A bit 'jet lagged' today after returning from another adventure on the Cuillin Ridge. Our gamble with the weather seemed to pay off when we arrived to perfect conditions on Friday for our preliminary walk in to stock the overnight camp. A spectacular introduction for Russ, who had not visited these mountains. Our good luck continued on Saturday morning, with the rising sun above us and clouds in the valley below us we were in good spirits when we reached the TD gap; however, within ten minutes, as if on cue, the clouds thickened and rain started to fall, turning the climb out of the gap into a major challenge, requiring an awful lot of swearing !! The rest of the Coire Lagan Round provided a lot more wet and slippery entertainment, including the King's Chimney before we finally topped out on the summit of the Inaccessible Pinnacle and a disconcerting abseil into the mists below. It was with relief that we finally got to our stash of gear and a chance to get out of the rain and some hot food. Our plan to move onto a good campsite further along the ridge, didn't appeal in the poor weather, and so with limited space I left the guys to tough out the night, and headed down to the Youth Hostel at Glenbrittle ( hot showers, drying room and a soft bed !! ) returning at 5 a.m with hopefully better weather. Unfortunately it wasn't to be and the heavy overnight rain continued, with the guys' chances of completing the ridge in one go, disappearing as fast as the water was flowing downhill. It was a good effort and worth a gamble, so well done Russ and Mel, but sometimes things just don't happen as we want - that's what makes it an adventure ! !

A rare perfect day on the Isle of Skye May 2012

A very up and down season so far this year, with the weather doing all sorts, the courses have had to be flexible to get the most out of the conditions - but all experience is good experience ! and with a positive and practical approach the variability of the weather is something to be enjoyed rather than endured ( although often in hindsight )  Thankfully I have been lucky enough to have had clients who recognise this and we have been rewarded with  learning experiences which are far more satisfying than when the conditions are perfect.

Change of season

With the warmest winter for a while the season is drawing to a close early this year and thoughts are turning more towards summer climbing and mountaineering - this season I hope to run a few more trips to Skye and the Cuillin Ridge - with 'Alpine' style climbing very much the ' in thing '- moving together, fast & light etc. - fingers crossed !

West Coast winter courses

My winter courses have moved over to the West coast for this week - and we have been lucky enough to enjoy some good weather and conditions despite the recent thaws - with plenty of good snow and ice on Ben Nevis and high up in Glencoe . A great introduction to winter  climbing in these beautiful mountains - with ascents of some of the classics, including Dorsal Arete in Stob Coire nan Lochan and the formidable Tower Ridge on Ben Nevis - which  thankfully, was in a very friendly mood on Monday.

Cairngorms

After a good days skiing on Sunday in some lovely sunshine, my winter courses in the Cairngorms have started with more typical weather - pretty up and down, but without too much drama. Monday was wet and windy, but yesterday was much improved and there were quite a few teams out enjoying the early season conditions, including some old friends - Hi Shona & Don. We concentrated on some of the basics, especially looking at the potential for windslab avalanches, as the strong wind is providing us with plenty of examples ! More challenging weather  forecast for tomorrow - at least it provides 'hands on' experience in coping with poor conditions - its not always a blue skied winter wonderland - that would be too easy, wouldn't it ????

Winter season start

Pressed the last of the cider apples this week and the wood shed is full - so roll on winter ! The reports of snow on the Scottish mountains and the forecast for more is a relief as courses start in the Cairngorms the week leading up to Christmas, however, Snowdonia isn't showing a lot of promise and I have had to cancel next weeks course after the thaw and rain of Thursday's storm - a bit disappointing as this time last year the ice was excellent - I even ran an ice climbing course in the Brecon Beacons! We're heading to the Cairngorms on Saturday so packing the ski's, ice axes, crampons etc this week and getting more excited - especially looking at all the webcams.

End of season climbing

Another busy few days at the end of the season - making the most of the good weather with a mixture of outdoor / lead and intro courses for Wesley,Tyler, Lola, Liam, Joseph and Delyth - a very easy and enjoyable few days for me, just right for getting into the holiday mood for our trip to the Picos De Europa, with hopefully warm sunshine and golden limestone against crystal blue skies - although last time we visited we had 50cm of snow overnight !