Point 5 Gully

We got to the CIC a bit late, we could see teams on Orion Direct, Minus 3, Minus 1 and Zero

Many teams had already gone up Point 5, and teams on Observatory Buttress - Ordinary Route

Several teams were on Hadrians

A bit late in the morning - I'm on pitch 1 on Point 5 (the queues had gone and there was nobody behind us). The climb is fairly well banked out, so pitch 1 was shorter than it has been in the past. The climb is incredibly hooked and stepped at the moment. The ice is thick - so this climb will be here for a while :)

Pitch 2, fun, fun, fun

Lena sets off on the Rogue pitch as spindrift comes down

Lena cruising up the steep pitch

Lena on one of the upper pitches

Lena topping out onto the summit plateau

A quiet summit - of course we had to climb ontop on the shelter as well to complete our route :)

Ledge Route

The Curtain

Jagged Globe - Winter Mountaineering

We took the Winter Mountaineering team up Ledge Route today. I packed my sunglasses, and actually managed to use them today when the clouds lifted a little in the second half of the day - fantastic. It was a perfect route for the course today. Some teams took on some extra difficulties along the way, but everybody soaked up the atmosphere and scenery. It was the first time on Ben Nevis for many on the course.

Other routes being climbed today (numerous) were Curtain, Vanishing, Point5, Tower Ridge, Harrison's Direct, The Comb and others.

It's all change tomorrow for the snow conditions...

Michael, Neil and Adam

Green Gully / Number Three Gully Buttress area

Meall an t-Suidhe, and a well frozen Lochan

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

Good Friday Climb

Incomplete Point 5 Gully, Observatory Buttress, Smith's Route, Tower Scoop

I teamed up with Andy Stotesbury to have a look at the Ben today. After a headtorch start we nearly made it first into Observatory Gully, but were beaten to it by Rocio and Ben. They took a look at Smith's Route but decided it was a little thin with water running behind - so they left it, as did we - off to plan b. However, Kenny, Guy and John went up Smith's on the Icicle variation.

Orion Faces, Observatory Ridge, Point 5 Gully

Point 5 is still not there - or Zero, and the lower section of Observatory ridge looks like it almost has zero snow, as does the lower section of NE Buttress.

Smith's Route

Andy Stotesbury with Tower Gap behind

We opted for Good Friday Climb, to give us something from the day, as neither of us had done it before. We found another team on it, who told us about their successful string of climbs over the last week.

The traverse of Good Friday Climb (III***). Andy about to start across the traverse - just unclipping from the in-situ nut.

The second pitch of Good Friday Climb

The whole climb had some great neve, but also a great deal of ice crusted sugar snow. The traverse in particular had that booming hollow sound for the feet, below the ice crust, and the ice was not always good for screws. The main ice after the traverse, however was on the most part good and thick in places.

The summit

Little Brenva Face in Coire Leis

We came down via the abseil posts into Coire Leis to check out the Little Brenva Face.

People were climbing Tower Scoop, Good Friday Climb, a team gearing up below Indicator Wall (climbed?), Smith's Route(?), Tower Gully, Tower Ridge.