N.E Ridge of Y Garn in Winter

Popped up into Cwm Idwal to see what the winter conditions were like this morning. There was loads of snow, but the temperatures were above freezing, with rain on the way - if I was going to climb anything, I needed to be quick. I chose to go up to Y Garn as it's probably the quickest place to access from Ogwen Cottage and has loads of options.

Given that it was just after 8:30am, there was just me and fox up in the mountains. I followed the prints all the way to the base of the climb.

 

As I'd suspected, yesterday's strong westerly winds had deposited a lot of snow on the east facing gullies and slopes. It was therefore not much of a surprise to see that a lot of snow had avalanched out of the base of 'Banana Gully'. To stay safe, I chose to climb the NE Ridge, moving between smaller snow ramps and gullies to avoid the main difficulties as I was on my own.

 

It was like wading through knee deep porridge to start with, but once I'd got off the really soft wet snow lower down, things firmed up a bit as I got to the summit of Y Garn. I was eager to see what cornices had formed along the ridge and soon came across some big ones. The weight of the snow had caused it to start cracking away from the main slope! It really was not a day for gully climbing!

 

Looking back up towards to summit showed the big cornice overhanging the slopes below. Imagine finding this at the top of your climb and having to negotiate it. To have climbed below these would have been a real lottery... How long will they hang on?...

 

I had to follow the rim along to find a safe place to access the ridge below, where I planned to descend. Where the cornice petered out gave a good choice, but as the ground became easier, the weather worsened, with the wind picking up and the snow and rain arriving.

 

Given the downward turn in conditions, I decided to take the quickest way off the mountain, so after putting on my ski goggles, I sat in the snow and pushed off! I sledged all the way back down to the lakes in about 5 minutes at a steady pace, controlling my speed by digging in my ice axe.

 

Once I'd ground to a halt, all I had to do was exit the cwm and in half an hour I'd be back at the van! Brilliant!

 

As I got lower, the rain came down harder. I found these goats sheltering under a rock just before reaching the road.

 

I was soaked on the outside, but the Rab waterproofs had done their job as I'd remained warm and dry underneath. Next stop was a hot shower back at The Cottage. It had been worth the early start...