Scottish Winter Courses 2016

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Great weather this week10:36 GMT, 14/Mar/16

Items of kit I didn�t think I would use in Scotland this week � factor 20 sun cream, shades and T-shirts!

You�ll see from the photos below we�ve had a great week of settled weather and bright sunny days. All of the courses; introductory, mountaineering and climbing, have achieved great things in good conditions. It all changed on Friday however, when temperatures shot up and winter took on a slightly damper feel!

The introductory course has summited hills with 50Km views on every day bar Friday when some fixed rope and abseiling training was the best option. The mountaineering course climbed in different mountain ranges on all five days with long ridges, gullies and buttress routes all being ascended. Lots of folk learnt valuable skills of route finding, anchor selection and efficient movement on steep ground.

The climbing course covered some great ground this week as well with ascents of Orion Direct on Ben Nevis (V), Gemini (VI) and Green Gully (IV) to name but a few.

We now enter our last week of courses for this year with a mountaineering course and an introductory course. There is still masses of snow (even with the thaw), I can see folk climbing North facing gullies well into April, so if you fancy a couple of days out, let us know.

Ed Chard

Quite a bit of blue!15:10 GMT, 07/Mar/16

After another shaky start to the courses (weather-wise) were were blessed last week with a continuation of the good weather we've started to enjoy recently; a complete turn-around from the start of the season. Climbers from Introductory Winter Mountaineering, Winter Mountaineering, Summits and Private Climbers left the hotel looking somewhat tanned from their days in Glen Coe, on the Ben, in the Mamores and the Bridge of Orchy Hills as we made the most of our position at the Ballachulish Hotel.� We saw suncream and sunglasses being used. We also saw goggles; a perfect blend for learning all about Scottish Winter Mountaineering. Nae sae bad!

Another week of courses this week and next.

Tony Halliwell

Yesterday was the best. No, today was the best09:47 GMT, 28/Feb/16

Yesterday was the best day of the winter, so far. Nope, today was the best day. Musn't forget my.....sunglasses!

We've had a stunning week, which started still stormy, but which just got better and better, though it hasn't been without its challenges.  The avalanche conditions have been really complex, with at least considerable risk on many aspects and widespread, pockets of risk as weak layers have persisted in the snowpack.  This certainly made route selection and route finding highly demanding.

But the weather has been kind for all of the groups; Introductory, Winter Mountaineering, Snow and Ice and Private Clients.  And now, this weekend's Introductory Long Weekend course are out enjoying wall to wall blue sky with white mountains as far as the eye can see.

The Snow and Ice course started with North Buttress on Buachaille Etive Mor, then enjoyed a truly alpine day on The Dragon's Tooth, just behind the hotel here, but with variation starts which involved III and IV climbing. Wendell and Hannah then enjoyed some ice footwork coaching from Clive, followed by an ascent of Waterfall Gulley, whilst Neil and Tony got to grips with Vanishing Gulley. An exploratory visit to Coire an Dothaid brought us some climbing with a pioneering feel, then we swapped groups and ended the week with Neil climbing Castle Ridge with Clive ("because it's there" and because the weather was stunning) whilst Hannah and Wendell climbed The Curtain with Tony.  Friday's culmination for Luke and Martin on Private Clients was an ascent of Tower Ridge, followed by a descent of Ledge Route, then a finish in Fort William for their train.

We're forecast for more snow on Monday, though winds look mainly benign and the temperatures set to stay low, other than a minor blip on Tuesday, which should help ice formation and stabilisation as it chills down again thereafter.

Tony Halliwell

A busy week completed12:29 GMT, 22/Feb/16

We have just finished one of our busiest weeks in Scotland ever with 40 people on courses, plus all of our Instructors! We�ve had climbers, walkers and mountaineers enjoying some of the best and worst conditions Scotland can throw at you in the past six days. The best days this week were certainly Sunday and Monday, with blue skies and cold, windless days. The climbers lost no time in getting stuck into classic grade III/IVs in Coire Nan Lochain and longer classics, such as Green Gully (IV) on Ben Nevis.

Tuesday saw the sea and sky change places with huge rainfall at lower altitudes and a fresh dump of snow higher up. It was great practice for navigation and route finding in white out conditions for the Winter Summits course and abseiling/dry tooling for the mountaineers. In classic West Coast style, Wednesday and Thursday was back to cold and windless..ish weather and back to climbing and walking to the tops. The Devil's Tooth in Ballachulish was good value for the mountaineers, North Buttress (IV) on Buachaille Etive Mor and Morwind (IV) on Aonach Mor for the climbers. Waterfall Gully (IV/V) saw three ascents in the deepening snow and increasing wind towards the end of the week. The avalanche forecast hit �high risk� on an occasion this week and several large avalanches were seen on Ben Nevis and in Glen Coe. The Mamores were visited by the winter walkers and even Steall Bridge in Glen Nevis on Friday.

Finally, our thoughts are with the families of the two missing climbers on Ben Nevis this week. We have been helping the rescue team out as best we can with reports of where we have been and any routes we have climbed. As I write this on Saturday morning (19 February) there is still no word of further developments. It brings it home to us as mountain professionals how we have to treat our working environment with the respect it deserves.

Ed Chard

A great weather week in Glen Coe11:54 GMT, 15/Feb/16

Week 5 has been a fantastic week of good weather, with a stable snow pack and great routes climbed by all teams. We�ve had folk on all courses learning new skills and experiencing the best that Scottish Winter Mountaineering has to offer.

Teams on the Snow and Ice Climbing course have climbed Green Gully (IV) Waterfall Gully (IV) Raeburn�s Route (IV) North Buttress (IV) and the Aonach Eagach (II), to name a few routes. The Winter Mountaineering Course has climbed Ledge Route (II) and Dorsal Arete (II), as well as enjoying some ice climbing on Ben Nevis and having done a day learning crevasse rescue and fixed line skills (some climbers are off to the Greater Ranges with us, so it was preparation for that).

The Introductory Winter Mountaineering Course has been to summits far and wide, including the Ballachulish Horseshoe, Stob Coire Nan Lochain and Buachaille Etive Beag.

A picture paints a thousand words, as they say...

Last week - another wild and wintry one17:39 GMT, 12/Feb/16

To misquote George Gershwin �Mountaineering is a lot like Jazz - it�s best when you improvise�.

It�s been another wild and wintery week in Scotland and once more our determined and hardy teams have made the most of each day.

The elusive �Lisa� being coaxed from her winter burrow with the promise of biscuits and nice weather... we lied

Monday saw some teams combine and enjoy some dry tooling at low level in winds that had lorries lying down for a breather all across the Rannoch Moor road. Tuesday had teams up higher in the tail end of Mondays storm refreshing skills and learning new ones with Tony H climbing 1934 Route on the Ben.

Colin and Cat finally goggle free.

Wednesday was a case of now or never and everyone made the best of the lull with Tony H and the Snow and Ice course on Raeburns Route IV, the Winter Mountaineers with Sam and Max enjoyed variations of Dorsal Ar�te II/III and the Intro Team and Mark H traversing the Stob corrie nan Lochan, timing it well with great views from the summit.

Being a large Scottish Mountain in winter can be nerve racking - so it�s nice to get a hug sometimes - Thanks Colin

Fresh from hibernation Lisa makes short work of Dorsal Ar�te - spot the minibus.

The remainder of the week saw teams back on the Ben and creeping up Curved Ridge before the new storm had time to notice.

When the sun shines on Scotland its unforgettable... surely we must be due?

Footnote. And this week the sun has shone! You can keep up-to-date with our courses via Twitter and Instagram. Next week we have our biggest week of the season, with 50 course participants and instructors in residence! We still have places available on some courses in late February and into March, so get in touch.

17:05 GMT, 02/Feb/16

I may have mentioned rain and thaw as being the big issues in Scotland last week. They were issues, but not as big an issue as storm-force winds over the whole of Scotland. Winds in excess of 100mph were recorded at summit weather stations on both The west and east coasts of the country this week.

You may think that after reading that sentence the rest of this post will be about indoor climbing, gentle walks on the beach and visiting cafes and distilleries around Argyle. Nothing could be further than the truth. With great fortitude and a sense of adventure, all our climbers were out every day climbing, mountaineering and testing gear to the max.

On Thursday, due to windy conditions on the west coast, the Winter Mountaineering course travelled over to the Cairngorms to climb in Coire an t-Sneachda. Max climbed on the Mess of Potage for some mixed action on Left Edge (III), Mark climbed on the Twin Ribs (II), while Tony fought up Right Edge (II). Everyone had a top, abeit windy, adventure with smile/grimaces all round. Sam meanwhile was summiting on Ben Nevis in �gentle wind�!

The cold weather is at last returning with Ben Nevis summit temperatures back down to -10 on Monday 1 January and -12 later this week. The winds are abating with some good freeze and thaw action happening in the 700m-900m section (where all the climbing is). The Snow and Ice courses are happening this week, as well as some introductory-level courses and Winter Mountaineering action. My tip for the rest of the winter � it�s going to get colder and I�m going to be wearing my sunglasses on Ben Nevis within 2 weeks!

Ed Chard

Another snowy week gives way to thaw and gales16:28 GMT, 25/Jan/16

It's been another snowy week of courses this past week in Scotland. I know everyone south of the border is wearing T shirts, but it�s still full on winter on the west coast of Scotland just now. We�ve had folks gaining new skills as well as being taken up classic routes throughout the week. The pictures below are of Mark and Dave on Curved Ridge (II/III) and Dorsal Arete (II) and some jumar and abseil practice for some forthcoming Himalayan trips.

The snow pack is maturing currently after big snow falls early on in the season. There hadn�t been much in the way of thaw and wind, so the coming promise of both will make climbing conditions a lot better in a few more days. Once the snow pack has wetted out, it will re-freeze into solid neve snow, ideal for climbing and moving about quickly.

Our Instructor staff have also completed some important training over the weekend. Mark Diggins, from the Scottish Avalanche Information Service (SAIS), ran a really informative day. Although the assessment of the snow pack is something we all do on a daily basis, Continued Professional Development training is a cornerstone of our mountain safety and hazard awareness skill set.

So, with our waterproofs on all week, we will be looking forward to the promised colder weather on Friday - watch this space! We have some busy weeks coming up, but do remember that the office is taking bookings every day for courses in late February and into March.

Ed Chard MIC

First week of courses completed12:21 GMT, 18/Jan/16

We have kicked off our 2016 season in Scotland with climbers on our Introductory Winter Mountaineering course and our Winter Mountaineering course. It was a relief to see snow finally hit the West Coast last weekend and top up what was looking to be a lean first week. We�ve had around 20cm of snow during the week that has given a good covering down to sea level. Light winds and sub freezing temperatures have ensured the snow has stayed pretty much where it fell, with only small areas of poorly bonded wind slab.

We�ve travelled to different locations on every day this past week with Winter Mountaineers on Curved Ridge (II) in Glen Coe, Ledge Route (II) Ben Nevis, Dorsal Arete (II) and Raeburns Route (III), both in Glen Coe. We even managed a spot of fixed rope training for folks heading off to Mera and Island Peak later this year, looking at changeovers and abseiling past anchors.

The headline of the week is certainly deep snow with some tough going getting into and out of the hills. Cold weather looks to continue up here well into next week, we now could do with a bit of thaw and refreeze ready for our Snow and Ice climbing courses, which start in a week's time.

Ledge & No.306/Jan/16

Jagged Globe � Winter Courses � Private Guiding

Today was day 2 and Lucy wanted to push herself as far as possible, mentally (learning) and physically. She quickly walked up to the CIC in 50 minutes (through the rain and wind) and then we paused for thought � sheltering behind the CIC (with lots of other climbers, contemplating conditions), our plan for Ledge Route still looked do-able, despite the strong winds, so we pushed on. This is only day 2 for Lucy in the Scottish Winter environment, so climbing on rock was new � but she quickly adapted. The narrow ridge was a challenge in the ferocious wind but Lucy loved it. We kept the rope on from the top of Carn Dearg to Number 3 Gully, because the wind was that strong, and Lucy only weighs 60kg (luckily I�m heavier!). Lucy asked specifically for the challenge of Number 3 Gully, and learned quickly on the job.

Another great day, with lots of learning and enthusiasm � despite pretty awful conditions!

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Leader - Max Hunter

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