Ski Mountaineering in the Cairngorms

Well after a busy week working at the ISPO trade show in Munich and with enough time to just about un-pack it was back up to the Northern Cairngorms for a spot of ski-mountaineering.

For the full report and photo's please click here.

Approaching Coire an t-Sneachda.

There were plenty of climbing teams and folks on training courses buzzing around the corrie, but we were alone as we set off for the Plateau.

Ski's on the pack for the steep climb out of Coire an t-Sneachda

We arrived to a calm and still plateau, only a light breeze blowing and no trace of any rocks in sight, the plateau was holding a deep and firm cover of snow. And so, with ski's engaged into our boots once more, we continued into the heart of Coire Raibeirt.

From here we opted to scope out the 500 metres of vertical ascent which cascade down into the upper reaches of Strath Nethy from the summit of Cairngorm.

The Cairngorm weather station.

On the second day we headed across towards Beinn Mheadhoin, located at the heart of the Cairngorms, this is a remote and, in winter, not easily accessible peak.

It was clear this was not going to be a blue sky day and by the time we were established on the Fiacaill Choire Chais ridge we were enveloped in a thick layer of cloud.

From this point the gully dropped away sharply down towards Loch Avon, skirted across its western fringe, before beginning our 200 metre climb up towards Loch Ethachan.

Bad weather begins to envelop the Northern Cairngorms

By the time we reached the summit, conditions had deteriorated further. It was snowing hard and the cold was beginning to bite. We stopped briefly to replace gloves and don hard-shells.

Near 'White-Out' conditions removed all sense of slope aspect or direction

Descending slightly further to the east than we had meant to, we skirted with the much steeper and rockier NE ridge, being forced to side slip in places as we lost all sense of slope angle - probably only 20 or 30 metres further to our right than we had intended, but it was unnerving all the same, eventually finding ourselves atop a broad and flattish shoulder high above the Fords of Avon.

Rich at the eastern end of of a frozen Loch Avon

The day finished descending out of the mist into the Loch Avon basin once again before the long climb out and over the Cairngorm plateau once again.

All photos courtesy of Keith Hutcheon.