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NB. Before the digital age, cameras didn't tell you the time - you just had the date of processing the film, and the order in which the pics were taken, so I'm not exactly sure of the date of this trip except for the year, but there was a lot of snow in the gullies and at the top, though the rocks were mainly clear, and it was very dark when we got back to the car at about 10.00pm.
So mid April is just a guess.
I was fortunate to have friends who had a cottage at Tigh phuirt near Glen Coe which we left just after 7.00am. and set off up the hill an hour or so later in great weather
In those days you crossed the golf course and climbed a narrow path up through the trees to reach the relatively flat section beside the Allt a Mhuillin.
The views of the North face in these conditions are quite dramatic
looking up Coire Leis below the North face. the skyline is the North East buttress Carn Dearg buttress - surely one of the finest cliffs in Britain The short wide gully in the centre is no. 3Slightly further L - the Douglas boulder and Tower ridgeA closer view of Carn Dearg buttress: Centurion - a three star HVS - and the only route I've done there - climbs the obvious big groove in the shadow bottom right (crux) then takes several easier pitches in the light before a few more difficult moves through the steep upper wallLooking up Observatory gully with maybe Tower gully at the topThe leader - about to set off - we carried crampons and axes but didn't climb in the former - I think he even has an ice screw and a snow plate Observatory Ridge is graded V.Diff - a notorious grade in Scotland - usually much harder than in England. For example "The Chasm" on The Buchaille has this grade, but the "Classic Rock" account says " expect VS climbing"
The rock was a bit polished and greasy with odd patches of snow, and in boots with a winter rucksack I found it quite hard but there was little exposure
A series of HS boulder problems would be my description, but I put the camera away. Higher up it becomes, less continuous and near the top there was a lot more snow.
looking down the top of Tower RidgeSummit of the BenThere can't have been much a view to the South as I didn't take a photo, but we headed off down on the approved compass course , found our way down beside the Red burn and past Lochan Meall an-t-Suidhe, by which time it was getting quite dark. whether we headed straight down (as shown in our route) or followed the track back R towards the CIC hut I forget, but there was no way we were returning down the narrow path through the woods. Instead we followed the (forbidden) gravel road that zig-zags down toward the distillery, which with head torches was quite easy. I didn't think anyone would mind at this time of night
I also forget exactly how we "escaped" on to the road - but it certainly involved climbing over one more gates or fences