UKC

Hi, just thinking about doing tower ridge on the ben on my own next week. Whats it like as a solo, especially in the wet? Experienced climber, mountaineer etc. Do I need a rope for the gap? Cheers

In reply to bomb:

Your profile suggest you'll be fine assuming you're missing the Douglas boulder. Soloing the douglas boulder in the wet is not likely to be a happy experience.

No rope required by the likes of yourself.

In reply to bomb:

Fine solo for experienced mountaineers. The gap isn't very big and you can climb in and out of it relativly easily.

Can be a bit slippery in the wet though, and there could be a bit of wet snow later next week - it's forecast to be a bit chilier again.

In reply to JLS:
Cheers was thinking about that but if its wet will probably give the db a miss

In reply to bomb:

If you can lead E3 then I agree with others that you won't need a rope, unless it starts pissing down and you decide you want to ab off.

What you might find useful is a giant sling (say 180cm). This has a very specific function that you'll see when you get to Tower Gap: if you don't like the short but exposed downclimb then you can stick your tat round the bollard and handrail off it into the Gap.

Of course, an E3 leader probably won't need to do that, either.

In reply to Tim Chappell:
What you might find useful is a giant sling (say 180cm).

I was there a few weeks ago and there was one there already so it's probably still there.

It's a great scramble, would highly recommend it, I've soloed it in the dry and used a rope in the wet but I'm a crap climber. There were no bits that were nasty and slippery in the wet.

In reply to Joe G:
'Sright, there usually is one in situ, but the Ben's a busy mountain where things do get moved-- and a sling of your own weighs nowt

In reply to Glen:

There was a fresh dusting of snow up there the other day according to a mate in FW.

In reply to JLS:
Is soloing the Douglas Boulder in the dry a happy experience? I've often wondered. I've also wondered why the gap instils such fear. It seemed a doddle to me after what preceded it.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

The slings round the block are pretty old now; I don't think they'll be lifted anytime soon, although I could always make an environmental/ethical statement....

In reply to Jamie B.:

If I need to use in situs like those, I always give them a good wrist-snap first.

In reply to digby:

>"Is soloing the Douglas Boulder in the dry a happy experience?"

It's not the sort of thing I think I'd enjoy but each to his own. Some people will tell you it's dead easy. I didn't enjoy it with ropes and a belayer.

In reply to digby:


There seems to be a fair bit of vagueness about where the DB routes go, and some scepticism about the grades. There is also a lot of loose rock, which I think caused a fatality a few years back. None of these things inspire soloing. I've done the SE Ridge in winter and can confirm that it'd have been an utter choss-heap in summer.

I still feel that the Gap is the crux of the ridge, for feeling of committment, exposure and the awkwardness of the moves down onto the pedestal. Which bits did you think were more full-on?

In reply to Tim Chappell:

They're pretty solid, but nobody'll be nicking them! They could definately make the difference between stepping down being justifiable or not so maybe carrying a 240cm sling as a back-up just in-case the tat-police have been out with the knives would be a good precaution.

In reply to Jamie B.: I'd say that the Chimney at the back of the DG Boulder and the climbing above the fallen block at the far end of the Eastern traverse is harder than the gap. The gap is just intimidating.

In reply to JLS:


No disrepect, but do you really have enough info to make this assertion? People on here have been repeatedly shown to put down all sorts of innacurate rubbish as their grades on their profiles, and there are plenty of sometime E3 leaders that would think better of soloing the Gap on a full-on day.

In reply to bomb:

I found myself guiding the ridge on successive days last week; one dry, one wet. I have to say that it is not a jot harder in the wet if you have good mountain boots; the holds are generally square edged and well-scratched.

In reply to Jamie B.:

The easy route up the front of DB does require a little care in route finding but is a straightforward diff. I've soloed it in the wet.

In reply to Jamie B.:

>"No disrepect, but do you really have enough info to make this assertion?"

<shakes heid in astonishment>

In reply to bomb:

I chickened out of Tower Ridge last week due to the wind and rain. The next day when I took a group up the Zig Zags being buffeted by wind I saw Jamie B summiting Tower Ridge with his client. As far as I am concerned (and having done a few days out with him), if he says it is no different in the wet then that is a fact.

In reply to Jamie B.:

hi jamie. when i did it with 2 pals in june, at the gap we climbed down left and it was a fairly easy piece of downclimbing. one of the holds as you set off looks split in two and one half is wobbly but apart from that it was easy.

i'd been that way the first time i did it (altho using slightly different holds i think) and altho i solo'd the rest of the ridge i did hold onto the tat briefly on the way down.

going left for me was a preferrable option to the blind slither down onto the platform, if you go straight up, which i tried and being a shorty couldnt complete without a cold sweat !

i would say the gap's challenge is only a mental one, rather than the climbing being hard. But the mental challenge is central to climbing too - if you cant conquer that, you arent going far, so.

i'd say the chimney out of the douglas gap is harder climbing, altho it eases as you go, and the wee overhanging wall a bit further up is a more awkward piece of climbing than the gap - there is a wee drop behind it, if i remember, but you're looking up so dont really notice it.

soloing that bit and slipping could have just as serious consequences as at the gap. in fact the drop on the opposite side from glover's chimney didnt look as intimidating as i'd remembered once i was down into the gap (not to underestimate it, though).

but hey, who cares, its a grandstand route and we wouldnt be discussing it if it didnt have such a range of qualities about it. is it the best diff in the country ?

cheers
ahunter

In reply to JLS:

If you know the guy I'll defer to your greater knowledge. I'm just a wee bit wary of encouraging folk that I don't know from Adam to solo big mountain routes that might freak them out or kill them.

In reply to andy hunter:


It's the best Diff in the World mate.

In reply to Jamie B.:

You're right mate. I'd forgotten all about my profile but saying you've led e3 means dick all when it comes to common sense. Thanks for the advice though everyone, sounds fine but ill camp up there sunday night and see what its like on monday (strong winds forecast) and if I'm not sure I'll do summut else, ledge route maybe. Just looking forward to getting out.
Ta.