CIC Ice

Looking up at CIC ice falls, Carn Dearg Buttress to Castle Ridge

Jagged Globe - Winter Mountaineering

Today Jan and Jeff were keen to take time to learn a little about ice climbing and more specifically, alternately leading themselves up ice, placing protection and making belays. We headed up towards the Ben and found the CIC icefalls looking good, and currently being climbed in many places. The Gulch has a lot of solid ice and can be climbed from about grade 0.5 up to about IV. The day was one of the best on the Ben for a while, and yet it was pretty quiet. One reason for this was the Ben track. Our minibus didn't make it. I think you need 4 winter tyres or a 4x4 or both at the moment - or a slightly longer walk from lower down, like us today. Lots of ice routes around CIC were being climbed today as well as Tower Ridge, Number 5 gully and Ledge Route.

Jan and Jeff lead a few pitches doing all the work themselves and finally abseiled off an ice abseil to finish one of their first independent leads. Well done.

CIC ice fall

Number 2 Gully, Comb, Number 3 Gully Buttress

Falls to the RHS of the main fall. All climbed today

Further right

Ice around the approach to Castle Ridge

Compression Crack

Add caption

Waterfall Gully

Waterfall Gully

Point 5 Gully

Number 3 Gully and Creag Coire Na Ciste

Jeff placing screws into thick solid ice

CIC Gulch Ice

Jeff making his way up towards his ice belay

Ice fall below Number 5 Gully, and the start of the Curtain

Pinnacle Arete

The light after dawn on the Ben

I met up with Andy Stotesbury again for another headtorch start on the Ben. We decided to go and have a look at the Trident Buttresses. There was a slight dusting of new snow on the black crags, and there was verglas on many rocks.

Looking up Number 5 Gully, showing Carn Dearg Buttress

The mountain was quiet initially, but we saw several teams on Tower Ridge, at least 2 teams in Green Gully, and several teams on Number 3 Gully Buttress.

Andy Stotesbury looking at our route. Creag Coire na Ciste behind.

Douglas Boulder, and the dusted buttresses

Green gully and Number 3 Gully Buttress

Andy starting off on pitch 1 of Pinnacle Arete (IV,4*), at the far right end of the middle terrace, overlooking the steep north wall of the buttress. This turned out to be the crux, at what we estimated to be tech 5/6 and poorly protected.

We did choose Pinnacle arete, even though the book says 'the grade assumes some consolidated snow'. What snow there was, was mostly good neve, the turf was frozen and there was some ice which was good. I used 2 screws on the route, and I was very glad of the bulldog. Going right round the corner and then up to the end of the first pitch turned out to be the, hard at the grade, crux. The rocks were all verglassed, and often the feet were on icy smears. The hooks were good enough, and there was even a jug that you could hold and look at the exposure beneath your feet - to the snow apron below the north face.

Near the end of pitch 1. Looking down the steep north wall of South Trident Buttress. The southern pond of Coire na Ciste, is in the top left corner.

Part of pitch 2

Andy off on pitch 3

From the top of the route looking over to Number 4 Gully, with a couple standing next to the Number 4 gully post.

Another great route on the Ben, and I'd probably give it 2 stars. It was a great chance to hang out at the belays and check out the action in the rest of Coire na Ciste.