Scottish winter walking

Simonx

14/09/2010 at 15:22

Hi there,

Some friends and I are planning about 4 days in Scotland for some walking in the snow - using crampons and (for emergency use) ice-axes. Probably the start of March .

We are all fit and have done guided winter walking in the Atlas Mountains and the Pyrenees. Our navigation skills are okay but I would not say they are excellent.

Any suggestions on mountains, routes or hostels would be much appreciated.

Kind regards,

Simon.

marcus golding

14/09/2010 at 15:28

Glencoe. up around the 3 sisters, the lost valley and beyond upto bidean is good in winter.

pleanty of accomadation round there too, the onich hotel is good and cheap while there are also bunk houses b&bs and chalets.

http://www.glencoescotland.com/

hth

Rodney Hewitt

15/09/2010 at 09:05

I'd second the Glencoe area and the walk decribed above.

If your staying that way we stayed in a great bunkhouse : http://www.inchreecentre.co.uk/

The En-Suite Bunkhouse rooms area great, very clean with tv's in the room, also the Pub next door is top notch. There is some brilliant walking on your door step.

GOF

15/09/2010 at 09:14

Glencoe....Ring of Steall (get a clear day and it is just fantastic), CMD arete

bit further south

from Oban, Ben Cruachan Horseshoe.

Be aware though to keep an eye on snow conditions. There can be a huge variation between the west (Glencoe) and the east (Aviemore/Cairngorms) so you might need to change your plans a quite short notice according to what the snow is like.

ALoveSupreme

15/09/2010 at 09:25

Winter conditions in Scotland are unpredictable and change fast; you'll probably get a better trip if you stay with someone with active local knowledge. On the West Coast Calluna Lodge Bunkhouse/b&b is run by Alan Kimber, an extremely experienced mountain guide; on the East Coast Fraoch Lodge is also an excellent b&b and bunkhouse and is run by two mountain guides. If you stay somewhere like these places you will be able to get really good advice from people who are out locally all the time and, if you wish, you have the option of getting a guide for a day to boost your skills a bit, introduce you to the area, or do something you maybe wouldn't do on your own.

Edited: 15/09/2010 at 09:25

Simonx

15/09/2010 at 09:39

Thanks all for the help and advice, very good suggestion from ALS and Simon's point is a good one too - Cairngorms wouldn't be first choice but that could be where the conditions are best. Any thoughts on hostels etc. well located for the west but perhaps a little nearer the east than Fort William is? (We'll have a car)

ALoveSupreme

15/09/2010 at 09:56

If you want to cover all options, somewhere like the Newtonmore Hostel gives you a lot of possibilities; it is at the west edge of the Cairngorms, the Creag Meagaidh range (wonderful in winter) is 30km or so to the West, and beyond that you have the Grey Corries, the Aonachs and the Ben and Fort William, so you can just look at the weather forecast and decide which way to go. There's a hostel in Tulloch too .. but, I have to say if it was me, I'd want to stay as close to the climbing as possible so I'd pick an area - winter days can be long, and who wants to sit in a car?

Edited: 15/09/2010 at 09:59

Simonx

15/09/2010 at 10:16

thanks ALS, using that site I can see this place:

http://www.roybridgehotel.co.uk/roybridge-bunkhouse.asp

Might be worth considering as still Lochaber based but en route frmo FW to Cairongorms?

ALoveSupreme

15/09/2010 at 10:47

I stayed there years ago; it was utterly dreadful - we actually left. Beware of hostels that are part of pubs; they often, ime, have very poor cooking facilities, so you are forced to eat in the bar (though you might prefer that anyway), and can fill with drunk arseholes (though you might want to be one). This is more the sort of place I'd go for - I think I've actually stayed there, but can't quite remember. If it's making the most of conditions you are worried about, I'd still rather stay with a guide like Kimber or Fraoch lodge - guys like those will know safe routes when the weather is dreadful, and find snow when the hills look bare, so you can make the most of your trip. Conditions are so local; one side of a glen can be bare, the other waist deep in snow.