Mac, Sharon and I were out climbing in the North-East Coire of Beinn an Dothaidh today. There was a lot of unconsolidated snow at crag height and we switched to a Plan B of Stairway to Heaven with it’s Direct Start. The direct start ups the grade a bit, but means starting low on the ridge rather than in West Gully, which was a good option today.
We had a great day, but even on a ridgey route a lot of clearing was required, which made for slowish going. The turf at crag height was frozen solid even where it was buried. There’s not a huge amount of ice in the coire at the moment, so routes that require ice in quantity are currently best avoided. Good route, approach and descent choices are essential as there are sizable amounts of wind slab around.
