powered by rockclimber.org

Entries tagged with 'category:winter-climbing'

Spring heat

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-04-02 | Reads 22 (cached version)

Ben Nevis, Good Friday morning!
First, wild snow storms with scary bangs and clatters outside in the blizzard all night, then glorious roasting hot sun. More of this please! Yesterday Donald and I trudged into Stob Coire nan Lochan to look at a hard overhanging new line. But after an hour or so probing about overhanging blankness I could see I was extremely unlikely to gain any more height, so we scooted across the Coire for a fairly chilled ascent of Unicorn. As I brought Donald up the first pitch, a 10 minute glimmer of spring sunshine was enough to start the rime falling from above us. I climbed the third pitch to the big ledges but and we abseiled down, both talking about the end of the winter feeling near and talking about rock climbing objectives for the coming months.


Unicorn looking in fine condition before the afternoon sun got going!



Donald only a few moves up pitch 2 of Unicorn and already having fun



Looking down pitch 3 on Donald

This morning I was off to the cave to meet Pete and John for sessions in the steepness. The morning started off dousing my car in antifreeze to free it from the grip of the deep morning frost. But arriving at the cave it couldn’t have been more different, and the sunbathing:bouldering ratio approached 1:1. Got the long link project ‘in two’ though and I’ll be going in for the kill on this next week no doubt. For a couple of brief moments today I felt like I was remembering how to climb rock.
On the way back through Glenfinnan I took a detour to have a dangle about on a hard slab project Donald had tipped me off about. The moves were done on this. But a lead might take a bit of soul searching for me. A very tenuous and committing crux about 35 foot above a tussocky landing. Either a very serious E8 7a or could be edging into E9. Cant imagine it right now, but perhaps after some more focused work it’ll feel more possible.

Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, category:scottish-bouldering, media:image

Tempest in a teacup

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-03-08 | Reads 27 (cached version)
The Tempest, onsight. All photos: Steven Gordon. More photos on Steven’s blog

About 9 years ago I was struggling my way up Crest Route in Glen Coe. Stopping to fiddle with gear in iced up cracks and shiver on belays, I was transfixed my the sight across the Coire on Summit Buttress. I was watching Neil Gresham toprope practicing what was to become The Tempest M9. It looked amazing seeing him in the distance swinging from hook to hook, dangling about working moves before lowering down to the comfort of a belay jacket.
Shortly afterwards Neil’s redpoint lead on pre-placed gear was announced. As is normal for doing anything that stands out in Scottish winter climbing, he was in the firing line of some serious flak for the style of ascent. But Neil had the courage not only to do the ascent, but to defend his own vision that for world class standard winter routes to get done in Scotland, this would the style that would bring them. 

Predictions on the future of climbing never quite work out. As it happened, the standard of winter routes in Scotland rose by a good bit in the intervening nine years without redpointing, although by climbers gaining their fitness with plenty of redpointing in other disciplines. And it rose firmly holding onto it’s place as the home of many of the hardest mixed climbs on the planet. While the redpointed routes of Haston and Bubu’s era were repeated often, graduates of M12 and M13 redpoint would still find Scottish IX ground up a considerably harder proposition.
So things move on. And the obvious challenge was to make at attempt at The Tempest in more traditional style. Along comes Andy Turner, with lats that eclipse the low winter sun and the kind of confidence of a trad leader up to the job. The big problem with the Tempest though, was the rotting fixed gear left behind by the redpoint action years earlier. Andy was forced to abseil down and remove as much of the melted in wires as he could. Then, after a couple of sessions wandering about on the open wall, fiddling in wires in verglassy cracks, he committed to the thin overhanging ice finish, heart in mouth no doubt and took the tempest a step closer to the grade X,9 that Neil projected for an onsight ascent.
After Andy broke down the aura of going on the wall without working moves, and proved it was possible to place the gear on lead. I was pretty keen, no, desperate to go for an onsight attempt. And so I set off, washing vast quantities of rime off the wall with my hands to excavate the crack underneath.
After 2.5 hours, I was 6 metres from the top, but had run out of gear. I’d managed to take plenty of gear I didn’t need and not nearly enough of what I did. I didn’t fancy a major peel from the final moves without gear but was desperate not to lose the onsight either. Solution? Downclimb the whole thing taking the gear back out and come back after a rest. A day later I was stuck for a partner but an emergency Tweet and gracious response from Iain set me up with Matt and Nic to finish the job. After the alpine sun of the last month, it was Scottish business as usual, getting lost in the Coire for an hour just trying to find the route through the mist and snow. Various rubbish wires were found underneath the ice smear, as I waited for the constant dousing in spindrift avalanches to let up for just a bloody minute and allow me to gasp through the final moves.
A fantastic battle, the greatest winter of the century rolls on...


Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, category:glen-coe, media:image

Anubis FWA

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-02-26 | Reads 23 (cached version)

The Comb showing the line of Anubis, on the day of the ascent
Quite unexpectedly, I managed to complete my long term ambition to make the first winter ascent of my own summer E8, Anubis on Ben Nevis. The number of hours to finish the lead might just be countable on one hand, and completely exhausted me for the following three days. In other words, I completely went for it.


Starting up the initial overhang Photo: Christina Bell
It seems to contradict reason, but it seems clear to from my experience that there are many different states of mind which seem to work well for bringing out the best (or should it be worst?) in climbers for hard leads. ‘confident and solid’ is most consistent, but suffers often from nerves and fear of failure. ‘Invincible’ can produce moments of sickening boldness/recklessness, but always makes for a short career in climbing. ‘Angry’ is only really good for pull-ups. Climbing is too delicate for it’s unchannelled release of energy. ‘F**k it, what have I got to lose?’ was where I was at on the crux of Anubis. Life is too short for caution when you are on the right route, at the right time. So I dispensed with caution.
A small gear ripping fall on the initial wall leading to the main roof helped a lot to relax the body. I had been needing that for about two or three seasons. I started again. This time climbing like I wanted to get higher. 


Crossing the crux roof Photo: Christina Bell
Several hours later, with nothing left in my arms, my feet slipped off again on the final headwall, well out from the last gear. I had the eyeball bulge of a leader with three seconds to find a solution or fall. A footless speed-downclimb of about 8 moves and kung foo kick back onto the footledge under the roof saved one more chance to get to the belay. Christina burst out laughing at the sight of it. I laughed as well, after a minute or two. 
Next time up was my last strength, so I got there. I pulled through my 70 metre ropes, tied them together and kept going up the comb in a 140 metre pitch, before untying and continuing up the ice grooves, and eventually standing in the quiet of the summit by myself for a few minutes.
Grade in winter? No idea. I’ll have a think about it. I haven’t ever tried or done anything harder in winter. I guess there are worse chores than grading your hardest route. The route started as an idea to see if it was possible today to maintain the Victorian mountaineering tradition of opening a new climb in summer conditions, and progressing to an ascent in winter. Great that it’s still every bit as possible as it was a century ago.



The highpoint of my 2nd attempt, the other week Photo: Andy Turner

Anubis in summer E8 mode Photo: Cubby Images


Postscript: Just before I posted this up I read a timely post on Ian Parnell’s blog with a full list of all the routes of grade IX and above. I can’t say it really helped that much for making a wild and disclaimer-ridden stab at a grade for Anubis. But what did stand out was the consistency of routes which are often reasonably protected HVSs working out at IX in winter. There are of course some E2s and up to about E4s that have been done as winter mixed routes, generally where the cruxes involve cracks. Anubis, although dramatically harder at E8 does have a useful short crack at the crux, but then a section of E5 6a face climbing on small crimps. Bla bla… the long and short of it is I do think it’s a significant step up from any of the routes I’ve done. The crux is not much harder than Don’t Die, but then the rest is like stringing three of the IXs on Ian’s list together. So maybe it’s XII if my other two routes are really XI. Or if The Hurting and Don’t Die are really grade X then Anubis might make it into XI. I’ll keep thinking about it...

Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, category:anubis, category:ben-nevis, media:image

Ben Udlaidh with Turner

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-02-26 | Reads 15 (cached version)
Andy moves underneath the steepness above while Lucasz dangles with his camera.
Feeling completely whacked after Anubis day, I stumbled into Ben Udlaidh behind Andy Turner to follow him up roofs and hanging icicles on the lower tier of Ben Udlaidh. The line he’s spotted was a lot better than I remembered the lower tier with lots of steep ice and interesting overhanging corners and roofs. I awoke from my duvet jacket cave to hear Andy battering a hole in the final icicle to pull through. The ropes ran out and I followed in a state of semi slumber, letting out small moans every time I had to lift my arms above my head. Thankfully there was time for about five cups of tea in the Bridge of Orchy before I met Claire for our trip to Glasgow.

Andy starting up the new line (unamed as yet) VII,7


Sums up winter climbing in Scotland over the past month “hold my sunnies, I’m off up this unclimbed icicle”.

Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, media:image

Marshall Smith challenge success!

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-02-13 | Reads 10 (cached version)

Today, Diff and I are stationed in my house drinking vast quantities of tea, piling through an entire box of shortbread and generally recovering from the Smith Marshall week. We managed to do it, film it, photograph it and enjoy every minute of it.
Yesterday we left the CIC hut at 8ish and made a morning ascent of Orion Face Direct in glorious conditions to finish off, and top of the seven Ben Nevis routes. That left the sting in the tail - the Grey Corries traverse. It’s a big walk but not a big deal on it’s own. It was Smith and Marshall’s rest day from the climbs. However, after topping out on Orion Face and starting it for the afternoon itinerary, it started to feel a bit more uphill by the time we were floundering in deep snow up to Aonach Beag.
Several peaks later, glycogen ran out and autopilot and mars bars kept us plodding along the snow arete in the dark to Stob Coire Claurigh and the final jog down it’s long open plateau towards the lights of Spean Bridge. Our water supply had run out way back at Aonach Beag so I was hallucinating about a huge glass of orange and lemonade in the Commando Bar in Spean. It took two pints of the stuff before I could face a sip of celebratory beer.
Anyhow, I need to go back to preparing video and pictures of the week for our show at the Fort William Mountain Festival on Sunday night. Hopefully see you there for a good night of ice climbing inspiration.



Pristine ice grooves on Orion Face Direct




Moving out on a thin Smith’s Route







Donald - a man who can take a cameraman where few have gone before




Climbing into a deep blue sky - Point 5 Gully on Wednesday




Andy learning to cut steps



Glad to be standing on the last summit of the Grey Corries after traversing them after Orion Face

Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, category:ben-nevis, media:image, media:video, media:youtube

Observatory Buttress & Smiths

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-02-10 | Reads 10 (cached version)
Minus 3 Gully - Photo Paul Diffley/Hotaches
This is a two minute blog… I’m due to leave three minutes ago to head back up the allt a mhullin for a rendezvous at the hut 7.30am to head into Point 5 Gully. Neither Andy or myself have done it before and it looks in good condition. Which will make a nice change from yesterday’s thin ice on Smiths Route and Observatory Buttress, complete with pretend ice screws in much and wherever there was solid ice it broke off in huge dinner plates, giving the film team of Guy in the gully below a bombing.

Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, media:image, media:video, media:youtube

Marshall-Smith week starts tomorrow

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-02-05 | Reads 11 (cached version)

This is a quick post as I’m getting up in 5 hours to carry an uber load up the Ben to start the Smith Marshall week re-enactment. We just came from a team meeting and the list of improbable things to be done in the next seven days is quite staggering. Donald and Paul will be starting the days by going to the plateau and rigging/abseiling the faces to get in position. No support team, just them carrying the all the ropes and camera equipment. 
Tomorrow we are headed for The Great Chimney. The forecast is getting better all the time for the week, but heavy rain tonight and an unfortunate wind direction will be loading the faces with several of the routes and they could be a bit too dangerous to approach for a while? We’ll have to see how things go. Hey, noone said it would be easy.
If you want to follow how we get on I’ll be tweeting from wherever I can get a signal on the mountain. My twitter feed is here. I’ll also try and get some blogs out and let you know when the first youtube clips come scooting down from the editing suite in the CIC hut. 
But of course the best place to catch up with the week of climbs will be next Sunday night at the festival with Jimmy Marshall, myself and Andy and the footage we get. See you there, an please excuse us if we seem a little fatigued.


Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, category:ben-nevis, media:image

Big Days

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-02-05 | Reads 13 (cached version)


Two big days in winter just gone. First up I made about 4 metres of progress on my project. Doesn’t sound much, but with it being 4 metres of roof, it’s a pretty crucial 4 metres!
I went back and forth about twenty times trying to find a way to move off a long undercut stretch. I sussed the method on my ‘last go’ and committed myself. Shortly afterwards I found myself hanging at the lip, both hands on one tool, feet dangling staring out a wire I was too pumped to clip. About a minute of desperately trying to clip it with either hand from a locked off postion followed, then some dejected dangling and preparing for the big fall and swing, contemplating leaving my tool in the crack until my attempt. But a sketchy heelhook and last ditch strength had it clipped and one move more before a total arm failure.
Lowering off ecstatic. One minute of action on the roof and then failure with a new highpoint worth many a day on easier routes. Next time I want another 4 metres of progress. After that there is just another 15 metres of summer E5 to the belay.



Next day I was out on Meagaidh with Michael. We climbed a pretty cool 7 pitch line up the centre of Bellvue Buttress which went at around VI,7 or maybe a bit harder? I got a superb big wandering pitch up the slab below the huge roofs and Michael got a tough set of steep grooves with just enough turf and flakes to make it go. It dark and heavy snow we missed the descent at the left of the buttress and descended into the adjacent coire, which left us with a bit of an issue with retrieving our sacks, now well buried at the foot of the route. A long walk in the dark ensued, so I was feeling the fatigue a little for my coaching clinics at Ratho the following day. 
Motivation is well and truly set for the next attempt on the project. Next shot, I have to be more disciplined and carry less rack. I just don’t think I can climb such a hard piece of M-double figures ground up with a massive kilt of ironmongery.



Michael leads off on brittle ice, pitch 1



Michael gets stuck into the difficulties on pitch 3



Bellvue Buttress, Creag Meagaidh. Our route breaks out left from under the huge roof and up the steep grooved walls above, just left of the buttress crest.

Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, media:image

Last of the big freeze routes, for now

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-01-14 | Reads 21 (cached version)


On the first ascent of Dangerous Curves VII,8 today in Glen Coe

It’s been a good week - five new ice routes in Glen Coe in one week, and all superb quality. A rare set of circumstances in Scottish winter climbing when conditions, partners and time off work coincide. I can now get back to a massive backlog of work with the nice feeling of some memorable climbing done.

Today was another lie in till 7 and stroll up to the Lady Jane wall with Blair to look at the left hand overhanging groove. It had looked like by far the hardest project on the wall and potentially VIII or harder. As it turned out the ice and and a few opportunities to bridge were more useful than anticipated and the line went at a short but still pretty tough VII,8. 

Definitely feeling fitter and more confident in my movement over snow and ice right now and keen to get on something hard.





Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, media:image

Steve's pics from Glen Coe

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-01-13 | Reads 21 (cached version)

Steven Gordon sent through these pics from today in Glen Coe. It was good to have Steve’s company on the hill again today for the first time in a bit. Steve and I have had many good days in previous seasons while Steve was out taking pictures (and often holding my rope too!). A man with as many irons in the fire as Steve always makes a good blogger. He’s just started his occasional photojournalist blog with more pics of this and other recent outings in Scottish Winter. All these pics copyright Steven Gordon.









Blair



Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, media:image

Glen Coe - Ice Ice Ice!!!

Dave MacLeod Climbing 2010-01-13 | Reads 21 (cached version)


On the first ascent of Jane’s weep, Glen Coe

Last week with Donald I’d spied some desperate looking but amazing steep ice smears on the Lady Jane wall on Aonach Dubh in Glen Coe. Exactly how ice climbers dream of thin ice face routes could be - ice smears a few mms thick and occasional blobs running boldly up a wall, eventually gaining ever-thickening ice to finish on an overhanging pillar. And so today we had a bit of a desert island ice route day. First off Blair romped up a steep crack and ice pillar on the right side of the wall near Blast Off at VI, 7.




Then I looked at the smears running down the centre of the wall from Lady Jane. (a summer E2). Some bold and thin but excellent climbing eventually led to some good rock gear at half height and then the rest was pure enjoyment on perfect grade VI ice. I’m not sure whether it was VII, 8 or VIII, 8. But on reflection the crux seemed definitely harder and bold as Viva Glas Vegas which is VIII,7. I’ve always seen VIII as a ridiculously hard grade, but there a lot of steady VIIIs these days. It doesn’t matter in this case anyway. Perhaps it just scraped into VIII today, but another few mms of ice and it would be fine. 

Along with The Shroud on Ben Nevis I can’t think of a nicer ice route I’ve done anywhere.

With one more day before the atlantic strikes back with 8 degrees and pouring rain, we are back up tomorrow for more prospecting...




Blair going for it on his line



Dave MacLeod

My e-book How to Climb Hard trad is free with all DVD and book orders from the davemacleod.com webshop
lang:en, section:frontpage, category:winter-climbing, media:image

Older entries