Final Highland Fling

This time of year I often feel the onset up schizophrenia. There are so many options it can make the head spin. I was rock climbing on lat week, fell running the weekend just gone and now it looks like I'll be back on the Ben winter climbing this weekend. This will be my last chance of anything wintery this season and i haven't been able to get up for the last month so even though it feels odd beginning to get excited about the cold stuff again. Here's a few pics from Hans Hornberger from my last trip up on Beinn Eighe. Blood sweat and frozen tears pics Hans Hornberger

Ines's Story

Ines Papert has written a nice piece about her trip to Scotland. You can read it here http://www.planetmountain.com/english/News/shownews1.lasso?l=2&keyid=37290#

And here's one of Han's pics of me from the trip on pitch 2 of Blood Sweat and Tears

photo Hans Hornberger

Scottish Pride

Ahhh, Yes! At the moment I just have an overwhelming feeling of pride. Proud that team Arc'teryx had such a great trip, proud that out of their comfort zone they climbed so well and most of all proud that Scotland really pulled out all the stops over the last couple of days. The kind of days that keep you going the rest of the year. Heres a few pics more to follow.

The early start pays off on the summit plateau of EigheThursday's route with Ines - Blood, Sweat and Frozen Tears a 4 star VIII
Ines picking up the Scottish game very quickly on pitch 1 of Blood Sweat...Audrey, Matt and Simon on Central Buttress

Our home for the night courtesy of Simon at www.bigtreecampervans.com

Happy campers Hans, Ines, Audrey and Matt

Brusied Violet

I was going to post gushing reams about the Eighe route. The pouring rain at 5 in the morning, the slush at 700m suddenly turning to neve a 100m higher, the wildest abseils in Scotland, my dropped axe, my dropped head torch, Andy falling asleep at the belay, me coming close to fainting on the crux, the beauty of the full moon as we topped out, the inspiration from Andy Nisbet's, Brian Davison and Martin Moran's great efforts on this wall.....
But instead I'll just let the pics do the talking and post the description for those who want a similar adventure. Looking down the second of 2 at times free hanging abseils on the approach

Andy topping out the first pitch as the clouds clear

Feeling the strain on pitch 2

The spectra of colours just visible around the full moon as we reached the summit plateau. A great relief as I'd dropped my head torch an hour before.

Bruised Violet VIII,7,8,8,8,7 90m
A phenomenal direct line through the very steep ground Chop Suey avoids. Very sustained climbing at the top of the grade.
1. 30m Chop Suey pitch 1
2. 20m Climb cracks up the right wall of the groove as for Chop Suey) to the upper girdle ledge then pull through the roof and follow the committing groove for 8m to where the ramp of Force Ten heads up leftwards. Arrange gear here (insitu pecker used as back rope for second) from two good footholds on the left wall before dropping back down into the groove and making an unlikely thin traverse on the lip of the overhangs across the right wall. A good crack in the right arete leads to a small ledge where a complex belay can be made. (with enough gear it might be better to continue or alternatively combine pitches 3 and 4).
3. 8m Step up until level with big roofs on the left and swing into a bottomless steep groove which leads to good cracks and possible hanging belay). (note we belayed here as our gear from the ab was here).
4. 20m Pull up right to a sloping ledge and follow very steep grooves and cracks up slightly leftwards until a final pull round a roof gains a big flake. Pull up left onto ledges atop the prow. Traverse 3m left to a crack which leads to big turfy ledges.
5. 12m Blocky steps via a wide crack to the top.
f.a Ian Parnell, Andy Turner 10 March 2009

Aaaaaaahhhh, Yes!

It's nice to be able to write about some personal success in Scotland rather than my usual round of epics. Yesterday together with Andy Turner I returned to the scene of my avalanche incident from back in the beginning of December. This was my second return having been halfway up the hill in drizzle with Dave Macleod in January. This time despite once again setting off at 4.30am in the rain again we hit a freezing level at 800m and found superb conditions on West Central Wall. We spent probably 10 or 11 hours unlocking the false turns and blind alleys of the maze of overhanging rock right of Chop Suey (starting up that route) before managing a superb direct line. I'll post more later about the details (I only got home at 7am this morning after 1 hours sleep) and my daughter Suzanna is more interested in which is the tastiest my mobile phone or the TV remote. It's been a long held dream of mine to climb a winter route on this face. So here's a couple of pics of Bruised Violet VIII,7,8,8,8,7 Andy on the second ab. Bruised Violet takes the big groove (Chop Suey) then a line direct through the roofs before an incredibly pumpy overhanging crux wall to finish.Andy on the first crux traversing the lip of the roofs.
Andy leading the short intense third pitch - more roofs (which more sensibly could be combined with the second or fourth pitch)

Mental, Mate!

I was deliberately vague yesterday about what went on on Beinn Eighe. Friends who I've given the full story have joked that theres a Joe Simpson style book in it if I wanted. Well I'll just settle for a quick story in Climb Mag. But here's a pic of the aftermath. Before that happened I'd been on a more interesting journey onto the West Central Wall. I was intrigued to learn that the late Alan Mullin had been trying to climb the same area I found myself in. It brought back quite a few memories of Alan, he exasperated, offended and made me laugh in equal measure but he was never boring. Alan would have absolutely loved the epic we went through on Wednesday. I've a vivid image of Alan's manic eyes burning through the storm announcing at every twist and turn "This is just mental, mate" although perhaps with the odd adult only adjective mixed in for emphasis. I shared a few adventures with Alan, but I struggled to be the friend Alan needed. It was nice to think that I'd shared a little of Alan's wild vision with our attempt on Beinn Eighe, I think he would have approved.

The good, the bad and the downright terrifying

I've just got back from two extraordinary days on Beinn Eighe in Torridon. I won't describe all that went on as I'm writing a short piece for Climb Mag. All that I can say is that Jon Winter and I saw every possible aspect of the Scottish winter game including some sides I'd be quite happy if I never saw again.

The incomparable Tripple Buttress of Beinn Eighe. On our first day in after 4 1/2 hours trail breaking we picked our way up the classic West Buttress IV,4. A 400m traditional mountaineering style route, one of the best of its type I've done. Day 2 and Jon experiencing the good and the bad. The sweat and suffering of 3 1/2 trail breaking to the summit but under the magic of a Torridon dawn.
The West Central Wall, for me the future of Scottish winter climbing. We attempted something new, climbing 60m before blank rock and gathering darkness nessitated running away. I'd love to go back and try again but the horror of what ensued on the descent will have to fade.