Cairngorms
The Cairngorms trip was designed as either a weekend trip using cheap flights to Inverness or as a week long trip. It turned out that only 3 people wanted to go and that was for the whole week, however, Simon Weston had to drop out at the last minute leaving just myself and Spencer. Transport arrangements were complicated as I was going to drive but my car developed problems on the way back from Scotland the previous week and I couldn’t get it fixed in time, hence Spenser had to drive at short notice. Anyway, we left Newbury at 7 a.m. on Saturday morning and arrived in Aviemore at 3 pm. Time for a spot of gear shopping prior to going to the cottage, 14 miles down the road in Newtonmore. Aviemore is a gear shopper’s paradise, there’s Blacks, Nevis Sport, Ellis Brigham plus several independents. The cottage (www.croftholidays.co.uk) was small but fully functional with TV, cooker, microwave, mega shower, washing machine and a drying room. It worked out at £60 a head including heating for the week. It was located on the very edge of Newtonmore, up a narrow track, bordering on the hillsides in an oh so quiet location.
Sunday was the first day’s climbing so we set out with the primary intention of doing a recce of the northern corries (neither of us had been there before), in particular Coire an T-Sneachda (“korrie in tchach-ka”), followed by an easy route. Parking up at the funicular car park we find there’s a full ranger service in operation where you can get amongst other things, weather and avalanche forecasts. 50 minutes after leaving the car park we’re in the corrie but nothing is visible. A local tells us we’re underneath Aladdin’s Buttress so we set off to find something to climb. Central Gully was obvious and we chatted to some lads from Leeds University. They were camping for the weekend and were planning Central Gully and the Runnel. We said we’d keep out of their way and go up Crotched Gully. We left them still gearing up and moved together up the initial easy slope, then belayed on a good ledge. The fun then started. Two weeks ago there’d been a big thaw which stripped everything, since then there’d been a little snow and continuous sub-zero temperatures. Hence the routes were a little thin and in very hard nick. I set off up the gully, finding a thread after about 15’, then proceeded to run 40+m of rope out, before getting a wire in on some decidedly grade III ground. The belay was solid but I was glad I’d used a 60 m rope as there wasn’t any slack to take in. It was at this point I learnt a painful lesson, don’t hold a krab in your teeth in winter. It instantly froze to my lips and upon removal came away with several layers of skin still firmly stuck to it. Ouch. Spencer got to the belay but before I could say anything he went and stuck a krab in his mouth as well. Pitch two was easy but very exposed and I had to belay off the gully walls when I ran out of rope. It was –10ºC and a 50 mph wind was funnelling up the gully. Not a place to hang about. Spencer arrived at the belay where he got a bollocking from me as he produced a great knot of slings and krabs when I went to clip him in. I apologised later but in my defence, it was ****ing cold. The last pitch was just a straight forward snow plod on surprisingly good quality snow. Then it was out with the map and compass and try and navigate off the plateau in sod all visibility. The route was graded as I/II but under the prevailing conditions it was mostly grade I with half a pitch of III.
Monday we decided to have a go at the Fiacaill Ridge (II) between Coire an T-Sneachda and Coire an Lochain. No problems finding this and being a ridge it’s always going to be in condition. We geared up, planning on moving together Alpine style. A couple of old boys arrived and started gearing up. We said “hello”, passed the time of day and off we went. The guide book gives it a grade II but says its oh so easy to bail off to the right. We kept rigidly to the ridge crest. At the steepening we could see the old boys starting off, they were pitching it. Now the fun bit, steep rock, granite to be precise with a good coating of rime ice. Up the corner I went, hooking and torquing all the way. A good technical grade 4, but as the book says, avoidable on the right so it only rates a grade II overall. I thought Spencer would struggle so I brought him up on a direct belay. He did fine although I’m sure I spotted a knee being used once. Anyway, we blatted up the rest of the route (got to be a 3* route in my book) and had lunch on the top. Cold, but not too windy. We still had plenty of time but not enough for a 2nd route so we headed for Cairngorm itself. And we were rewarded by sunny skies and magnificent views out over the plateau to Ben Macdui and Braeriach. A second lunch was had in the company of snow buntings in the shelter of the weather station, then I set a compass bearing for the Ptarmigan restaurant. Off we went. As we passed the summit cairn another cairn became visible. Then another. In fact a whole wall of them. These went on for a while, dead straight and on a due north bearing until we reached a made up path with a whole row of posts on each side. Me thinks the Health and Safety Executive made the path. Not sure why though as although it leads to the top of the funicular, tourists aren’t allowed out at the top station. (Walkers are however allowed to go in and spend their money in the shop and restaurant, although I don’t know how they keep people segregated).
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For Tuesday we planned something a little harder, The Vent (IV) in Coire an Lochain. Unfortunately, some twat (me) left their lid in the cottage so we lost an hour going back to get it. By then people were ahead of us and on our route. Plan B was hatched on the spot and we went up a gully (not in the guide book) on the west side of the corrie. It started with an ice pitch on good water ice, then a snow pitch but I wasn’t happy with the snow conditions so after the second pitch I traversed right onto the buttress. The third pitch was frozen turf, good stuff, followed by two more mixed pitches, then we moved together on the exit slopes which fortunately were good neve. On the way up we heard a blood curdling scream from in the corrie and looked to see some bloke dangling 10’ below his gear. He’d obviously lobbed and didn’t fancy carrying on as he got his belayer to lower him down, then they packed up and left. Surprisingly it was 3 pm when we got to the top, although the route was 5 full rope length pitches we hadn’t hung about.
On Wednesday we decided to have a go at Jacob’s Ladder. Although it was only a grade I, it looked good, was described as the hardest route of its grade, that is without the benefit of the lean conditions, and from prior inspection, the top looked hard, very hard. Everyone was going right at the top but I thought I’d give the direct finish a go. Off we went. Spencer had not been having any problems with fitness during the week but as we neared the route we saw two other parties heading for it. Time to up the pace. Spencer started to lag but still he beat the others. Unfortunately for him though I’d decided to make sure we stayed well ahead of the others so I soloed up the first easy snow pitch. Spencer followed, wondering how far up I was going to go. Anyway, we geared up at the top of the first pitch and off I went. 50 m without any runners but this time round there was loose rock under the cosmetic snow layer. Not good at all. I found a good belay just to the right of the gully bed and brought Spencer up. He was overtaken by someone soloing the route. Then a shout of “below” as he knocked a load of rock fall down. Thanks mate. Amazingly, the other two parties carried on despite large lumps of rock hurtling past them. I said to Spencer that I was staying out of the gully until the twat ahead had either finished it or killed himself, so for most of the next pitch I stayed on the buttress before traversing back into the gully just below the top. A bit a messing about getting some wires and a peg in for a belay then up Spencer comes. Now the fun bit, the exit. Despite grand ideas, one look at the headwall and I was down climbing and heading off to the right. No way, 15’ of vertical to overhanging chock stones. It was protectable but boy, did it look hard. The right hand exit was no push over either at least a grade II if not III. Top tip. How do you warm frozen thumbs? Answer: hit twice with hammer whilst trying to put a peg in. There was a good thread belay at the top and up Spencer comes, however, I do believe I felt his weight come onto the ropes at least once. A bite to eat then we waited to get a photo of the next party on the exit. All of a sudden a red hood appeared near the top of the direct exit. There then followed some frantic scrabbling with axes and then hands, followed by the now you see him now you don’t routine as the guy lobbed, he just sort of dropped from sight. 5 minutes later and the bloke was on the right hand exit, a bit slow though as he was lacing it with gear.
After 4 days I fancied a rest, plus the forecast was blizzards. Also, after having to get the AA out the previous day, Spencer’s car was in the garage for a new set of glow plugs. To board or to ski? that’s the question. I chose board. (£28 for board hire plus a day’s lift pass.) Mistake. Should have had skis. There were only two runs open and they were beginners slopes, not really steep enough for boarding. And when you were on a downhill bit, the wind was so strong that you almost went backwards. The less said about the pistes the better, suffice to say that in sod all visibility, the only features you can see are the rocks. The other run was slightly better but narrower and it had a flat section which you had to walk along. Two days later Spencer was still laughing after I caught the toe edge of the board and somersaulted. Despite wearing body armour that one hurt. Not a good day.
The last day and we headed out to the car park despite a rather dodgy weather forecast. However, the route choice was made for us as the road up to the funicular car park was blocked. The snow ploughs were working but who knows when or if it would open. 30 mph winds at sea level did not bode well for the plateau so we headed back for a low level walk from the cottage. Not that we got that far as we couldn’t get the car up the hill and had to leave it in the village. The walk started pretty grim, cold, extremely windy and no visibility. An exercise in map and compass work. At the first top the visibility was improving at times but the wind was so strong we could barely stand up. At 500 m we were still 100 m below the level of the funicular car park, God knows what it was like at 1100 m. The map showed a square on the other side of a valley that looked suspiciously like a bothy. We decided to try and find it. Off again on compass bearings down into the valley and then off up the other side, enlivened a little by a river crossing. I was just beginning to think I’d have to resort to getting the GPS out when out of the mist loomed a corrugated iron shack. Great, the old map and compass do work. We had lunch in the luxurious warmth of the bothy. Actually the temperature was –1ºC, a bit like the inside of a fridge, but after fighting the wind all morning it felt tropical. Then the best bit of the week – the sun came out. What a glorious afternoon it was. Although the wind was still just as strong and cold, the sunshine made it feel far better. The hills were all gleaming white and seemed to be covered in shifting mists, in fact it was the maelstrom of spindrift. We could see for miles and miles and we had the hills all to ourselves. Walking was generally OK although some of the drifts were waist deep powder. You just flounder in that stuff expending a massive amount of energy going nowhere. Mountain hares kept popping up all over the place, we saw at least 6. Eventually, tired out after wading through too much snow for too long we headed down to a welcome shower and pub grub. I must say though that that afternoon was the best day out on the hills I’ve ever had.
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Newtonmore isn’t exactly famous for its nightlife, in fact during the week nothing was open. But tonight was Friday night so we had a band in the pub. Good ole country and western, with bag pipe accompaniment! with further free entertainment provided by the local drunk.
All in all, a pretty good week. And thanks again to Spencer for driving.