Kevin Rutherford MIC

Hill and climbing conditions for the Scottish Highlands.

www.ecossemountains.co.uk

Winter Courses - Winter Skills, Winter Mountaineering, Winter Climbing & Norway Ice based in Rjukan

Tuesday 28 January 2014

West Coast Mountaineering

A great 4 days with returning group Walkers with Altitude. Based in and around Fort William we had a challenging time both with the weather and the high avalanche forecasts. Day 1 was spent traversing the Buachaille Etive Beag which had an alpine snow arete on the south ridge, a damp day. Day 2s forecast was worse, so we headed to the Ice Factor where we spent the day looking at climbing steeper stuff on rock and ice. Day 3, was named ballistic day but turned out to be the opposite and we had a great afternoon hit on Creag Meagaidh;s north ridge taking in Sron Coire A Chriochairein and the edge of Cairn Liath. Yesterday, plan A was to ascend the east ridge of Carn Mor Dearg from the Nevis Range gondola but we found the connecting glen too hard going with soft deep snow so we ascended a safe west face rib bringing us out level with the quad chair, great wee route on mountaineering ground.


    




  

Sunday 19 January 2014

Winter in Full Swing

Its been a busy 3 weeks since New Year mostly working for Glenmore Lodge, Learn to Lead, Winter Mountaineering, Winter Skills and a hill and safety course with Arqiva who look after the TV and Radio masts countrywide.

Conditions up on the Cairngorms are in full swing with an amazing cover above 750m very similar to what we had back in 2010, even although its not been very cold low down, the continuous low pressure systems have been packing the snow in.

It was snowing heavy this afternoon above 900m with still strong SE winds. The climbing routes in the corries were buried at the start of the week so id say there may be even less rock showing now, maybe everything will become grade I.

A few photos below of today and the last few weeks.