A wee (big) video i made for y'all. HD/Full Screen it!!
August in the 'gorms
After exploring the pathless expanse of bog lying slightly above
the glenmore treeline (intentionally and without the aid of a map, of course..)
Marcus and I packed our camping gear and pitched ourselves at Ryvoan bothy.
Maell a Bhuachaille made a good evening's ride, with sections of the new path
providing steep steps and smooth gravel singletrack. The waterbars were a
perfectly 'hoppable' height compared with recent additions in the Cairngorms;
often closely spaced and distressingly high - extended lifespan,
plyometric trainer or dare i say it, mountain bike deterrent?! A quick dip in
the Green Loch was followed by far too much free bothy tea and an inevitable
4am bladder relief/midge slaughtering.
Swimming with the midges, leeches, and Marcus.
Creag Dub.
The imposing walls comprise some of the best schist around -
despite lacking in protection, the climbing is secure and postive, following
horizontal breaks and
thin crack's. Fortunatly the intense sun meant it was a bit sweaty so bold, harder routes were avoided. We spent the day enjoying the vista of pine and dappled sunlight and left later that evening for the elusive 'A9 bothy'.
King Bee direct. I thought the second pitch was rubbish.
I pretended to sleep for another half an hour before stumbling out of my
sleeping bag and heating up some stodgy, reduced price soup. Rory had set off
for the car while i finished gulping my potato chunks and by 8.30am we were
pounding the track into Coire an t'Sneachda - tops off! The hot morning sun illimunated
the dewy heather and the tumbling streams were a glittering silver. Wisps of cloud flickered in and out of Coire Etchachan, and were
simultaneously repelled by the streaming sun.The warm, windless plateau had a
cool alpine feel. How often was this boggy, rock tundra so quiet and warm?
I had visited the Avon basin as a detour on a lonesome bike trip last
summer. After dragging my bike along the loch side and up the loose gravel
path, outraged at the rough, unridable terrain, i caught glimpses of the beastly crag and shuddered at the thought of climbing its steep faces.
Dropping down the newly built path that morning with a pack full of climbing
gear felt a little surreal.
Bike trip Sept 11. My helmet neatly cuts off the crag.
The climbing was consistently interesting, with a crux pitch on
the lower slabby sections providing the most strenuous part of the day (minus the approach). I was
glad Rory had lead the steep and exposed
4th pitch and the crack for thin
fingers was awesome, if a little short lived. We soaked up the panorama of Loch Avon, and the odd looking encampment of the path builders. It seemed we could see 6 parties of
Afterthought Arete, including Iain and Gemma from Aberdeen. Reaching rory below
pitch 7 and having only led 4b pitches, i felt keen for something more testing. Rory kindly lead through to the base of the needle crack, where i started up
the prominent off width corner feature, becoming gradually aware of the intense
exposure!
Me enjoying myself/getting scared on the needle crack.
Taken from within the needle crack. Note the little encampment by the loch.
The climbing was delicate and well, protected and i felt relieved, having pushed on through the most exciting mountain pitch i’ve done. After squeezing through the chimney and ‘threading the needle’, i was delighted to see rory’s big grin and sit down on the warm granite. Hungry, and eager to get back to the car, i finished off my bourbon scraps and banana (could i have taken any less food for a day on the hill?). We were no sooner dispatching a fish supper in Aviemore, parting ways for climbing and in my case, a weekend of retail doom.
Seemed a good idea at the time. Rory said the block moved ...YOLO?
Moray Roast
We left the veil of sea mist behind us as we drove north towards Fraserburgh and the square cut cliffs of Rosehearty. This section of the Moray coast gives a sense of exposure that is less prominent in the hidden inlets south of Aberdeen - the expansive fields meet the cliffs at right angles and the bays are wide and sweeping.
The only drawback (apart from the drive) is that Roserhearty takes a few days of sun to vapourise the sea grease on its lower sections. We started on the south faces where Callum cruised his 3rd trad route and I lead Nitrox. We then moved to the smooth, steep seaward faces. Rory had an epic battle on Shapeshifter - having used his only useful gear in the lower section he slowly pushed on with forearms like the incredible hulk and unable to respond to me telling him he'd clipped the wrong rope. The grease eventually got to his head and instead of finishing up on the jugs in front of him he showed us his clock impersonation with a big pendulum - it was awesome on second! Tactfully I had chalked up the lower holds of Afterglow earlier, making the bouldery start marginally less slippy. The climbing was superb, with as much overhead gear as you could want, consistent powerful moves and a vocal commentary from myself - certainly the best route iv'e done in the NE.
Rory trying to rest on Shapeshifter
Me on Afterglow
West is Best
The 5 of us left Inverness for Torridon in regular style - cramped, late and slightly hungover - and after setting up base in the Youth Hostel campsite, we made light work of the notorious vertical bog and were soon stood at the mighty Seanna Mheallain terrace. After a glance at the guidebook, I lead the awesome Seems Obvious, and Rory dispatched the ultra-classic-bridge-fest - The Torridonian (with a little grunting of course). Rory then suggested I try Crack of Ages as 'one of his first E2's that was well pumpy'. So i ambled up, and despite the route living up to his description, I sat on the square cut ledge 15 minutes later, delighted with having fought my way up my first E2.
I lapped up the vista of the west while the sun set between the tiered sandstone hulks and was soon joined by Marcus and Rory.
Crack of Ages
The Torridonian
We went to bed content, although admittedly anxious on my part after realising I had forgotten my sleeping bag. Wednesday brought showers to Torridon so we drove to Shieldaig where me and Rory spent a few hours on our debut spearfishing/snorkelling venture. We swam among the vast seaweed forests and fretted about picking up little crabs, but left empty handed without sighting our 12 ft salmon. At lunch time, we decided on the buttress of Sgurr a' Chaorachain in Applecross and a classic Patey route - Sword of Gideon - a suitably traditional choice for 5 Aberdeen University students - especially in the rain. Marcus and I made up the second team - content that the Sally, Rosy and Rory would plaster it with enough chalk to negate the effects of the steady showers. Marcus ran pitch 2 and 3 together which made for some consistently good climbing at the grade. Although it wasnt that enjoyable in the wet - we were happy we hadnt chosen it for the better forecast the following day, and we set our sights on the less frequented Rolling Wall on the Diabaig penisula.
Psyched for a seafood bonanza (note the pro counterweight rock bag)
Rolling wall basked in sunlight
Intent on getting a better sleep, the majority of the trips alcohol was consumed that night, which made for a 'treasure hunt' style approach to the hidden crag in the morning. This was made only more difficult by conflicting premonitions about the guidebook description and we eventually turned up at the crag well warmed up and psyched for some gneiss!
Me on Brave New World
Rory on Aquamarine
The crag was stunning in the late morning sun. Perfectly placed - south facing, low lying and isolated with was a steady sea breeze to perfect our little paradise. After an hour soaking up the sun on the warm rock, Rory lead The Ice Bulge, a little bold in the grade for our weary limbs and in need of a clean but enjoyable none the less. We wandered around the summit knoll, soloing some perfect cracked slabs and wondering about the limitless potential of this Scottish gem. Brave New World, the striking crack up the center of the bulged face had been my ambition as far as trad was concerned since i began last year and, after a little whining about my hydration levels, I set off up the friendly cracks. The route was superb - featuring a delicate traverse, strenuous cracks and a satisfying crux just metres from the top. As Rory topped out - we gazed west and spotted a massive white bellied beast flop across the sea (maybe an orca) - awesome!! Rory started up Aquamarine while the contrasting striped rock lit up in the late afternoon sun. He made a valiant effort on the bouldery start but struggled to get established in the impending steep crack, taking a reasonable fall and managing to finish up after a rest. I shied away from seconding the route and we finished the day on some of the splendid shorter routes while Marcus lay around commentating in the sun. Rosy and Sally climbed some longer routes on the far sides of the crag and Sally managed her first E1 as the sun began to sink into the sea.
Rosy and Sally on the Epsilon, Gamma, Delta wall
On Friday we began the drive east, where we stopped at Moy for a wee sport session. The west had fairly spent us but we had fun and having now done my first sport route, i feel a little less bitter about the concept of having to participate once or twice a year. Unfortunately, only 20 miles from Inverness, the car decided to kick the bucket with an apocolyptic electrical fault, and no less than 6 hours later, we all rocked up at my house for dinner and a well earned rest.
Me and Sally at Moy
Pictures by Marcus and Rory Brown
Luath Stones
Keen to escape the haar that envelops Aberdeen for the summer, Me and Rory made a trip out to the Luath Stones, near Alford. The limited bouldering to do is good, and determined to finish the line up the striking prow, I managed my first 7a (featuring tip bursting teeth/crimp). We won't be returning in a hurry, but it's worth a n evening.
Above: Rory Brown on 'A Little Less Conversation' (Rory made it B/W because I'm useless at taking pictures).
Below: Me on 'North for a Day'
Summer 2012
The past few weeks have been a blast. Despite the weather, me and my compadre Rory have managed to get a lot of climbing, biking and a little spearfishing done. Chasing the sun (or avoiding the rain) by flitting around the place has been rewarding - we've been able to climb at loads of new venues in the east and west and i'm feeling a lot more confident with my trad purely as a result of the mileage. The spearfishing venture is theoretically improving - despite not having actually caught any fish yet - it's at least been fun to get underwater and swim amongst the kelp. Apparently there's an abundance of lobster in the east so theoretically, it's only a matter of time.. I've been convinced to enter a biking event, and have been training a little over the past few weeks. I'm not quite sure what to expect because its my first 'race'. If you want to check it out or donate; here's the link: http://www.justgiving.com/Peter-Herd0 The next few posts are a bit late now, but hey, i need something to fill up this space!
Me and Falke's bikes at the Easan Dorcha bothy during another awesome Torridon riding trip.
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