UKC

After this recent dump of snow I was thinking about a trip over to the Lakes this weekend. I live in County Durham and there is still 6 inches lying pretty much everywhere here...
So does anybody know what Great End is looking like? If everything is still soft we''ll probably just go for a walk somewhere and maybe have a night on top of Scafel.

In reply to mikekeswick: Mike, think u need to go to spec savers http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?n=534874 great end conditions given for yesterday.

Cheers Dave

In reply to mikekeswick: Go to Blea Water. Its in great nick. I had a brilliant day there on sunday. Lots of easy ice to have a go at.

In reply to jimhall:

Don't go to Blea Water tomorrow unless you want to walk from Shap.

In reply to Exile: snowing like billio in Kendalvillage this pm

In reply to mikekeswick:

Probably best to stay away from north facing gulleys - the recent snow fall is unconsolidated and has fallen onto frozen ground / windslab / existing unconsolidated snow. Probably best to let it settle for a day or so.

In reply to parafinn:

massive thaw due tomorrow night

In reply to mikekeswick: just walked home from work and the road from ambleside to windermere is strewn with abandoned vehicles. lots of them. and its still snowing

In reply to mikekeswick: any body out on the fells tomorroow will probably swimming in the stuff unless you have skis or snow shoes...

In reply to Toreador:


+ 5 Deg due Sat night at Valley level - it could hold up.

In reply to boots: assuming they can get there in the first place!

In reply to heidi123: who cares...... we'll have the lakes to our selves...... :O)

In reply to boots: it's 4 inches here near Preston, I've sacked if tomorrow doubt I'll even get onto the motorway yet alone Keswick

In reply to heidi123:

Probably all those on the winter tyre thread who can drive fine on their summers in a few inches of snow....

In reply to A Game of Chance: like....

In reply to mikekeswick:
Still snowing here in Ambleside. Been snowing for a good twelves hours or so.
Lots of unconsilidated snow will be on the tops. Be careful out there tomorrow of you're heading out

i've been praying for snow all week and now there is just to much of it.... oh it's a cruel world

In reply to parafinn:

Normally I'd say 'I hope so'. But we're doing an overnight mountain marathon, and I think I'd marginally prefer rain to blizzards

In reply to Toreador:
Latest forecast says +8 in the valleys and heavy rain tonight, so might just be snow at the summits (though probably not).

In reply to mikekeswick:
Climbed Central gully right hand on Tuesday. Plenty of snow even then but not banked out so couple of steep sections especially upper ice patch. Overall harder than usual with couple of climbing sections.

In reply to mikekeswick:

Witnessed one and seen the immediate aftermath of two more avalanches in the Lakes today that's three avalanches in one day, all pretty big ones by Lakes standards too, one on Browncove Crags at the right hand side right of Two groves and two from the car on east side of Helm Crag one on the way in and a new one on the way out, also a small one next to the Swirl's crag near the path to Browncove Crags, so that's four take care folks!!!!!

In reply to Wesley Orvis: Raining, 6 degrees and thaw-tastic in Keswick now. Hope folks had a safe day, the blue skies made it look beautiful today, but I'm stuck at work. Think most things will be decimated by the weather pretty soon.

Conditions from today for anyone interested.

http://sam-marsland.blogspot.co.uk/

In reply to mikekeswick: Great full day on the skis around Raise bit breezy on the ridge, just got down before the rain.... Happy

In reply to mikekeswick:
Been raining since 3ish here in Ambleside. Feels much warmer out today too

In reply to Tom the tall:

Back to square one again. Though snow may have survived in some gullies (especially Helvellyn, the range looked to have suffered slightly less than elsewhere.

In reply to mikekeswick:

Went back to Browncove Crags today, not expecting much at all really, what a difference a day makes, no people, no sunshine, much more agressive wind, crags stripped, gullys in, looked like a completeley different place to yesterday, the rain and thaw last night has done quite a bit of bonding to the snowpack and with the re-freeze this afternoon we found conditions today much better for climbing than yesterday, only one other team out, we ascended the wide descent gully and descended Summer Step, too windy on top to go to the summit so we down climbed the ridge right of the gully, the ridge was nice crispy snow and frozen truf for the top half and more of a summer scramble for the bottom half so took crampons off half way down and climbed down summer style, all in all a great winter day and quite a contrast to yesterday, still a lot of snow has survived north facing but not a lot anywhere else, didn't see the east coves, whether any will survive by the end of the week will be anyones guess.

In reply to Toreador: Lots and lots of snow on East through North faces still above 550m. It was freezing at 650m today. Blea Water not worth a look - a huge avalanche came down Birkett's Gully last night and reached the lake. It took loads of rock and debris down too. Only the right hand icefalls were safely climbable today, although there's still lots of ice on Blea Water Gill and in the icefall.

In reply to mikekeswick:

Fresh snow on the eastern fells down to about 550m today!!!!