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Friday 24th May 2013

Sunny and warm on Buchaille Etive Mor

Today was my final day with Matt and Colin. The forecast was good so we headed up into the mountains and climbed Buchaille Etive Mor.

Matt and Colin wanted to look at moving together, placing gear and decision making on a mountain route. We climbed up Broad Buttress and then descended Great Gully Buttress.

We had some great views and although cold to start with the wind gradually dropped and it warmed up by the end of the day.

Thursday 23rd May 2013

Feeling wintery today at Polldubh

Matt and Colin were out again with me today. We climbed at Polldubh in Glen Nevis. Matt and Colin swung leads on The Gutter and Right Wall on Styx Buttress. It was Colin’s first lead climbing.

It was colder today than yesterday but with less showers although those that did come through were of snow.

Wednesday 22nd May 2013

Showers and sunshine in Glen Nevis

I was climbing today with Matt and Colin. They were keen to learn more about multipitch climbing, setting up anchors, ropework and abseiling. We climbed Three Pines on Repton Buttress and then continued up Spike Wall on Little Buttress. After abseiling off we climbed Pine Wall to finish the day.

It was cold in the strong northerly wind. Although there were a few showers passing through none stayed for long and the sun felt warm when out of the wind.

Sunday 19th May 2013

Red to climb the Old Man

Next month Red Szell hopes to be the first blind person to climb the Old Man of Hoy. Martin Moran and myself will be guiding him.

There is an article about him in the Grough magazine. This is a link to a You Tube video of him training.

He was interviewed recently on the Radio 4 'In Touch' programme which is worth a listen. Finally, this is his Just Giving page where he is trying to raise money for Retinitis pigmentosa.

Thursday 16th May 2013

Scrambling on Stac Pollaidh

Today my dad and I scrambled to the summit of Stac Pollaidh. It was a lovely day in Northern Coigach. There was very little wind and although there were a few showers in the surrounding hills we stayed dry.

There were a few other walkers enjoying this great wee hill. We could also see out to the Outer Hebrides.

Wednesday 15th May 2013

Climbing and conservation

My dad and I were climbing at Moy today. My dad had never sport climbed before or climbed on conglomerate so it was all a bit different but very enjoyable.

There were a few showers passing through but they did not stop us climbing. We also did some slope stabilisation work below one of the climbs where the ground is steep and erodes very easily.

Saturday 11th May 2013

Wetter than expected on Skye

Yesterday was Bruce's last day of scrambling on Skye and the forecast had said that the rain wasn't due to arrive til later in the day. We had hoped to do Foxes Rake onto Sgurr a' Mhadaidh but as the rain arrived on the walk in we went for an easier option and climbed the buttresses in Coir' a Mhadaidh

We climbed both the North and the South Buttress and found the gabbro to be good and rough in the rain and the descent of the top is simple and fast in bad weather.

Thursday 9th May 2013

Sunshine and hail on Skye

Bruce and I headed to the West Buttress of An Caisteal today. This grade 3 scramble is mostly loose but does have some interest up high and some great views towards Sgurr a' Mhadaidh.

We then descended the north ridge of An Caisteal and traversed Bruach na Frithe. It was a fine day with lots of sun and just a light hail shower late in the day.

Wednesday 8th May 2013

West Buttress of Sgurr Mhic Coinnich

Today we took advantage of the dry rock and climbed the West Buttress of Sgurr Mhic Coinnich. This ridge climbs directly to the summit and the crux 'Difficult' pitches are where it crosses Harts Ledge up high.

On the ridge we were sheltered from the wind but on the summit we were pounded by the strong cold south easterly wind. The rain held off until late in the day.

After descending to the shelter of the coire we decided to head across to the scramble 'Lochan Traverse'. This is a straighforward almost horizontal scramble which I would suggest doesn't warrant the Moderate grade. More like grade 3 for the crux wet start and easy grade 2 after that.

Tuesday 7th May 2013

North Ridge of Sgurr Sgumain

Today Bruce and I headed up into Coire Lagan. We climbed the North Ridge of Sgurr Sgumain. This 2 star Moderate scramble gives some good climbing especially in the upper section on a fine narrow ridge.

We continued over Sgurr Alasdair and descended the Great Stone Shoot. The cloud lifted later than was forecast. However, when it finally lifted it was very warm, 18 degrees celsius at sea level.

Monday 6th May 2013

Damp and misty on Skye today

Today I was on Skye with Bruce. The forecast was for rain and wind but although damp and cloudy it wasn't as wet or windy as we expected.

We climbed Peridotite Buttress which is on the east side of the ridge below Sgurr na Banachdich. This short scramble is more like grade 2 (it says grade 3 in the guidebook) but it is still a great wee scramble on incredibly rough rock.

Saturday 4th May 2013

Lochaber scrambling and climbing

The last 2 days I was working in Lochaber. Steve, Kath and myself had hoped for some warm dry spring scrambling and climbing. It was mostly wet and mostly cold! Yesterday we scrambled over Meall Cumhann in Glen Nevis. The traverse of this 700m hill gives a decent grade2 scramble.

Today it started dry so we went rock climbing in Glen Nevis. Steve and Kath led the Gutter up at the Alp. After we abseiled off it began to rain heavily again so we headed across to Scimitar Ridge for a scramble. This grade 2 scramble deserves a star and is a great low level option for bad weather days.