A Trip Around Loch Avon

In contrast to my last winter walking venture, today was picture perfect. I’m not sure if it would be right to say I didn’t see a cloud all day, but it certainly felt like it. With clear skies, little wind and temperatures hovering around zero it can’t have been far off the perfect day.

Emerging into the sunshine
Emerging into the sunshine

Once again, I took advantage of being able to drive up to the Coire Cas car park at the Cairngorm Ski Centre. At a little over 600m in altitude it may seem like a bit of a cheat but, when you’re looking to spend as much time as possible in the snow, it’s the obvious way to get up to the snow line. My ascent of Fiachaill a Choire Chais was accompanied by wonderful views into Coire an t-Sneachda, seeing all the winter climbers treking in, and climaxed with the sun eventually coming into view as I arrived on the Cairngorm plateau.

As I descended into Coire Raibeirt, I came across a snow hole dug into the drifts on it’s western banks, which deserved a good inspection. I find it interesting to see how others have made shelters, in the hope of picking up some ideas for the future and it’s good to make note of what type of locations the snow has been building up with recent conditions.

Having completed the steep descent of Coire Raibeirt, I headed around the western end of Loch Avon in order to gain access to the slopes up to Beinn Mheadhoin. On the way up, I came across some really hard snow which hadn’t been exposed to the sun, and took advantage of the opportunity to practice step cutting with an ice axe. I must admit that it has been a while since I last practiced this and had forgotten how tiring it can be!

Looking at Cairgorm over a frozen Loch Avon
Looking at Cairgorm over a frozen Loch Avon

The actual peak of Beinn Mheadhoin was fairly uneventful, but gave some fantastic views of the back of Cairngorm over a frozen Loch Avon. However, having descended the northern slopes of the mountain, I was faced with crossing the River Avon as it leaves the loch. There were rocks standing proud of the water to use as stepping stones, but life was made a little more interesting by the fact that they were cover in ice! As a result, I did my first ‘river crossing’ in crampons.

Today’s weather made the hole day a real treat. The conditions may not have been that testing, but it’s sure nice to enjoy days like this now and again.

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