Dorsal Arete

Stob Coire nan Lochan popping up in the middle

Saturday say me, once again, meet up with Steve Holmes of Vertical Fever and the decision was made to head into Glencoe and have a look at Stob Coire nan Lochan.  As we set off from Fort William the weather looked promising although the expectation was that we would get hit with wind and snow - this never really came about except for a few snow showers.  From the car park, the route looked great.

It was a bit busy!

We made steady progress up the normal path heading for the corrie.  Initially, the snow was pretty easy going but as we gained altitude it got deeper although not too demanding.  Once we got into the corrie proper Steve gave me some much needed experience at deciphering guide books.  The crags looked to be in great condition although it was clear that some of the route would be topping out into massive cornices.  We made the decision to go for Dorsal Arete (II).  This was a good choice as it allowed me to practice building belays and anchors as we moved along, but getting to the start of the route was tough wading through pretty deep snow.  Along the way Steve reminded me of the critical avalanche angles. The route was in good condition and it was a bit busy with at least three teams ahead of us.  As we progressed along our route we became aware of a developing situation on Twisting Gully and later learnt that a team had been caught in an avalanche and apart from knowing that there was at least one casualty we didn't know much else but did meet the Glencoe MRT on our way out.

Getting the message out there

The route was great and I learned loads about safe movement, building anchors and belays and rope management.  Steve had me lead the very last pitch which took us straight over the top.  We then headed up to the summit of the Munro where I took the opportunity of grabbing a picture of me holding the banner for Concussion RnR, which is in memory of Ben Robinson.  Once we had the summit it was time for some ridge walking to get us back down to the col and then back down into the corrie where we got our gear off and grabbed some food and drink before we cracked on back to the car park.

The only downside to a brilliant day out was some sort of injury to my calf - not sure what's going on there but hopefully it's nothing to worry about.  We made fairly quick time back down to the van and then back into Fort William for a well deserved bite to eat.

Steve in his "office"

Glencoe looking stunning

Coming up Dorsal Arete

More anchors & belays than you can shake a stick at

Leading the last pitch over the top

A long day on the Ben....

The Ben opens up to us

Saturday saw me meet up with Steve Holmes from Vertical Fever for a day of winter skills and a crack at my first proper Scottish winter grade III route.  After parking in the bottom car park we made the trip up through the corrie to the CIC hut.  As we went along the route the north face of Ben Nevis started to open out to us and it was looking pretty magnificent.

As we approached the CIC hut, Steve took the time to run through understanding the avalanche forecast and how it was important to constantly assess the environment and conditions.  Gale force winds had been forecast but it was pretty still as we walked in, so much so that I was pretty much overheating!!  We arrived at the hut and started to grab a snack and saw someone legging it down the hill towards us.  He quickly informed us that there had been an avalanche and someone had been caught up in it but that he was walking wounded.  Steve and I headed up the hill and met the party - the chap looked pretty beaten up and dazed, but seemed to be in good spirits.  But, it was a timely reminder.

We then set off to get under the Douglas Boulder so Steve could run me through block testing and digging snow caves.  It was also an opportunity for Steve to explain assessing the area and looking for areas that presented safety - for example under the Douglas Boulder.

Belaying Steve

After this it was time to head off around the side of the Boulder and get to the bottom of Fawlty Tower (Grade III).  Just before we got to the bottom we took the opportunity to gear up with harnesses, and crampons etc.  We then had a slight wait for another team to set of on another route.  Then we where away up the first pitch   The route was in great condition, although there was really deep snow at the very beginning which resulted in a real struggle to actually get going.  Steve ran two pitches and then decided to run the third pitch long and ended up using the entire 60m rope.  I found this pitch really hard work, although by Sunday morning I was overcome with a head cold and chest so perhaps that was it.  Whatever the reasons, there where at least two times on pitch three when I thought winter mountaineering was not for me.  But I pushed on and joined Steve at the belay.  Then we got the fourth and last pitch finished.  What I had not expected was to top out onto a snow filled, narrow arete but that is exactly what we did top out on.

We then set off along the arete to find a suitable abseil point.  Steve quickly set the first of three abseils up and we got ourselves down to the top of another gully.  From here we abseiled again off a very solid looking snow and ice bollard.  Whilst I was on the belay at the ice bollard, it was a real learning experience to watch Steve, who is an MIA, search from one side to another for a suitable anchor point.  I knew that the daylight was slowly slipping away and felt if it had been me I would have used the first anchor/belay I found - watching Steve brought home the importance of finding the best anchor/belay that you can.

A great day on the mountain

Once we made the bottom of the gully we had to find our way through really deep snow until we caught sight of the CIC hut and headed in that direction.  Once we got there we got the gear off and grabbed a much needed drink and bite to eat before donning our head torches and heading off for the trek back to the car park.  Strangely enough this was one of the best parts of the day for me because its not often I use the head torch and when I do I love the feeling you get when its just you and your thoughts in the wee bubble of light.

I had a fantastic day during which I learnt more advanced winter skills and bagged my first proper Scottish Winter Grade III climb.  After a 10 hour day I was tired but content.

Fighting through deep snow

Struggling with frozen gear

The last pitch

Montane Prism Gloves

Over the last 18 months or so I have really been considering the weight to usefulness ratio of all of my gear, especially as I have gravitated towards graded scrambling and climbing so weight really does become an important consideration, in my opinion, when you have to carry a rack, helmet and rope etc.

I recently saw the Montane Prism gloves in an outdoor shop and had originally thought they felt pretty flimsy, but I was attracted to the weight of them.  The blurb in the shop stated that the gloves where 100% windproof, but I've learnt over the years that 100% anything is pretty much not going to happen.  Although they felt flimsy, once I put them on in the shop I immediately thought they felt cosy, but I still had a little doubt niggling away in my head.  It took me two days to make the decision to go with a pair and this was helped by the decent price tag of £35 (I've since saw them down to £31 on the Internet).

Courtesy of Google

So I threw them in my sack and yesterday I had the chance to try them out on a walk in the Lmmermuir's (see blog).  I started the walk with no gloves on but once we made the ridge line it was very cold with a wind chill certainly in the zero degrees range so I got the Montane Prism's on.  It took no time at all for my fingers to start warming up and from that point on my hands remained warm and comfortable throughout the walk so I can vouch for that side of the gloves.  A friend who was walking with me and who suffers from very cold hands also said her gloves had kept her hands warm and that she had no need to use her hand warmers.

Courtesy of Google

The gloves are pertex microlight with permaloft. They are very, very light and come with their own stuff sac. The lightness of the gloves means that even a fairly reasonable wind would have them away in no time so you would need to be aware of that if on the side of say a Scottish mountain, but they do have loops so in theory you could use a small krab to keep them attached when oor if you take them off.  They pack down really small so are ideal, in my opinion, for folk who want small and light, but efficient and effective gloves.

Would I use these gloves on graded winter work?  Probably not, but I would have them in my pack as the go to pair for walking in and out off routes.  I would though, use them for full on winter walking (always having a spare set on standby) and they are, in my opinion, a great cost effective (£35) choice for folk who want to get out in the winter but who might not want to spend money on full blown winter gloves.  Incidentally, these gloves are now carried with me when I go out on training runs.

So in summary, a really good pair of gloves that pack down to a tiny size and are effective and efficient at keeping your pinkies nice and cosy.

Not a belay in sight!!

Yesterday saw me and a couple of friends venture out into the Lammermuir's just outside of Edinburgh for what should have been a couple of hours walk.  Being a short walk we decided to have a late start so left Edinburgh at 10am, which was a really nice change from our usual 6am departure heading for the bigger ranges.

I'd done this particular route a good few time but have not been near it for about 5 years so I had the route firmly in my head (I still had a map and compass etc though).  Off we set and within the first kilometer it fast became obvious that the farmer had changed things so a field that once had a path through it was now bearing crops so had to be avoided.  Not to worry though as this provided me the opportunity to teach Joan a bit more navigation - on this occasion about doglegs around obstacles etc. We cleared this first change to the route and headed for the top of Lylestone Hill (389m).  From hear we shout have been able to head north and just hit the path for the remainder of our journey - but the terrain had again changed and the farmer/landowner had put a number of fences up which again meant we had to swing round these obstacles.

We eventually got back onto the original route and things settled down and we where able to get into our stride.  It was, though, very wet underfoot so we had to do a fair bit of jumping from tuft to tuft.  But, the sun was out and we got some great views.  This year has seen me spend a lot of time improving my skills and knowledge around graded scrambling and climbing so it was really nice to just be walking along chatting and not having to think about the next anchor and belay.  Oddly I only took two pictures all day. The contrast in colour from hillside to agricultural land was stark and really beautiful to see.  Although the sun was out it was very cold on the ridge line as we walked over Peat Law (414m) and Hogs Law (448m), but this gave me a good opportunity to test out the Montane gloves I recently bought (see review).

So a route that should have taken about 2.5 hours ended us being 3 hours 45 minutes, but during that time I was able to do some decent navigation training with both Joan and Stephanie and there was not a single belay to be had!  Oh yes, and we found a brilliant new cafe that does the best fruit cake so another bonus.

Montane Cobra 25

Here is my review of the Montane Cobra 25 backpack.  The pack comes in at a decent 819g but is robust enough for just about any use on the mountains.  I have used mine during the summer months and it has never let me down.  I've used it for straight forward hiking and trekking and have also used it for climbing and scrambling and it has proved to be an excellent bit of gear.

Initially I felt it moving about when I was scrambling at the higher grades, however, cinching the chest strap as tight as possible solved this issue.I have comfortably carried first aid kit, survival bag, spare hat and gloves, spare layer, wetproofs, food, 2lt bladder, harness, climbing rack and helmet and the pack has dealt with it all, although on one occasion I had to put my helmet on the outside after a day on the crags - this was mainly due to me cramming everything into the pack at the end of the day, instead of packing carefully.  If I was carrying a rope then it would have to go on the outside, although I have carried one in the pack when I was carrying a much cut down rack that I use for scrambling.

I find the pack very comfortable indeed.  It sits on my back well and there is very little movement.  It has one zipped pocket on the right side of the hip belt which I use to stash a couple of snacks.  On the left of the hip belt there is a gear loop which I've never used for that.  The pack has a small pocket on the top of the lid which I use sparingly.  Initially I found the main opening a bit awkward as it flops open, as opposed to opening out into a standard "hole". This just needs getting used to and I have not found it to be a major issue.  The pack has a good profile and does not get in the way when scrambling or climbing - in fact, I forget I've even got it on.  I've used it on 5+ hour hills walks only taking it off to get my lunch or gear and its felt great throughout.  The build quality is very good, as you might expect from a company like Montane and again, mine has been thrown about a fair bit of the last few months.  I will certainly be using it for winter walking, although I suspect I will have to go up in size for winter mountaineering - but you never know.

So in summary, the Montane Cobra is a great piece of kit, which I have found sits very comfortably on your back and does not move about when your scrambling or climbing.  I would certainly recommend it.

Wet & windy in the Lakes....

For one reason or another it's been a wee while since I last updated my blog, but hopefully normal service has now been resumed.

Caroline, Joan and me traveled down to the Lake District this weekend and enjoyed a, despite the weather, enjoyed a couple of good walks.  First though I'd like to mention the bunk house accommodation at the White Horse Inn - it was great and we would all highly recommend it.  The rooms are warm and, perhaps more importantly, the showers are excellent.  The pub itself is good for food and a pint after a good day on the fells.

Saturday

Having discussed options for Saturday we decided to give Scafell Pike a go from the Seathwaite side. As the weather forecast was showing a deterioration in the afternoon, we decided to make an early start (this would also allow us to get back into Keswick for some retail therapy!).  Despite making an early start is soon became obvious that the wind was going to make life difficult from the get go. Despite the wind we made fairly good going up to the MRT stretcher box at Styhead.  At this point we took a snack break and discussed our options.  The wind now was pretty much gale force and the Scafell massive was clagged in pretty badly, so we decided to forego the Pike but to head towards Great End and to recce the band and see if it might be worth having a go at that.  But, this also looked pretty poor so we decided to head over to Allen Crags (785m) instead.  On the top of the crag it became clear that we had probably made the correct decision as the wind was wild and the rain had come on.  We grabbed some lunch and then decided to make a sharp exit via Grains Gill.  Despite the weather we had a great day out and the Lakes still managed to give us some good views.

Sunday

Following a good meal and a couple of pints in the pub on Saturday evening, we decided to either go and have a look at Jackdaw Ridge, Shepherd's Crag (Grade 2) or to do Skiddaw - we would let the weather make the decision for us.  The morning brought some calmness but it was pretty damp so we discounted Jackdaw Ridge and opted for Skiddaw via Jenkins.  The view from Skiddaw from the ascent where great and we could see pretty much the whole of the Lake District albeit through a haze. The wind was cold though and it got progressively stronger as we gained altitude.  It was gale force on the final wee push to the summit and the wind chill was round the zero mark - in fact it snowed later in the day.  Once again, this was a great 3+ hours on the hill.

So a great weekend was had by all.

Happy birthday to me......

Celebrating a certain age over this weekend I thought it would be a good idea to get out on the hills, so I headed up to Fort William on Thursday afternoon to meet Steve Holmes from Vertical Fever .  After a quick meeting that evening the decision was made to celebrate my birthday on Friday with a ascent of Castle Ridge (Grade 3S) on Ben Nevis before coming back down Ledge Route.  So an early start on Friday saw us heading towards the north face of the Ben.  It didn't take long before we where at the base of Castle Ridge and gearing up. Steve led off and it was a fine ascent up a classic Scottish ridge - and the midges even stayed away.

At the top of the ridge Steve and I had a quick council of war and decided that we should actually summit the Ben and then head down the CT Arete - this was good news for me because I will be leading a party up the arete in August and had never done it.  So Friday turned into a very long, but excellent day on the mountain.

Sunday morning saw us heading into Glencoe to have a crack at North Buttress, Buachaille Etive Mor, which is another Scottish classic at Grade 3S.  This ridge is certainly longer and more sustained but it was another cracker of a day and I felt comfortable and confident throughout the ascent.  Once again, at the top we had a council of war - a ropey walk over scree to get off, or Curved Ridge (Grade 2/3).  No contest, Curved Ridge was always going to win and it gave me some much needed practice and experience at down climbing on scrambles.

So an outstanding weekend to celebrate my birthday.  Massive thanks must go to Steve Homes of Vertical Fever .