Winter Mountaineering in The Cairngorms

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

You must bring an ice axe, crampons and crampon compatible boots. The boots are crucial. Without the right type of boots your crampons will not stay on. There is no alternative, bringing the right equipment is essential, things like micro spikes and walking poles just won’t do. Cheap crampons from China bought online will not be acceptable either.

THIS IS NOT A WINTER WALKING EVENT. It will be a bona fide mountaineering exercise. If the weather and conditions allow us to do the routes we are planning, there will be some exposure as well as technical scrambling on rock, snow and ice.

The Cairngorms (Aviemore)

Meet at: Aviemore. The plan is to travel up on Saturday 1st then meet for a pre expedition briefing in the evening before the week’s activities begin the following morning (the location for the briefing will be given to all attendees nearer the time). We will be leaving to travel back home on the morning of Saturday 8th. As an environmentally conscious group, we actively encourage car sharing. Further details of car sharing arrangements from Sheffield, Manchester and elsewhere will appear in the comments section nearer the time.

While Ben Nevis is Britain’s highest individual mountain, the Cairngorms are undisputedly our highest mountain range. As well as boasting the largest concentration of towering peaks, it is the only place in the country where you can walk for miles in a straight line without ever dropping below 1,000 metres in altitude. Needless to say the possibilities for adventure in such a mountain range are endless.

The focus of the week will be on big mountain outings involving high quality easy grade technical winter climbing. We will be looking at reaching the summits of mountains such as Ben Macdui (the country’s second highest peak at 1,309 metres), the eponymous Cairn Gorm, Braeriach, Cairn Na Criche, Sgor An Lochain Uaine, Cairn Toul, Cairn Lochan and Stob Coire an t-Sneachda as well as, conditions permitting, doing the classic scramble of the Fiacaill Ridge which makes for a superb outing in winter.

Photos from our previous winter trip to the Cairngorms can be seen here:

https://4142298.xyz/sheffield-mountaineering-rock-climbing-meet/photos/34381289/

Difficulty: Mostly Grade I winter climbing with some Grade II on the Fiacaill Ridge. For more information on winter climbing grades see:

https://www.thebmc.co.uk/winter-climbing-grades

Experience Required: Some previous winter mountaineering/mountain scrambling/rock climbing experience with our group is an essential requirement for anybody who wants to come on this trip.

Ordnance Survey Map: OS Explorer OL57 Cairn Gorm and Aviemore, 1:25,000 scale.

Guidebooks: Scotland’s Mountain Ridges published by Cicerone Press, Highland Scrambles South published by the Scottish Mountaineering Council.

Accommodation: As usual we have booked luxury holiday cottage accommodation with wifi and all amenities. We have a limited number of places left in this accommodation. This will involve sharing a twin room (two single beds) with one other person of the same gender. We can offer this accommodation at the specially subsidised price of £150 per person for the week. If you want one of these places, contact me ASAP as they tend to go very quickly. We will require immediate payment to secure your place as the accommodation has already been paid for.

There are also many other options in the Aviemore area. As well as cottages there are youth hostels, bunkhouses, B&B's and campsites. If you need any help or advice finding something just let me know.

If everybody wants to contribute £10.00 towards our substantial Meet Up fees and the additional costs incurred in organising this trip that will be great, thanks.

Disclaimer: This is NOT a package holiday or guided tour and there is NO insurance provided. Mountaineering can be a dangerous activity and you attend entirely at your own risk. By signing up and coming to the event, you agree to all of this. We highly recommend that you take out your own insurance.