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A Winter Cuillin Ridge Traverse
A traverse of the Skye Cuillin Ridge in winter.
A Winter Cuillin Ridge Traverse is probably one of the most sort after Winter Mountaineering objectives in the UK, thankfully it is one I managed to tick off a few years ago with a good friend. Below is a short write up of the trip along with a few tips on tactics etc. Please have a read and I hope you enjoy it, if you ever want any advice if you are thinking about trying one for yourself, please do get in touch. Or if you are interested in a Guided Cuillin Ridge traverse in the summer months you can make an enquiry here.
For a successful Winter Cuillin Ridge Traverse lots of things need to line up in your favour. You need at least 2 days of reasonable weather with lighter winds and good visibility plus a good covering of older firmer snow on the ridge to ease progress, the time and ability to drop everything and a partner in the same situation. Back in December of 2012 this is lined up for Ken and I to make a successful traverse.
I had been up on the Ridge a few days beforehand so had seen the conditions first hand which was a big bonus. Ken and I made a plan, made a few phone calls to check a couple of useful bits of info and then we sorted out the transport. We left the car at Sligachen at about 8pm so we could bivvy in Coire a' Bhasteir to put us at the start of the ridge first thing in the morning.
A cold nights bivvy and we at woke about 3.45am to clear sky's and head torches on the West ridge of Sgurr nan Gillean which turned out to be Guy, Kenny, Donald and Friend who were going for a one day push. We packed up and made our way onto the ridge the West Ridge of Sgurr nan Gillian and were stood on the summit at 6am. We made good progress South along the ridge from here with great conditions under foot and a track pointing the way so route finding wasn't exactly a problem. Two Abseils off of Am Bastier down Kings Cave Chimney and we were soon flying along the easier terrain leading towards the trickier section of Bidean Drum nan Ramh and Sgurr a' Mhadaidh.
An abseil of Bidean Druim nan Ramh's north peak saw us looking at a short and tricky step back on to the central peak and onwards to Sgurr a'Mhadaidh's 4 tops. There was an abseil descent of the 3rd and 2nd tops before reaching the summit where we decided to have a brew. The technical sections of this part of the Ridge are short lived but there is a huge amount of very serious and consequential grade II ground and for a serious attempt you really need to feel confident to move around on this ground without the use of a rope.
We made it to Sgurr Dearg at about 3.45 pm and stood and looked at the In Pinn and decided to do it first thing in the morning when we were feeling a little fresher. We popped down to our bivvy spot in 'Hotel In Pinn' and had a good feed and plenty of rest. Another cold night but it was a little warmer in our cave and we both got a good nights sleep.
Morning came and we made our way back up to the In Pinn which was a great wake up call straight after breakfast and meant switching on pretty quickly. We climbed the long East ridge and abseiled down the West ridge just as in summer, the climbing is never too hard but it is still to this day one of the starngest pitches of grade IV I have climbed. Axes were next to useless and it was more just a case of making the same summer moves but with crampons on.
We made it to Sgurr Dearg at about 3.45 pm and stood and looked at the In Pinn and decided to do it first thing in the morning when we were feeling a little fresher. We popped down to our bivvy spot in 'Hotel In Pinn' and had a good feed and plenty of rest. Another cold night but it was a little warmer in our cave and we both got a good nights sleep.
Morning came and we made our way back up to the In Pinn which was a great wake up call straight after breakfast and meant switching on pretty quickly. We climbed the long East ridge and abseiled down the West ridge just as in summer, the climbing is never too hard but it is still to this day one of the strangest pitches of grade IV I have climbed. Axes were next to useless and it was more just a case of making the same summer moves but with crampons on.
We were feeling tired at this point and the slog up and the up to Sgurr nan Eag seemed to take forever but at the top we can see the summit of Gars-bheinn, the last on the ridge and it doesn't seem that far away. We arrived at the southern end of the ridge on the summit of Gars-bheinn just as the sun started to fall in the sky. To this day this traverse is still one of my best memories in the mountains, if you ever get the chance, you will not be disappointed!
