After a couple of weeks off from my last trip up to
Scotland, I was keen to squeeze in one more and take advantage of the extended
season and this settled weather, probably my last for the season. A plan was
hatched, 7 days, Torridon, Ben Nevis then Glen Coe. I should have learnt by now
that my plans never quite fall into place.
The original plan was to head straight to Torridon through Friday, but on hearing the classic low level ice route Raven Crag Gully was ‘in nick’, plans changed. To the Lakes Thursday night, quick route in the morning then to Torridon. I changed my mind again; the ice didn’t look too thick in places. So straight to Glen Coe Thursday night for another Cold Climbs classic, No 6 Gully on Aonach Dubh and an early start to beat the queues.
Piers leading the main pitch of No 6 Gully
The popularity of this route is justified by the fact it
doesn’t form very often due to its low altitude and short walk in. Being up at
5am with an hour walk in didn’t beat the first team who had just started
climbing as we arrived at the base of the route. The route was quite stepped
and we made quick progress, alternating leads, up several short steep bulges
each followed by a snow slope. The ice was good with solid hooks up all the
ice; I hardly had to swing my axes. Piers had the main pitch, 30m up a groove
of water ice towards the left side of the gully. A top lead as he has only
started winter climbing this season. We arrived at the top of the gully just
after 10am, there is so much more time in the day when you have the motivation
to get up early, hard I know. After a leisurely descent to the van, we had a
steady drive up North, onwards to Torridon.
On the Horns of Beinn Alligin
Horns of Beinn Alligin
I have been to Torridon once before on a university trip and
remember how wild it is up there, the peaks rising straight from the flat glens
and nearby sea providing an almost unrivalled landscape. We had three days
planned to explore and climb some of the stunning ridges and mountains in the
area. First up was Beinn Alligin, a mountain I had never heard of before, in
the shadow of its larger, grander neighbours. The ridge along Beinn Alligin
followed its iconic horns, three rising summits close together leading onto the
summit Munro. Good snow and blue skies made the going pretty quick and it was
nice not to have the faff of ropes. I think the mountain is definitely
underrated and I’m surprised I hadn’t heard of it before. The views from the
top were cracking, looking back along the stunning ridge, with Liathach, our
next objective in the background.
Piers heading down to the Pinnacles of Liathach
We
were greeted to the same stunning weather the following morning as we set off
up the steep South slopes at the Eastern end of the Liathach ridge. Looking
upwards from the glen, you could mistake winter to be over when looking from
the south, but arriving on the ridge, there was no doubt Liathach definitely
still had its winter coat on and looked positively alpine. The ridge was
knife-edge in places and provided great exposure and continued interest. The
ridge is pretty committing with few escape points, however this never even
crossed my mind as I was taking in the situation, enjoying the sunshine coupled
with the Scottish winter. Despite planning to spend a third day in Torridon, we
changed our plans and journeyed to the Isle of Skye for one big adventure.
Finishing the pinnacle section of Liathach
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