Skye w/e

[Benaden887]

Bla Bheinn via Clach Glas 17/09/1994 10km 1000m 8hrs

The KMC meet is at Skye and while most head for the Cuillin - Alan Andy Davey and I are bound for Blaven and Clach Glas armed with a photocopy of Demster`s route and good weather forecast.
Loch Slapin. Park @ 560217 for a path up the Allt na Dunaiche in Coire a Caise. Once above the waterfalls, we head NW up hill for the craggy ridge of Sgurr nan Each. Reaching the East top@ 623m over scree and gabbro shows what lies ahead for us. Broken ground, a down an up over easy rock to the W top of Sgurr nan Each.@720m. Good views of the red Cuillin,Garbh- bheinn and Sligachan glen. The black Cuillin`s clagged in. Down to a bealach where a scree gully gives an escape route to the loch. The ridge is narrow, easier going just off the spikey tops. Climb L on a wall then and short corner leads to the base of a large slab. It has water running down it to the concern of the team. Awesome drops N here. Step across the water then up a ways to regain the ridge. The final tower looms ahead, easy scramble hugs the ridge to the top of a gully below the summit of Clach Glas. A smaller gully off R gives direct access on good holds to the broad summit@ 786m. We rest here and admire a superb outlook.
Down the south ridge to a narrow arete known as the “Imposter”. A massive slab sloping down L with a sheer drop on the R. Good holds and cracks ease our way down L and gains a level section of the ridge. Then up over a pinnacle and
a down climb facing inwards to reach the”Putting green”. Another break here while the rest catch up. Across the drop I can see, ”the Great Prow” a VS route I will climb in later years with Billy Strachan - him gieing me the hard 1st pitch. We moved round on to a wee wall. Oddly enough this gave the most problems until a sloping mantle shelf and bum push up and over enabled me to extend a hand to my team members. R then over scree, turn steep rock face for an easy gully - again up scree to a large boulder and a chimney on the R. It`s steep 25m but nice holds and ledges and when the holds run out the right hand wall takes you over the top, complete with abseil slings. Another scramble and we reach the up path, a well cairned route leads to the trig point of Blaven @ 928m. Again great views, we bask in the sun while the Cuillin lies wreathed in cloud. We add the South top ( smaller by 2m) by crossing the great scree gully then descend by this not recommended route, down for our transport and the hut.
Tomorrow would be for me, a repeat of Gillean`s Pinnacle ridge, with the same team, plus rope and slings. That day would be unpleasant . It started raining during the abseil and the water running out of us by the time we`d done the top and beat a hasty “Tourist route”retreat down. Still it`s a good day, ifn you make it, y`re unhurt an can walk away from it, smiling.