Smiler Cuthbertson - Mountain Guide

Richard, a nice team and some interesting routes and training

18th - 21st February - Glorious weather and conditions everywhere. Richard and I took the opportunity of doing a couple of slightly harder, better routes before the weekend snowcraft course.
Thursday saw us on Fingers Ridge and in great conditions we soon caught up Alan Hailwood’s party, handing over several bits of gear unfortunately dropped or left behind by the two lads. Taking our time near the top proved advantageous. When I climbed the difficult and serious top wall, I was being watched by Alan and his team from the top of Red Gully (they even videoed me for Alan’s blog). A great route and Richard claimed it was one of his best days out.

Patey's Route Richard on the hard moves

The following day we were back up in the corrie and on Patey’s Route. I hadn’t done this since years back when I recalled some quite serious overhangs and in-situ gear to protect the harder moves.Today was a complete change. Ok, one overhang required a forceful pull over on axes but ot was much more straightforward and the rest of the gully was superb. The second bulge was avoided by a tricky rightwards move on iced-up rock, with a long bridge out and some great hooks to pull across on. We went down Aladdin’s Mirror and stopped to do both sides of Aladdin’s Mirror Direct. No need to go to the top so we abbed off the convenient tat on the stance. A very good day.

The weekend’s snowcraft course had Joss, Jason, Javeira, Phillipa and Anne booked on, so Richard stayed on to lend a helping hand and do some observation and photography.
A very successful course and the team really enjoyed learning all the aspects of safe movement in winter conditions. i felt a few more days on ice axe breaking practice wouldn’t go amiss, but I had to concede the hard snow/ice just below a soft layer of powder snow everywhere didn’t really allow a vast amount of speedy sliding to take place. Techniques had to be practised in a short time span and the deep soft snow cleared first before useful slides were to be made.The lenght of pre-cleared slide determined the amount one could go down, before ploughing into the deep barrier of soft snow.No danger of not stopping!
Snow belays were however excellent, the deadman going in a very long way before coming to a halt, and no amount of clients’ pulling could shift it. Needless to say, the ice axe belays were equally sound too, and at least the clients could actually see the belay, as opposed to the Deadman invisible under the surface.
We couldn’t avoid the most beutiful weather and a trip up the Goat track, across the icy plateau and down the Fiachill of Corrie Casse ended a great weekend.
Saturday night in the Cairngorm Hotel was as usal great fun as well.

Rjukan Icefest February 4^th -14^th 2010

Right from the start, as the Meet leader for the Climbers’ Club ice climbing trip to Norway, I sensed this year’s icefest meet was going to be good. And it was.

 Initial reports about Ryan Air’s increasingly tighter and more expensive travel conditions were gloomy, but one of the intended team members came up with an option/variation for travel to Oslo - Norwegian Air to Oslo Gardermoen, the city’s main airport and not too far out of our way to Rjukan. The main advantage over Ryan air was the cost, and very favourable weight allowances.

Gardermoen receives flights from several UK airports, thirteen of the eventual team flying from Edinburgh or Heathrow, the rest sticking to Ryan Air from various UK airports, mainly Stansted and Liverpool.

Ryan Air and Norwegian Air (pretty well) matched each other for cheap flight ticket costs, but when it came to weight allowance, and to the cost each way of a sports bag, it was a totally different story. Much cheaper with the latter and a massive 40kgs allowed rather than 20kgs with the former. With the need to take fairly heavy bags of winter gear and ropes, this proved a godsend to many of us.

It was a huge difference when we arrived in Gardermoen though. A major airport, plenty of facilities open even at a late hour, easy locatable car hire desks, civilised organisation. Soon, a happy ‘Baker’s Dozen’ had loaded hire cars, switched Sat Navs on and were driving towards the city centre. ‘Doris’ re­calculated nicely when arriving at road works on the lengthy tunnel in the city, and with virtually spot-on the timing, three hours and seventeen minutes later, we pulled up at the Rjukan Gestegard Hostel. Messages and envelopes left at reception gave room numbers, keys and directions and soon we were cosily ensconced in warm beds.

 A marked difference to last year was the lack of crowds in the climbing areas. Usually one’s climbing was enjoyed alongside maybe three or four other visiting climbers, the only difference being at Krokan and Ozzimosis, where here, due to the un-serious nature of the access (not necessarily the climbs mind you) there were as usual a larger number of visitors. However, these never impeded our fun.

Conditions this year were excellent, not too cold and with reasonable, but usually slightly dull weather although there were also some splendid sunshine days. Little falling snow and good tracks in the gorge along both sides of the river to locate climbs, although some members did decide to get their feet wet occasionally.

There so many routes climbed this year that it would be a lengthy list if needed. Suffice to say, together we more or less climbed most of the routes under Grade 6, including many of the superlative Grade 5s in the ‘Heavy Water’ guidebook. A new and more modern guidebook is now overdue.

A couple of the more adventurous teams ended up doing the hardest climbs on the meet, but generally, there was a ‘fun’ atmosphere in the warm and spacious lounge each night after the day’s climbing, the wet gear, now ice had melted, drying out in the superb drying room in the basement, while some relaxed and others self-catered in the (slightly cramped but still usable) kitchen area.

The Meet continued in the same manner as all previous meets, breakfast at or before 8.00 o’clock, followed by day-food selection and then packing gear and off in teams by around 9am. There was never any need to rush, the climbing is always strenuous so three or four (up to 25/30 meter routes a day would prove ample fun, some of the longer routes in the gorge were usually enough as a ‘one-route’ day.

My thanks (as Meet leader) go to the following:

The superb Rjukan Gestegard - with the staff of Torbjorn, Anne, Ina and Freddie, plus a couple more (their names unfortunately escape me). And a special thanks to Freddie for the organisation of the great Pizza meal and party with drinks we had in splendid surroundings, shortly before returning to the UK.

Climbers’ Club (and Guests) - Matt McVeigh, Geoff Lowe, Trevor Langhorne, Steve Jenkins, Bryn Roberts, Dave Hayward, Peter Nugent, Chris Vernon, Myles and Nicola Jordan, Rob Aryton, Lee Leatherbarrow and Becky Moore, Paul Headland, Jim Slater, Phil Tomaszenski, Terry Kenny, Marje Mortimer, and the two latecomers who we never really had time to mix with, Cath Walton and Rick Wojtaszewski, they arriving just as we were due to come home.

To all of the personnel involved, I thank you all for providing another great icefest Meet for the Climbers’ Club, and I look forward to next February when we can again swing our axes and return to such comfort each day.

I realise after three consecutive year’s Meets at Rjukan now, past attendees may want to visit other areas over west, Hemsedal, Laerdal, Eidfiord etc, but with, as yet, scant knowledge of similar and superb accommodation in these (arguably as good for ice climbs) locations, I will be happy to continue to promote the Rjukan Meet, hopefully gaining new members each year.

Smiler Cuthbertson March 3^rd 2010