Sgurr a' Chaorachain - indirectly via Cioch Nose

[dav2930]

Nice one AK A serious undertaking that - described in HSN as 'a major expedition'. Well done. I think I'd prefer dryer conditions for it. The route looks quite complex. It was bold of you to try that variation up the first section - pioneering up uncharted territory! Wise to stick to the described route I think.


I remember the upper section looked quite intimidating from the top of the Nose itself, but turned out to be a lot easier than it looked. At the time I wasn't aware that you could avoid the top wall by sneaking off along the ledge to the left - very useful for a solo scrambler. Some of those descents along the ridge are pretty sharp, aren't they?

Great report and illustrative photos.

[Alteknacker]

Oooft

I remember sitting in that corrie looking at the nose wondering how on earth anyone would get up there

Yes, it looks a bit intimidating initially; but the reality is (if you take the right route, rather than trying a variation as I did) that it's not that crazy!

Sweaty palms just reading that.

Kudos indeed fella.

Thanks but rather undeserved! As mentioned in my reply to Jaxter, it's not as bad as it looks initially. The main concern I had was loose rocks.

I like your view of the first section from the second section.

Yes, I was very taken with this view, and took probably a dozen pics of it from different points on the ascent.

Outstanding Alteknacker!!

Glad you finally got to do it in better conditions than the last attempt, it looks like a breathtaking route to take, very airy! Well done finding a good line up it, it looks like it doesn't leave much room for error or movement, love the pic looking down at the nose!

Thanks for the great notes and route pics, very useful for future reference!

Thanks Chris. I'll be pleased if the notes prove useful. In fact, though, there was plenty of scope for minor variations on the described route without getting into difficult climbing territory.

Gulp! is there an easier way up? it looks like a fab hill!

Definitely if you simply walk out to the top of the second section from Sgurr a' Chaorachain. As mentioned in the report, there are very short sections of scrambling on the first, third and fifth towers, but they'd be much easier to negotiate climbing upwards than downclimbing them for the first time. I think it is a really fab hill, so well worth doing!

[Alteknacker]

Nice one AK A serious undertaking that - described in HSN as 'a major expedition'. Well done. I think I'd prefer dryer conditions for it. The route looks quite complex. It was bold of you to try that variation up the first section - pioneering up uncharted territory! Wise to stick to the described route I think.

Thanks Dav. Yes, it's undoubtedly wiser to stick to the described route, and this is what I always tell myself when I set out. Then something looks more interesting and...

I remember the upper section looked quite intimidating from the top of the Nose itself, but turned out to be a lot easier than it looked. At the time I wasn't aware that you could avoid the top wall by sneaking off along the ledge to the left - very useful for a solo scrambler. Some of those descents along the ridge are pretty sharp, aren't they?

Great report and illustrative photos.

Certainly the route I took for the upper section was straightforward, but probably not as much fun as the one you took!

Yes, the little down-climbs are on the awkward side, especially approached for the first time as a downclimb. A reminder that a crux of only a few metres can be an impassable obstacle!!!

[Alteknacker]

Amazing, and a great report, I enjoyed all the details of your route although beyond us!

Jings, crivvens, Was up in these hills last year and found the cliffs impressive....and I was just looking at them. Well done but not for me, will leave it to you experts. Thanks

Thanks, CC & RH. It's not as difficult as some of the shots make it look, though....

Great stuff Alteknacker. Looked like a cracking day out.

Thanks ST. It most certainly was a cracking day out .

Great report and climb. I did the Bonnington route years ago with a guide - I'd really wanted to do one of the routes starting on the road that Tom Patey put up (HVS) and he soloed it I think - but the weather was poor. We parked at the top, walked down and climbed the last part of the ridge in rain

Thanks for the kind words, PmSbD. I think you're talking about the REAL climb that Dav2390 recently did - the Highlands Scrambles North route I did is, I think, many degrees easier. But surely it's a wonderful place - even in the rain .

Outstanding Alteknacker!!

Glad you finally got to do it in better conditions than the last attempt, it looks like a breathtaking route to take, very airy! Well done finding a good line up it, it looks like it doesn't leave much room for error or movement, love the pic looking down at the nose!

Thanks for the great notes and route pics, very useful for future reference!

Thanks Chris. Yes, it was good to be able to scramble on clean rock - though the number of loose rocks was a bit daunting at times! Actually I think that in some places there is a fair bit of scope for variations (though perhaps not the first one I failed on!).

If the detail proves useful to anyone, I'm very happy.

[EmmaKTunskeen]

Jings. Crivens indeed. That was fair terrifying!

[past my sell by date]

[

Great report and climb. I did the Bonnington route years ago with a guide - I'd really wanted to do one of the routes starting on the road that Tom Patey put up (HVS) and he soloed it I think - but the weather was poor. We parked at the top, walked down and climbed the last part of the ridge in rain

Thanks for the kind words, PmSbD. I think you're talking about the REAL climb that Dav2390 recently did - the Highlands Scrambles North route I did is, I think, many degrees easier. But surely it's a wonderful place - even in the rain .
.

Yes it's graded diff, but the first pitch is VERY exposed and quite hard There is a tendency to grade Scottish climbs like that - same as in the Alps - on the average difficulty rather than the hardest pitch.
my first climb in Skye was Collie's route on the Coruisk face of Ghreadaidh - a 2000ft diff - .sounded great But the first pitch was desperate - severe I guess - and the rest was a scramble we didn't really need the rope for

[gaffr]

Our first week ever in Skye was spent based at the Scavaig/Coruisk Cottage...however having a wee look at the classic routes on the Glen Brittle side of the range during that first week we went by way of the Collie's Climb to get up and down to the recently opened BMC refuge to spent the second week of the holiday based there.
I must try to get a look at the SMC book of scrambles.....I had no knowledge of this book until reading this series of posts.
Must say I had always considered the Patey Cioch Nose climb to be severe on one pitch, Just looked at the SMC guide for the route and they have it as VD. Anyway whatever labels that we give climb it is a genuine three star classic.

[past my sell by date]

Our first week ever in Skye was spent based at the Scavaig/Coruisk Cottage...however having a wee look at the classic routes on the Glen Brittle side of the range during that first week we went by way of the Collie's Climb to get up and down to the recently opened BMC refuge to spent the second week of the holiday based there.
I must try to get a look at the SMC book of scrambles.....I had no knowledge of this book until reading this series of posts.
Must say I had always considered the Patey Cioch Nose climb to be severe on one pitch, Just looked at the SMC guide for the route and they have it as VD. Anyway whatever labels that we give climb it is a genuine three star classic.

Yes that's where we were - late Sept 1960 - When the Elsan was full you had to dig a hole in the peat to bury the contents
You might like the first part of this
https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=77559

[gaffr]

The days of the Morris traveller motors and Egyptian cotton tents.
The boat at Mallaig seemed older than the version that we reached Armadale on in 1965....we continued to the path to walk over to Camasunary by a series of post bus rides.
What did your companion receive the Nobel prise for?

Must say that I am eternally grateful that we rubbed our noses first of all with the Cuillin by way of the Coruisk entry.
We were five years after your visit using the refuge at Scavaig. A whole lot of history was engaged with on that visit. The party of folks using the refuge prior to our visit then was what seemed like an annual visit from the Welsh folks who as well as doing many routes on the island and as a end of visit event the traverse of the Cuillin ridge ....some of them went on to continue over the far Cuillin to do a complete traverse of all the tops in one day. The joy of looking through the refuge 'hut book' for inspiration. Three years later for me and one of the other folks there at the time was to complete the traverse....the seed had been sown by the elderly Welsh folks.
So much to visit from that area The Dubhs Ridge up onto the main ridge, the South approach to Blaven and for some on to Clach Glas, the recently 'put-up' Climb on the Mad Burn Buttress....description in the refuge book, over to test ourselves with the Tearlach Dubh Gap and the Pinnacle before heading over to Glen Brittle by the Collie route.

[past my sell by date]

The days of the Morris traveller motors and Egyptian cotton tents.
The boat at Mallaig seemed older than the version that we reached Armadale on in 1965....we continued to the path to walk over to Camasunary by a series of post bus rides.
What did your companion receive the Nobel prise for?

Must say that I am eternally grateful that we rubbed our noses first of all with the Cuillin by way of the Coruisk entry.
We were five years after your visit using the refuge at Scavaig. A whole lot of history was engaged with on that visit. The party of folks using the refuge prior to our visit then was what seemed like an annual visit from the Welsh folks who as well as doing many routes on the island and as a end of visit event the traverse of the Cuillin ridge ....some of them went on to continue over the far Cuillin to do a complete traverse of all the tops in one day. The joy of looking through the refuge 'hut book' for inspiration. Three years later for me and one of the other folks there at the time was to complete the traverse....the seed had been sown by the elderly Welsh folks.
So much to visit from that area The Dubhs Ridge up onto the main ridge, the South approach to Blaven and for some on to Clach Glas, the recently 'put-up' Climb on the Mad Burn Buttress....description in the refuge book, over to test ourselves with the Tearlach Dubh Gap and the Pinnacle before heading over to Glen Brittle by the Collie route.

His name was Tony Leggett and he took a first in "Greats" after which they say you can do anything We always felt his intellect was a bit above ours and he became a physicist and discovered how liquid helium " climbs" out of containers - really useful Yes the Dubhs ridge was a great favourite , and the TD gap was greasy and polished even then
Sorry AK we've moved a bit away from A Chaorachain

[Alteknacker]

...Sorry AK we've moved a bit away from A Chaorachain

No problem - interesting reading for one who only discovered scrambling 5 or so years ago