Whippers and Mixed in Scotland
Canadians Leave Their Mark in the U.K.
Last year, Canadian Maarten van Haeren suggested that Peter Hoang join him at the 2020 Scottish International Winter Climbing Meet, an event that attracts some of the best climbers in the world to one of the world’s top winter climbing areas.
Once every two years, climbers gather from around the world to “experience the fine art of Gaelic suffering,” said Hoang. Visiting climbers are teamed with locals who have similar experiences for a full week of scary winter mixed climbing, from repeating classics to climbing new routes. Canadian climbers who have previously been invited to this unique event include Paul Mcsorley, Marcandre Leclerc, Jen Olson, Sean Isaac, Raphael Slawinski, Ian Welsted, Jon Walsh and Michelle Kadatz. As Hoang said, it “left some pretty big shoes for Maarten and me to fill.”
The two experienced Rockies climbers went to Scotland one week early to acclimate, which Hoang said was “mostly a blessing, but also a curse in my case.” He said that Scotland lived up to its reputation for having unpredictable weather and mind-blowingly committed climbing. Hoang said that he quickly realized that physical power was “secondary to having the tenacity to survive the conditions and mental fatigue.” The climbing in Scotland is insecure with protection that takes time to find.
In 2012, Canmore-based Olson was at the event and broke her back after a big fall. She made a full recovery, but the top mixed climber didn’t have much experience on Scotland stone. After the accident, she said, “What could I have done differently/better so that I would still be climbing. Put in more and better pro. Yep, simple as that. I watch the climbers I admire do it all the time. Generally, in climbing, falling isn’t an issue, if there is no ledge to hit and if your pro holds, if you never wobble. My right tool slipped, I wobbled, my feet slipped/popped, I was holding on with my just my left hand, why couldn’t I just hold on? Then I let go, then my piece ripped and I hit the ledge with my back. Lower me to a ledge, I’ll build an anchor. Shit, I cannot move, I am paralyzed with pain. Crippling muscle spasms. Stop being such a wimp and build an anchor, stand up. I can’t. It hurts.”
Although Hoang and van Haeren had almost a week before the Meet, the only routes they climbed were Savage Slit (V 6) and Big Daddy (vii 8). “Between fatigue and bad weather, we mostly just visited the local distilleries and called ourselves cultured,” said Hoang. “We did, however, get an extra day of drytooling in, but we can pretend that didn’t happen.”
Despite all the fear, terrible weather and discomfort, I strangely found myself describing my experiences fondly
The Scottish International Winter Climbing Meet began with a fun welcome at the Aviemore Youth Hostel, where everyone got to meet their host. In previous years, the Meet was hosted out of Glenmore Lodge, but has since changed its format when the Scottish Mountaineering Club (smc) adopted the event. The Meet now begins (and ends) in Aviemore, with climbers rotating between various smc huts in between – including the famous cic Hut at the base of Ben Nevis.
Hoang was paired with Neil Adams, a climber he’d never met. “Luckily, he turned out to be a local crusher and humble nice guy, which was just what I was hoping to find in a climbing partner,” said Hoang. “Neil made my week not just successful, but a lot of fun as well (or at least as much fun as one can have while fully saturated).”
Like all climbing events, the Meet began with high aspirations by all with early starts and long approaches, which quickly showed visiting climbers that approaches in Scotland were not flat. Hoang said, “Wind-burned faces, aching legs and hearts full of abject fear were nursed at the end of each day with good company, copious amounts of scotch and the heartwarming meals that were prepared by generous volunteers.”
van Haeren made his mark with partner Andy Inglis by establishing a new route on Ben Nevis’s Minus Two Buttress, Calculus (viii 8), which takes a series of overhangs before joining up with Central Route (VI 7). Not many Canadians have climbed new routes in Scotland. van Haeren was keen to reach the summit proper, so he soloed Orion Face Direct (V 5) the following day, while his partner Inglis stayed at the cic hut. van Haeren and Inglis went on to repeat Central Grooves (vii 7) on Stob Coire nan Lochan. van Haeren added to the Canadian reputation for not being afraid of winter whippers.
Adams and Hoang repeated Sundance (viii 8) on Beinn Eighe before getting turned around on Creag Meagaidh the day after due to avalanching slopes. They found success when they moved up to the cic Hut and repeated Kellett’s North Wall Route (vii 7), The Shroud (VI 6) and Mega Route X (VI 6). They also reached the summit of Ben Nevis. Both The Shroud and Mega Route X are ice routes, but very different from Canadian ice. “Ice in Scotland is formed by a combination of freeze/thaw cycles, precipitation and wind,” said Hoang. “The ice grows sideways, holds a weak structure and fractures in strange ways.” The Shroud was a curved hanging dagger, which stretched from the wall like an umbrella. It was engaging, “even by Canadian standards.” Hoang then ripped some turf and took a fall on Defenders of the Faith (IX 9). “It took some effort to finish the route and certainly made me appreciate the fact that turf climbing wasn’t just mindless swinging,” he said.
The ice grows sideways
My waterproof pockets were full of water, my boots were fish bowls and my jacket felt like heavy canvas
Simon Richardson was writing daily reports of the event and said this on day four: “On February 26, the wind dropped and all eyes turned to Ben Nevis with close to 40 climbers from the International Meet active on the mountain. The standout performance came from Hoang (Canada) and Adams who made an ascent of The Shroud (VI,6) followed by Mega Route X (VI,6). Hoang was keen to reach the summit of the Ben, so they continued up Jubilee Climb and circumnavigated Coire na Ciste to tag the summit before descending Coire Leis. The Shroud has not touched down and is currently a hanging ice fang. Hoang used his extensive Canadian icefall experience to judge that this potentially very risky ascent was in safe condition. Even so, he rated the climb at WI6/WI6+ on the Canadian scale and commented that he had never climbed an icicle that did not hang vertically before – it had been blown sideways by the wind.”
On the final day of the event, van Haeren and Inglis went to Cairn Lochan for The Vicar (viii 8) and a small group went to Garbh Bheinn. Garbh Bheinn doesn’t often come into shape because of its aspect and elevation, which is why there are only two routes. Adams’s intuition suggested that things would be in “good nick.” With good conditions comes bad weather and the last day was the wettest and coldest of the week. “Our efforts paid off though,” said Honag, “as Tim Miller, Callum Johnson and Damian Granowski made the fwa of Scimitar (vii 8), while Adams, Lukas Klingora and I made the fwa of Gralloch (IX 10).”
Gralloch is about 50 metres, an E2 summer route that follows a left-trending crack and ramp system, an extremely obvious feature that begs for a winter ascent. Adams and Klingora both offered Hoang the sharp end. Hoang recalls the route: “It began on some delicate ice before entering the crack system, which was way less positive than I had hoped for. I had forgotten that the ice in Scotland isn’t quite as laminated as we’re typically used to, which resulted in a ripped placement that launched me into an inverted whipper – I ended up about five feet from the ground with my back against the wall. Frustrated by my carelessness, I quickly asked to be let down and restarted the climb – this time taking it to the top. In many ways, Gralloch was the perfect capstone of the Meet for me, as it possessed in spades many of the reasons why I love climbing (athleticism, aesthetics and mental engagement) and really drove home the special nature of ephemeral routes in Scotland.”
Back at the car, Hoang’s waterproof pockets were full of water, his boots were soaked and his jacket was drenched. “Though I sat in soggy discomfort, it felt like an amazing reward to be out of the wind, watching the rain ride down the sides of the car window,” he said.
Back in Aviemore, they gathered for their final dinner, where they had a chance to catch up with everyone who wasn’t in my rotational group. “Despite all the fear, terrible weather and discomfort, I strangely found myself describing my experiences fondly, using adjectives that would sound contrary to the experience at the time,” said Hoang. One local climber at the table told the visiting Canadians: “Leads here take a long time, you have to battle for every foot and every piece of pro while the weather hammers in on you. When you find a sequence, or that bomber piece of pro, there’s elation, and you feel like you can manage to go a bit higher – to which you’ll eventually top out.” His description as to why Scottish winter climbing was so addictive mirrored Hoang’s hardships of getting by every day during the Meet. Hoang said, “I will add though: that routes in Scotland really do feel ephemeral – eventually a good one will come, and as a result of pressing on, you’ll have the tools in your pocket to tackle opportunities.”
Wind-burned faces, aching legs and hearts full of abject fear were nursed at the end of each day