Karn House, Aviemore (2 or 3 nights)
Karn House: Jim Symon, James Williams, Andy Stratford, Gareth Williams, Mark Furniss, Jo Sayers, Colin Maddison, Andy Basford, Jenny Sim, Carolyn Mills, Jamie Ledingham
All you need to know about Karn House (owned by the FRCC) is that it has a corner bath.....needless to say, it was fully occupied that night! Corner bath at TP please.
Saturday 2nd March
After an excellent Days skiing James, Mark and Jo opted for a day in Corrie an-t Sneachda climbing ‘The Runnel’ (II). However the temperature wasn’t in our favour at all – well over 3 degrees even at 1000m – it was going to be a soggy day......
Coire an Lochan was the venue for Gareth, Andy, Colin and Jim. Gareth was focussed on Savage Slit – a summer Severe but a technically tough V,6 in the Winter. We couldn’t see more than 30 yards in the clag and countoured above the avalanche prone Grade I slopes of the Great Slab area to the left side of No 4 buttress....but it was too late....another team had beaten us to it. It was too cold, damp and windy to wait about so we dropped down 30m to look at ‘The Third Man’ IV,6 which took the same start as Sidewinder III,4. Half way up the first pitch and Gareth called down ‘’I’m sticking on Sidewinder, the conditions are hard enough!’’. Several very soggy hours and some challenging route finding later we eventually ended up at the top of Savage slit; this had a good abseil point which dropped you to the base of that route in one very long rope stretching 60m ab. It had been a good day out, marred slightly by Andy falling down a hole between boulders on the walk out resulting in a very sore back – this needed a day off the next day. Meanwhile Colin and Jim had managed two routes The Vent III and Ewan Buttress III – good going considering the conditions.
Sunday 3rd March
Jim takes over again as narrator.....
The day dawned fair but cloudy and 4 degrees above in Aviemore so we weren’t expecting much after yesterdays thaw. Colin and I decided to go lightweight – One rope, one set of rocks, a few friends and 3 ice screws – surely there wouldn’t be much climbable ice left? As we arrived at Sneachda after the short walk in we saw just one other person on the slopes – eerily quiet for a Sunday morning. We both noticed an obvious blue ice fall and headed over. Aladdin’s Mirror Direct (IV,4) looked steep but it would go. Out came the three ice screws and the one 9mm rope – It would be no problem for Colin the Bold – he quite enjoys that sort of thing. True to form he made it up the steep icefall with little fuss – just two screws and an in situ peg runner – it was good to watch The Master! Shortly before setting off to follow this first steep pitch my camera decided to throw itself down the slope. I down-climbed and retrieved it then savoured the climb on wet, but good, steep blue ice. I led the next pitch with a peg runner and a few rock placements up a steady snow-ice slope, belaying just before the rope ran out. Colin repeated on the next pitch and again we finished the rope. ‘’A Nice easy plod to the top’’ I said to myself....but I was forgetting who I was climbing with.....He veered away from the easy ground towards a steep looking rock buttress. I unclipped and moved up to give him more rope, eventually belaying on a spike, previously in use as a runner. Colin moved hooked and torqued his way up the Buttress steadily placing rock gear ‘’I’ve run out of gear – I’ll belay here’’. I came up and thought ‘’this is a bit tricky’’ as I looked up to the steep buttress, mouth dry. ‘’I’ll do it if you don’t fancy it Jim’’. His reverse psychology works. ‘’No, I’ll give it a go Colin’’. I fiddle to put a rock in then hook an axe in a crack, an awkward step round a rock rib then into an open grove with no ice for the axes....I stretch my little legs across to scrape a crampon on a rock noggin, I’m in the groove, desperately hoping for frozen turf. Swoosh. Swoosh. Not frozen enough. Eventually I get the axes hooked on some rock way below the poor snow. I teeter up. Holding my breath I’m once again talking to myself ‘’Calm down Jim, keep moving’’. I get to the top of the groove. A steep exit gets my heart going as i put my faith in tenuous placements beneath the snow. No good ice for my crampons and I need to get feet up level with my axes out right. Pause. Breathe. Semi- mantle-shelf and I’m on the ledge...’’I’m beginning to enjoy this’’...until seconds later I realise my gymnastics have dislodged my left crampon which is dangling uselessly by the ankle strap into thin air! The aforesaid air turns very blue. Colin gives calm advice. ‘’Look for some gear’’. I scrape anxiously with my axes and uncover a slot for a friend but have none that size. Another crack is uncovered and I hammer a rock 6 in sideways – seems firm enough. I’m talking to my crampon. ‘’stay there spikey friend, don’t leave me’’. Somehow I manage to get it back on. Calm. Relax. Don’t Panic. Everything is even better after the next placement is some half decent frozen turf followed by a good sling over a spike which even brings a smile. I get to a saddle below a rock pinnacle and belay with a HUGE sigh of relief! The Master follows. ‘’Good lead Jim’’. ‘’Cheers Colin, hardest lead I’ve done all week’’. There is a rock tower above – Colin leads to the top, grinning all the way up, in his element. I follow and a very long stretch for my little legs brings laughter from above. As we shake hands on top the Sun comes out. Another cracking couple of routes and a great finish to an amazing week.
Thanks to everyone who made the week one to remember, apologies to those who don’t figure in the write up much but it’s far too long anyway!
Andy Stratford
