Carn mor Dearg the icy arete and Ben Nevis

[doogz]

Carn mor dearg and ben nevis

30th dec 2008

N and MOi

5hrs 35 mins

totally mindblowing weather......

-10 at car park...fog ...solid ice...sun..wee bit wind on summits ...

route from Torlundy car park ..up CMD ...across Arete..up Nevis...straight down to 2000ft lochan..across to meet path just at deer fence then baclk along the good path to the car park


well where can i start this

...Where do we finish 2008 on the hills....

Up and scrape the car and away to get N at 0545....-4 in the car thermometer...brrrrrr..get N at 0610 and were off
great run up the side of the loch and i was astonished to be turning at Crianlarich before i really new i had been driving

Along the road to fort william a massive fog bank rudely interupts the so called views we are supposedly going to have..
stopped at entrance to fort bill by police doing random drink drive checks..off in mins as i dont drink...police man seemed to think we were nuts goin up cmd today...whatever was he worried about?

Into Mcdonalds for a quick coffee..out to get a breath of the fresh wintery air and ....."I KNOW YOU"...thats what the guy in front has just said "youre Doogz"...i replied "your right who am talkin to"......"GOOD MORNING RONALDO HOW YOU DOIN""....he was meeting KETS .would love to have stayed to meet ye kets..eeeh opp me duck ..you get your turbo fixed yet ron?
The hills were beckoning us ... a quick sortie up to CMD and back home for visiting ..me maws got a new hip yesterday and i promised my sis i would do the hosp visit evening visit..no probs just a quick rush job up and doon since i done the ben in april 2007 ..yeh yeh that will do:wink:

So into the wee car park at torlundy and in the last space...ready and away for 0905am..follow th wee amazing path winding its way thru the forest and gain great height

Cold...frosty and an inversion even at 130m


Torlundy and the golf course


Loch Linnie with fog inc


making great strides up the really excellent path ..marked by the way ...we reach a big fence with the best stile ever invented although the deer would be really daft if they didnt just walk up the stairs and over

break off nevs north face path an were away on a binnie up towards the first of many ups..on sheer ice for the next 400m ascent...great ye canny whack it!!!

lookin over Fort Bill still foggy doon there

a whirring around the ski area and we are searchin for the big yelly bird as it heads for the great glen still full of fog and cloud..its dead centre ..very small but there



aw naw the views are gettin good what is wrong wi the weather men ..drat some big clouds forming round the 200ft lochan on the way up the ben...



oh whits this big hill called...he he he sooooper



still making amazing time even efter sundays three on the ice on meall a bhuiridh and creise then bak oooer the first wan...me i must be nutso what is the enjoyment in this

up onto the wee top and the views in the now sunny areas are opening out..but nout too good............YET...........


nearly at the top and in a lung bursting 2hrs 15 mins we are nearing the summit
meall na teanga and its mate still looking good for a sunday jaunt some time soon...


""it canny get better than this"" am sayin tae masel and a wee glimpse either side of the summit top and my wee heart is pumping ...it f^$£ng is better...MUCH BETTER


nope not yet we are nearly there but not quite with amazing views out to everywhere..




ok ok i will let you see it now ..just a few am keeping some of the other ones for masell
the cloud even done some perfomances for me with it lapping like a curly wave off a distant hill


a wee close up of the obliging wave....fantastic



ell at this point i am so elated i just try to take it all in ..its wonderness ..un blinkin believable


sheepdog ma main man ..i am sorry for stealing the same type pic you use in your avtar..




The Ben ...cmd arete ..oh and the nice views behind 8O 8O



MAMORES ET AL


Now its time for the coffee break and a wee chat about what way we get off the summit ..the views are so poor we say ....might as well do the arete since its there ..and its nice and its icy and it gets us tae the Ben .....wait wait ICY i just said ..so why woiuld you take it on with all the ice and verglass and frost...scared yet.....i wasnt..well..
Lets f@c%in& do it


down and down on slippy ice filled gaps with frost topped rocks and scrambling and picking our way down we are LUUUUURVIN it maaaaan
a wee look back ..aint no stopping us now



And whats to go ..oh and up the ben as well



aw naw i forgot the rope for the abseil point ..och i will need to go up ben Nevis....boo hoo


two walkers behind us ...dead centre gives an idea of scale

so after a big ask on the aged thighs of mine it was time to don the crampys and get the axe oot ..well it was now sheer sheer sheer ice ....nae rocky bits to stand on and welll we found it a big advantage at this point..

told N i was getting my crampons out their wee hidey place in my bag.... a sneaky wee snap...



well the summit was an anti climax as the cloud had swept over us and blotted out the views ..so that was it no pics left to use ....

.oh except these ones.... :wink:



and this




and this



and this



and this


well there has to be the inimitable summit shot of the doogz



well it came the time we had to leave and after watching the guys with the trainers and flat brown shoes descend the ice with neanderthal walking gear ....yup two rocks placed betwen their legs to act as a brake ..absolutely hilarious as the two of them hurtled down the drop to 4000ft cairn at around the 40mph mark ....there was climbers and properly adorned peopl astounded at the chap in the jeans..and these two careeering downhill like luge champs ...we had been told on the summit a GOTH was on his way up...no way ..long coat...big boots ...satchelll...........naaaaaaaaaaaaa cant be serious ...
yup ....here is the intrepid goth man ..wondering how he is gonna reach his m8


two climbers spotted decending down the face of nevis...some bravado reqd for that

so off down the steep ice burn down Coire na h-Urchaire...cutting out the ghastly zig zags and not seein any more intrepid under equipped climbers...never laughed so much in a million years

over the lochan path down the hillside to pick up the outgoing path just above the fence with the giant stairs..a last look at what can only described as a phenomenal walkon an unbelievable day

still looked like -10in the coire


down to see the sun setting on the reforming fog bank on loch linnie and fort bill



only made my mind up to do CMDearg last night at 2210 ...my god am i glad i did..

back down at the car it was roasting now at a heady -5 ..too hot ..have to get some gear off...lol

back down to barrhead and johnstone safe ..up to hospital mum and her new hip doin ok ..lots of pain but that can only be expected...pain i couldnt feel pain myself today due to the larg smile acrross my ugly mug..

Hope you enjoyed my trip reports over the last year ..does seem a lot with 127 munros covered in the 12 months 0f the year 2008...like a lot of guys though i have don a heck of a lot in the south so lots mor repeats to keep the fitness up in the next few winter months...mibbbbbbbyyyyyy..then spring assault on the remainder of my hills
if only they were all as wonderful as today...ah well they all have their charm

Happy New year when it arrives tonight to you all and

KEEP SAFE

cheerz

doogz

a few extra pics i found






straight down Coire na h-Urchaire...nae zig zags for the doogz

[Rodds1]

Cracking pics Doogz, thats the route I intend on taking when I venture up in the coming months. Glad you enjoyed - wish I had been there to see the "goth man" - you really do get some wally's attemting this

Have a good new year yourself and all the best for 2009

[maddjock]

WOW... now thats why we do it in the winter time... had a great chance to go out last friday - boxing day - but my bed was too warm... kicking myself now

stunning pics there...

[wandererjon]

Truly fantastic pictures, Doogz!!! You do see some sights on the hills, no wonder the MRT's get so frustrated!!! Hope your Mum's back on her feet soon.

Happy New Year
Jon

[Paul Webster]

Amazing pics - especially the one of the 'cloud wave' - and frightenining about the people in jeans and shoes on the ice!

You must move alot faster than me - there's no way I could complete that route in daylight at this time of year - must get fitter

[yokehead]

Brilliant report & pics Doogz. I'm hoping to get on that jaunt next month when I have my next week in Scotland, just got the new boots and ironwork all ready to go. What I would give for the weather you had, I had similar weather in Wales on the 29th/30th December - temperature inversion and brocken spectres, you just can't believe you're that lucky to be there!

[doogz]

I'm hoping to get on that jaunt next month when I have my next week in Scotland, just got the new boots and ironwork all ready to go. !

mate take care if you are goin up there and you have not walked with crampons on...its so blinkin different...much tougher....

try them on a less exposed area first..

sorry if you are experienced walking in iron work before


thanks for all the positive comments folks

doogz

[yokehead]

Thanks for the word of warning Doogz, yer quite right and this winter will be our first time with the cramps on. We have a two day course and some practice to do before we'll be having a go at Big Ben and we'll be sensible (ish)!

[doogz]

paul some others on route around the arete..

for the scale there is two people almost centre coming down from summit of cmd


any more can pop them out to you

doogz

[cjwaugh]

Stunning pics doogs really makes you want to get out there cheers

[gymman47]

Awesome..what more can I say.

JP

[satkins]

Great photos, and super time to complete, well done.