North Wales scrambling

Scrambling course in North Wales over the weekend - with winter on the tops and summer in the valleys, we were lucky enough to enjoy some magical mountaineering on crisp, sun warmed rock amongst grand mountain architecture - all 10 mins. from the road in the LLanberis pass and Ogwen valley

Longstone Pinnacle

Another glorious weekend at Symonds Yat - the season is off to a good start with warm / dry rock encouraging a lot of climbing - with teams out on many varied routes - recent work clearing vegetation from some of the crag has led to a bit more exploration of the climbing areas ( pre-empting the new guide book ) and some old rarely climbed routes are coming back life - unpolished and fresh !

Spring at Symonds Yat

A lovely Spring day at Symonds Yat - with sunshine, blue skies and warm rock encouraging plenty of climbers out onto the popular routes - Golden Fleece , Snoozin Susie, Introductory Rocks and the Longstone all had ascents today, judging by the chalk marks some of the harder routes have also had some early season ascents - The Wasteland, OK Fingers have been climbed recently.

Northern Corries

Just back after a weeks training in the Cairngorms - despite a lot of early snow blocking the A9 last Sunday the week has had some good conditions with the unsettled weather giving a freeze / thaw cycle, with winds less than forecast - there were quite a few teams out in the Northern Corries as expected so graded ground in between named routes was used - a tactic which worked very well with good ground covered without being rushed or crowded by other teams .

Scottish Winter

Back up to Scotland this week for some winter climbing, - excellent snow and ice conditions but with 'normal' Scottish weather - windy and unsettled ! The thaw and rain last week helped the snow to consolidate and, with this weeks cold conditions, resulted in some good conditions.

Saturday Ledge Route and No. 4 Gully on Ben Nevis with 50+ m.p.h wind then off to the Cairngorms and Glenmore Lodge for the 'Association of Mountaineering Instructors' A.G.M. Sunday was an excellent day in the Northern Corries with climbs on 'Ewan Buttress' and 'Astroturfer' - both graded III, but quite different - Ewan buttress was a delightful little route with some lovely positions but very little technical difficulty, Astroturfer giving much more of a test of balance cutting diagonally across a buttress. Monday back at Ben Nevis and with an early start allowed Hadrian's Wall Direct, Green Gully and West Gully Douglas Boulder to be climbed. Hadrian's Wall gave the biggest challenge with very brittle ice allowing no respite for aching calf muscles. Tuesday was a return to Ben Nevis in poorer conditions - strong wind on top and snow beginning to fall - South West Ridge on the Douglas Boulder was an excellent little route, full of interest but without too much stress - the steep snow slope approach giving more concern ! Finished off the trip with some ice bouldering at the base of Coire na Ciste - with snow falling heavily on Wednesday and more forecast it was time to head home before the roads became impassable - it wouldn't be the first time I got stuck the wrong side of the snow gates !

Abseiling weekend

The weather has been kind to us this weekend in the Wye Valley; with heavy rain overnight but dry and sunny during the days - so despite slippery underfoot conditions we were able to do some abseil practice - with some novice abseilers finding that its not so bad afterall !

Snoozin Suzie & The Russian

Another stunningly beautiful day at Symonds Yat with crystal clear skies and dazzling winter sun .

'Snoozin Suzie' and 'The Russian' had our attention today - the rock was cold on the fingers but dry with good friction - the climbing was well worth the effort with excellent views down the Wye and time enough at the end of the day for hot chocolate at the cafe.