Going all out...

Like I said, we'd have to go all out. This was the best weather we'd seen all winter, and we only had 2 days left in scotland. It was time to go big or go home, so we went big, we went for our first day on the Ben.

I can't really tell you how daunting this felt when we'd finally planned to go, I mean it was the Ben. It's big, its got a long walk in and just as far walk out, long routes and hard to nav off in a white out. Anything could happen. Uncle Rob had told us that we should just accpet that it'll be at least a 12 hour day, and just pack accordingly. I still only packed a litre of water.

So we found ourselves in the North Face car park, nice and early at about 0530. I was bloody freezing and if I'm honest I was worrying that I would have enough layers with me. I only had my belay jacket and hardshell in my sack. A guy in the car park who pretty much just arrived advised us that the walk in was "brutal" and it was. It's steep and seems to go on forever through the forest, but it is a bit of blessing when you finally come out onto flatter ground. Our first view of the North Face was in the erie early morning light. I traced a line in to the to little light that was the CIC hut. It didn't look that far away and the gradient didn't seem too bad at all. Glad we gained the height in the first place!

The walk in took us over 3 hours I guess, I wasn't really paying attention to the time. We had alpine clear skies again and the ice falls next to the CIC where in good nick. Before I even had to suggest starting off on one of them, Andy asked if our route took us up one to start out day. We agreed to head over and take a look at them.

After gearing up we went to look at the first one. It didn't look too bad an angle, however on closer inspection it was dripping, holed out and steep as hell. After my first whack into it, it made a sickening hollow sound so we ran off to the groove we picked as a back up. Here the ice was much better. I started up on an easy angled section, putting in a screw or two and clipping a thread left by someone else. I then had a choice of easy angled windy ice, or straight up the steepest section. What do you think I went for! It was the start of the day, so I placed another screw and off I went...

...my calves screamed at me to climb faster of cut a ledge to rest on. I somehow ignored them, monkey hanging to place another screw. Why had I stopped in the steepest bit? well because I'd run it out too far and not read the ice properly and placed a screw before it. I clipped my screw and carried on up to easier ground. I went another screw and then some ice covered frozen turf to finish off. I clipped an awesome thread and gave the three tugs. Andy came up and pointed out that I just done a pretty much 60 metre pitch. I hadn't even realised? We had a small cup of tea and set off looking for Central Gully (grade III) situated somewhere at the back of Coire na Ciste (I spelt it right first time!). Commence snow plodding.

We had not planned to go Central Gully, in fact I hadn't picked anything to do. Andy had stepped in and said the night before lets do Glover's Chimney (also grade III). Rob and Stewie and gone about it being a classic route that they'd never got round to doing, so we thought we'd attempt it. We headed for Central Gully because I basically had not got my head around where we were, and though Glover's was in a different place. So as we plodded in na Ciste I was this awesome looking was across from me, which turned out to be Raeburn's wall on the flank of Tower ridge. I took another 10 minutes for it to dawn on me that we could do Glover's Chimney, which he agreed to, dispite me pointing out that there would be a chimeny pitch on it, which he hates!

We broke trail, well Andy took toe last 60 metres, but then again he did bring a flask of tea which as good as my water bottle was starting to freeze. Breaking trail meant that no-one had been on the route since the last snowfall. Anyway I was nice to be on the other side of na Ciste. Every other party we'd seen had gone to do Ledge route it seemed! Andy took a stance below the first ice pitch and I set off up it he told me to take the easiest line up it. I guess it dawn on me then that this was serious. I focused to find a easy line and a decent belay and set off. This pitch was awesome, like pure grade III ice with a nice top out. The ice was good and didn't seem to dinner plate much.

I found a great spot to get some gear in for a belay and brought up Andy. We'd agreed I tackle the final chinmey so he'd take the next few pitches. I suggested we move together to safe him bringing my up snow slopes. After he got the concept and off he went I had time to contemplate how lucky we where to be there. As I gazed out over Coire na Ciste and the rest of scotland I saw that the wetaher had begun to move in. It looked just like cloud, no snow thankfully. Andy pulling me tight stopped my day dreaming and off I set.

He's run it out well far and I was impressed by how quick he'd moved and covered 100 metres or so I recconned. As a torrent of ice, munge, mud and snow poured down next to me I yelled up to see what was happening. He yelled there was ice and for me to deal with it so he was building a belay but all he could find was a crappy mixed hook placement. Sometimes it seems it would be easier if someone had climbed the route first and cleaned it for us! I climed up to him and we excataved a bomber torque nut placement allowing me to set off again. By now the cloud had really moved in and to add to the fun, a guy doing Tower Gap (where Glover's Chimney runs up) was cleaning all the snow off it onto me. My yelling did nothing to stop him, he probably couldn't here me but I tried to belay to one side and save the same treatment when I cleaned/climbed the Chimney.

And off I went for our final pitch of Glover's. This is also probably my first proper mixed route too. I got started in the chimney and knew that bracing myself off one wall with my pack would probably be the key, least I'd get a rest. Some hooking and cleaning off all the snow lead me to a decent spike to sling. with this on I moved up on good hooks and occasional ice. As I got above my sling I looked for another piece of gear. I now have a very bashed superlight rock on my rock as I tried to get it to seat. Not that it matters, it fell of as I moved past it. Bridging now I got a torque nut in and just went all out for the top! With a crack running along each side of the chimney and good ice in each I got an axe in each side. With some screaming to myself of "come on you bastard!" I moved up and foor my feet in, even a boot jam at one point. I was in for a shock when I pulled over the top and found myself staring down the opposite side of tower ridge. It's only a about 40 centimetres wide!

I made myself safe, breathed a sigh or relief and yell to Andy. I then enjoyed a nice chat with a guy doing Tower Gap itself and his partner while I belayed up Andy. Andy joined me on out tiny space and after a "your alive" handshake he set off up Tower Gap to run it out as far as possible. Exiting Tower Gap proved to be a lateral thinking puzzel, involving hooking, hand jamming and alot os crampon scraping on rock. Andy dissappeared off into the mist as I struggled to keep up with the ropes. They came tight and I set off. I found him belayed to an axe in the snow and I took the gear and dissappeared. I clipped a well and truely stuck nut before the final slope (I didn't know it at the time) and brought Andy up to me. We'd reasoned that the ground was pretty easy but we didn't know I we were off Tower Ridge or not so we stayed roped together (with coils, another lesson for Andy) until we found the summit appearing though the mist.

So after seeing know one all day, about 7 of us arrived at the summit at once. It was nice seeing so many people up there enjoying being out in the hills but eventually it was time to move off. We'd planned to head towards the Carn Mor Dearg arete and down down into Coire Leis via the line of the abseil posts. In the current conditions Andy plumbed for the longer and more sensible line down (following the switchbacks). I relented to this good decision and we packed the kit up and headed off.

The walk back was pretty long, but relativly easy. There was a flippin yak trail trampled into the snow, but I kept making sure it was alright. Either way we soon dropped out of the cloud and bumslid most of the way down the swithcbacks (or where they should have been if there wasn't so much snow). It was now getting dark and I was getting a headache, probably a little dehydrated, but soon we hit the forest path. Back down the "brutal" forest track, which proved just as annoying as it had in the morning as it had a sheet of hard slippy snow/ice over it.

So car to car in 13 hrs 40 mins, over 10km walked with full kit and about 400 metres of up to grade IV,4 climbing. It was an awesome day out which I'll remember forever.