What a weird winter we are having for climbing! As usual the papers predicted the coldest winter ever and then Scotland had just about the warmest December on record.
With the New Year the cold and the snow finally arrived. The top boys were having a field day on the hard mixed routes, such as shop favourite Ian Parnell with his impressive ascent of The Needle (VIII 8) but the big gullies have been powdery nightmares. With a couple of days off I stole my winter rope gun from his job and headed north.
Loch LomondWith so much fresh snow it was hard to choose a safe climb. We decided the technical routes on the Douglas boulder, a short walk from the CIC but on the Ben would be ideal. We were right. Luck was on our side from the start; as we began our walk a van pulled through the gate with the fabled key to the top car park. We negotiated (begged) a lift with Hannah from West Coast Mountaineering and chatted about friends we had in common.
 Easy but sketchy Pitch 1 of Cutlass VI 7 |
 Hero Howells starting the main event |
The casual walk to the CIC confirmed our guess; the big gullies looked hard work and scary with all the snow. We headed for Cutlass VI 7 and a stunning looking crux corner pitch. I geared up quickly and set off, ensuring my trusty partner/hero Rich Howells got the crux. He pulled over the first overhang on good hooks and the rest of the pitch was involving, technical yet steady. Good gear when he cleared the snow out, small edges for feet, good hooks and even bomber turf to get onto the belay ledge - mega. I followed with frozen hands and Rich purposely kicking snow on me to make it feel “proper”!
Tech moves and good gear: awesome!Looking up at my pitch I was shocked by how hard it seemed up the steep chimney. A perfect crack on the right wall allowed hooks, great gear and footholds for my monos. It wasn’t nearly as hard as it looked; but it was just as awesome. A few more pitches of easy mixed took us to the summit of the Douglas boulder and an ab back into the descent gully. There followed an easy walk back to the hut and down to the top car park, where our new friends drove us back to the van just after 3pm. Maybe the most chilled day I've ever had on the Ben. Type one fun!
 A happy Rich and a beautiful Ben |
 Pitch 3 - me using a whole rack in 5m |
On the walk down we planned the next day. We noticed someone had broken trail all the way to number 3 gully during the day, so this lead us to think about trying Gargoyle Wall, a classic I've fancied for ages. It was due to be a nice day again but with a light dusting of snow in the morning. With alarms set early we woke and started the long slog.
The dusting arrived. It didn't stop. This was no dusting and before we even reached the CIC hut it was building above our ankles. On top of the deep snow that was already there we decided it would not be safe up high. Sadly we turned and headed down. Later, we saw the reports and sad news on the BBC over the next few days and we were thankful for our safe, if disappointing decision.
Beautiful but snowy Bridge of OrcyI was determined to rescue the day but as it was too late for climbing we decided to take a wintery walk in the Bridge of Orcy and headed up Beinn An Dothaidh. By now the sun was out and it was beautiful however the depth of snow was clear and we chose a safe but tiring route to the summit up the ridge from the col. It wasn't climbing but it was still a great day out. Once again we were down early and back in Sheffield before 10pm.
 Snowy peaks |
 The Lockerbie truck stop; the reason we go to Scotland |
I feel pleased with our choices even if it was only one day of climbing. As I always say, “I’m too much of a wuss not to be safe in winter.”
Here are my top tips for fun but safe days in Scotland:
- Start early, finish early. (Contrary to belief it's NOT cool to finish in the dark.)
- If in doubt, cop out. It is definitely not cool if you can't try again another day.
- ALWAYS, ALWAYS stop at the Lockerbie truck stop on the way up AND down. Scottish fry ups don't get better.