Ann's Birthday Outing

On Sat 14th a select band of AMC members tackled Lochnagar from the north. We had meant to be camping in Ullapool, but there was a forecast of cold wet weather and we've all got that T-shirt.

Target in sight

The woods of Ballochbuie were as attractive as ever as we made our ascent in pleasant sunny conditions. The path, with bridge swept away in the winter, gave easy access onto the Mounth. Now the weather decided to close in a bit and the strong NW wind was accompanied by fairly frequent snow showers. Due to a bit of Proper Planning we had this at our backs and were soon around the plateau and at the summit for first lunch.

On the Top

A quick descent via the North Top got us down to the Prince's Stone, an ideal sheltered venue for second lunch before heading back into the woods.

Ballochbuie woods

Then it was home for tea and medals, followed by the freshly-showered group re-convening for a BBQ.

New BBQ venue

Arran weekend - 29th April - 2nd May

Over the sea to Arran

Club members took advantage of the long weekend and fine weather and made the trip west to the beautiful isle of Arran. Walking and climbing, the activities of choice.

Evan and Kathryn

The Arran meet got off to a glorious weather start with groups off us wandering among the hills.

We wandered along babbling brooks.

Up the vale of Glen Rosa to explore all the nooks.

We continued on and upwards to get better outlooks.

When nigh up we spied oot climbers in brightly coloured smocks

Climbing among the rocks

We were obliged therefore to join them or be forsook

We had comfy belay points to admire the view and see what it took to get to the top

Caliban’s Creep – a fine VD with a tunnel and a chimney but no smoke.

Day 2 was a rather relaxed affair with a wander amongst some long thin rocks

Which we shared with some rather fine furry friends

Chris and Ed

Alas this bit is picture free, as the camera batteries were flat prior to setting off and it would be outrageous to expect mains electricity for charging this far West – Ed! The elected journey to Arran was via the north. Thursday night was spent out on the shore of Clainoig counting stars in the clear sky and drinking beer, awaiting the first ferry to Lochranza. Once on the island, it was down to push bikes to get around.

That afternoon we headed up to Cir Mhor and completed Prospero’s Prelude. The rock was in excellent condition, the sun was blazing and a light breeze ahoy to keep you cool.

That evening, while enjoying some local cuisine from Chinese take away – home bakes were being dished out, however for some this was too much, citing that “I’ve had my muffin for the day, and one is quite enough” and then proceeding headlong into a banana…

The next couple of days were spent shuttling back and forth from Cir Mhor, nuzzling around various climbs - Sou Wester Slabs and Prosperos Peril – but the less said about the latter the better... The wind was the biggest issue, with the ropes often rattling around the crags – which is slightly unnerving to say the least and put us off attempting the South Ridge! On the final afternoon, an attempt was made to grab a pint prior to dinner where additional entertainment was provided by the pub dog drinking any beers which weren’t closely guarded!

Over the couple of days, some excellent club grub was prepared and consumed – so many thanks to all who had a hand in the cooking. The final day for ourselves, comprised a tab up Goat’s Fell, cycle back over the Lochranza (which with the lightened packs was an opportunity to drop the chain onto the big ring and put a good turn of speed down) and finally 1 pint of ice cream between 2!

Denis, on a well earned summit

What shall we do on a Tuesday evening?

With the long light summer nights approaching, club members have been taking full advantage of the more clement weather conditions and have enjoyed trips to the local crags. As well as providing blog readers with a commentary of club activities, we aim to provide some literary variation. So, at the request of various club members (after a couple of pints in the Frigate last night...) the following post should be read as a shanty song, to the tune/rhythm of 'The drunken sailor.' Enjoy!

Stu deciding between 'All Quiet' and 'Waves', Romain on 'Big daddy'

The bottle-neck to get to the base of the crag

On Tuesday night we all went climbing,

It was warm and the sun was shining,

2nd trip of the year and we all were smiling,

At Deceptive wall.

Phil leading up (possibly) 'Fretted socket' and Yvonne just trying to get to the top!

12 of us in total made it down there,

The tide was out so we didn’t drown there,

The wind was low and the crag top views fair,

At Deceptive wall.

Romain and Cyril climbing some hard stuff

Romain and Cyril climbed some hard stuff,

Yvonne followed up and found it real tough,

Chis came next over the rock bluff,

At Deceptive Wall.

Stuart and Chris getting ready for another climb

Stu and Chris they climbed as a pair,

With Phil and Naomi, Jay and Blair,

Sarah came next warning Neil to take care,

At Deceptive wall.

Chris leading up 'Cormorant.'

Many routes achieved and the wall well conquered,

Sometimes skillfully but often blundered,

The sun went down and we all turned homeward,

At Deceptive wall.

The only way is up for the two Chris'

Romain, on belay.

Climbing, Beinn A'Bhuird last Sunday

Myself and Drew decided to go out and try Beinn A'Bhuird last weekend. We were a little concerned that our fingers might freeze and fall off. As it turned out, the buttresses were in very Alpine condition with the sun gently warning up the granite. We decided to go for Mitre ridge.


The cycle in

Mitre Ridge
Drew up the first pitch: feeling quite tricky for the first rock climb of the year!

Drew up the final tower - fantastic exposure

The hike in is not that bad if you are ready to bike: ~2hrs bike in + 1.5hrs walk and only ~2hrs to get back to the car from the summit!
In all, a great day with stunning situations - would really recommend it.

Romain

Roy Bridge 8-10 April

The first camping meet of the year yielded a fine weekend of weather in the west. Several members enjoyed a couple of nights under canvas in advance of the arrival of the midges.

Denis provided the following summary of events...

A convivial weekend of glorious weather, the clouds burning off the tops, on a gondola-assisted ascent of the Aonachs.

The hard men: Biffa went bashing, and Austin a Nepalese-inspired trek over several Corbetts and Grahams.

Up the Aonachs, with Ben Nenis and Carn Mor Dearg behind

A delayed report...

…from the club meet to Ullapool a few weeks ago on the 18-20 March. Breezy but largely dry weather was taken advantage of for a full weekend in the hills of the northwest.

Sgurr an Fhidhleir nestled amongst its more rounded neighbours

Several of us enjoyed a fair bit of sunshine and a whole lot of wind up Ben More Coigach on the Saturday. We ascended via the entertaining ridge which leads up from the west, giving fine views of the Summer Isles way below.

Steve, finding the extreme in every situation

Even when taking photos

Or just standing still!

Working our way along the ridge

We continued round to Sgurr an Fhidhleir before dropping back down out of the wind at last and on to catch some of the rugby in the Summer Isles Hotel.Other groups went up neighbouring Beinn an Eion or further inland to Bein Dearg. 

Steve Miles draws attention to the next objective

Keeping low avoids the wind

We all assembled for a meal that evening in the Ceilidh Place where many an ale and whisky were sampled. The following morning revealed cloudy skies and perhaps one or two cloudy heads. With no cooking facilities at the associated bunkhouse, we were once again grateful for the cups of tea provided by Denis, Stuart and Juliette in their campervans, while we assessed our options for the day. 

Some folk headed off on a geological walk (guess who!), a few to the sandy lochan behind Stac Pollaidh and Cul Beag, two up Cul Mor, and three of us up Cul Beag itself. The clag fortunately restricted itself to the upper hundred metres or so, and the wind, while still enthusiastic, was less abrasive than the previous day. 

Bracing

On the descent of Cul Beag

A surprisingly approachable pair of ptarmigan provided the penultimate interest to the day, before Yvonne and Steve Miles’ misplaced steps through a rather soft bog nicely capped off an enjoyable weekend (well, for me as a spectator at least!).

Friendly ptarmigan

Female

Photos by Yvonne, Gunnar and Alex.

Out and ASpout Again

After a month of not getting into the hills, John and Ann were out on Sunday for a quick trip up Lochnagar. We arrived to find the Glen Muick car park possibly the quietest we've ever seen it - obviously hill goers are a thoughtful breed who were all taking their mums breakfast in bed. A pleasant sunny wander up the track was finished with a fine view of the joys to come.

Lochnagar, with Black Spout just R of centre

Given the forecast of high winds and possibly a couple of hours of snow we decided on the easy option of keeping our heads down by staying in the corrie as long as possible. Given the rim of dodgy looking cornices and lots of meltwater around we decided on a scoot up Black Spout, which would put us on the plateau very close to the summit. A good plan, but getting to the base was a tedious plod through deep soft snow over the boulder fields.

On the Approach

Entering the Spout. Note the avalanche tip that had come down Parallel A (which now has a stream down it)

The Spout itself was as entertaining as ever although the soft snow made it quite hard going. Things improved a bit higher up but too late as we were now getting into the wind, and it was snowing on and off. The transition from sheltered gully to exposed plateau was as brutal as ever and we scooted up to the summit for shelter and first lunch.

Negotiating the Cornice

After that it was a rapid descent by the Glas Allt waterfall and a return to spring with a pleasant walk back along the loch in a mix of warm sun and the odd sleet shower (and second lunch).