UKC

Does anyone know whether Lochnagar has any cosmetic whiteness?
Forecasts have suggested more chance the further east I think....
Or Beinn a'Bhuird?

In reply to Robert Durran: http://saisscairngorms.blogspot.co.uk/

I think for Sunday it will be a good option.

In reply to Robert Durran: I'll drink to that

In reply to Robert Durran: I'm optimisitc about sunday! As long as the turf freezes hard, which presumably it's been doing over the last day or two and will be doing tomorrow, then a dusting tomorrow should set the mixed routes up nicely! Fingers crossed as always....

In reply to MrRiley: Exposed ground looked to remain frozen all day on the higher ski slopes on the Cairngorm webcam, Lecht too. As you say, continued drop in temperature tomorrow and Saturday night, coupled with dusting should give us some belting conditions on Sunday - and of course the sunny and -5 degree forecast thrown in too!

Hope to see you guys in the 'Gar Sunday!

In reply to Lamb:

Indeed, lets hope so......
......and maybe I'll have Beinn a'Bhuird to myself again!

In reply to Lamb: Absolutely cracking forecast, can't wait! See you in there!

In reply to Lamb:

Well that didn't really work out as planned! Full on gnarl though, and winter definitely back.....

And is Quick Dash Crack the hardest IV in the world?

In reply to Robert Durran:
Gnarl on Anoch Mhor, too!

In reply to Heike:

Tell us about the gnarl please.

In reply to Jamie Bankhead: Ok, maybe I am exaggerating, but it was quite snowy (in a damp sort of a way) and windy with loads of fresh snow - tons more then yesterday judging from the pics. Fortunately it was a bit sheltered at the crag. My climbing partner Neil was wearing goggles on pitch one...so must have been gnarly...

In reply to Heike:

How high did the damp go? What route? Yesterday was quite light cover, which made for great mixed conditions.

In reply to Heike:

The forecast said there would be gnarl in the west. It also said there would be a gap between yesterday's gnarl in the east and today's gnarl in the west moving east. There wasn't. And I had to hang on the rope seconding a grade IV. I am rubbish.

In reply to Jamie Bankhead: It was around zero, crag frozen, but somehow the falling snow was very wet, I was soaked after pitch one (but then I did a lot of swimming..) We were on Hurricane arete...

In reply to Robert Durran:

Punter You can show us how it's done in Ratho this week to make up for it....

In reply to Heike:

When it's snowing early doors on the A82, the Cobbler is what you want to do!!

Fantastic nick, powder, hoar, frozen turf, snowing steadily all day, with little wind.

My lengthy wait for 'acceptable conditions', were granted today! Right Angled Groove, done.

Had originally intended to go to SCnL.

Stuart

In reply to Robert Durran: Ah, so you elected for Lochnagar! Didn't think weather was too bad? Just clagged in and light snow? Maybe we were sheltered a bit more from any spindrift over on the Southern Sector.
But aye good conditions today, turf was good and pretty much a perfect amount of rime.
Yes! Did Quick Dash Crack at the start of last season and got a shock! I thought the tower up top was harder than the pull over the chock stone roof lower down? Very balancy up on the tower for a IV I thought. Good day?

In reply to Heike:

Yes.


But that doesn't really count does it?

In reply to Lamb:

I suspect so.


Did we do the same line? I did avoid a roof thing low down on the left. The second pitch had a desperate (for me!) strenuous section with a bulging crack. There was a balancy little wall higher up, but not too difficult (normal IV!). The crux seemed suspiciously similar to the hard bit described for Sunset Buttress Direct in the Logbooks.

In reply to Robert Durran: Hmm, don't think so, Quick Dash Crack climbs the deep groove up to the obvious chock stone on the left of the buttress, you then pull over the chock stone and mount it 'a cheval', above this you climb a tower with a wide crack. If you've avoided the chockstone then you've probably climbed the line just to its right.

In reply to Lamb:

I did look round to the left and there looked an easier line leading back rightwards which I took to be Sunset Buttress. After starting up turfy grooves (avoiding a steepening/overhang on by going round it on the left) we moved left and up to the bulging crack (old peg down right of crack). V,7 would seem realistic (though, as I said, I am rubbish!). Good route though.

In reply to Heike:


I wouldn't say gnarly for Glen Clova yesterday, but damp sounds about right. All the burns in Winter Corrie were running. The turf was mostly soggy. It was misty and breezy, and it snowed most of the day (it was beginning to build up around dusk).

Basically, it's not cold enough. It's coming, though. We enjoyed Wildcat Wall even in the mush, and weren't sorry we had changed plan and hadn't gone to that monster walk-in in the Grey Corries... I loved seconding the overhanging corner crux with a pair of leashless Fusions borrowed from Henning. Wildcat Wall is a very strange route-- lots of heather-bumbling, then suddenly a brilliant but regrettably short piece of technical mixed, then more heather-bumbling.

In reply to Robert Durran: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8027420@N04/3164405874/in/photostream/

Quick Dash Crack is the obvious chock stone on the top left of the picture there, if that makes any sense? I think the debated crux part of Sunset Buttress has an old peg in the crack.

In reply to Robert Durran:
Solid turf and excellent conditions on the Stuic yesterday, a wonderfully quiet and desolate spot. Hard to beat this area of the Cairngorms in winter.

In reply to Lamb:

That is what I took to be Sunset Buttress (as the photo caption agrees!) We started about 10m further right and climbed the nasty flared pod/crack towards the top right of picture. So we did climb totally different lines. Not convinced that your one was Quick Dash Crack though!

In reply to Drexciyan:

Sounds like you had a good day Dan! Not been but have heard others say good things about it.

In reply to Robert Durran: Aye, definitely is, it is the leftmost line on the buttress, obvious when you are underneath it, you start at the bottom of Iffy, it's a good wee route, worth a look on a short day.

Just looked at the photo again, think you've climbed a new line then, looks good, worthwhile logging?

In reply to Robert Durran:
When we were gearing up it was so cold with spindrift getting into everything that I was doing my 'I might give up winter climbing' routine.
By the end of the day after some fun climbing, belaying on the summit at dusk with calmer weather and crisp views, it was all smiles and renewed enthusiasm - such is the winter game!

In reply to Lamb:

The line we took seemed obvious from the guidebook too - only the grade was wrong! How do you know that you are right? Have you looked up Sunset Buttress Direct in the logbook on here? Our bulging crack had a peg plus Krab at its base and an in situ bulldog with quickdraw and a sling with a krab just below it, so othere have been (or possibly rather not been!) that way.

In reply to Drexciyan:

I do that routine every time my alarm goes off on a winter climbing day!

In reply to Robert Durran:

Ask Simon Richardson - he'll know.

In reply to Robert Durran: I've climbed on the buttress myself on a good clear day, so know the layout. Quick Dash Crack is the leftmost route on the buttress, literally starts within the gully of Iffy, the gully on the left side of the picture. It follows the groove up to the obvious chock stone in the top left of the picture. The groove is hidden in the picture as it starts round at the base of the gully. The route then tackles the high tower up top that you can see in the photo.
What you were on is to the right of all this, so sounds like you have actually climbed a route to the right of the start of Sunset Buttress.The Sunset Buttress route climbed by John Workman, takes the right trending ramp to the pod/crack, then steps left into the niche to avoid the pod/crack which you climbed. So sounds like you took a different approach, further to the right of Sunset Buttress initial ramp, to the pod/crack (described sickle shaped crack in guidebook), then climbed the pod/crack direct. Others have inadvertantly, while on the true Sunset Buttress line, climbed the pod/sickle crack direct instead of stepping left, this is where the "Sunset Buttress Direct" route seems to come from.
So I am pretty sure you climbed a new line which incorporates the 'direct crack'.

In reply to Lamb:
>The Sunset Buttress route climbed by John Workman, takes the right trending ramp to the pod/crack, then steps left into the niche to avoid the pod/crack which you climbed. So sounds like you took a different approach, further to the right of Sunset Buttress initial ramp, to the pod/crack (described sickle shaped crack in guidebook), then climbed the pod/crack direct.

Looking at the photo again, it is possible we climbed Sunset Buttress then, with a start further right. Hard to tell from a different perspective. Way harder than grade III though!

In reply to Robert Durran: I will try and make a point of climbing the so called 'Sunset Buttress Direct' at some point this season to see what deal is with it, seems to be a bit of confusion anyway! You reckon the pod/sickle crack is about 7?

In reply to Lamb:

What we did seemed like 7! It was above a prominent protruding block with in situ bulldog just above it. A bit left then a bit right to a peg, then a step left and up the bulging crack. Have fun!