Name: Club Climbing Night
Start: 2026-09-03T18:00:00+01:00
End: 2026-09-03T21:00:00+01:00
Location: Dalkey Quarry

A Summer In Mid-Wales by J. P.O'F. Lynam
In my newly acquired role as IMC Publicity Officer, I was recently in conversation with Peter Cooper, past Colmcille Climbers Club President and now resident in Mid-Wales, remarking on the fact that he lived within a couple of miles of where I grew up. In reply he asked if I knew that Joss Lynam had been in the area in the 1950s, working on the Elan Valley dams, 20 miles to the east, and that he’d written about in the IMC Journal.
I searched the archives and found the following article. I initially thought it would merely be an interesting historical item to feature on the blog but since original re-publishing I have been contacted by Dave Williams, a local climber who is currently researching Lynam’s climbs in the area. They are producing a new climbing guide “Central Wales: A Climbing Guide to Elenydd“, due 2016. I have included some of Dave’s comments below Joss’s original article.
[Photo credits go to my father, a keen photographer and frequent visitor to the Elan Valley where, together with my mother they walk & cycle.]

The Original Article

When I mentioned one evening last Autumn in the Club Room that I was going to work in Radnorshire, my friends considered that I had managed poorly; they expected me, it seemed, to land a job with a three-day working week on the edge of Lough Coruisk, or at the foot of Great Gable. Soon I began to think they were right; although I was working at 1200 ft. above sea level, and there was plenty of snow, there seemed to be nothing to climb, and though Rhayader is only 100 miles from Snowdon, it takes all day to get there – via Crewe and Chester!
However, at the beginning of May, when in spite of a jaunt to Ogwen in a friend’s car, we were feeling badly in need of some rock for climbing, we heard rumours of another mountaineer in Radnorshire. A mysterious ‘phone call to the Resident Engineer…A gossiping Sanitary Inspector….Then one Sunday afternoon as we set off on bicycles to explore a cliff I had noticed some time before, we met a cyclist, with a pair of tricouni-nailed boots slung from his handlebars: Lane – Lynam; introductions were made, talk commenced, first in the middle of the road and later, when a thunderstorm blew up, round a teapot in Dolgerddon Hall. Lane – “E.H.” – was a Crown Forester on Radnor forest, about sixteen miles away, who for several years had been scouring the country for rock-climbs and, mostly climbing solo, had found quite a few short routes.

Penygarreg reservoir and Craig Dolfaenog
E. H. was to be our companion on most of our climbs in Radnor, so he deserves a few words. To an English climber I would describe him simply as a Rucksack Club man, but for the Irishman, who may not know this peculiar Mancunian breed, I must be more explicit. The Rucksack Club man has generally learnt his mountaineering in the Pennines, which are responsible for two of his characteristics. Firstly, to his unbelievable capacity for enormously long, dull walks over bog land, which, over the years, have become almost sacred, so that the mention of “Marsden-Edale” will bring an exiled Rucksacker to tears. Secondly, for the filth of his attire, for Pennine gritstone (as I know well, for I learnt to climb on it myself) is the dirtiest rock in these Islands. His third characteristic (and I do not know its cause) is rudeness. Not an abrupt, rather a loquacious rudeness, so that he is never happier than in slagging his friends, and raking up all their misdeeds of twenty years – or more, if his memory lasts. To these group characteristics must be added E.H.’s personal quirks: a bubbling enthusiasm (liable to turn to black despair at a moment’s notice), an incurable urge to “talk climbing” (which, pent up for weeks, would burst in spate upon us when he came for the weekend) and a fortunate ability to laugh at himself – and everybody else.

View from the west side of Garreg Ddu reservoir. Creigiau Dolfolau separated by the Lyn Clap tributary.
Enough of the climbers; now for the climbs. Rhayader lies on the east side of an area of flat-topped hills, whose highest domes just pass the 2,000 ft. contour. The valleys are deeply cut and sometimes scarped, the whole forming, in geological language, a dissected peneplain. Two of the largest valleys, the Elan and the Claerwen, are filled by the reservoirs providing the water supply for Birmingham (I was working on the Claerwen Dam – the Elan Valley Dams date from about 1900). The rock is mainly Silurian slate, often of schisty quality, interspersed with conglomerate and with some volcanic intrusions of similar rock to that found in the Snowdon district.
The volcanic rock outcrops at Cerrig Gwynion, two miles south of Rhayader, a few hundred feet above the road, perfectly situated for summer evening visits. Here are ten or so short routes, which were mostly worked out by Lane climbing solo. They are steep and quite strenuous, providing routes very similar, though shorter, to those at Dalkey. The cordée Lynam, constitutionally averse to strenuous climbing, only succeeded in putting up one new route, and had difficulty in dealing with some of the other routes without a top rope. The volcanic rock also forms a low north-south ridge of hills east of Rhayader and at the north end of this ridge near Llandegley, there are two outcrops. The angle is generally easier than at Cerrig Gwynion, and so, though there are a few hard routes, Llandegley rocks are primarily a place for a day off, particularly as they are finely situated and command (in spite of their low altitude) excellent views all round, especially of the neighbouring Radnor Forest. The conglomerate rocks have not yielded much climbing, but there are some short routes and scrambles on the rocks at the north end of Caban Coch, the lowest dam (Craig y Foel). Unexpectedly enough, the slate provides the best climbing probably because there is so much more of it. There are many detached buttresses which will repay attention, but one cliff is pre-eminent. It is on the east side of Garreg Ddu reservoir in the Elan Valley (Craig Dolfaenog/Craig Dolfolau), and presents a face of slate of a schistose character, which gives remarkably sound holds.

The South Buttress of Creigiau Dolfolau, where many of the Lynam’s multi pitch climbs are located.
Two weeks after we met him, E.H. cycled over and stayed the weekend, the first ol many visits which formed the pattern of our summer climbing. We went to Garreg Ddu and on the north buttress of the cliff, a buttress rather distinct from the rest, we climbed a route which he had reconnoitred the day he met us. It was the first climb of more than 200 ft. in the county and we named it Triumvirate as our first joint effort. It is a good climb, though no more than Difficult, and typical of the Garreg Ddu routes. It is predominantly a slab route, reminiscent a little of Bray Head, and though it is a natural line, it is generally possible to traverse off between the pitches.

Caban Coch dam, looking at the Gigfran Quarry at the `NE` end of Craig y Foel.
The crag is more than 300 yards long and has a maximum height of about 450 it. It is a “rubber” cliff, for nails would quickly destroy the smaller holds, and clinkers in particular skid badly on the rather soapy surface. The climbing is generally delicate, and require good technique and intelligent use of holds. One of the great joys of the crag is its position, for it overlooks the winding, wooded reservoir and faces into the afternoon sun. It is also no more than a few minutes scramble from a motor road and the slowest of cyclists will reach it in less than an hour from Rhayader.

Craig Gigfran’s Canopy and Zig-zag Buttresses, north of Caban Coch dam.
As the summer passed, we visited it more and more frequently, until we were climbing there at least once, and sometimes twice, each weekend. We explored the cliff steadily and found not a few charming climbs. We were most successful on North Buttress, where our route-finding culminated in Climax, a 150 ft. Severe route up a tower on the right side of the buttress. It starts in a recess overhung by trees, and goes up a steep and holdless slab, emerging at the foot of the tower. The lower wall of the tower is climbed by a crack, which is the only break in a smooth face, and the climb finishes with a magnificently exposed (though easier) pitch at the corner of the tower.

Craig Gigfran and Wide Gully above the Visitor Centre.
Triptych Buttress, further to the south and lower, is another favourite spot. It is named from the three sharp ribs Adam, Eve and The Serpent, which stand out clearly on it and which each provides a route. Eve and The Serpent are pleasant Difficults, which yielded at the first attempt. But Adam, which we had admired from our first visit, defied us until October. The rib was formed by the sharp edge of a characteristic slab, but it is a slab steeper, and at its top more holdless, than any we had met. In the end the top pitch was climbed, not on the slab, but round the corner, up a rounded and nearly vertical crack which we were on the point of labelling “V.S.” when Nora came up with great ease, so that we had quickly to demote it to “Severe”.
There are other good climbs; Hawk’s Nest Chimney, the only route for which an outsider was partly responsible; Concerto, with a grand little tower and a finely exposed slab; Larceny, a “solid DifficuIt”; Diminuendo, which tacked on to any of the Triptych Buttress routes gives over 400 ft. of climbing; Trigonometry, with a delightful final pitch; Osiris, on the right Triptych Buttress; the two traverses, Orion’s Belt and Eve’s Girdle; and the short problems Pizzicato, Pilaster and Fandango.
There are now sixteen routes on the cliff, ranging from 400 to 50 ft. long, and I think that most of the obvious lines (except the very hard ones) have been climbed. Slate always supports a considerable amount of vegetation and we have hardly touched the parts of the cliff that need gardening. Wholesale removal of heather ledges and of a few trees will certainly uncover some new routes, and on the clean parts of the cliff there should be a few lines to the taste of the leader of Very Severes.

Zig-zag Buttress, location of the very first climb in the Valley in 1950.
I have written so far of the climbing immediately around Rhayader but often we took a tent and made more distant expeditions. On our first, at the beginning of May, we got a lift to Devil’s Bridge, on the coast side of our hills, and walked on the Saturday evening to Strata Florida where there are ruins of a Cistercian Monastery whose monks once owned all the Claerwen and Elan Valleys, to Rhayader and beyond. The ruins (mainly of the 13th century) are quite impressive; the arch of the west door is still standing and one can see the massive engraved pillars of the nave and the decorated tiled floors of the side altars. The name, unexpected in Wales, is the latinised form of Ystrad Fflur. We camped for the night a few miles higher up the valley and early next morning, in driving rain, crossed the hills by the old “Monks’ Road” to the Claerwen. We reached the dam at 8.30am, just in time to meet an astonished Sunday shift as they started work. I have no space to describe our other expeditions to Cadair Idris, to Plynlimon and to the Brecon Beacons, save to say that they all demanded intense study of Bradshaw and the Catholic Directory, for Sunday trains and Sunday Mass are the one as rare as the other in this Principality.
It was an unexpected summer; I had imagined going for weekends to Cadair Idris or to North Wales, but it has never occurred to me that we should find good rock within a few miles. The beauty of the countryside was another surprise; the hilltops are dull, but the valleys, with their trees and heather, gorse and bracken, reflected in the bright waters of the reservoirs, have always some new loveliness of light or colour. The drying shores, left as the water level ebbs through the summer, are a pleasing contrast to the wooded slopes, and oven the grey, stone-faced dams do not obtrude, though, when the lakes are full and the water is cascading whites over the spillweirs, they are a grand sight in themselves. The year taught me something important also; that even when one is working six days a week in the hills, rain, snow or shine (mostly rain), one is still glad to climb on the seventh.
Original article appears in IMC Journal Vol.3 No.2 Winter 1952.

Feedback from Dave Williams

Dave Williams is co-author of the forthcoming guidebook, Central Wales: A Climbing Guide to Elenydd. He is responsible for writing the Elan Valley section of the guide and has undertaken extensive research into Joss and Nora’s huge contribution to Mid Wales climbing, corresponding with one of Joss’s daughters and soon to visit the Joss Lynam Collection in Trinity College Archives.
Encouragingly, there are no access issues here. The landowners, Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water), are refreshingly pro-climbing.
He was alerted to the above article some years ago and, from the information contained within it, Dave says:

“I’ve subsequently been able to track down the actual route descriptions for every single route climbed by the Lynams and EH Lane in the Elan Valley area between 1950-55. All the climbs have been found and a number of have been repeated – probably second ascents in most (all?) cases, 60+ years after the FAs! The ones that haven’t been climbed are ones we’ve failed on (see below), or ones which are now simply too overgrown to climb. (The passage of time and climate change have not been kind and Elan Estate also prohibits any removal of cliff vegetation on habitat conservation grounds.)

The climbs were before their time and are a testament to the great skill and nerve of the first ascentionists. Repeating them has been an, er, ‘experience’. The original grading’s interesting too, and as a rule of thumb:
- ‘Difficult in rubbers‘ = VS 4b/c
- ‘Very Difficult in rubbers‘ = HVS 5a/b (Some of these were soloed on the FA!)
- ‘Severe in rubbers‘ = E1/E2 5b or harder? (We don’t know as we’ve backed off from all the ones we’ve tried – and we are normally okay climbing up to E4. The difficulties are 3-fold – technical difficulty, unreliable yet often steep rock and an absence of trustworthy gear/ secure belays. A pretty heady mix!)
The first route that the Lynams climbed with Lane – Triumvirate – is now graded VS 4b. The rather serious top pitch made an E4 leader squawk and I was quite glad it wasn’t my lead!”

Notes
- Cerrig Gwynion
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19613
- Craig y Foel
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19615
- Craig Dolfaenog/Craig Dolfolau
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19617
- Caban Coch/Craig Gigfran
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19614
- Elan Valley
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elan_Valley_Reservoirs
  http://www.elanvalley.org.uk/
A Summer In Mid-Wales by J. P.O’F. Lynam
In my newly acquired role as IMC Publicity Officer, I was recently in conversation with Peter Cooper, past Colmcille Climbers Club President and now resident in Mid-Wales, remarking on the fact that he lived within a couple of miles of where I grew up. In reply he asked if I knew that Joss Lynam had been in the area in the 1950s, working on the Elan Valley dams, 20 miles to the east, and that he’d written about in the IMC Journal.

I searched the archives and found the following article. I initially thought it would merely be an interesting historical item to feature on the blog but since original re-publishing I have been contacted by Dave Williams, a local climber who is currently researching Lynam’s climbs in the area. They are producing a new climbing guide “Central Wales: A Climbing Guide to Elenydd“, due 2016. I have included some of Dave’s comments below Joss’s original article.

[Photo credits go to my father, a keen photographer and frequent visitor to the Elan Valley where, together with my mother they walk & cycle.]

The Original Article

When I mentioned one evening last Autumn in the Club Room that I was going to work in Radnorshire, my friends considered that I had managed poorly; they expected me, it seemed, to land a job with a three-day working week on the edge of Lough Coruisk, or at the foot of Great Gable. Soon I began to think they were right; although I was working at 1200 ft. above sea level, and there was plenty of snow, there seemed to be nothing to climb, and though Rhayader is only 100 miles from Snowdon, it takes all day to get there – via Crewe and Chester!

However, at the beginning of May, when in spite of a jaunt to Ogwen in a friend’s car, we were feeling badly in need of some rock for climbing, we heard rumours of another mountaineer in Radnorshire. A mysterious ‘phone call to the Resident Engineer…A gossiping Sanitary Inspector….Then one Sunday afternoon as we set off on bicycles to explore a cliff I had noticed some time before, we met a cyclist, with a pair of tricouni-nailed boots slung from his handlebars: Lane – Lynam; introductions were made, talk commenced, first in the middle of the road and later, when a thunderstorm blew up, round a teapot in Dolgerddon Hall. Lane – “E.H.” – was a Crown Forester on Radnor forest, about sixteen miles away, who for several years had been scouring the country for rock-climbs and, mostly climbing solo, had found quite a few short routes.

Penygarreg reservoir and Craig Dolfaenog

E. H. was to be our companion on most of our climbs in Radnor, so he deserves a few words. To an English climber I would describe him simply as a Rucksack Club man, but for the Irishman, who may not know this peculiar Mancunian breed, I must be more explicit. The Rucksack Club man has generally learnt his mountaineering in the Pennines, which are responsible for two of his characteristics. Firstly, to his unbelievable capacity for enormously long, dull walks over bog land, which, over the years, have become almost sacred, so that the mention of “Marsden-Edale” will bring an exiled Rucksacker to tears. Secondly, for the filth of his attire, for Pennine gritstone (as I know well, for I learnt to climb on it myself) is the dirtiest rock in these Islands. His third characteristic (and I do not know its cause) is rudeness. Not an abrupt, rather a loquacious rudeness, so that he is never happier than in slagging his friends, and raking up all their misdeeds of twenty years – or more, if his memory lasts. To these group characteristics must be added E.H.’s personal quirks: a bubbling enthusiasm (liable to turn to black despair at a moment’s notice), an incurable urge to “talk climbing” (which, pent up for weeks, would burst in spate upon us when he came for the weekend) and a fortunate ability to laugh at himself – and everybody else.

View from the west side of Garreg Ddu reservoir. Creigiau Dolfolau separated by the Lyn Clap tributary.

Enough of the climbers; now for the climbs. Rhayader lies on the east side of an area of flat-topped hills, whose highest domes just pass the 2,000 ft. contour. The valleys are deeply cut and sometimes scarped, the whole forming, in geological language, a dissected peneplain. Two of the largest valleys, the Elan and the Claerwen, are filled by the reservoirs providing the water supply for Birmingham (I was working on the Claerwen Dam – the Elan Valley Dams date from about 1900). The rock is mainly Silurian slate, often of schisty quality, interspersed with conglomerate and with some volcanic intrusions of similar rock to that found in the Snowdon district.

The volcanic rock outcrops at Cerrig Gwynion, two miles south of Rhayader, a few hundred feet above the road, perfectly situated for summer evening visits. Here are ten or so short routes, which were mostly worked out by Lane climbing solo. They are steep and quite strenuous, providing routes very similar, though shorter, to those at Dalkey. The cordée Lynam, constitutionally averse to strenuous climbing, only succeeded in putting up one new route, and had difficulty in dealing with some of the other routes without a top rope. The volcanic rock also forms a low north-south ridge of hills east of Rhayader and at the north end of this ridge near Llandegley, there are two outcrops. The angle is generally easier than at Cerrig Gwynion, and so, though there are a few hard routes, Llandegley rocks are primarily a place for a day off, particularly as they are finely situated and command (in spite of their low altitude) excellent views all round, especially of the neighbouring Radnor Forest. The conglomerate rocks have not yielded much climbing, but there are some short routes and scrambles on the rocks at the north end of Caban Coch, the lowest dam (Craig y Foel). Unexpectedly enough, the slate provides the best climbing probably because there is so much more of it. There are many detached buttresses which will repay attention, but one cliff is pre-eminent. It is on the east side of Garreg Ddu reservoir in the Elan Valley (Craig Dolfaenog/Craig Dolfolau), and presents a face of slate of a schistose character, which gives remarkably sound holds.

The South Buttress of Creigiau Dolfolau, where many of the Lynam’s multi pitch climbs are located.

Two weeks after we met him, E.H. cycled over and stayed the weekend, the first ol many visits which formed the pattern of our summer climbing. We went to Garreg Ddu and on the north buttress of the cliff, a buttress rather distinct from the rest, we climbed a route which he had reconnoitred the day he met us. It was the first climb of more than 200 ft. in the county and we named it Triumvirate as our first joint effort. It is a good climb, though no more than Difficult, and typical of the Garreg Ddu routes. It is predominantly a slab route, reminiscent a little of Bray Head, and though it is a natural line, it is generally possible to traverse off between the pitches.

Caban Coch dam, looking at the Gigfran Quarry at the `NE` end of Craig y Foel.

The crag is more than 300 yards long and has a maximum height of about 450 it. It is a “rubber” cliff, for nails would quickly destroy the smaller holds, and clinkers in particular skid badly on the rather soapy surface. The climbing is generally delicate, and require good technique and intelligent use of holds. One of the great joys of the crag is its position, for it overlooks the winding, wooded reservoir and faces into the afternoon sun. It is also no more than a few minutes scramble from a motor road and the slowest of cyclists will reach it in less than an hour from Rhayader.

Craig Gigfran’s Canopy and Zig-zag Buttresses, north of Caban Coch dam.

As the summer passed, we visited it more and more frequently, until we were climbing there at least once, and sometimes twice, each weekend. We explored the cliff steadily and found not a few charming climbs. We were most successful on North Buttress, where our route-finding culminated in Climax, a 150 ft. Severe route up a tower on the right side of the buttress. It starts in a recess overhung by trees, and goes up a steep and holdless slab, emerging at the foot of the tower. The lower wall of the tower is climbed by a crack, which is the only break in a smooth face, and the climb finishes with a magnificently exposed (though easier) pitch at the corner of the tower.

Craig Gigfran and Wide Gully above the Visitor Centre.

Triptych Buttress, further to the south and lower, is another favourite spot. It is named from the three sharp ribs Adam, Eve and The Serpent, which stand out clearly on it and which each provides a route. Eve and The Serpent are pleasant Difficults, which yielded at the first attempt. But Adam, which we had admired from our first visit, defied us until October. The rib was formed by the sharp edge of a characteristic slab, but it is a slab steeper, and at its top more holdless, than any we had met. In the end the top pitch was climbed, not on the slab, but round the corner, up a rounded and nearly vertical crack which we were on the point of labelling “V.S.” when Nora came up with great ease, so that we had quickly to demote it to “Severe”.

There are other good climbs; Hawk’s Nest Chimney, the only route for which an outsider was partly responsible; Concerto, with a grand little tower and a finely exposed slab; Larceny, a “solid DifficuIt”; Diminuendo, which tacked on to any of the Triptych Buttress routes gives over 400 ft. of climbing; Trigonometry, with a delightful final pitch; Osiris, on the right Triptych Buttress; the two traverses, Orion’s Belt and Eve’s Girdle; and the short problems Pizzicato, Pilaster and Fandango.

There are now sixteen routes on the cliff, ranging from 400 to 50 ft. long, and I think that most of the obvious lines (except the very hard ones) have been climbed. Slate always supports a considerable amount of vegetation and we have hardly touched the parts of the cliff that need gardening. Wholesale removal of heather ledges and of a few trees will certainly uncover some new routes, and on the clean parts of the cliff there should be a few lines to the taste of the leader of Very Severes.

Zig-zag Buttress, location of the very first climb in the Valley in 1950.

I have written so far of the climbing immediately around Rhayader but often we took a tent and made more distant expeditions. On our first, at the beginning of May, we got a lift to Devil’s Bridge, on the coast side of our hills, and walked on the Saturday evening to Strata Florida where there are ruins of a Cistercian Monastery whose monks once owned all the Claerwen and Elan Valleys, to Rhayader and beyond. The ruins (mainly of the 13th century) are quite impressive; the arch of the west door is still standing and one can see the massive engraved pillars of the nave and the decorated tiled floors of the side altars. The name, unexpected in Wales, is the latinised form of Ystrad Fflur. We camped for the night a few miles higher up the valley and early next morning, in driving rain, crossed the hills by the old “Monks’ Road” to the Claerwen. We reached the dam at 8.30am, just in time to meet an astonished Sunday shift as they started work. I have no space to describe our other expeditions to Cadair Idris, to Plynlimon and to the Brecon Beacons, save to say that they all demanded intense study of Bradshaw and the Catholic Directory, for Sunday trains and Sunday Mass are the one as rare as the other in this Principality.

It was an unexpected summer; I had imagined going for weekends to Cadair Idris or to North Wales, but it has never occurred to me that we should find good rock within a few miles. The beauty of the countryside was another surprise; the hilltops are dull, but the valleys, with their trees and heather, gorse and bracken, reflected in the bright waters of the reservoirs, have always some new loveliness of light or colour. The drying shores, left as the water level ebbs through the summer, are a pleasing contrast to the wooded slopes, and oven the grey, stone-faced dams do not obtrude, though, when the lakes are full and the water is cascading whites over the spillweirs, they are a grand sight in themselves. The year taught me something important also; that even when one is working six days a week in the hills, rain, snow or shine (mostly rain), one is still glad to climb on the seventh.

Original article appears in IMC Journal Vol.3 No.2 Winter 1952.

Feedback from Dave Williams

Dave Williams is co-author of the forthcoming guidebook, Central Wales: A Climbing Guide to Elenydd. He is responsible for writing the Elan Valley section of the guide and has undertaken extensive research into Joss and Nora’s huge contribution to Mid Wales climbing, corresponding with one of Joss’s daughters and soon to visit the Joss Lynam Collection in Trinity College Archives.

Encouragingly, there are no access issues here. The landowners, Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water), are refreshingly pro-climbing.

He was alerted to the above article some years ago and, from the information contained within it, Dave says:

“I’ve subsequently been able to track down the actual route descriptions for every single route climbed by the Lynams and EH Lane in the Elan Valley area between 1950-55. All the climbs have been found and a number of have been repeated – probably second ascents in most (all?) cases, 60+ years after the FAs! The ones that haven’t been climbed are ones we’ve failed on (see below), or ones which are now simply too overgrown to climb. (The passage of time and climate change have not been kind and Elan Estate also prohibits any removal of cliff vegetation on habitat conservation grounds.)

The climbs were before their time and are a testament to the great skill and nerve of the first ascentionists. Repeating them has been an, er, ‘experience’. The original grading’s interesting too, and as a rule of thumb:
- ‘Difficult in rubbers‘ = VS 4b/c
- ‘Very Difficult in rubbers‘ = HVS 5a/b (Some of these were soloed on the FA!)
- ‘Severe in rubbers‘ = E1/E2 5b or harder? (We don’t know as we’ve backed off from all the ones we’ve tried – and we are normally okay climbing up to E4. The difficulties are 3-fold – technical difficulty, unreliable yet often steep rock and an absence of trustworthy gear/ secure belays. A pretty heady mix!)
The first route that the Lynams climbed with Lane – Triumvirate – is now graded VS 4b. The rather serious top pitch made an E4 leader squawk and I was quite glad it wasn’t my lead!”

Notes
- Cerrig Gwynion
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19613
- Craig y Foel
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19615
- Craig Dolfaenog/Craig Dolfolau
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19617
- Caban Coch/Craig Gigfran
  http://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/crag.php?id=19614
- Elan Valley
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elan_Valley_Reservoirs
  http://www.elanvalley.org.uk/
Tales from Wales

An early start got myself, Niall and Cearbhall on the 8.00 crossing to Holyhead for the start of the October Bank Holiday weekend trip to North Wales. I spent a short while walking around the ship to see if I could spot any of the other participants/victims but had no luck. I assumed they were on another deck. It was a fine morning with calm seas. Enjoying a coffee and a bit of chat I noticed a ship pass on the port side (thanks Cearbhall). I asked the lads what ship that was. ‘It’s probably the fast sailing to Holyhead’ says Cearbhall. ‘Why didn’t we get that?’ I asked. Niall who had booked the ferry was at a loss to explain why he had booked the slow boat. He has some form when it comes to ferry bookings so we let it lie…eventually!
We were staying in Bethesda, so with a better than expected forecast we continued up past Llyn Ogwen and parked in under Milestone Buttress on Tryfan (still not sure how to pronounce this). We had decided to have a go at Grooved Arête. At an amenable grade, and it being already lunch time, it seemed like a sensible option.

We geared up by the car and set off up the track under Milestone Buttress in the direction of Heather Terrace. It’s a steep pull initially. I passed Cearbhall at one stage and made some comment about the unexpected fine weather. It was meant to be crap. Anyway, Cearbhall growled at me so I left him too it. Niall was ahead and he eventually got to the foot of the climb which isn’t difficult to find. Some helpful soul had scrapped a big G.A. at the bottom of the first pitch. I commented to Niall that Cearbhall was ‘blowing hard’ on the way up. He arrived and we started to gear up. It had taken us about an hour.

Harness and rack went on and Cearbhall flaked out a rope. I asked were the other rope was. That’s when the fun started. Niall turned to me with a look of disgust. ‘What do you mean, you didn’t bring it?’ ‘No I didn’t. No one asked me too.’ It wasn’t as pleasant as that. I was asked what kind of eejit I was to go climbing without a rope or rack. It was pointed out to me that Cearbhall was ‘blowing hard’ because he had the foresight to bring a rope. It was too late to go back and get the other rope it being already 2.30. We decided to climb on the one 50m half rope. The leader could tie-in in the middle, and the other two at each end. It would mean taking intermediate belays but at least we could all climb.

Niall led off up first pitch. No sooner had he started than we had to let him know he was down to 5m. It was going to be like that all the way up. He made himself safe and told us to follow up. Cearbhall set off and I followed closely behind. Grooved Arête is a Welsh classic. With that, everything is extremely polished, and with all the recent rain most of the cracks and corners were like bars of soap. Cearbhall had not made it to the first belay and he was already on his ear. He didn’t get much sympathy. There was plenty of sniggering.

Niall decided he’d keep leading for a while and we left him too it because we had only the one rope, and myself and Cearbhall were too busy taking selfies to send to Dave Keogh, who had to pull out of the trip because of exams. We moved up without any difficulty, being carful of the polish and wet and eventually got to the crux. Initially Niall said that one of us should do this pitch but as we got up to it he changed his mind. He wanted to do it now because he had taken a fall on it on his first year climbing. The Knight’s Move pitch is great. Easy climbing with a great feeling of exposure. He brought us over and decided to hand over. His chublets were cold. He’d a hole in his shoe and his feet were wet. He suggested I do the next pitch.

The next pitch is up a steep easy corner. All the footholds were wet so I was trying to be careful. From below I could hear the two lads laughing as they tried to get a photo of themselves and me climbing above.

Talk of moons, arses etc. drifted up. Fantastic belaying. I got up to next to last belay and handed gear over to Cearbhall. He finished the last couple of pitches and we topped out just shy of the top. We shared out our chocolate Santa.

I had bought one in Bethesda where they are already gearing up for Christmas. It was close to 5.00pm as we packed our gear away. I only turned my back for a second and the two lads were gone. They had made sure I was at least bringing the rope down. I followed them down a gully which would bring us back down to Heather Terrace. I randomly rubbed some chalk on bits of rock and we wondered what Ambrose would make of this. His crusade against chalk was a hot topic on the way down. I was falling behind the two lads enjoying the colours of the late autumn evening when I realised I was alone and surrounded by a large swarm of goats. In the fading light I had walked into the middle of them and I gave them a fright. I ran off to catch up with the lads but I was too late they had pushed on and were back at the car. It was fully dark by the time I made it to the car and it started to rain. I hoped we beat the IMC after-dark curfew. We retired to the pub in Bethesda for beer and buns. All agreed it had been an excellent afternoon on the hill and Grooved Arête is definitely worthy of it’s 3 star status.
The October Bank Holiday was off to a good start.
Multi-pitching North Wales to Lake District

Following a taste of multi pitch climbing in the Lake District over the June Bank holiday weekend, Vanessa and I were super eager to get back to the UK. We had mustered up enough skills between the two of us to get ourselves up safely to the top of a small select number of VD and S multi pitch climbs. Rope work and route finding were our biggest cruxes. Fortunately, a smile and a few charming words to whoever was unfortunate enough to be in close proximity of us on the rock got us out of a few minor wrong doings.
With an excellent weather forecast expected, Vanessa and I joined Ian Christie’s meet in North Wales, with his troops Eric Corkery, Paul Nolan and James Aitken . We enjoyed three days of stunning sunshine and climbing. With an abundance of VD and S grade multi-pitch climbs there to chose from, and with a detailed ‘to do’ list from Gerry in the event of all weather conditions, we went straight to the Idwal Slab Crag from the Ferry. Ascenic 40 min walk in from the road where free parking was available took us by a lake to the base of our first climbTennis Shoe (S, 6 pitch climb). Initially we found Tennis shoe a particularly easy climb and for a second contemplated increasing our grade to HS. Fortunately, James pointed out how we went wrong on the last 2 pitches and avoided the crux so we agreed polished S climbs were a more than sufficient challenge for us. However, to make up for this error, we had scrambled across to climb Lazarus (S, 2 pitch) with a quality top out view. Descending was most adventurous and included a lot of scrambling and some wrong turns, but we carefully descended and joined Ian, Eric, Paul and James for a few glasses of vino in Capel Curig.

The Glan Dena Mountaineering Hut is ideally situated just 40minutes drive from Holyhead. Itneighbours a beautiful lake and is walking distance to numerous climbing opportunities such as the Idwal Slab Crag, Tryfan, etc. Apart from being very comfortable and clean, it provides a well equipped kitchen/dining area, sitting room and lounge space for under £10 night.It is an ideal hut to visit if you don’t have a car and there are plenty of walks nearby for rainy days.

On Thursday we all headed to Llanberis pass as a group. Vanessa and I headed for Carreg Wasted Crag and climbed The Wrinkle (VD, 3 pitch), and then onto Crackstone Rib (S, 3 pitch). No wrong turns made that day but we did make use of the friendly locals for some advice. Carreg Wasted is a lovely crag with a short but steep walk in, free road side parking but get there early as parking is limited. The valley itself offers a very scenic drive through and lots of opportunities for bouldering if that is what you prefer. Ian, Eric, Paul and James climbed The Cracks (4 pitch HS) and Flying Buttress (V Diff) .

On beautiful evenings like that, no better way to end a day than a dip in Ogwen Lake so pack your swim gear.
Friday was a quality day out. We all decided to climbGrooved Arête(HVD, 8 pitch) on the East face of Tryfan. Rushing off to make it there before the guys, Vanessa and I went off route and ended up taking the more strenuous and adventurous route to the base of the climb taking us up through thick heathers and a scramble up a tricky gully that we considered roping up for at times. Arriving later than planned, the boys were roped up and ready to climb. James joined us climbing Grooved Arête that day. Having already climbed it on numerous occasions, he generously allowed Vanessa and I to lead all pitches. He did lead the final and 8th pitch which he had never climbed before. We found this a really exciting climb, with an exciting taste of slab, vertical and mild overhanging climbing with exciting moments of exposure, just enough to get the heart pumping. A scenic scramble following the top out lead to the summit of Tryfan. There you are greeted by ‘Adam & Eve’, twin monoliths that test your nerves and balance when jumping from one to the other.
To take full advantage of the location and beautiful weather, Vanessa and I descended via Bristly Ridge which offered quality exploring and high quality scrambling, exposure and more spectacular views across the Nant Ffrancon and Cwm Idwal glaciated landscapes. The descending route is well marked that leads you back to the base of Grooved Arête to collect your bags. You can chose from a handful of other scenic routes if you wish, but this is the most exciting.

Before we arrived, Ian and his troops had got up to all sorts including a memorable ascent of Chasm Route on Glyder Fach in summer hailstones.

To end our time in N Wales, we all met in The Stables Bar in Betws-y-Coed for food and drinks, a good catch up and a few games of pool. No need to mention who won. The Stables Bar serves food till late compared to other places. We all parted early on Saturday with Vanessa and I making a detour to Holyhead to pick up Sean Cryan on route to the Lake District.

As a trio, we climbed Troutdale Pinnacle (S, 6 pitch) on Black Crag Buttress in Borrowdale. Troutdale Pinnacle, a classic route, offered a variety of climbing on well protected and exposed settings. Sitting on the pinnacle gives the top out of Prelude Nightmare in Glendalough a run for its money. This climb has been added to our ‘favourite climbs of all time’ list, and after Sean went home we returned to do it again as a duo. Free off-road parking is available and a steep 20 minute walk in allows for a nice warm up.

At Langdale, We also climbed Middlefell Buttress (a 75m Diff), Evening Wall(47m S+), Centipede (90m S) andThe Original Route(61m S-).
On our last day climbing there, Vanessa upped her game and finished the day with a HS lead called ‘Revelation’. A really superb climb that demanded mental boldness and a little brute force.

Shepards Crag is another lovely crag we visited near Borrowdale. Here we climbed Little Chamonix, (3-pitch V.Diff). A climb a local described as a ‘canny good climb’. Parking in a farm house coffee shop is allowed once you buy something. Free off road parking not far from here is another option. A short walk in takes you to the foot of the climb.As advised by Gerry,this crag is ideal for wet days as it is quick drying. On route home, a nice dip in Derwent Water Lake is an option for those who enjoy their swims.

A few things to know when you the Lake District….most importantly are Cornish Pasties in Pasty Presto in Bowness, dinner and wine in the Brown Horse. Get the lamb complimented with the fruity Merlot, it’s delicious! A car playlist composed by Sean, inclusive of Surfin USA, I Get Around, Mr Big Stuff, Good Vibrations and RESPECT…… gets you psyched, especially before a late dip in the lakeJ. If you are not restrained by time when travelling to and/or from the Lake District, the sail and rail ticket from Windermere to Dublin Port is £41 so might help you save a few pennys. We are blessed in Ireland with unpolished climbing routes. The UK is polish haven but it makes for much more delicate climbing.
Scotland Winter 2014

The adventure begins

A wet 4.30 am start marked the beginning of our trip to Scotland in Feb. This is always my favourite trip of the year. From the first year I went out, the place captivated me. The wildness of the landscape and weather thrill me. The unpredictability of every trip keeps me motivated throughout autumn and winter. When I’m out running through the rain and mud in Wicklow, when the spirit flags, casting my mind north keeps me moving. What will the weather be like? What climbs will be “in”. If a particular climb is “in“, what will condition be like? Will I get some more of my tick list done?

Weather-watching and perusing the local blogs fill a lot of spare time. I knew this year would be tough going. Scotland had been on the receiving end, like us, of storm after storm since December. Unlike here though it was dumping huge amounts of snow and I knew this would curtail our activities to some extent.
Niall, Karl, Ken and I made the long trip north towards Fort William. I had climbed with Niall last year in Scotland and we had some cracking days out. We have similar goals and seem to generally have the same aims when we’re out there. Karl had done an introductory course to Winter Mountaineering last year and had really enjoyed himself. He had signed up to do an advanced course this year and seemed really keen. Ken had never done any winter climbing but we had convinced him it was something he needed to do. We were to meet my friend from Newcastle, Alastair who I meet the first year out there and we had met up each year since. He’s the quietest Geordie you’ll ever meet but very solid when it counts and finally, sharing digs with us up there, club adventurer, Ambrose.
Disembarking from ferry it was obvious there was plenty of snow on the hills. Looking north the mountains on Arran were blanketed. I love the drive. Once past Glasgow you soon hit Loch Lomond and from there on its one stunning vista after another. We crossed Rannoch Moor. The amount of snow was truly staggering for Scotland. Few of the usual features could be picked out.
On many slopes we could see the trace of avalanches. When we got to the top of Glencoe we stopped to take a look at Buachaille Etive Mor.

I have passed it many times and never seen it in such condition. Two of the plumb gully lines on it were full, Crowberry and Ravens but with unconsolidated snow. No use to anyone. A picture of someone climbing in Crowberry is what started me winter climbing. I only now feel ready to tackle it but it’s rarely in the right condition. Ravens is a pipe dream! There is always next year. We continued on to Fort William and got set up in our digs for the week.
My usual itinerary up here is to hire a guide for a couple of days and then get out myself for the remainder of the trip. Not having anyone to teach me the requisite skills I have found this to be an ideal way to learn the basics of winter climbing. It’s a good system. You’ll second routes that will be initially way outside your ability to safely lead but at the same time give you the self confidence to tackle climbs at an easier grade. I think it’s a good idea to work your way up through the grade so you won’t end up getting sand-bagged on mid grade climbs. More so than rock, during the winter the golden rule of winter climbing is, don’t fall.

Day 1: Stob Coire nan Lochain

We like to get a tune up day in before meeting our guides, so Niall, Ken, Alastair and myself and set our sights on Stob Coire nan Lochan. The forecast was reasonable and we felt the avalanche hazard, although Considerable (see link below) was manageable. The walk into the coire is short by Scottish standards but brutal to the uninitiated. Ken moaned about his knee a lot. The snow level started at about 400m which actually made it a bit easier at the start but the last 100m into coire was tough going.

Niall had been keen to do Twisting Gully (III,4) a Cold Climbs classic (required reading for any would be winter climbing) as he had led the crux on SC Gully (III) the year before and I think it was just an itch that needed scratching. We knew that gullies would be out on this trip, in Lochaber anyway, so I had set my eye on Raeburn’s Ordinary Route (IV,4) as a backup plan. I love doing climbs that have been put up by some of the greats and Harold Raeburn is right up there. This would be my first IV lead and the game face was on. Ali and I swam up to the base of route. There were prodigious amounts of snow it took ages to get to the base. Eventually we got a descent nut in after 10 minutes digging, not ideal for a belay but I had spotted some rope tat 5m away and knew I could clip that and expected to get more gear in as I moved up the initial chimney. This was my first mistake.

The first pitch is close to 60m and over the length of it I got 3 pieces of gear in. The route was buried in fresh powder so axe placements weren’t as secure as you’d like and by the time I had worked my way up to the second belay my head was well and truly fried. It physically wasn’t very hard but it was mentally the hardest bit of climbing I’ve ever done. I arrived at the second belay sitting au cheval on ridge, knowing I was just out of rope and starting to freak. I couldn’t see a thing to set up a belay with. Just as I was about to start trying to bury my axe I looked out to left and saw a newish peg in a crack. I dug the snow out of crack further down and place a descent nut. I had my belay. The sense of relief was unbelievable. I brought Alastair up. And he followed through. Niall arrived up quickly behind him. He had led the first pitch well, finding more gear than me. The second pitch bypasses a big tower. You traverse around it and then up a shallow gully behind it. After that you make a bold step out to the left over the cliff face on soft snow. The wire Alastair used to protect this is still there. He bet it in. I don’t blame him. Niall appreciated the courtesy. The last belay was solid. I led the last pitch and although it was easier it was quiet precarious. I was also getting into the swing of things and found plenty of protection using a bit of cop on, sadly in short supply on first pitch. Alistair and I topped out. It was dry but the wind was biting. I wasn’t sure how Ken was doing. It was his first winter route so Niall would have to lead it all.
After an extended wait, Niall topped out and shortly afterwards Ken. The steward’s enquiry commenced. How long was I on first pitch? I don’t know but it was a while. How long were we on top waiting? A while. What we do know is Ken had an attack of the vapours. What caused them? No one knows but I suspect it’s because he’s a great big fanny. It was a great day out. I was buzzing. I had the piss ripped out of me on the way down to car. I didn’t care. A great start to the week.
Karl had a good first day. He had the good luck to get paired off with a guide on a 1 to 1 basis, it’s normally 2 to 1 so on his first day he managed to get The Curtain (IV,5) on Carn Dearg and Left Hand Chimney (IV,4) on the Douglas Boulder done, with his guide Matt Stygall. Ambrose was off on the North Buttress (IV,4) on Buachaille Etive Mor with Alan Hughes finishing up a course. We went straight to the pub to have a drink and see who could bullshit the most. I won. I’ve lots of practice.

Day 2: The Curtain/Curtain Rail – Ben Nevis

The second and third day out were to be guided days. The forecast on the first of these wasn’t brilliant, we decided to head up the Allt a Mhuilleann to the CIC hut under the North face of Ben Nevis, and take a look at our options when we got up there. There wasn’t a huge amount on. No one had been high on the mountains for weeks. Most of the big classics were out.
It’s a stunning walk in, even in foul weather. I remember how intimidated I felt the first time I walked in under Carn Dearg and up towards the CIC hut. Now it just gives me a rush. So many great climbers have climbed here, set new routes here and still today the boundaries are being pushed.
Mike Pescod and Guy Stevens our guides for next few days pointed out bits and pieces. Because of the unusual weather over the last 6 weeks climbs were in that hadn’t been done in years. The Shroud (VI,6), an icefall in Castle Corrie had touched down for the first time in years. No one could get near it though because of the avalanche hazard on the hill above. We took turns out in front to try breaking the wind for the others behind. Eventually we got to CIC Hut and geared up. The Curtain was in good condition and there was another climb beside it the Curtain Rail (IV,4) beside it that would allow us climb together and then switch. Although given a harder technical grade I found The Curtain the easier of the two climbs. The ice on The Curtain gave first time placements all the way up while the crux move on the Curtain Rail had slightly cruddy ice. It made for a nice thoughtful sequence. I believe Ken suffered a brain fart here but I only have second hand information so it’ll stay on the hill. For the moment. My descent down No. 5 Gully would have won me a prize at the Winter Olympics. It certainly gave the lads a laugh.

Day 3: Observatory Ridge – Ben Nevis

The following day Alastair and I climbed Observatory Ridge (V,4) with Mike. This was the last of the 4 great ridges on Ben Nevis for us. The Ridge was covered in snow and mist. It made the digging out of belays really difficult, and in some cases, further up the ridge impossible. We had to move together over steep but easy ground with massive exposure on either side. Every axe and foot step had to be 100%. It felt really out there at times. As we were doing this the mist lifted for a while and we could see all around. It is really massive. We could see climbers across on Tower Ridge and we could hear Ken (really loud) and Niall across on the NE Buttress. Unfortunately the clag closed back in but not before we got a chance to check out the cornices. They were massive. We were able to skirt these by moving out left, but even now 3 weeks later I don’t believe any of the classic gullies have been done. We topped out to find Niall and Ken were already on their way down. After a most enjoyable bum-slide down the Red Burn, losing about 400m in 10 minutes we met up with lads at the car park. Karl had also done the NE Buttress with Matt. He had an exciting day. Starting up to the First Platform by a rarely in condition, Newbiggings 80 Minute Route Right Hand Variation (V,6) and then, while doing one of the crux moves on NE Buttress, the Mantrap, he was left holding just the handle of his axe as it had become detached from shaft. Exciting stuff! While we were all on Ben Nevis Ambrose was out on a blind date on Stob Ban in the Mamores. He had done the east ridge of the North Buttress (II/III) and had a cracking day.

Day 4: (Aidan/Alastair) George – Liathach, Torridon

The following day we were back out by ourselves again. Niall and Ken were keen to do Tower Ridge while Alastair and I opted for a road trip. I have for a few years been looking to go to the NW of Scotland. Conditions are fickle here because of its proximity to the sea. This year though the best conditions seemed to be up there. The avalanche forecast was good so Alistair and I set off at 6.30 for Liathach up in Torridon. It was a fantastic day out. Once north of Invergarry it really does become wild and remote. It took us nearly 3 hours to get up there but it passed quickly. We had set our eye on a climb called George. It’s graded as a III,4 but with some recent rockfall local climbers have upped it to III,5. We arrived at the car park on a lovely clear morning. All the walk-ins are meaty up there and the guidebook had it down as a 2.5 hours in to coire. We made good time and got to the foot of climb. I took the first easy pitch and ran the rope out to its full length. To the start of the more technical sections. Alastair set off and came to the first step which he surmounted with the minimum of fuss. He disappeared out of sight. I was left there occasionally paying out the rope taking in the views which were magnificent. Eventually the rope came tight and I got moving. Over the first step the rope continued on for 15m and then disappeared into a hole/cave(?). I followed the rope. Ali, had set up belay in the cave. It was really tight. He looked uncomfortable. ‘Are you sure this is the right way?’ ‘Yes 100%’. I could see light behind him.
The guidebook describes it as fun and that it shouldn’t be bypassed. There was no way I could follow him in and swing leads, he’d have to continue on himself. With hindsight this was a real stroke of luck. To continue Ali had to dig away the snow and move towards the light. The cave is formed by an enormous chockstone. To lead on you have to climb up into a letterbox above it turn through 180 degrees and reverse out over a sheer drop. There is very little clearance so turning around is a struggle. Reversing out over sheer droop is a bigger struggle and trying to get your arm/axe out and into something solid is ….?. The belay was a massive thread so 100% but Ali did ask to be kept on a tight rope. A few times. When I eventually followed thru I couldn’t believe it. It was a really ballsy lead. I led through to the top and out on the ridge near the summit of Spidean a’Choire Leith.

At this stage it was later than I had expected and the weather was crapping out on us. I had planned to traverse Liathach over the Am Fasarinen Pinnacles, get two routes done but there was no point. We needed to get to the top of Spidean to find our way off the mountain.
It’s a fabulous top (only 275 Munros to go now) but we were only getting fleeting glimpses in the worsening weather. We descended to a col lower down the mountain and found our way off the mountain by using the tried and tested method of following the footprints. We eventually picked up the track lower down the mountain and reached the van for 7.30. It was a proper Scottish day out and the pair of us were buzzing, even faced with the long drive back to For t William. We already have plans to get back up there for a few days next year. It was a brilliant day out. We arrived back at Fort William just in time for beer and kebabs. A per fect end to my birthday.
While we were off fannying around on Liathach, Niall and Ken were doing the famous Tower Ridge
(IV,3) Ken takes up the story . . .

Day 4: (Niall/Ken) Tower Ridge – Ben Nevis

It was Wednesday, my fourth day out and my third morning in a row to be walking into the CIC hut. We had arrived on the Saturday. I had an ‘easy introduction’ day on Sunday; a quick spin into Stob Coire na Lochain; a restful belay and a record breaking ascent, with Aidan, Alastair and Niall leading the way. Monday and Tuesday we climbed with guides. The pace was a bit easier this morning than that set on the earlier mornings. We were up earlier than the other days and were making good progress. The sky was blue and the air still.
Our walk-in was going to be 40 minutes longer this morning, as we hadn’t access to the higher car park , used exclusively by the guides. As we approached the hut we could see some parties setting out and behind us we could see a string of climbers approaching.
Happy that we had set off early enough we passed the hut and headed up and left of the Douglas boulder. On the steeper ground we put on our crampons and got the axes out.
This was my first trip to Scotland, my fourth day in crampons and I was comfortable uphill, downhill though I was still being cautious.
We were heading for Tower Ridge. It was Niall’s route really, I was along for the experience and happy to second. If other days were anything to go by we were expecting lots of snow on the route. Protection might be hard to find and perhaps some critical features might be buried. We were both looking forward to testing ourselves in the conditions.
Niall lead off up a wide snowy gully, finding gear on the left wall, he disappeared around an elbow and I was quickly called up to the belay; a piece of in situ cord on a spike. The next pitch was the first bit of real climbing, rock snow and ice, a short chimney lead to a broad snowy ridge where Niall set up a stomper belay. As I completed the pitch, a guide and his client appeared to our left, ascending a snow slope. Niall hit the green for go button. The race was on to keep ahead and not have people getting in our way, especially a guide and his client.

As I pondered the view, Niall was off. Niall and Aidan had done a number of trips together and this was my first trip with them. They climbed with guides on a couple of days each trip and they obviously had absorbed a lot of knowhow and had made it their business to learn the skills and the environment. I wasn’t out of my depth, but certainly I had no winter climbing experience and deferred to the two lads when it came to planning the day’s climb. Part of the plan was obviously not to stop! The previous few days I had become accustomed to eating and drinking on the hoof, being fed hot drink while I belayed. My efficiency had to improve, with the guides it is possible to switch off; today there was no switching off. It was going to be a long day and we were not on for having anyone make our day longer.
We completed a couple of pitches along a shallow ridge; following instructions I moved out ahead and belayed Niall along a pitch, he arrived and corrected my stomper belay technique.
The Guide and client arrived, Niall was gone. He was along the ridge digging out a belay at the base of the smaller tower. When I arrived we were belayed on a couple of nuts and a piton. It was a wide part of the ridge, plenty of room for everyone. Niall traversed right along the base of the tower and dug out a spike about ten meters out, another ten meters he disappeared around a corner and I could tell by the rope he was now moving up. The Guide and client arrived. There seemed to me to be an alternative route straight up the tower, but on the left, but most route descriptions warns against this route. Niall called me across, the guide following. My first winter lead was offered; I was up the gully like the proverbial rat. I know from other climbing experience that I climb differently as a second; I seem to get less absorbed in the climbing and tend to follow the rope. It’s a habit I’m trying to break. I exited the gully onto a long snow slope, I ran it out the length of the rope, but couldn’t get to the obvious end of the slope. Now to build a belay; a stomper or dig one out at the base of a small boulder to my right? Well my last stomper did not meet approval so perhaps I should stick with what I know. I dug, and dug and dug some more. Finally I had a route dug out for a long sling, which of course was not on my harness but below on Niall’s harness. I dug some more and found two nut placements.
The guide appeared to my left. I watched as he did a little stomper dance, drove his axe in and within seconds was calling his client up. I eventually called Niall up. He was now second; I reasoned that he was at least safe and alive; he was still second! I’ll have to work on that efficiency!!
Another pitch or two and somehow Niall was ahead again and digging out good belays for the guide and client. Finding good belay spots is a bit of a black art I think and it comes with experience I hope. The competition was beginning to dull as the two leaders got chatting; they switched leads for a couple more pitches, one belaying slightly above the other on each pitch. It is good to cooperate with other climbers, but it was obvious we were all trying to stay ahead of the posse behind us. The blue sky had disappeared and there were no views from the ridge. The wind was rising. I arrived at the foot of The Great Tower. The guide was ahead on the eastern traverse, his client belaying. I looked up at the near vertical face of The Great Tower and wondered if I could climb it. The guide was on what seemed to me to be a snowy path, well beaten out by previous climbers over the last few days. The narrow path seamlessly blended into the surrounding mist that rolled down the steep slope below. Niall moved quickly along the traverse, it swung left then right with a step over a small ridge and over a buried block then the route turned sharply up to an open slope. As I turned the corner and climbed the slope Niall called, he was way out to my left, almost below me, standing in Tower Gap. I crossed the slope to the top of The Gap. The snow and ice were soft and mushy and not at all as good as what we had previously climbed. As I approached, on my right was the sense of yawning space. I couldn’t see it but felt it was there, Down to my left in The Gap Niall was belaying and gave some instructions about the climb down. The ice wasn’t solid. It was undercut and below where you would like a good right foot there was only scratchy rock. It was the first time in the week I felt I had to reset myself and consider that I might have to be prepared to take a swing, right down the narrow walls of Glovers Chimney. I kicked some of the slush away, got a good left foot and traversed across, not very stylishly, but it was winter in Scotland!!
The Gap was definitely the most technical part of the climb, the most exposed and the least secure. There were a few delicate moves to follow to get out and onto the ridge above. I had the comfort of the rope; I was quickly getting to like this seconding. Niall had no such comfort and did well to step delicately up the fragile snow and ice.

Another run out, a climb right over a short wall and bulges and we were up. Niall was barely visible in the blowing snow. The weather had got a lot worse. We gathered the gear and prepared for the descent. We had prepared a couple of bearings and distances to guide us from the top back to the well trodden descent path. The plateau of Ben Nevis is not the place to be lost in a white out. If there was evidence of other climbers about it was quickly blown away by the high wind. There were no footprints to follow. I walked on our bearing, Niall close to my shoulder making sure I didn’t stumble over an edge in error. A sharp turn right after 150 meters brought us onto the correct bearing to descend towards the Red Burn.
As we descended we were sure we were on the right path, the texture of the snow was solid underfoot compared to left and right of our route although visibility was nil. I had never experienced a complete white out before where there seemed to be no up or down and it was good practice to navigate through it.
We gradually emerged and quickly descended; helped by an exhilarating 500 meter bum slide. It was almost dark by the time we got to the car park. A day out in the mountains would not be complete without some injury and my right leg obliged. I hobbled down the last bit of path, Niall didn’t seem in such a hurry now, happy with his successful lead he waited at each bend to make sure I was still mobile. We both reached the jeep, sat stiffly into the comfortable seats and relaxed.
A full on, great Scottish winter day out. Now back to Aidan . . .

Day 5: Stob Bán

The following day’s weather was horrendous so we all had a rest day to recharge the batteries and even though the day after that’s forecast was poor we had made up our minds to go out anyway We thought we’d head up and take a look at Stob Ban and see if we’d get the route Ambrose had done earlier in the week done. We battled our way up the track on the way in for an hour or so in the strengthening wind and deepening snow and finally decided unanimously to turn around.
The avalanche hazard was rising all the time, still it filled part of the day and after going back to Fort William we went out for the afternoon and spent the day climbing indoors.

Day 6: North Buttress, Buachaill Etive Mór – Glencoe

With high winds and a sketchy avalanche forecast we decide to head over to Glencoe to try North Buttress (IV,4) on Buachaill Etive Mor. The weather was to deteriorate during the day so we left early. I was climbing with Ken and Niall because Alastair had injured his hand at the climbing wall the day before. Ambrose and Karl were joining us. We got in to the base of the buttress and started to ascend towards the foot of the climb. The snow wasn’t frozen so even getting to the bottom of climb was hard work. When I went to put my crampons on one of them decided to come apart in my hand. It took me 15 minutes to fix it and by the time I got moving again my hands were frozen and I was in foul humour. I caught up with the two lads who were waiting for me and flaking out the rope. Niall was ready to run the rope out, up to the first belay just to get things moving as there were two lads in front of us. Niall brought me and Ken up to belay, not before Ken tried to remove one of my fingers with his new axes. By the time we got up to it, the rope was in a right mess. Niall was going to lead the first proper pitch so it needed to be pulled back thru. While I was doing this Ken had spotted a helicopter. Instead of paying attention he was staring vacantly at the helicopter (RAF practicing I’d guess). I believe he has some previous here so I should of let it pass but I lost it and told Ken to ignore the big helicopter. I was quite frank. Meanwhile we waited for the two lads in front to finish. They were painfully slow, but I’ll cast no stones after my performance earlier in the week. Niall led off up first pitch. It wasn’t in the best condition, freezing level was above the mountain top and it was covered in unconsolidated snow. Sub-optimal I believe is the expression.
By the time Niall reached the second belay he had caught the two boys up. The next pitch was the crux. The lads were down to a crawl. I was cold and flowery. The toys came out of the pram. I told Ken I’d had enough. I untied and down-climbed to the base of route. I stopped to see how the lads were getting on. Even after getting to the base of the hill and looking up, the team in front were still on the second pitch. I crouched down behind a boulder to watch. The eventually finished and Ken set off. It was his first winter lead and he nailed it. He was up it in no time. I’d seen enough. They had caught the two lads again. I went back to the carpark and met Ambrose and Karl who’d bailed earlier, and got a lift back with them. Niall and Ken arrived later on. They had abbed off after the second pitch because the team in front were so slow. We’d had a good day out despite the poor weather. One important thing I took from the day was the forecast. Although very high winds (70-80mph) had been forecast, they didn’t materialise until much later. Nine times out of ten the forecast is on the money and should never be ignored, but in Scotland to a degree you should always head out and stick your nose in. Otherwise you’d get nothing done.
That was the end to our unofficial IMC meet in Scotland. There was the usual bout of drinking and bullshitting and the long drive home but I think everyone enjoyed it. The rat had been sated for the time being.

Next Year

I’m already looking at ideas for next year. I definitely want to get up and do some more routes in the NW. Niall still has his eye on Point Five. Ken is going to get his knee fixed so he can join us again next year without having to do all his weird stretching, and I think the bug has well and truly bitten Karl. He just needs a pair of axes that don’t come apart on him. Ambrose seemed to have a good two weeks and picked up lots of new skills as he works toward his Winter ML.

Useful Links

Mountain Weather
Avalanche Forecast
CFort William: Accommodation
Courses, Private Guiding
UKC Logbook: What’s been climbed in past 5 days
SMC Guidebooks: A good selection covering the whole of Scotland.

Ken looking a bit rough at the end of the week!

A Summer In Mid-Wales by J. P.O'F. Lynam

The Original Article

Feedback from Dave Williams

Notes

A Summer In Mid-Wales by J. P.O’F. Lynam

The Original Article

Feedback from Dave Williams

Notes

Tales from Wales

Multi-pitching North Wales to Lake District

Scotland Winter 2014

The adventure begins

Day 1: Stob Coire nan Lochain

Day 2: The Curtain/Curtain Rail – Ben Nevis

Day 3: Observatory Ridge – Ben Nevis

Day 4: (Aidan/Alastair) George – Liathach, Torridon

Day 4: (Niall/Ken) Tower Ridge – Ben Nevis

Day 5: Stob Bán

Day 6: North Buttress, Buachaill Etive Mór – Glencoe

Next Year