Cwm Idwal

Mark, Emily and I headed into Cwm Idwal today to escape the battering the wind was giving the tops. There was some fresh snow on the summits although its purely cosmetic at the moment, it was certainly cold all day though. We climbed NW Face Route with Mark on the sharp end of the rope, descended the Idwal Slabs descent route and then climbed Seniors Gully for a blast. A great day out again, thanks both. 

Winter Conditions

As the rain continues to fall I am making preparations for my annual journey North to Scotland. One of the most persistent of weather patterns each winter period is a mild and stormy Christmas holiday and this year is no exception! It is worth remembering in this darkest hour that January often brings a shift from tropical maritime to polar air, bringing heavy snow to the Scottish mountains even if not sunshine! The first half of next week looks cold with freezing levels down to 400m and fresh snow on the hills. A thaw later in the week will serve us well to stabilise the snow pack ready for the next fresh dump. I will keep you informed!

Crib Llem Spur

I have been out with Mark and Emily today who have become regulars at this time of year. Whilst we hoped for blue skies, sunshine and crisp neve we made the most of what we were given and had a great day out on the Crib Llem Spur on the Northern end of the Carneddau. This grade 1 scramble was nicely sheltered from the wind, stayed dry most of the day and gave us a bit of fresh snow on the tops. Thanks both for a great day out, blowing away the cobwebs and burning off the excess of Christmas! 

Have some fun this winter

Still some snow on the mountains

I took the dog for a walk up onto Lliwedd this morning to make the most of the beautiful winter sunshine. There is still some snow about as you can see from the photos but it looks pretty wet and warm tomorrow. A beautiful morning this morning though! 

A great week in Chamonix

I am home now after a great couple of weeks, the first in Morocco working and the second in Chamonix skiing with friends. It has been dumping with snow all week in Chamonix and we had an incredible 6 days of skiing fresh powder. Not many lifts were open so we did a mixture of touring and off piste leaving my legs completely knackered now!

100% Success on Toubkal

We have had a brilliant week this week in Morocco, clear blue skies, wall to wall sunshine and lots of fresh snow to play in! We arrived last weekend and have spent the week in the Atlas Mountains, making the most of the perfect learning environment to cover winter skills before going on to climb the three highest mountains in North Africa, all over 4000m and including Toubkal. A great week with great people, thanks all.