Haute Pyrenees - Bareges:
With only a week left we still hadn't made it to the 'Haute Pyrenees' so, after the deep cleansing and overnight recuperation at our excellent municipal campsite and a leisurely start on a bright sunny morning , we set off for Bareges by way of the Col du Tourmalet (which I was pretty excited about, being a Tour de France fan) driving into gradually worsening weather which we could see from miles away. We hit the cloud low on the drive up the eastern side of the col and actually saw nothing of it due to near zero visibility and driving rain, which made it quite a scary drive, especially as cyclists were still toiling up it. Bareges is part way up/down the Col on the west side and the last major village on the famous Tour de France climb, where Bradley Wiggins effectively sealed his 2012 TDF victory by not getting wasted by his rivals. We arrived in the village on Sunday afternoon in heavy rain and with not much open, so first impressions were not the best, but we did encounter a very colourful campsite host, who liked to tease me about being English and decided to call me Wiggins - a nick name I was quite happy with, especially after seeing the huge 'Wiggo' and the mod target painted on the road in the middle of the town :-)
Once the sun re-appeared on Monday afternoon, and there was some life back in the place, Bareges turned out to be a really good place to stay – lively but without the manic bustle and traffic of Luz at the bottom of the valley and despite a couple of concrete eyesores, still a traditional looking mountain village.
Col du Tourmalet:
Ever since I first watched 'Le Tour' as a teenager, I had harboured an ambition to cycle some of the big climbs, especially the Col du Tourmalet - the most used, and (with respect to Alpe d'Huez) arguably the most famous, of the great 'hors category' climbs. The total climb is 19km with an average gradient of around 8%, but with some flatter bits and a small downhill section, the gradient much of the way is a lot more, getting up to 15% on the final ramp - eek !
With not enough time in the day for a mountain day or climb, I decided it was now or never, made sure everything was spot on with the bike and set off down to the start. Each km is marked with a sign showing how far completed, the distance to the top and the average gradient of the next km; this in general is good, although a couple of times I was a bit psyched out as I huffed up to a sign only to find the km was even steeper !
The start is not too bad, but then it stiffens up to 8% for a few km as it approaches and goes through Bareges, before slackening off for a while as it approaches the ski station. From this flat area, the rest of the climb, now above the treeline and complete with multiple switchbacks opens out - inspiring and scarey !
Things get more serious from now on, with multiple 9% average kms, so I enjoyed the brief respite with some easy peddling along the flat and steeled myself as the gradient kicked in once more. I found myself caught between welcoming and resenting the short flatter sections sometimes encountered between switchbacks – yes, I got a small rest but with an average gradient at 9% it meant the steep bits were even steeper :-( The painted names and slogans increased dramatically now, I found one particularly inspiring - "Pain is just weakness leaving the body" and repeated this to myself over and over on the really tough bits. Round one switchback was what I can only describe as hundreds of sperm painted on the road all swimming upwards round the corner - bizarre !
Once I hit the 3km marker, I started to believe I would succeed - this was a 9% km but I knew the penultimate km was a little less before the final lung bursting 10% final km and 15% final ramp. In the event, the penultimate km didn't really let up except for a short flat section just before the start of the last km (bloody averages again !). My legs were beginning to really suffer with lactate now and I could feel the beginnings of muscle cramp in my calves, but now inside the last km it was simply a matter of grinding it out and as I hit the final ramp I was forcing my legs over pretty much by will power alone. The summit is really busy and as I rounded the last corner someone was standing in the road, blocking my way ! Knowing I was spent and would not be able to get round without falling off, I screamed incoherently and he got the message, moving just in time to allow me to cross the summit line and collapse over my bike ! An amazing, painful experience – with an average speed of just over 10km/hr, I won’t be signing pro forms just yet, but I was really chuffed to make it on the little cycling that I do. Mucho respect to the TDF boys who do this twice as fast, as part of much longer day and after a couple of other big climbs.
Unfortunately the pics I took at the top were on my stolen phone, but this was one big tick on my list of 'must do' life experiences :-))
That evening I managed to make my legs work enough to walk up to the newly re-opened Hotel du Tourmalet, now owned a British couple who also run an outdoor holiday and Gite operation in the village, where we managed to get an Olympics TV fix – our first of the holidays – and enjoyed a superb recovery meal, a tapas with regional specialities and plenty of medicinal wine, as well as making the acquaintance of David, the Hotel manager, who (with his partner Wendy whom we met on a subsequent meeting) was both a superb host and really nice guy.
Monday, 27 August 2012
Saturday, 25 August 2012
Pyrenean Odyssey - part 3
Having now returned to Blighty , I've relieved some of the depression by writting up the remaining accounts of out trip but it's turned out to be quite a tome, so I am staggering its publication, Harry Potter style to allow everyone to recover from each breathtaking instalment and to prolong the excitement :-)
BTW: apologies for the general lack of pictures, our small camera was being temperamental and I had my iphone, which I was using instead, nicked ! There are more towards the end of the trip so I'll probably post them via vimeo or similar ...watch this space.
So, on with the Odyssey (now spelt correctly for the eagle eyed) ...
Arieges - Tarascon & Foix, Quie de Sinsat:
In need of a climbing fix, we found a lovely campsite near Tarascon but in the country close to the well known climbing area called 'Le Quie de Sinsat' and claimed a huge pitch right by the river.
The climbing turned out to be a pleasant mountain bike + short walk away up the river, total time about 20mins. This is limestone climbing again, well bolted (although in the usual french style a bit economical at times) and well signed with a good mix of grades - plenty to keep us out of mischief for a couple of days - the highlight for me being a 30m single pitch classic on the 'grande dalle' (slab) with a 6a 'direct' option high up, which I took and successfully negotiated. There were also a number of longer climbs, but with a 60m rope these were out of bounds; based on my experiences this trip, I'd definitely recommend a 70m rope to get the best out of the climbing on these big crags.
After a day enjoying Foix and checking out property prices, we spent a night in a local english run Gite by the well known climbing area of Calames (check out Base Calames on the web), intending to spend a full day there armed with some local knowledge from our hosts. Alas, we had one of the very few weather let downs of the trip, waking to a morning of low cloud and drizzle. Following a re-stock of provisions, we prepared to move on but with improving weather, managed to sneak in a quick stop at Auzat, another major climbing venue but this time on granite which came as a nice change after two weeks of limestone !
Arieges - Mont Valier:
Now in need of more mountain days, we stopped in a small village called Bonac, in the heart of the Ariege Pyrenees, which had a cool 'camping car' halt right by the river, an open area with about 10 pitches and electricity, water and drainage facilities but nothing else. We had to pay at the local Auberge, so stayed and had a basic but enjoyable meal and a couple of beers. The following morning with the cloud still low we drove a few km to La Maison du Valier at the road head of the Riberot valley and put in a long day doing a GR route up Mont Valier, returning by one of the 'Chemins de la liberte' - these are tracks used by escaping prisoners and other refugees in WW II to escape the Nazis, by crossing the mountains into Spain. The 'chemin' was steep but ok in Summer with good gear, but in Winter without any special clothing or equipment it must have been an epic ! Unfortunately, most of the route was done in cloud so the views weren't often visible (though the nav practice was good !) but we did see the impressive Cascade de Neroch and have a period of sun for our pit stop at the Lac Rond.
BTW: apologies for the general lack of pictures, our small camera was being temperamental and I had my iphone, which I was using instead, nicked ! There are more towards the end of the trip so I'll probably post them via vimeo or similar ...watch this space.
So, on with the Odyssey (now spelt correctly for the eagle eyed) ...
Arieges - Tarascon & Foix, Quie de Sinsat:
The climbing turned out to be a pleasant mountain bike + short walk away up the river, total time about 20mins. This is limestone climbing again, well bolted (although in the usual french style a bit economical at times) and well signed with a good mix of grades - plenty to keep us out of mischief for a couple of days - the highlight for me being a 30m single pitch classic on the 'grande dalle' (slab) with a 6a 'direct' option high up, which I took and successfully negotiated. There were also a number of longer climbs, but with a 60m rope these were out of bounds; based on my experiences this trip, I'd definitely recommend a 70m rope to get the best out of the climbing on these big crags.
After a day enjoying Foix and checking out property prices, we spent a night in a local english run Gite by the well known climbing area of Calames (check out Base Calames on the web), intending to spend a full day there armed with some local knowledge from our hosts. Alas, we had one of the very few weather let downs of the trip, waking to a morning of low cloud and drizzle. Following a re-stock of provisions, we prepared to move on but with improving weather, managed to sneak in a quick stop at Auzat, another major climbing venue but this time on granite which came as a nice change after two weeks of limestone !
Arieges - Mont Valier:
Now in need of more mountain days, we stopped in a small village called Bonac, in the heart of the Ariege Pyrenees, which had a cool 'camping car' halt right by the river, an open area with about 10 pitches and electricity, water and drainage facilities but nothing else. We had to pay at the local Auberge, so stayed and had a basic but enjoyable meal and a couple of beers. The following morning with the cloud still low we drove a few km to La Maison du Valier at the road head of the Riberot valley and put in a long day doing a GR route up Mont Valier, returning by one of the 'Chemins de la liberte' - these are tracks used by escaping prisoners and other refugees in WW II to escape the Nazis, by crossing the mountains into Spain. The 'chemin' was steep but ok in Summer with good gear, but in Winter without any special clothing or equipment it must have been an epic ! Unfortunately, most of the route was done in cloud so the views weren't often visible (though the nav practice was good !) but we did see the impressive Cascade de Neroch and have a period of sun for our pit stop at the Lac Rond.
Despite a long day in the mountains, I was under orders to find a campsite with a shower so we hot footed it to Castillon-en-Couserans where by sheer luck we found a good municipal site with excellent facilities and cheap - result !
Monday, 6 August 2012
Road trip pt2 - Into the mountains
Big weather here in Haute Pyrenees so it must be blog time !
Where was I ? Oh yes, Font Romeu ...
FR is a winter ski resort and -whilst not as bad as some - feels like one ! It does have plenty to offer in the summer but in that very commercialised way of ski resorts and that extended to our campsite "Huttopia" a kind of center parcs with a campsite bolted on - excellent facilities but camping area clearly not designed by campers ! After a day cycling round and relaxing in coffee shops we headed up for our first mtn day - a col and peaks straddling the border via the beautiful vallee d'Eyne renowned for its flora & fauna, the col being the Col d'Eina and the peaks of Eina (2786) & Nuria (2794). The walk lives up to expectations as it wends its way gently up the valley through trees and alpine meadows awash with beautiful flowers and butterflies, bell laden cows, stunning views of the slopes above andbest of all, red squirrels. Eventually we arrived at a high valley above the tree line and from here on it resembled the plateaus of snowdonia more than the alps, rolling sparsely grassed slopes with little crags and steep streams. a shortish, steep section eased by the zig zags that characterise European hikes, brought us to the col and the border, where we indulged in the standard pastime of straddling the border to be half in France and half in Spain :-) a couple of quick jaunts to either side bagged the peaks, ensuring full satisfaction and a +1000m height day. Views from the top were a bit of a disappointment mainly because the ridge seemed to be a weather boundary with thick low cloud on the spanish side. We lingered more on the descent to fully appreciate the surroundings and sit by the mountain pools eating the remains of lunch. Overall a superb day, quite long at 22k, 7.5 hrs and 1100m ht gain, but never too strenuous and, after the first hour, quiet as well.
The following day involved domestic chores in the morning and travel to Sinsat in the Ariege for, hopefully some more climbing ...
Where was I ? Oh yes, Font Romeu ...
FR is a winter ski resort and -whilst not as bad as some - feels like one ! It does have plenty to offer in the summer but in that very commercialised way of ski resorts and that extended to our campsite "Huttopia" a kind of center parcs with a campsite bolted on - excellent facilities but camping area clearly not designed by campers ! After a day cycling round and relaxing in coffee shops we headed up for our first mtn day - a col and peaks straddling the border via the beautiful vallee d'Eyne renowned for its flora & fauna, the col being the Col d'Eina and the peaks of Eina (2786) & Nuria (2794). The walk lives up to expectations as it wends its way gently up the valley through trees and alpine meadows awash with beautiful flowers and butterflies, bell laden cows, stunning views of the slopes above andbest of all, red squirrels. Eventually we arrived at a high valley above the tree line and from here on it resembled the plateaus of snowdonia more than the alps, rolling sparsely grassed slopes with little crags and steep streams. a shortish, steep section eased by the zig zags that characterise European hikes, brought us to the col and the border, where we indulged in the standard pastime of straddling the border to be half in France and half in Spain :-) a couple of quick jaunts to either side bagged the peaks, ensuring full satisfaction and a +1000m height day. Views from the top were a bit of a disappointment mainly because the ridge seemed to be a weather boundary with thick low cloud on the spanish side. We lingered more on the descent to fully appreciate the surroundings and sit by the mountain pools eating the remains of lunch. Overall a superb day, quite long at 22k, 7.5 hrs and 1100m ht gain, but never too strenuous and, after the first hour, quiet as well.
The following day involved domestic chores in the morning and travel to Sinsat in the Ariege for, hopefully some more climbing ...
Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Pyrenean Odyssey - part1
Well two and a half weeks in and this is my first post - slight technical hitch with my iphone / iPad combo (thanks apple for messing up Bluetooth with the iOS 5.1.1) hopefully fixed now. Most of the first two weeks were spent in the Languedoc in the foothills above the plain of Rousillon, climbing, cycling ... and a fair bit of drinking and eating ! It is an under appreciated area with some superb, rugged countryside, a fascinating history of rebellion against the French establishment including the cathars and the hugeneots, loads of vineyards and wine 'caves' and great climbing. Highlight was climbing at the famous, though now under used Vingrau and doing the classic of the region, the Petit Dru - a six pitch beauty with a real mountain feel, a classic N Wales chimney thrutch in the middle and a technical and strenuous final pitch topping out to views of hills, valleys vineyards and cathar castles - superb :-)
In between I've done some road cycling - my hill climbing is coming on - on good, empty roads and we've tried our new mountain bikes out on some VTT circuits; five punctures on two routes is not the best start, but after a swift call to Decathlon for some better tyres I'm prepared to give it another go !
The end of the two weeks saw us head up hill to the Pyrenees Catalanes and Font Romeu at about 1700M, but it's now late so more to follow ....
The end of the two weeks saw us head up hill to the Pyrenees Catalanes and Font Romeu at about 1700M, but it's now late so more to follow ....
Tuesday, 10 July 2012
A quiet time ? No !
Well, it has been a quiet month on the outdoors front; the weather has certainly contributed, but the main reason is that its been hectic elsewhere in my personal life - I have got married, finished my job in IT and have been planning a summer road trip to the Pyrenees !
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| The 'beast' awaits her road trip |
In between and when weather has allowed, I have put my new A55 Sport Climbs guide to use and have been getting some routes in at Castle Inn , which must be the ultimate roadside crag; we just need the pub to re-open to make it perfect:-) This is a great venue, especially for the low to mid grade climber and those making the transition to outdoors, so hats off to those who have gone to the time and effort to bolt all the routes and create this facility.
The Pyrenees trip is now almost here and I've got the 'beast' - my pride and joy T5 camper - all spruced up with new 12v batteries and 204V hook-up to give us more freedom to roam and a bit of comfort if/when we need it :-)
The Pyrenees trip is now almost here and I've got the 'beast' - my pride and joy T5 camper - all spruced up with new 12v batteries and 204V hook-up to give us more freedom to roam and a bit of comfort if/when we need it :-)
The plan is to do a mix of all sorts; plenty of mountain days, which I can log for my IML, some long trad/alpine routes in the Pic du Midi Ossau, and some sport routes in place like Riglos. At the same time, we will be recce'ing for possible future commercial opportunities.
Watch this space for updates during the trip.
Watch this space for updates during the trip.
Wednesday, 13 June 2012
2012JunSkye
2012JunSkye, a set by Jason Gr on Flickr.
Pictures of the Cuillin traverse taken by Jason ... my camera battery was duff :-(
Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Over the sea to Skye and the Cuillin
My last post ended with ‘More Please’ I didn’t have to wait long. After two previous trips to Skye to try the Cuillin were washed out, I had pencilled in the bank holiday week for a possible attempt.
Summary:
This was a great adventure, probably the best mountaineering expedition in the UK, blessed by a perfect confluence of positive factors, some amazing and exposed climbing and brilliant views, backed by a strategy that worked well to give what I felt to be an optimum combination of travelling light, the adventure of a bivi on the ridge and an extra half day of time to take the pressure off.
Summary:
This was a great adventure, probably the best mountaineering expedition in the UK, blessed by a perfect confluence of positive factors, some amazing and exposed climbing and brilliant views, backed by a strategy that worked well to give what I felt to be an optimum combination of travelling light, the adventure of a bivi on the ridge and an extra half day of time to take the pressure off.
So what would I change ? Not much to be honest, though that is as a result of a lot of preparation and some prior recce experience on some of the tricky sections - both key factors for a successful Cuillin in my opinion. I would try to be a bit more slick in the morning and gain an extra half hour or so there, I'd try to reduce the number of abseils and I would definitely do Naismith's route up the tooth.
Key tips:
My strategy was a little different to most I have seen. It is effectively a 1.5 day attempt, starting with the boat trip in from Elgol at 1pm, traverse as far as Coire a’ Ghrunnda on day 1, dump sacks at the Bealach, tick off the two ‘Dubhs’, then bivi in the Coire, stash all bivi gear and go early/fast/light for a long day 2, hopefully getting through the TD gap and Inn Pin with no queue.
Intro:
Great weather the previous week had me nervously scanning four different weather forecasts all through the week prior especially as the weather changed in England. A minor scare due to my planned partner letting me down was averted thanks to Jason stepping in at short notice and using up many brownie points - thanks Katherine ! Come Thursday all seemed good and I made the decision to go for a Sunday/Monday run, picking Jason up from Glasgow airport on Saturday and dropping him back on Tuesday, so very little margin for error.
The trip up was made in glorious sunshine and for the first time I saw the Cuillin, cloud free from the approach to the Kyle of Localsh. Safely ensconced at Sligachen campsite (not in the same league as Glenbrittle but more convenient for our needs) I went over the plan of attack with Jason to get his buy in. Strategy agreed and boat booked, we settled down to carbo- load, sort out gear and relax.
Day 1: Gars Bheinn to Coire a’ Ghrunnda, including the Dubhs
The following day dawned as expected and after a good breakfast we made a leisurely trip round to Elgol in good time, boarded the boat and were treated to the sight of harbour seals on the way in to what is a real wilderness paradise. The ridge was crested in a little over two hours and after a brief lunch stop we made our leisurely way along the relatively straightforward section to Sgurr Nan Eag and down to the Bealach above Coire a’ Ghrunnda. Packs were ditched at An Casteal and we took the ‘Hyslop’ traverse line across to Sgurr Dubh Mor, but not before I managed to twist my ankle painfully whilst walking round on a flat slab ! The traverse to S-D-M was a lot more straightforward than it looked from a distance. Some slightly more tricky scrambling saw us on the summit, and then we took the usual line back to Sgurr Dubh an Da Bheinn, followed by a bit of down scrambling back to the bealach … and my only negative experience of the whole trip. Some a***hole had rifled the outer pockets of my rucksack and stolen all my snack food, in doing so they had taken the map out and left it by the sack – on a windier day it would have gone ! Fortunately, I had stowed my day two food deep in my sack, otherwise my traverse would have been jeopardy - the fact that a fellow climber/walker would do such a thing left a really sour taste through to the next day, as I suspiciously eyed up other traverse parties who had also bivied.
Thieves and ankle aside, day 1 had been accomplished according to plan and we set up a comfortable bivi at the end of the lochan, tucked into our dinner and surveyed some incredible views as the sun gradually set in the west.
Day 2: Coire a’ Ghrunnda to Inn Pinn
The alarm went off alpine style at 4.45 am but I was already awake. The bivi had been fine but I’m not a great sleeper at the best of times and this time, the excitement & anticipation meant that deep sleep was not an option ! Despite the early rise it was still 6am by the time we set off, having breakfasted on porridge, stowed our bivi kit, filled our water with two litres and bandaged the ankle I managed to twist the day before. The Dubhs having been ticked the night before, we took a diagonal line onto the ridge and headed straight for the TD gap, reached after a straightforward but very exposed little climb, but would there be a queue ?? To our great satisfaction we were the first there - the strategy was working ! The abseil down into the gap was quickly followed by a squirming, thrutching struggle up a very polished off width well above my gear until I made the horizontal break and struggled up to a rest above it and clipped the in-situ ‘friend’ – phew ! The rest of the climb was less eventful and I was just topping out when the next party – a threesome we had passed dashing out to the ridge start the previous evening – arrived at the gap. Jason thrutched up after me and there it was – one very big tick on the Traverse list ! After a bit of banter with the following party, revolving mainly around the fact that 5 out of the 6 of use were wearing La Sportiva Trango Alp boots, making us look like an advert for La Sportiva (and giving them the nickname of the ‘Trangos’ used hereafter) the short scramble to the top of Alasdair was quickly despatched, meeting a party along the way who had skirted the gap (hereafter called the ‘avoiders’) and the equally short scramble onto the summit of Thearlaich accomplished.
The descent off Thearlaich was one of my less glorious moments – having already decided we would ‘ab’ the tricky bit, I didn’t descend to the right off the summit plateau as the guide sugested, spotted some ab tat, went for it … and we ended up making two abseils instead of one ! Nonetheless, we stood at the bottom of Kings Chimney on our own, the avoiders having opted for Collies ledge instead and the trangos still behind us. Kings chimney was despatched with some enjoyment – it is a really nice climb, through the traverse might be interesting in the wet. The trangos appeared again as I neared the top, but decided to go for the ledge option. Shortly after, Thearlaich summit was ticked off and we headed towards An Stac which we by-passed on the screes on the left as planned, to get to the Inn Pinn.
We approached the Inn Pinn with some trepidation, expecting it to be really busy. I had 3 possible ascent routes lined up to avoid the queues, but as we approached we could see the avoiders on top just abbing off, the trangos just starting the climb ..and no-one else, yeah ! I approached the bottom of the climb just as the trangos headed to the top, I roped up quickly and took Jason up alpine style. This is a lovely climb, really easy steps with only one slightly awkward move off the side onto the ridge, but with loads of exposure. On the top, Jason had a big smile on his face, having tried to do the ‘pinn’ in 2005 and been foiled by the weather. We waved at the other crews having a break as we prepared to ‘ab’ off, then they set off and we didn’t see either party again except in the distance.
Inn Pinn to Bidein:
We had a short break and sandwich ourselves before steeling ourselves for the so called ‘mind numbing’ central section. Banadich was summited competently, avoiding the many false summits, but I made a bit of a mess of getting to Thormaid, following Hyslop’s guide too literally and getting too low, resulting in an unpleasant scramble across scree and a nervy traverse across a narrow ledge to get back on track. This is now the second time I've missed the correct route, though having read a Moran blog recently where even the master struggled, it seems to be tricky to get right. Having messed up the approach, the ascent of Thormaid itself was accomplished smoothly by tackling it head on and the teeth by-passed easily enough to a bealach before starting the ascent of Sgurr a Ghreadaidh, easyish scrambling to the south top followed by the easy but very airy knife edge to the north, true top at which point were directly overtaken for the only time in the day by a pair moving quickly, though even they were complaining of tiredness. The wart soon after was by-passed and An Dorus reached after a short gash in between called Eag Dubh.
The following section was known territory having recc'ed it the previous year; Mheadaidh itself being quite easy but the 3 tops offering considerably more of a climbing/scrambling challenge. But, armed with beta they were dispatched competently and without use of the rope – Jason taking the lead on the first top. The key to the top is to traverse right as the guide states but not too far, maybe 20 metres ? In good conditions it is fairly to spot. The 3 tops of Bidein Druim nan Ramh followed soon after - all sans rope, the first top despatched via the basalt staircases and the second tackled direct up a scoop – which looks very tricky from a distance but is ok close up – after a tricky descent / traverse across slabs into the gap. This is followed by a chimney then a brief scramble. The third top was also climbed direct and the descent to Bealach na Glaich mor accomplished much more proficiently than previously by staying near the crest and avoiding the temptation to drop off to the right to early.
Bidein to Bruache na Frithe:
The following section was new territory and in my head was a fairly easy section up to Bruache na Frithe – a major underestimation ! The scrambling was never hard, just more hard work & longer than expected, with a couple of major gaps to be crossed - one in particular being an exposed jump -and a couple of route choice errors which saw us at one point on a ledge looking across a gap to where we should have been. A short reverse later and we got to what looked like a horrendous down climb with some ab tat round a rock. The ab choice was quickly taken, though after we got down we could see that the down climb was not nearly so bad and the guide specifically recommends against the abseil on time grounds – tired decision making ! The summit of Bruache na Frithe was finally made and with time no longer on our side, was quickly followed by the easy walk to the base of the Tooth.
Bhasteir tooth and Am Bhasteir:
Naismith’s looked intimidating from a distance but I was happy to give it a go, especially once I saw it close up. Jason however, decided that enough was enough and he didn’t fancy a Severe climb in big boots at this late stage. This was a team effort, so I agreed we could take the easier Collie's route. However, finding it was not easy - the Hyslop guide is not really helpful here as it is much further down than one might expect, though Mike Lates very useful 'Tips for Success' is on the money as I discovered when reading it again afterwards. After wandering around for 20 mins, we nearly started up a wall which looked far less inviting to me than Naismiths! However, before committing, we checked (a lot) further down and found it – a fairly easy ‘mod’ onto and up a ramp, until we arrived at a dead end and an overhanging boulder problem. I assume we had missed the ‘basalt chimney’ somewhere along the way, but after a pitiful attempt to 'send' the problem, a short reverse down the ramp got us to a bit of wall which looked climbable so up we went, onto the crest once more then a final short wall and onto the summit of Am Bhasteir.
Final push to Gilean:
It was after 9pm now, so with the briefest of exchanges with a couple of South Wales lads who were coming back as they had missed the tooth by traversing round, we headed swiftly down to the Bealach. I finished the last of my fluid at this point so I dumped my bag, Jason keeping his in case we need the rope and we headed off up Gilean, following the guide and climbing up a basalt chimney which had a lovey ab point to avoid a potentially tricky downclimb, headed back to the crest, threaded the needle and were shortly after on the summit of our last top – and success !! With time now really pressing, there was just time to briefly absorb the moment, drink in the incredible views, grab a quick photo, send the obligatory txt and then head off down bearing in mind the old adage that 80% of accidents happen in descent. Knowing how tired we were, we descended with care, passing the South Waliens again, heading up to the summit of Gilean now.
Impromptu Rescue & Descent:
We arrived at the down climb and tired as we were, opted for the abseil option, but as I went to set up I heard a small voice say ‘Hi, are you doing the traverse ?’ I answered ‘Yes’ , despite not seeing anyone and the voice quickly replied ‘I’m stuck, can you help me please ?’ I struggled to see the source at first but then spotted a young female head popping up between two pillars to my left. It seems she had climbed up, gone a bit off route and then lost her nerve and was unable to go up or down ! After a bit of a conflab, I discovered she had no harness or rope although her mate 50m below helpfully volunteered that she had a harness – after 17 hours on the go, she got a fairly straight answer - ‘It’s not a lot of good down there, is it ?!’ The young lady said she was happy to downclimb with the security of the rope and could tie a figure-8, so I secured myself, threw her the rope, oversaw her tying in and then kept tension on the rope as she descended. Once down she untied, shouted a quick thank-you and then dashed off with her mate, probably embarrassed that she might have to face us again ! So, just us to abseil down now retrieve the rope and make a dash for home then ? No ! During the rescue, the waliens had re-appeared and asked very nicely if they could use our rope to abseil down – Argh ! Despite supreme weariness and a desperation to start going down in daylight, I did the ‘nice’ thing and agreed, resulting in it being after 10pm when we finally made it back to the bealach and my sack to begin the 3 hour descent. Apart from hydrating at the first stream and falling over and twisting my ankle on flat ground again (!), this passed in a blur of tiredness bordering on mild hallucination, until we finally reached the van at 1.15am, exhausted but with a deep down sense of satisfaction !
Key tips:
- Prepare well - get as much info as you can and prepare a strategy which will work for you, don't be overambitious.
- Recce trips to key (ie. tricky) areas beforehand will pay dividends. In good conditions these are not essential, but you will need to allow longer for your traverse.
- Allow for the fact that you will make route choice mistakes especially when tired.
- Be prepared for some quite exposed scrambling without rope if you want to make good progress.
- Being able to go light on the majority of the ridge is a major benefit - its worth considering stash options if you are doing an overnighter.
- If you are going for a 1 day run get up there early i.e. before 5am.
- As everyone says, water is an issue. We filled our packs with 2 litres at Ghrunnda and just about lasted.
- The boat is a lovely way to start the traverse.
- Remember to enjoy it !
My strategy was a little different to most I have seen. It is effectively a 1.5 day attempt, starting with the boat trip in from Elgol at 1pm, traverse as far as Coire a’ Ghrunnda on day 1, dump sacks at the Bealach, tick off the two ‘Dubhs’, then bivi in the Coire, stash all bivi gear and go early/fast/light for a long day 2, hopefully getting through the TD gap and Inn Pin with no queue.
Intro:
Great weather the previous week had me nervously scanning four different weather forecasts all through the week prior especially as the weather changed in England. A minor scare due to my planned partner letting me down was averted thanks to Jason stepping in at short notice and using up many brownie points - thanks Katherine ! Come Thursday all seemed good and I made the decision to go for a Sunday/Monday run, picking Jason up from Glasgow airport on Saturday and dropping him back on Tuesday, so very little margin for error.
The trip up was made in glorious sunshine and for the first time I saw the Cuillin, cloud free from the approach to the Kyle of Localsh. Safely ensconced at Sligachen campsite (not in the same league as Glenbrittle but more convenient for our needs) I went over the plan of attack with Jason to get his buy in. Strategy agreed and boat booked, we settled down to carbo- load, sort out gear and relax.
Day 1: Gars Bheinn to Coire a’ Ghrunnda, including the Dubhs
The following day dawned as expected and after a good breakfast we made a leisurely trip round to Elgol in good time, boarded the boat and were treated to the sight of harbour seals on the way in to what is a real wilderness paradise. The ridge was crested in a little over two hours and after a brief lunch stop we made our leisurely way along the relatively straightforward section to Sgurr Nan Eag and down to the Bealach above Coire a’ Ghrunnda. Packs were ditched at An Casteal and we took the ‘Hyslop’ traverse line across to Sgurr Dubh Mor, but not before I managed to twist my ankle painfully whilst walking round on a flat slab ! The traverse to S-D-M was a lot more straightforward than it looked from a distance. Some slightly more tricky scrambling saw us on the summit, and then we took the usual line back to Sgurr Dubh an Da Bheinn, followed by a bit of down scrambling back to the bealach … and my only negative experience of the whole trip. Some a***hole had rifled the outer pockets of my rucksack and stolen all my snack food, in doing so they had taken the map out and left it by the sack – on a windier day it would have gone ! Fortunately, I had stowed my day two food deep in my sack, otherwise my traverse would have been jeopardy - the fact that a fellow climber/walker would do such a thing left a really sour taste through to the next day, as I suspiciously eyed up other traverse parties who had also bivied.
Thieves and ankle aside, day 1 had been accomplished according to plan and we set up a comfortable bivi at the end of the lochan, tucked into our dinner and surveyed some incredible views as the sun gradually set in the west.
Day 2: Coire a’ Ghrunnda to Inn Pinn
The alarm went off alpine style at 4.45 am but I was already awake. The bivi had been fine but I’m not a great sleeper at the best of times and this time, the excitement & anticipation meant that deep sleep was not an option ! Despite the early rise it was still 6am by the time we set off, having breakfasted on porridge, stowed our bivi kit, filled our water with two litres and bandaged the ankle I managed to twist the day before. The Dubhs having been ticked the night before, we took a diagonal line onto the ridge and headed straight for the TD gap, reached after a straightforward but very exposed little climb, but would there be a queue ?? To our great satisfaction we were the first there - the strategy was working ! The abseil down into the gap was quickly followed by a squirming, thrutching struggle up a very polished off width well above my gear until I made the horizontal break and struggled up to a rest above it and clipped the in-situ ‘friend’ – phew ! The rest of the climb was less eventful and I was just topping out when the next party – a threesome we had passed dashing out to the ridge start the previous evening – arrived at the gap. Jason thrutched up after me and there it was – one very big tick on the Traverse list ! After a bit of banter with the following party, revolving mainly around the fact that 5 out of the 6 of use were wearing La Sportiva Trango Alp boots, making us look like an advert for La Sportiva (and giving them the nickname of the ‘Trangos’ used hereafter) the short scramble to the top of Alasdair was quickly despatched, meeting a party along the way who had skirted the gap (hereafter called the ‘avoiders’) and the equally short scramble onto the summit of Thearlaich accomplished.
The descent off Thearlaich was one of my less glorious moments – having already decided we would ‘ab’ the tricky bit, I didn’t descend to the right off the summit plateau as the guide sugested, spotted some ab tat, went for it … and we ended up making two abseils instead of one ! Nonetheless, we stood at the bottom of Kings Chimney on our own, the avoiders having opted for Collies ledge instead and the trangos still behind us. Kings chimney was despatched with some enjoyment – it is a really nice climb, through the traverse might be interesting in the wet. The trangos appeared again as I neared the top, but decided to go for the ledge option. Shortly after, Thearlaich summit was ticked off and we headed towards An Stac which we by-passed on the screes on the left as planned, to get to the Inn Pinn.
We approached the Inn Pinn with some trepidation, expecting it to be really busy. I had 3 possible ascent routes lined up to avoid the queues, but as we approached we could see the avoiders on top just abbing off, the trangos just starting the climb ..and no-one else, yeah ! I approached the bottom of the climb just as the trangos headed to the top, I roped up quickly and took Jason up alpine style. This is a lovely climb, really easy steps with only one slightly awkward move off the side onto the ridge, but with loads of exposure. On the top, Jason had a big smile on his face, having tried to do the ‘pinn’ in 2005 and been foiled by the weather. We waved at the other crews having a break as we prepared to ‘ab’ off, then they set off and we didn’t see either party again except in the distance.
Inn Pinn to Bidein:
We had a short break and sandwich ourselves before steeling ourselves for the so called ‘mind numbing’ central section. Banadich was summited competently, avoiding the many false summits, but I made a bit of a mess of getting to Thormaid, following Hyslop’s guide too literally and getting too low, resulting in an unpleasant scramble across scree and a nervy traverse across a narrow ledge to get back on track. This is now the second time I've missed the correct route, though having read a Moran blog recently where even the master struggled, it seems to be tricky to get right. Having messed up the approach, the ascent of Thormaid itself was accomplished smoothly by tackling it head on and the teeth by-passed easily enough to a bealach before starting the ascent of Sgurr a Ghreadaidh, easyish scrambling to the south top followed by the easy but very airy knife edge to the north, true top at which point were directly overtaken for the only time in the day by a pair moving quickly, though even they were complaining of tiredness. The wart soon after was by-passed and An Dorus reached after a short gash in between called Eag Dubh.
The following section was known territory having recc'ed it the previous year; Mheadaidh itself being quite easy but the 3 tops offering considerably more of a climbing/scrambling challenge. But, armed with beta they were dispatched competently and without use of the rope – Jason taking the lead on the first top. The key to the top is to traverse right as the guide states but not too far, maybe 20 metres ? In good conditions it is fairly to spot. The 3 tops of Bidein Druim nan Ramh followed soon after - all sans rope, the first top despatched via the basalt staircases and the second tackled direct up a scoop – which looks very tricky from a distance but is ok close up – after a tricky descent / traverse across slabs into the gap. This is followed by a chimney then a brief scramble. The third top was also climbed direct and the descent to Bealach na Glaich mor accomplished much more proficiently than previously by staying near the crest and avoiding the temptation to drop off to the right to early.
Bidein to Bruache na Frithe:
The following section was new territory and in my head was a fairly easy section up to Bruache na Frithe – a major underestimation ! The scrambling was never hard, just more hard work & longer than expected, with a couple of major gaps to be crossed - one in particular being an exposed jump -and a couple of route choice errors which saw us at one point on a ledge looking across a gap to where we should have been. A short reverse later and we got to what looked like a horrendous down climb with some ab tat round a rock. The ab choice was quickly taken, though after we got down we could see that the down climb was not nearly so bad and the guide specifically recommends against the abseil on time grounds – tired decision making ! The summit of Bruache na Frithe was finally made and with time no longer on our side, was quickly followed by the easy walk to the base of the Tooth.
Bhasteir tooth and Am Bhasteir:
Naismith’s looked intimidating from a distance but I was happy to give it a go, especially once I saw it close up. Jason however, decided that enough was enough and he didn’t fancy a Severe climb in big boots at this late stage. This was a team effort, so I agreed we could take the easier Collie's route. However, finding it was not easy - the Hyslop guide is not really helpful here as it is much further down than one might expect, though Mike Lates very useful 'Tips for Success' is on the money as I discovered when reading it again afterwards. After wandering around for 20 mins, we nearly started up a wall which looked far less inviting to me than Naismiths! However, before committing, we checked (a lot) further down and found it – a fairly easy ‘mod’ onto and up a ramp, until we arrived at a dead end and an overhanging boulder problem. I assume we had missed the ‘basalt chimney’ somewhere along the way, but after a pitiful attempt to 'send' the problem, a short reverse down the ramp got us to a bit of wall which looked climbable so up we went, onto the crest once more then a final short wall and onto the summit of Am Bhasteir.
Final push to Gilean:
It was after 9pm now, so with the briefest of exchanges with a couple of South Wales lads who were coming back as they had missed the tooth by traversing round, we headed swiftly down to the Bealach. I finished the last of my fluid at this point so I dumped my bag, Jason keeping his in case we need the rope and we headed off up Gilean, following the guide and climbing up a basalt chimney which had a lovey ab point to avoid a potentially tricky downclimb, headed back to the crest, threaded the needle and were shortly after on the summit of our last top – and success !! With time now really pressing, there was just time to briefly absorb the moment, drink in the incredible views, grab a quick photo, send the obligatory txt and then head off down bearing in mind the old adage that 80% of accidents happen in descent. Knowing how tired we were, we descended with care, passing the South Waliens again, heading up to the summit of Gilean now.
Impromptu Rescue & Descent:
We arrived at the down climb and tired as we were, opted for the abseil option, but as I went to set up I heard a small voice say ‘Hi, are you doing the traverse ?’ I answered ‘Yes’ , despite not seeing anyone and the voice quickly replied ‘I’m stuck, can you help me please ?’ I struggled to see the source at first but then spotted a young female head popping up between two pillars to my left. It seems she had climbed up, gone a bit off route and then lost her nerve and was unable to go up or down ! After a bit of a conflab, I discovered she had no harness or rope although her mate 50m below helpfully volunteered that she had a harness – after 17 hours on the go, she got a fairly straight answer - ‘It’s not a lot of good down there, is it ?!’ The young lady said she was happy to downclimb with the security of the rope and could tie a figure-8, so I secured myself, threw her the rope, oversaw her tying in and then kept tension on the rope as she descended. Once down she untied, shouted a quick thank-you and then dashed off with her mate, probably embarrassed that she might have to face us again ! So, just us to abseil down now retrieve the rope and make a dash for home then ? No ! During the rescue, the waliens had re-appeared and asked very nicely if they could use our rope to abseil down – Argh ! Despite supreme weariness and a desperation to start going down in daylight, I did the ‘nice’ thing and agreed, resulting in it being after 10pm when we finally made it back to the bealach and my sack to begin the 3 hour descent. Apart from hydrating at the first stream and falling over and twisting my ankle on flat ground again (!), this passed in a blur of tiredness bordering on mild hallucination, until we finally reached the van at 1.15am, exhausted but with a deep down sense of satisfaction !
Really useful sources of help & info:
These were my key sources.
Rockfax Mini Guide to the traverse by Andy Hyslop. www.rockfax.com
The Cuillin Ridge: tips for success by Mike Lates. www.skyeguides.co.uk
Harvey Map of the Cuillin.
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