Coire Choile Rais and the Creag Mhor Ridge.
18th February 2010
A lot of different and interesting snowpack/weather issues at the moment at ‘Meggie. Today was one of those Alpine-like days we don’t get very often with seriously low overnight temperatures, a pre-existing cover of fresh snow, soft slab only at the highest elevations and warm sunshine later in the day. A really mixed avalanche ‘bag’.
(Above) The Creag Mhor Ridge. A great ski ascent (and descent) but we don’t often see many people using this approach/descent. A bit difficult to find coming off the plateau in poor weather. Probably not as good a descent as the Moy Burn but, in combination, an excellent way of doing a mini-circuit incorporating the summit.
(Above) The ‘secret’ gem on our patch: Lochan Coire Choile Rais. The lochan is at over 800m and is surround by steep, ice-choked watercourses of varying length. Always quiet. Ski-tour in (at a very friendly angle) do a quick route and cruise back down with long serpentine turns. Your ski-mountaineering boots will take crampons and be great to climb in. A brilliant day. What’s not to like?
Thinner, soft slab that lies on Southerly aspects at lower altitudes shears readily with very little encouragement – nuisance value only but worth keeping your heads up later in the day where it’s deeper and on steep ground.
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