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Yep
@futureboy77 yes it was pretty benign conditions and a hill that I've done many times.
Conditions on the valley floor do not always give a good indication of what's happening 1000m higher up, and conditions can change dramatically and quickly.
I'm all for people walking in the hills throughout the year. But knowing the risks helps us to make the right decisions at the right time.
Enjoy your trip @shermer75 !
kraftyslices
Full Member
@futureboy77 yes it was pretty benign conditions and a hill that I’ve done many times.Conditions on the valley floor do not always give a good indication of what’s happening 1000m higher up, and conditions can change dramatically and quickly.
I’m all for people walking in the hills throughout the year. But knowing the risks helps us to make the right decisions at the right time.
Enjoy your trip @shermer75 !
Sorry for the loss of your colleague. Agree with you. Walking past the flowers was quite jarring as I've seen the conditions change so much recently. Hope the funeral goes as best as it can.
Apparently 20 people have died so far this year in the Cairngorms
Source?
Matt - that seems to have been a misunderstanding based on an old interview from 2018 that was aired on Countryfile this evening.
Ah, OK. I did think that was a very high number, and when I hadn't seen so much press about it.
Anyway OP, enjoy your trip and do post photies...
4 people rescued in Cairngorms
To answer the OPs question. Personally (and I have a fair bit of experience), I wouldn't be on the plateau on my own in March. If you can find someone else to go with then yes, buy an ice axe and go up there if the visibility and wind are forecast to be fine. If not, stay lowish.
Personally (and I have a fair bit of experience), I wouldn’t be on the plateau on my own in March.
Personally, I would. But I am Summer ML holder and Winter ML trained, so also have a 'fair bit of experience'.
I wouldn’t be on the plateau on my own in March. If you can find someone else to go with then yes, buy an ice axe and go up there if the visibility and wind are forecast to be fine. If not, stay lowish.
As mentioned above the plateau can be very difficult in the clag. I've taught nav to students on it in white out conditions and they were absolutely shitting themselves at the start! You can barely tell up from down and have to rely 100% on this tiny compass in your hand and pacing in your head. You can hear the sense of relief when a cairn suddenly appears in front of them out of nowhere. On a sunny day, it looks the most innocent place on the planet....
Even catches experienced people out, one week we were there a fellow instructor (MiC) had finished the climbs with his students, had topped out and were chatting away on the walk back to the Ski area, when they suddenly found themselves at the big rock in Sneachda. Could be worse, people often end up at Loch Avon.
Personally (and I have a fair bit of experience), I wouldn’t be on the plateau on my own in March.
Not, in any way meant to be a dig, but I think that's quite extraordinary and extreme. You'd write off the whole of March (so, presumably November/December, January and February too)?
Indeed, there are a lot of quite 'black and white' statements on this thread.
Outdoors to me has always involved judgements, decisions, opportunities, changes of plans - but never a fixed decision.
This is a great book to introduce some of the issues of nav/gear involved, with some practical examples including the Cairngorms. Also an informative and entertaining read.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scotlands-Winter-Mountains-Martin-Moran/dp/0715307940
If I were lucky enough to be in the OP's position and planning a trip, I think I'd be looking for somewhere I could practice some of these techniques - with no real risk of coming unstuck if I screwed it up. Which I probably would...
Outdoors to me has always involved judgements, decisions, opportunities, changes of plans – but never a fixed decision.
And to honest, a fair few close scrapes where you come off the hill alive and think 'thank god for that'!
I remember doing Crib Coch for the first time in deep winter in zero vis. Got onto the ridge and unwrapped brand new strap on crampons which I'd never used before and put them on. The ones with 15m of tape you mummify your feet with and then spend the rest of day trying not to trip over. My friend didn't have any. Neither of us had done it before, so had no idea what to expect and it was covered in snow and ice patches, which we had no experience of. Visibility was about 5m.
That memory is burnt into my head now and the sad thing is, even though I've done it many times since I'll never enjoy it as much as that first trip in the clag, gripped by fear and anticipation. An amazing day out, but we were quite lucky to have had no problems.
Personally (and I have a fair bit of experience), I wouldn’t be on the plateau on my own in March.
Personally, I would. But I am Summer ML holder and Winter ML trained
Fair enough and quite right too. But I still think my advice (and it's only advice) to the OP would be to take a friend with him on a first outing.
Perhaps that's an abundance of caution through once having had the shame of having the mountain rescue called out for me 🙂
Not, in any way meant to be a dig, but I think that’s quite extraordinary and extreme. You’d write off the whole of March (so, presumably November/December, January and February too)?
It's the best time of year to go hill walking. I love it but not solo. My problem is if I get in trouble I may well have to survive the night before the search parties set out. In a group there's a chance of self rescue or someone going for help.
Perhaps that’s an abundance of caution through once having had the shame of having the mountain rescue called out for me
Indeed I've watched the parrafin budgie take a mate off the hill in my time.
I'm just intrigued by the really blunt statements around the hill and it's dangers.
@oblingbob also the top of Ben MacDui in May and June 😅
@shermer75. Low cloud today so no way of seeing all the snow cover. There's been a few flurries up top the past couple of days so a bit more overall than last weekend. We've also got low cloud forecast tomorrow. It won't affect my planned ride at Loch Pattack but will affect visibility up top.
Lots more snow forecast starting Sunday night.
Despite enjoying a brilliant trip to the Cairngorms with a mate a few weeks ago, this thread plus a few Facebook pages I've started following (climbing and hiking), coupled with wintery conditions currently and expected (MWIS and met O), has led me to change my plans for a solo trip to Snowdonia next week.
Whilst I do tend to be a little overcautios, all these stories helped remind me that situations do happen to people just like me.
I always jokingly say I like a bit of 'mild peril' on my trips. I decided that spending days in the mountains on my own without a fixed plan thus anyone knowing where I was, on icy ground, pushed the trip into 'moderate peril'.
At the age of 48 I've nothing to prove and everything to lose so I've switched destinations to the SW coastal path. Back to challenging conditions for hiking and bivvying, but not dangerous.
Cheers guys.
I'm just seeing SAR151 coming over the hill at the moment,
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And Braemar MRT have just posted this on Twitter 🙂
https://twitter.com/BraemarMRT/status/1631371976148131847?s=20