educational and exciting at the same time. Thanks John!

17th February 2014 - An attempt on Ben Nevis

Today i was out working on the Ben track taking a group of three from Hull to make an attempt on the summit. I was joined by Paul who is in his third year at West Highland college studying adventure tourism management, and he was taking the opportunity to shadow me in winter ML terrain. We met Matt, Michelle and Craig at 8, and after a thorough kit check we headed in convoy to Achintee to begin our ascent.

The guys were great craic from the word go and we were soon enjoying the ascent with lots of banter and some interesting facts thrown in! We hit the snow just below windy corner, where we were also met by the wind. Cracking on, we made steady progress past the half way lochan, but began to slow down as we approached the red burn. As the guys had no experience in winter conditions, i opted to don crampons to try and give them a bit of added support on the coming challenging terrain.

We watched a pair attempt and fail to master the step, but went in for a shot anyway. I decided to go up first, making nice big steps for the team, and i dropped a sling down for a bit of added support. They all made it up with no problems, but as we started to zig zag our way up, using the red burn as a hand rail, it became apparent that the physical exertion was going to be too much for the team, and just shy of corner two we opted to go back down.

We quickly negotiated the tricky step, and battered on down to the half way lochan for a lunch stop. After this, we opted to ascend Meall an-t to try and get some views, but in the end only Matt and i made it, leaving the others in Pauls capable hands half way up. With a few photos taken, we rejoined the others and made our merry way back to the car.

Although we did not make the summit, we had a brilliant day, with very enjoyable company, challenging conditions and plenty of learning points. We made the right decisions and the team will definitely need to come back up and conquer the Ben next year!!  Well done team, and a massive thank you to Paul for all his efforts and encouragement - it was a cracking day!

Today i was working for abacus mountain guides.

13th February 2014 - winter skills with ATM 1

Today i was out with 6 students from the ATM 1 course at West Highland college looking at winter skills with a particular emphasis on the decision making that a leader or instructor goes through through out the day. The students had very little experience of the winter hills, so the first item to cover was clothing, equipment and how to pack our bags. Then we looked at the avalanche and weather forecasts to help us decide on a suitable route and venue for us to go to.

With this done we joined dave and his group in the bus and headed for the upper north Face car park. We only made it half way up before we came across several vehicles kind of parked by the track. We negotiated our way past with a bit of difficulty and finally got parked up. Groups split, we headed on foot to the cic path. I stopped with the group every time i was making a decision or judgement in my head, and used these opportunities to discuss these judgments along with a few other skills that may come in handy. It was getting increasingly windy, with plenty of snow being scoured and deposited about the place. It wasn't the best learning environment but it was good to get the guys operating in tough conditions. We got behind a boulder and put crampons, goggles and helmets on before going past daves team digging snow holes. We chose a good slope to look at hasty pits, trench tests and snow pack analysis before performing basic self arrests under an increasing bombardment of depositing snow.

With time against us we cracked on back to the bus, only to spend the next hour struggling to get it turned and dug out in the snow. A sterling effort from all involved, and plenty of digging practice!!

Today was a good example of transferred learning for the students, as well as exciting conditions in which i had to change and adapt my intentions through out the day. A similar follow on session planned tomorrow.

Saw a few interesting decisions being made by teams out today, given the snow pack, and with much of the same forecast for tomorrow please stay safe!!

1st February 2014 - Ben Nevis in poor conditions

Stunning views this morning down the Glen towards Stob Ban

The low level of snow made everything very pretty. The wind made things a little different...

Things began to deteriorate from the Half way Lochan on-wards

Goggles on and a mix of spin drift and fresh snow met us on the upper half of the mountain

Avalanche debris and a wall of wind slab (complete with cornice) at the Red Burn

On the retreat: Our knee deep footprints were covered over in less than 20 minutes...

It has been a while since I updated this blog unfortunately, but I have been pretty busy working at Outward Bound and Kilbowie, as well as plenty of guiding in the months leading up to Christmas. Since then, it's been pretty quiet. Which is no bad thing considering the horrific weather and snow pack conditions we have been experiencing.

Today, however, I was out making an attempt on the Ben with a strong team from Leeds. They drove up yesterday having planned this trip well in advance, so were pretty keen to get up there and claim their prize. However, conditions were pretty horrendous, with High Risk avalanche warnings on the SAIS forecast from West to North East slopes above 750m - precisely on our path up the zig-zags. Add to this high winds (increasing through the day) and a rising temperature and it was definitely a day for gut feeling judgements and correct decisions.

We made excellent time up from Achintee, moving fast and enjoying the stunning views of the winter wonderland that had appeared over night. As we got round to Windy Corner, however, the winds started picking up and along by Halfway Lochan we decided to goggle up. Conditions were really starting to look grim, visibility was deteriorating and the wind was increasing rapidly but we decided to go and have a gander up to the Red Burn. We crossed some worryingly unstable patches of snow on the footpath, and had a wee look at the snow pack to see what was going on. As we approached the Red Burn visibility was almost zero, and I was alarmed to see what appeared to be some serious avalanche debris in the gully. Suddenly the cloud cleared and a wall of windslab topped with a rather large cornice loomed out of the cloud. I had a quick look at it but decided it was too unstable to risk climbing up or skirting round, and so we decided to head back down, defeated by the mountain. Our footprints (often knee deep and in places thigh deep) from twenty minutes previous were now completely covered over, an indication of how much snow was falling or being deposited in the area at that time.

On the way down we met some other teams heading up, some well equipped some not so well equipped but for the most part some good decisions were made by the people who were out in the area.

All in all it was a great day out regardless of how far we got, it was good craic and the lads seemed to enjoy their day - hopefully they can make it up again this winter for a more successful attempt! Thanks guys.

Today I was working for the Highland Mountain Company.

20th January 2013 - North Ridge, Stob Ban

Today Anna and I opted to have a quick short blast up Stob Ban via its North Ridge (I). After yesterdays tragic events in Glen Coe neither of us had the appetite for any big epics given the still poorly bonded snow condition, high winds and lack of consolidation.

We set off from the Lower Falls car park and followed the usual route, taking it easy and enjoying the views. We made the ridge in good time and got a few pics, but the wind was pretty gusty and icy cold. I was trying out some new Rab gloves I got and have to say I was massively impressed with how wind resistant and dexterous they were - excellent purchase! The scrambling on the North Ridge is straight forward but it is still a lovely route, and Stob Ban remains one of my favourite hills and the best last minute option in the area for a quick jolly! We had a good look at the snow pack in a few places and found conditions to be very poor on certain aspects. Yesterdays incident certainly reminds us to take all necessary precautions and not take anything for granted. Every slope, route and day is different and should be treated as such.

The wind was really the only issue, and on the only narrow section of the ridge it was very gusty so each step was carefully planned! Not many folk out today but we met a few; one on the summit and 4 others on the way down. Good to get out and about and keep the fitness topped up!! Possibly out again tomorrow but will wait and see...

Pics to follow....

14th January 2013 - NE Ridge Stob Coire Sgreamhach

Davie looks on to Gearr Aonach and the Zig-Zags

Looking back to the A82 - pretty white all over

Davie wading through thigh deep snow. This was quite shallow compared to other areas...

Looking over the route to come. Stob Coire Sgreamhach in the distance

Davie captures our route

Making quick progress through difficult conditions

Unconsolidated snow made these sections an interesting traverse

Looking back, our footprints visible beyond

We triggered a small slab avalanche which slipped maybe 15 metres. Hearts in mouth.

I am aware that I haven't updated this blog since the beginning of December, so thought I would give a short update. In December I was pretty busy with things, but managed to enjoy a weekend in the Cairngorms for the Mountain Rescue Committee of Scotlands annual conference. It was a great weekend jam packed with excellent work shops and lectures.

After a long break back in Glasgow to see family and friends I returned to the Highlands refreshed but lacking in fitness due to a lack of good winter conditions and not enough time to get out and about. Today though, Davie and I decided to head out in Glen Coe and attempt the NE Ridge of Stob Coire Sgreamhach (II), a little frequented route it would seem.

Snow fall at the car park made it obvious that the snow on the mountain would be fresh and deep. We headed straight up the nose of Bhienn Fhada which provided an interesting way to gain height quickly. We were soon on the ridge proper, and began fighting our way through huge drifts of snow, sometimes waist high and more. The winds picked up steadily through the day, blasting spin drift up into our faces and making visibility difficult. We pressed on without stopping much. Each time we made a summit, we looked out to see another rising before us. The ridge is far from technical, but it is quite enjoyable with some terrific views (when the cloud lifted) and the only area of difficulty was the Bad Step. Afte a short easy down climb into a narrow gap, we had to skirt round a steep face. This proved a bit tricky given the snow conditions, and we accidentally triggered a small slab avalanche which only ran maybe 15 metres, but left us being extra careful as we made our traverse round. As the ground steepened, making good foot and axe placements became more and more tricky. We ended up spending a long time swimming up a gully, tiring, laborious work in the conditions but the snow pack here seemed more secure.

Out of this gully, it was a short troop up to the summit and then off towards the bealach above Lairig Eilde, and down in to the glen towards our cars. Another cracking day in great company. Working at the college for the rest of the week, and hoping for good conditions for the weekend to get out.

14th April 2012 - The Grey Corries

Incredible rock patterns seen on Sob Coire a' Chairn

Anna approaching the summit of Sgurr Choinnich Mor

Looking over what is to come

Looking back at Aonoch Mor. Easy Gull and other prominent lines can be easily discerned

Anna with the Grey Corries stretching into the distance

Anna with the Grey Corries, the Aonochs and the Ben in the distance

The weather, although an imrovement on the morning, was still chop and change

About to climb Stob Ban, looking down towards Binnien Mor and Binnien Beag

Today Anna and I had a fairly early start in order to complete the full round of the Grey Corries in winter conditions in daylight. We opted to approach the ridge from Glen Nevis, which some argue is the longer route but also the quieter. The walk in was pleasant, although the weather forecast did not really seem to be living up to expectations, with overcast skies, blustery winds and hidden summits. As the Glen path begins to dwindle to a boggy mess, we started off in the direction of the bealach between Stob Coire Bhealaich and Sgurr Choinnich Beag and after what felt like an eternity of slogging uphill over broken ground we finally reached the bealach, and the snow line. As I was yesterday, I felt very out of sorts, and every step seemed such an effort. Again I was not carrying a full pack (no rope) but even Anna was surprised at how much I was struggling. Having finally made it to the first summit of the day, in deteriorating visibility, we began to wonder if it was worth completing the ridge, which is renowned for its stunning vistas.

However, as we debated, the clouds began to clear, allowing us a view of our objective, which was quite daunting considering how slowly I was moving. With conditions improving, we made a decision and kept going, although the variety of snow conditions underfoot meant that our progress varied. Anna was moving well, making light work of the conditions, and stayed ahead most of the time. This was great for her to be making the route finding decisions and her judgement calls were spot on. Hopefully it has done alot for her confidence and I continue to urge her towards her ML training as she is easily capable of achieving it.

The approach to Stob Coire an Laoigh provided the only section of real scrambling of the day, and it was short but sweet on lovely rock which was stripped of any ice or snow. It is also an optional approach, as there are simple slopes to the north side of this section which provides a more walker friendly route if required.

There were plenty of teams coming in the opposite direction, and soon it seemed like a busier day than we expected. The sun made some strong appearances and we were amazed at how the temperature varied from freezing cold in the passing snow showers, to roasting hot when the wind died down. We got some tremendous views north east over Creag Meagaidh and west to the Aonochs and the Ben, shrouded in cloud as usual! We opted to skip Stob Coire na Ceannain due to time marching on, but did nip up Stob Ban on our way south and off the ridge. The slog down to glen level was as trudging as the way up had been, however I had slowly been improving through the day and was keen to get back for some real food!

It always seems the case that the walk out from any mountain seems long and arduous. In this instance, it was awful. The 'path' was boggy, wet and often performed disappearing acts, leaving us having to pick our own way through the marsh. Our spirits were still high though - its all about the challenge and just being outdoors that is so important and we had certainly had our fill today. The route is interesting but never hard, and never scary but worth every step. We look forward to doing it again in the summer, although this time we are going to try approaching it from the north, and see if it makes any difference.