Let's do the Cairngorms again

Continuing my tour of the UK's more remote regions Rich and I got the sleeper out of Euston to Aviemore. It is always magical to use a sleeper and waking in the highlands makes it even better. Full of Scotrail carbohydrates we took the bus to the ski station and walked off into the wildrness. for 30hrs we saw almost nothing but endless variations on white. I can see why those from Northern latitudes have so many words for snow.

We climbed a long icy arm of the main plateau. There were two main butress structures each filled with fresh and frozen snow layers. We had to jump a couple of drops and Rich managed a magnificent textbook ice axe arrest. I led the climbs cutting away unstable layers of snow and kicking footholds in the flozen layers beneath.

Once on the plateau we had to rely on Rich's navigational skills to find the top of Ben Macdui (Scotland's second highest peak). It was snowing steadily and we were enveloped by cloud. We were the only people to reach the top that day and the summit cairn was ribbed with ice and covered in snow.

We dropped off the top into the col and dug a snow pit. My hands were freezing and once the tent was up they started to thaw painfully. It was fully dark by 5pm and talking through life's many difficulties and burning spagetti too us through until 8pm when we turning in.

A small tent on the top of a mountain in minus 7 degrees may seem like a strange place to be happy but I was and slept fully 12 hours until my alarm went off. Rich made hot chocolate and we pulled the tent down. A foot of snow had falled over night burying the ice axes we had used as tent pegs on the windward side.

We trekked back on a northward bearing to the butress we had climbed. We were more adventurous on the way down and took a more direct route. We had to wriggle (bagless) down one section and throw the bags down. It was wonderful.

I saved the falling through the water ice until 30mins from the ski station and we enjoyed our hot chocolates very much. Dinner at the Cairngorm hotel was excellent. Neeps and tatties away!!

The train delivered me to Euston on time and the Bletchley express had me in work by 9:30... Wonderful