UKC

Has Oui Oui direct(the huge ice fall above oui oui) been lead? If so who was it and when?

How long do people think it would take, if these conditions contiue, to be safeish enough to climb?

In reply to Ally Baba:

It was melting like mad in the sun yesterday, despite -10c temperatures in the layby. I'd say we'd need some more snow and continued low temps with cloud cover to stop it melting during the day.

In reply to Ally Baba:

It's never been led. The problem is it forms a nest of icicles, quite climbable but often too hoolow for ice screws. It was led in 1986 using rock protection at the side until the chap got to the point where he was going to hit the ground. He then called for a top-rope, but was quite near the top. Some of his mates then top-roped it but no-one would lead. It hasn't formed solid enough to even try since then. Don't know what it's like now but it really needs to be thick, and there's possible too much water coming down it for it to be solid.

In reply to Andy Nisbet: It was thick yesterday, possibly do-able but hollow and, as you say, unlikely to be protectable. The scariest part looked to be stepping from the cone at the base onto the icicle proper. If you can manage that, there's a bit of the stance on the left after a few metres, to get yourself together.

A large part fell from the bottom later in the afternoon, and you could see it was hollow inside. Thankfully, that was enough to put Ally Baba off from giving it a go!

In reply to Garbh Coire:

In 1986 a subsidiary icefall formed to the left. The chap bridged up between it and the main icefall to reach the stance on the left. Here he got rock gear and then launched up the front until it became no longer safe. There was no sign of this secondary icefall last week. But it hasn't really been that cold, plenty of snow but not properly cold. In 1982 it was solid but it was minus 25 to minus 27 at night and only minus 20 during the day for 5 days. Sandy Allan and I walked round the icefall which was very thick but just no pro. So we went and climbed Elliot's Downfall instead, which was solid ice and so thick that you couldn't even see round the back. Oui-oui is much more serious!

In reply to Andy Nisbet: Apparently done by Scott Muir today: http://forums.scottishclimbs.com/index.php/topic,5826.msg40445/topicseen.ht...

In reply to Garbh Coire: impressive. I imagine that felt solid at the grade!

In reply to Ian Parnell: Actually not very solid at all

In reply to Garbh Coire:

Great stuff well done Scott!

In reply to Garbh Coire:
'Kin Hell thats a bawsy effort, well done!!!

In reply to Ally Baba:

Good effort Scott nice one !

Dan

In reply to Ally Baba:
well done scott. hope it gets cold again - this thaw is making me depressed

In reply to Garbh Coire: Good effort Scott! Would love to go up and do it now. Hopefully another big freeze will come again!!

In reply to Ally Baba: N1 Scot, put it up in the db, still hoping I'll get to climb the normal before it melts.

In reply to andymoin: On another topic anyone else see the dodgy looking photos of to many folk on it in the Scotsman?

In reply to andymoin:

Yes! What was that all about. Doesn't look like Oui Oui either. It just says 'climber on an icefall in the Cairngorms' I've seen similar pics of it in a couple of papers today. Bizarre!

In reply to iceicebaby: Why bizarre?

In reply to McCarver:
link?

In reply to Ally Baba:
I was soloing Oui Oui yesterday and thought I'd come back to do it today. Only found Scott already topped out. I took a good number of pictures. 4 of us were the only people on the icefall at the time. Show you the exclusive photos soon.
I went to the bottom of the pillar. It was absolutely soaking within minutes. More akin to gorge walking/climbing. If and only if the temperature drops again, it should dry things up a bit.

In reply to McCarver:

Just looked like a rather crowded icefall, that's all.

In reply to iceicebaby: Aye pretty sure it is oui oui, the dodgy bit I was referring to was the 5 folk climbing it at once. I'm just jealous I didn't get in there first with some photos tho...

In reply to Garbh Coire:

Nice to see Norrie's still posting somewhere.

In reply to andymoin:

you got ma text then? Shite eh? How was yesterday dude, did you get anything done at all after the Law incident? Ive got your boots here btw, you down a2 at all this week?

In reply to Craig Mc:

Agreed....I do miss his insights..always made me laugh.

In reply to Skinny Kin:
Main ice fall still formed though?

In reply to whispering nic:
Yes. It'd take good many warm days to take it all down.

In reply to andymoin:

Apparently, I was told by a couple on Steall icefall today that I was on the front page of Scotsman yesterday!

In reply to Skinny Kin: You were; two of my mates were on page 7. Being on belay duty, I (just) missed out on my 5 minutes of fame...

In reply to Ally Baba: Photos of the massed ascent are now on ukclimbing photo section if all those who weren't belaying out of sight are interested. On first or second page (maybe third by now) of the new this week section.

In reply to OMR: Should have been clearer - I meant the photos which appeared in all the papers.

In reply to andymoin: Aye it was oui oui. A was the one on the left. There was nothing dodgy about it, we were spaced out enough from each other.

In reply to Ally Baba:
Scott told me the pillar had fallen down. Is Oui Oui still there though?

In reply to Skinny Kin:
personally I think not considering its at less than 400 metres but I've only been driving about and keeping my eye on whats left and haven't actually been to craig dubh.