Self reliance is a fundamental principle of mountaineering. By participating we accept this and take responsibility for the decisions we make. These Conditions Reports are intended to help you make good decisions. They do not remove the need for you to make your own judgements when out in the hills.

Sunday 8 March 2015

Yesterday's mega thaw (which was still raging at 11pm last night) gave way to a colder and much brighter day today. Fresh snow above 600m and the freezing level below the start of the climbs made the remaining ice just about climbable but much of it was still wet and soft. Several teams were out grabbing the chance of a climb even so.

Ali and Stephan went to climb Hadrian's Wall Direct which can be seen clearly from the glen and which is still big and fat. Despite problems with wet ropes freezing up and the chimney on pitch three being on steep mush they enjoyed the climb. There were a couple of teams ahead of them and another in Point Five Gully. There was also quite a lot of spindrift from periods of snowfall during the day.

Indicator Wall was climbed and, incredibly, The Shroud is still kind of complete! Ben Nevis ice is durable stuff in the thaws!

Looks like we have another week of mixed weather followed by a more settled period of calm and colder weather next weekend onward. Fingers crossed this works out.

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