Grade 1 winter climb

[stomper]

Can anyone advise me what a Grade 1 winter climb is and preferbly give me any info on the best places in Scotland are to atempt a few. As i need experience in Gr1 winter climbs (For North Col) i could do with doing a few

[Cairngormwanderer]

Best tackled with someone who has some climbing experience as, although they are USUALLY straightforward, run-outs can be serious and avalanche awareness becomes more important.
Classic grade ones would include Alladin's Couloir in Coire an-t Sneachda, which is both accessible and popular. But beware of going off alone: as one example, SE Gully at Creag an Dubh Loch can be Grade II, as can Silver Chimney on Carn a Mhaim. Similarly, some grade II gullies can be grade 1 if well enough banked out.

[stomper]

Thanks M8 oh i will definately go with someone as it will be safer but i do have experience in using crampons & iceaxe

[DonnyW]

Plenty Classic grade 1 routes around to get you in shape for the North Col stomper

Centre Gully in Ben Lui..a long exposed grade 1 more often than not with a cornice at the top

Raeburns Gully on Creag Meagaidh another long grade 1 route not quite as exposed as Ben Lui but prone to avalanche

No 3 and 4 gullys on the Ben ..etc ..etc. most hills have grade 1 gullys ..depending on conditions ..so take your pick

Make sure you have someone experienced with you as I suspect if you fell on something like Centre Gully on Ben Lui.. self arrest skills learned on hillwalks may not be enough as the route is steep and you will reach terminal velocity very quickly

Good luck .. I learned my winter skills on these routes

[Gythral]

Broad Gully - Stob Coire nan Lochan
Several of the gullies in Coire an-t Sneachda, and Coire nan Lochan if banked out.

It is worth noting that these gullies can be the descent route for others climbing higher grades, so be avalance aware.

[stomper]

Thanks Guys will decide which ones to do and who with when the snow comes hopefully in Feb

[Milesy]

Only thing to watch for which catches a lot of beiginners out is that some grade I gullies can have massive cornices to deal with which are either vertical at best, or sometimes overhanging. A story on UKClimbing a few years back about a chap who was trying to get grade I gullies under his belt for his MIC I think and went up Tower Gully and ended up hacking at the cornice for 5 hours or something. Tower Gully is also a grade I.

I would say Broad Gully, Stob coire nan Lochan is the easiest. It is relatively easy angled and poses no cornice issue at the top. It is a good introductory gully, just watch out for climbers bum sliding down. You can see me going down Broad Gully at the end of this video:

Next grade I options are as said Gully 3 and 4 on The Ben, but beware as said about cornices, particularly with no 3 Gully which is steeper at the top. There may or may not be notches cut in the cornices already.

No 3 Gully with climber approaching cornice.

http://www.ukclimbing.com/images/dbpage.html?id=189711

Of all the grade I gullies I think Tower Gully is the most imposing and scary of them all. You are on steep grade I ground all the way up Observatory gully on the flank of Tower Ridge before you even get to the actual foot of the gully which is above some cliffs.

Tower Gully traverses in from the bottom left above the icefall and cliffs, to where the top set of climbers are and then following that left trending slope.

http://www.ukclimbing.com/images/dbpage.html?id=81596

[Caberfeidh]

On Aonach Mhor you can get up to good climbing territory using the skiers' gondola, which removes that tiresome walking-up-hills part of hillwalking, and use the leaflet available from the gondola ticket office to find a suitable area. There are some pics of more advanced climbs, but on the way to these there are good practice gullies, slopes and various verticalities to try. See http://www.nevisrange.co.uk/ also this has the benefit of being able to check what conditions are like before you try, and there will be people around should you snap your femurs*. Good luck!

* I personally will be lurking below with a large soup~cauldron and a bone~saw....

[stomper]

Thanks milesy and everybody else who has given me great advice and info will be aiming for Feb/march to come up and give a few ago... I have done Gully 4 on the Ben yes with a guide and thoroughly enjoyed it