Nice short video clip....

During my trip out in Glencoe on Saturday, I met Ian and Fergus on the summit of Stob Coire nan Lochan and we hung around chatting.

Fergus was using a contraption that allows him to send his GoPro into the sky to take aerial video of the surrounding areas and you can see the results here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGrHPKyArLo&feature=youtu.be

I must admit it has tempted me to consider buying a GoPro, but so far I have resisted because there are other things to spend my money on just now but I have a feeling that I might eventually end up with one at some point.

Getting hot & high in Glencoe.....

Saturday saw Caroline and me making an early morning dash from Edinburgh to Glencoe to have a crack at the Zigzags (Grade 1 scramble) onto Gearr Aonach before heading off along the ridge and climbing Stob Coire nan Lochan.  This was my second lead on a scramble as I build my confidence but to be honest, Caroline is very confident, so we ended up just having great fun on the Zigzags and then a great day out on the very rocky ridge.

We had discussed moving on and bagging Bidean nam Bian but the route out going that way was still carrying a fair amount of snow and from where I was standing it looked ropey at best and neither of use had any winter mountaineering kit with us, so we decided early doors that we would leave that route for another day.

We where on our way at 9.15am heading off into the Lost Valley before breaking right and heading up to our scrambling objective.  The rock was really dry and both of us really enjoyed the scrambling even if I did take us a bit to far to the right so we ended up on less sure ground - note to self, learn more about route finding on scrambles.  The sun was high as we moved up the Zigzags and along the ridge - in fact it was very warm indeed and both of us applied factor 50 more than once. 

The push up towards the summit of Sob Coire nan Lochan presented us with a bit more easy scrambling and a weee bit of exposure but soon enough we had made the summit.  We enjoyed fabulous views in all directions and even Ben Nevis was cloud free and making an appearance.  We lingered on the summit for a good 20 minutes chatting to a couple of other folk on the summit before deciding to head off towards Aonach Dubh to look for our route down into Coire nan Lochan. 

Thankfully it was a bit cooler on he tops and the clouds had come in to make it a bit more comfortable.  We enjoyed the trip around looking at some of the amazing rock formations and gullies - none of which you would want to wonder into by mistake.  I imagine your navigation would need to be spot on if you lost visibility up there.

We meandered down the valley enjoying the view of the surrounding mountains and waterfalls - and stood watching a climbing team on one of the walls for a wee while.  After a great 7 hours on the hill we arrived back at the car feeling tired but in high spirits.  A stop at the Good Food Café for some much needed sustenance before heading back to Edinburgh.  A long day but one which has left great memories and wetted the appetite for more of the same.

Scrambling about....

Just back from a great weekend in the Lake District which say us go after Helvellyn via Striding Edge on Saturday.  This was going to be my first ever lead on a planned scramble and I'm pleased to say that everything went according to plan.  The weather was just about right - in other words not to warm, in fact on the tops it was pretty cold.  One we got onto Striding Edge proper the fun started.  We where moving along petty well but then one of the team started to lose her head for heights, so I resorted to some of the skills that Steve Holmes had taught me the previous weekend and in particular the sling trick.  After that we worked well as a team and before we knew it we had made the summit.

I'm pleased to say that I felt comfortable throughout the whole scramble despite there being dozens of people on the ridge and, it has to be said, some of them had no clue whatsoever especially the guy at the end who insisted on pushing past people - not the brightest idea in the world considering were we all where!!

Once we had grabbed a snack on the summit we moved onto Swirral Edge and made short work of that scramble.  We then joined the rest of the group who had opted not to attempt the scramble but to walk into Red Tarn instead.

So feeling pleased with myself.  Roll on 25 May when I'm taking some folk on the Zig Zags in Glencoe - another Grade 1 Scramble. 

For accommodation we stayed at a brilliant bunkhouse which I would highly recommend.