Amateur night on the Buachaille

June 4th, 2010 • 3 comments Camping, Hill walking, Rock Climbing
Tags: bivi, broad buttress, buchaille, lochaber scrambles, lorraine ishak

Last night  decided to solo the broad buttress and bivi on the top, I left Glasgow at 5pm into the rubbish hour traffic. It was a beautiful evening with a warm sunset dropping fast behind me, threatening to leave me in the dark  if i didn’t move my arse.  The climb was pretty exciting, i lost the route a couple of times and ended up giving over my life to a few clumps of heather and some grass. When i finally topped out it felt amazing to be alive. I walked the last few hundered feet to the summit and ate my sandwich and set up my bivi for the night.

Its the first time i have solo’d a hill never mind a scramble it felt pretty amateur to be honest, but i have learned a lot about my limitations, and where i need to work on stuff. Mostly navigation and route finding.

Would I do it again.. certainly but the bivi was pretty dull without company.

‘nice sunset i said to myself’ ..’aye’ i said back.

A grand day out on the Buachaille

May 27th, 2010 • 3 comments Hill walking, Rock Climbing
Tags: agag's groove, Buachaille, Buachaille Etive Mor, climbing, curved ridge, Glen Coe, glen etive, scrambling, solo, Stob Dearg, walking

I’ve spent the best part of the last two years living down in the Lake District, so it felt like a return to the motherland as we cruised up the A82 past Loch Lomond and onwards towards Glen Coe. The sun was splitting the skies and the hills through Bridge of Orchy and the Black Mount were looking magnificent, putting on a fine show for a long overdue reunion. As we came round the corner and sighted the Buachaille looming in the distance, I finally told Keith where we were going and what we were going to do.

Keith’s a good friend, an old friend. James and I nearly killed him on a walk up the Cobbler about four years ago (“just two more minutes!”), though he loved it afterwards and talked about it for months. Since then we’ve only ever managed gentle wanders together, normally with a group of his work colleagues who all appear to be scared of mud. Keith is moving to Sydney in a couple of weeks, and I wanted to take him up one of Scotland’s classics, show him what it was really all about. The idea was to give him a day to remember and hopefully not scare the crap out of him along the way, just give him some quality memories of the hills he would normally drive past. I thought that Curved Ridge would fit the bill.

I admit that I’ve also had a wee hankering to try to solo Agag’s Groove since trying to lead it a few years back and having to ab off to help a friend who was hit in the head by a falling rock. I chucked my rock shoes in my bag, telling myself I was just going to go and have a wee look at it – much too early in the season to be trying that sort of thing.

The car park was full to bursting, though we didn’t meet anyone on the walk in until we were directly below curved ridge. Keith has been putting in some serious fitness training in the years since our day out on the cobbler and was cruising on up there with a complete absence of swearing, complaining or whining. We stopped to say hello to a film crew making a movie called “a lonely place to die,” and moved on again quickly as they seemed busy (mostly snoozing).

Keith totally cruised up the initial steep start to the ridge, and any lingering concerns quickly evaporated. I’d brought a rope and enough gear to rig a belay just in case I was asking too much of him, but it was clear that it wasn’t going to be necessary. Far from being terrified he seemed to be loving every minute of it: excited, exhilarated, but moving confidently and I began to wish I’d dragged him up here years ago rather than accepting his excuses. We stopped for lunch on one of the large ledges across from the Rannoch wall and I pointed out some of the classic routes, embellished with tales from past days out. Then I got to Agag’s and damn, it looked perfect. Clear, dry, not a soul on the whole wall. I walked down the ledge to better pick out the route – inspecting it for another day when I’d try the solo.

Then I went down to the large block it starts from to check out the opening moves. I took my rock boots with me, just in case I fancied bouldering the start to see how it felt.

It felt good.

All of a sudden I was sitting on the large ledge at what would normally be the second belay, watching Keith watching me. The third pitch looked kind of steep looking up from the ledge, but looking fown from it the first two pitches also looked pretty steep. I’d heard that there was a bit of a hairy step out into a very exposed situation somewhere up there, and I hoped it was around what appeared to be a slightly overhanging bulge. I certainly didn’t want to have to climb over the bulge anyway. Nothing for it really, just got to suck it up and give it a go. It was faint in the distance, but I swear I could hear “you’re nuts,” being muttered in soft weegie tones somewhere nearby. I topped out the route below Crowberry Tower with a curious lack or relief but considerable satisfaction. It had felt good; controlled and comfortable rather than reckless and terrifying.

I think Keith got something very similar from his day when we topped out on Curved Ridge. He achieved something that he will remember for years to come, had a day that other days will be measured against. As he said himself, he raised the bar. I don’t doubt that the next time he drives past the Buachaille, he’ll feel a little differently about it. It’s a funny thing though, I spent two years thinking about that solo but at the end of the day I think I felt more satisfaction giving Keith his big day out than from my climb. It was, I think, a fitting farewell.

Bivi-ing High in the Mamores

May 17th, 2010 • Hill walking

It was half past 11 at night and not far from the top of a munro that I realised I didn’t have a lighter for the stove.  If only I’d realised two hours before when parting company at the Corrour train station, a place once made famous by the Cult film Trainspotting.  But irrespective it was on and up for me.  At 2am walking up to the top of the Munro felt like walking on another planet.  I put my head down using the summit as a wind break, and woke 5 hours later covered in snow.  By 9am I was on top of the next nearest Munro, but, picking a kak-handed route down, had to dig myself out of a Coire.  At Larig bothy I found a lighter, which helped to produce the worst cup of coffee I’ve ever made – nescafe and powered milk, with no sugar to hide behind.   I might’ve stayed in the Bothy, but a spotlight of sunlight on Stob Bhan showed the way.   Six summits later, after a wind, sun and hail blasted traverse above the Grey Corries, I was faced with Aonachan Mhor, a challenge which I turned down in favour of a party in Fort William.  Maybe the  Mamore to Ben Nevis traverse will go sometime when the weather’s better and there’s someone else to share the craic with…

Away to Culkein Bay

May 12th, 2010 • 1 comment Hill walking, Rock Climbing
Tags: assynt, bay, climbing, culkein, kayak, Mountains, quinag, storr

It was around 15 years ago when I was last here in Culkein – it’s barely changed at all. This time I spent the week there with around 40 other friends and we had a mighty fine time. Lots of Kayaking and walking, a bit of climbing and cycling… and plenty of good fun. Assynt has to be one of my favourite places to be.

9 days in Assynt

May 11th, 2010 • Hill walking, River Kayaking

What might’ve seemed like an ambitious plan at the start – to invite 40-ish people to the remote North West of Scotland – came together beautifully, largely because all those involved came to make it happen.  We swam in the Sea, danced like loonies,  played crab football, ate mussels, climbed mountains, rolled about, and a laughed a lot.  After 9 Days in Assynt I found it difficult to leave.

Patagonian Wanderings

May 11th, 2010 • 3 comments Around the World, Camping, Hill walking
Tags: Argentina, Camping, Chile, Patagonia, trekking, walking

It’s ironic really. You save all your pennies, finally book the Big Trip and fly out to Patagonia for four months of trekking through landscapes you’ve spent years reading about and dreaming about, and what happens? You time your trip of a lifetime to coincide with the best Scottish winter in 20 years…. Sounds like you guys have had a cracking winter!

Not that I’m complaining you understand.

Patagonia was still everything you could ever hope it would be. The landscapes really are as varied as they are magnificent: you can be walking among perfect towers of granite one week and boiling pools of mud and volcanoes the next. Sometimes surreal, often majestic and always beautiful.

I was down there working primarily on a landscape photography project (the exhibition opens next week in Keswick if anyone’s interested) but I thought that I’d try my hand at some video too, partly to try to broaden my horizons from a creative point of view, and partly because it was a great excuse to stop and put my bag down from time to time. Misha suggested I post the result on here so, well, here it is….

I hope you enjoy it.

Glencoe

January 11th, 2010 • 2 comments Hill walking, Winter climbing
Tags: Aonach Eagach, Beinn an Dothaidh, Bridge of Orchy, glencoe, stob coire nan Lochain

Glencoe was in spectacular form, and somehow amazingly quiet.  The severe weather warnings for the roads must’ve put people off driving, but as it turned out the roads were fine and the weather was fantastic.  Tim and myself got a day in Stob Coire Nan Lochain on SC Gully, and then out along the Aonach Eagach the following day – something I’ve been meaning to do for a few years.  Jen joined us a the bunkhouse after having been up at the ski centre taking pictures on a pinhole camera – the few frames she showed us from her last trip looked spectacular (hopefully we can persuade her to post them up here).  Spad arrived looking very fresh and ready for action – in completely the opposite kind of form to us after several days out on the hill!  Dave came through for some thinking time, after recent events there was some solace to be found in the snowy Glencoe hills.   A walk up towards Beinn an Dothaidh cleared the heads before it was back to Glasgow.  All in all, another classic weekend.

Pictures from Tim:

Geal-charn / A’Mharconaich / Beinn Udlamain / Sgairneach Mhor

December 30th, 2009 • 2 comments Hill walking

Tuesday 29^th December 2009

Drove up to Drumochter on Monday night to sleep in the car at minus 10.   Not too cold but not warm either and I missed out on a sesh at Ricky and Sian’s for the privilege!

However was on the hill at 8.30 am and walked the round of 4 Munro’s.  7 hours later and I was back at the car and drove home.

Once above the valley mist visibility was good all day but not as sunny as I’d hoped for.  White and cold sort of summarises the day – and thank goodness there was no need to compass navigate. Fairly featureless.

Low level wanderings

December 30th, 2009 • 1 comment Hill walking
Tags: ambling, Bressay, Island, North, Shetland, wandering

So here I am stranded in Kirkwall. Plane was grounded due to freezing fog and in an effort to divert my attentions from the bright lights and frenetic bustle of my surroundings thought I’d stick up some photos I took whilst on late morning wanders in Shetland.

Bressay is an alien place to highlander like myself. Bleak and sparse are adjectives that come to mind, most trails on the interior of the island are made by sheep and rabbits. Few people still dig the peat so human trails are few and far between but this all adds to the remoteness. Up on the higher peaks of which there are two Ander hill (144m) and the Ward (226m) you can watch the weather approaching off the horizon which all adds to the sense of exposure. The landscape is riddled with the past. Numerous crofting settlements a herring station, 2 world war 1 guns (and ammunitioon stores) one on the east one on the west, a military camp and the look out tower on Ander hill; it makes for a haunted atmosphere. If you were brave you could certainly have some fine climbing on the cliffs which are towering and complex even on a small island like Bressay. It’s certainly an environment that encourages adventure and in days of yore demanded it. Hopefully make it up the peak of the Shetland, Ronas Hill (450m) in the summer…

Somhairle

Glas Tulaichean

December 21st, 2009 • Hill walking

Saturday 12th December 2009

Glas Tulaichean, Glenshee

Drove over from Glendoll the night before and slept in the car again.  Only minus 5 but I felt the cold – shouldn’t have because I’ve been out in much worse – must be getting old!  Morning was overcast so no hurry to get up and I drove the final 10 miles to Dalmunzie about 9.30am.

From there cycled up to Glenlochsie only using the old railway track to avoid the cottages then onto the estate track and about 4 river fords.  The path up the hill was just short of motorway standards so no navigation required.  I got the impression clear blue skies were just a few 100 feet above – but not for me.  Jogged down and a fast descent on the bike.

I’m now half way to the Munro’s. Only taken 40 years.  Better up the pace a bit!!!

Sunday 13th December

Lochgilphead JogScotland Santa Run. Only 3 miles.  Fortunately no pictures available.