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Our first winter hiking experience - A day to test our gear and technique.
Our first day out after the coldest March for 50 years, we were wary of conditions, The Pap of Glencoe was a short but steep walk.
Following the path, just beyond the forestry on the edge of Glencoe Village, we passed a small water treatment plant and feeder reservoir before making a bee-line for the area to the right of the summit. This direct route was steep and strenuous with awesome views opening up all around.
After about an hour we reached the col. We turned left and took a 20 minute scramble to the rather windy summit of The Pap.
Briefly pausing to consider our options we headed for the snowfields on the broad shoulder of Sgorr nam Fiannaidh.
View back to The Pap:
Arriving at the snowfields, it was time to put on our crampons for the first time on a mountain.
Having practiced, pigeon toe steps, traversing and emergency stops, we continued onwards.
Ben Nevis to the North:
An hours clambering found us 500 metres from the summit.
Bidean Nam Bian:
We made excellent progress across a broad snowy ridge and, after 15 minutes, we summited at 967metres:
Returning to our entry point, we enjoyed a swift descent down a shallow gully. Dropping down onto the path we were treated to fine evening views:
A brilliant day and an excellent introduction to winter walking, the 2000metre cloudbase afforded exceptional views of Ben Nevis and Rannoch Moor.
