Scottish Winter Skills Course
My last Scottish Winter Skills Course of the season was with Sara and Charlie. They’d come all the way up from Pembrokeshire to spend a couple of days learning all the aspects of Scottish Winter Skills to keep themselves safe in the hills over the winter months. They were also kindly going to be mock clients for me for a couple of days climbing. I’m in the consolidation period working towards my MIC Assessment so these days out practising are really useful for me!
Our first day coincided with high winds so we opted for a tour of Coire Leis and Coire na Ciste looking at gaining solid movement skills, using the axe and crampons and a large amount of snow sense, avalanche awareness and emergency procedures. Lucky for us we had the key for the top car park so we had a long day practising lots of Scottish Winter Skills with minimal physical effort! The girls certainly had a great time sliding about in the snow, a far cry from the sea cliffs of Pembrokeshire!
Sara looking happy during this weeks Scottish Winter Skills Course
With the girls having learnt loads the previous day, and being confidant on their feet from lots of climbing experience, day 2 was to be the Carn Mor Dearg arête and up and over the Ben. Despite having the key for the upper car park the walk up to the ridge still seemed a long way! Along the way we looked at a fair bit of fauna and flora, and the difference in the snow conditions from the previous day. The arête was in perfect condition; snow, dry rock and windless… A really nice walk was had, but the view soon dissapeared once in the summit of the Ben! With a bit of navigation on the way down with the classic dog-leg bearing off the Ben, we wrapped up a thoroughly enjoyable day! Great effort from the team over a long day!
The team after the CMD arête during the Scottish Winter Skills Course
Over the 2 day Scottish Winter Skills Course the girls had a great snapshot of what’s needed to venture out on their own in the hills. It’s not something that you can go from zero to hero in over two days, but they took loads on board, seemed to absorb most of it, and I’m sure will be competent Winter Mountaineers in not time!
The next day was to be Sara and Charlie’s first taste of winter climbing. They had volunteered their services for me to practise on as guinea pigs as I work towards my MIC Assessment. Both of them being experienced summer climbers, they wanted a long day in the hills up a decent route. Our intended objective for the day was Golden Oldie on the West Face of Aonach Mor. Using the gondola on the Nevis Range ski area gives you quicker access to this 500m climb, but it’s still a long day out, and speed is of the essence to make the last lift down! We took the grade 3 direct start and after a couple of pitches gained the crest of the ridge. The girls certainly didn’t need a top rope on the easier grade 2 ground so I coached them both through their first winter leads.
On Golden Oldie, Aonach Mor
They both led a couple of pitches and when we gained the easier but exposed upper ridge, I short roped them to the summit, as we needed to get a shift on to make the gondola down! I was super impressed with their efforts, and we navigated to the ski area in a white out to make the gondola no problem! Phew!
For our last day, the girls were going to lead the whole way up Ledge Route on Carn Dearg. We wanted to be quick to avoid the high winds forecast for later in the day. With a mixture of pitching, moving together and short roping, the girls led the majority of the route in fine style. With the winds strengthening and lots of fresh snow being blown around, we arrived on the plateau and followed the tourist route down to a well earnt rest and a beer! A great 4 days were had, lots of new skills for the girls and great practise for me! Thanks Sara and Charlie!
On Ledge Route, Carn Dearg