North York Moors

Posted on February 3, 2014 by yellowvanmountaineering

We’d originally earmarked this weekend for winter climbing, or if not, joining the CUHWC trip to Capel Curig, but the forecast for our usual mountain haunts was even more grim than usual. Deciding we’d had enough of battling wind and precipitation against the backdrop of the inside of a cloud, we headed north east instead, in search of pastures new, low and hopefully sunny.

The three-hour drive from Oakham to Kirkbymoorside was pleasantly short, allowing us to leave after dinner and arrive in good time to find a parking spot and enjoy a beer before bed. We are now discovering some of the true joys of the van – no need to worry about booking somewhere to stay, being able to change plans at the last minute, yet far more civilised and less effort than camping.

We couldn’t quite believe our luck on waking to glorious sunshine, and set off from our parking spot on Harland Moor to do an anticlockwise round of Farndale, via Blakey Ridge, the Coast to Coast to Bloworth Crossing, and Rudland Rigg. It did get rather windy later, and we found the track walking somewhat monotonous. However, these were minor gripes, and not enough to stop us detouring to bag Round Hill on Urra Moor – the high point of the North York Moors at 454m! We then spent the evening at the fantastic Lion Inn on High Blakey Moor, which we’d scouted out earlier, enjoying the welcoming atmosphere and hearty portions.

Parking on a ridge in strong winds was perhaps not our best idea, but it was close to the pub, and anyway the van stayed upright overnight. On Sunday we headed to the coast to explore Whitby and walk from Robin Hood’s Bay to Ravenscar and back. Disappointingly, the cafe at Boggle Hole wasn’t open for cream teas, but we finally tracked one down at the Yorkshire Hotel to round off the weekend perfectly.

Photos from Scotland and Seathwaite

Posted on January 12, 2014 by yellowvanmountaineering

Here are some photos from our recent trip to Scotland (most of which is described in the post below).

After escaping from the Onich traffic jam, we made our way to Glenfinnan to position ourselves for a round of the two Munros there, Sgurr nan Coireachan and Sgurr Thuilm, the next day. After a nice walk up the long track to Glenfinnan Lodge, the weather got us again, and we spent the rest of the day battling rain, wind and snow in the clouds. We were glad to follow a couple of sets of footprints, which we later found to have been left by Michael and Alex P two days previously! We made it round slightly quicker then expected due to favourable snow conditions, and as we descended out of the blizzard, the sun shone incredibly over the glen.

After four “quality winter days” we were very glad to spend the evening and welcome the new year in the company of friends at Borrodale House near Arisaig, where we were warmly welcomed with tea, sherry, enthusiasm, and a singing lobster.

The next day we got up in the light for the first time of the trip, and enjoyed a stroll along the beach before heading south.

Two days later we were back in the hills, this time joining CUHWC at Seathwaite in Borrowdale for the weekend. The weather was no better than it had been in Scotland, but there was considerably less snow on the ground. Our walks took us from Buttermere to Seathwaite via Robinson, Hindscarth and Dale Head, and over Eagle Crag and Sergeant’s Crag.

Glen Lyon Munros

Meall nan Aighean

Bridge on the way to Bheinn Fhionnlaidh

Glen Etive from Bheinn Fhionnlaidh

North ridge of Ben Starav

Descending into Glen Finnan

The viaduct

The beach at Borrodale House

Buttermere

Heading for Dale Head

The snow ghost of Dale Head

The road to Seathwaite

Summit of Eagle Crag

Last few days of 2013

Posted on December 30, 2013 by yellowvanmountaineering

As we’re currently stuck in a traffic jam near Fort William I thought we should blog. We’ve been here for three days and dispute the weather have had some good days out.

Firstly we spent a day in Glen Lyon, doing a high level traverse of 4 Munro’s. Having blown away the cobwebs and had a long day we opted for an easier next day. Beinn Fhionnliadh from Glen Etive was not as short as expected. We had an initial false start having camped in the wrong place and had to relocate down the Glen. Then we found the bridge has been washed away so started the long walk towards the col. At 12 we eventually got across and started climbing. As we were higher up than expected we took an alternative route into the corrie and onto the north east ridge. A great ridge followed by the expected summit ridge with some interesting winter steps.

Today we had a longer day around Ben Starav and Glas Bheinn Mhor, with the unexpectedly fun ridge descent from Starav. Great mountaineering day.

Snow is a bit wet but firm in places, nice and calm but cloud making us navigate occasionally.

Our van is excellent, having not been to a campsite, we haven’t been cold once although we are getting slowly wetter as the trip goes on.

Pictures will follow once we are at a computer. All spelling mistakes curtasy of the tablet keyboard

The accident has now cleared, so I’ll post this.

Slight delay as the car in front breaks down and blocks traffic in both directions…

Norway

Posted on October 7, 2013 by yellowvanmountaineering

For six weeks from the middle of July, we went to northern Norway with the British Exploring Society – Dave as a Mountain Leader and Jo as a Science Leader. We were based in Nuvsfjorden, near the town of Øksfjord, some 200 miles inside the Arctic Circle. The expedition consisted of 16 leaders, 14 trainee leaders, and around 50 “Young Explorers”, split into smaller groups for science work and adventurous activities.

We were part of the advance party, which established various camps and carried out an initial recce on the access glacier to the Øksfjordjokelen ice cap, around which we hoped to undertake a week-long journey. Unfortunately we were subsequently plagued by a week of very hot, sunny weather, which – while being very pleasant for swimming in glacial meltwater and similar activities – meant that the upper glaciers became inaccessible as their snow covering melted and exposed some rather serious crevasse fields.

Despite this setback, the expedition carried out some worthwhile exploration of the surrounding valleys, ridges and coasts, and science projects including geology mapping, biodiversity surveys, hydrological measurements, and marine sampling to investigate ocean acidification. We did some mountaineering training on the lower glaciers and nearby boulders, saw the midnight sun, ate a large amount of bilberries, learned bushcraft skills, and caught mackerel from the fjord. There was also a lot of companionable tea-drinking and chatting with new friends, as well as the opportunity to properly relax away from the demands of life back at home.

A highlight of the trip was a sub-expedition to the island of Sørøya, during which we ran a Gold DofE qualifying expedition. The island was beautiful, with rolling rocky hills, clear lakes, exciting geology and several stunning sunsets – highly recommended. We also got a good taste of Norwegian culture and history here, spending some time in the main town of Hasvik and visiting a cave in which local residents sheltered for several months during the Second World War.

Jo’s and Dave’s photos are online in the usual place, with a selection below to give a flavour of the trip.

Sun and Water in Patterdale

Posted on June 10, 2013 by yellowvanmountaineering

So we took the van in its part-converted state on a hillwalking club trip to Patterdale in the Lakes. It was so hot and sunny, we decided to try ghyll scrambling – a great way to cool off, get some good scrambling done and have a lazy day. We also explored a very beautiful deserted valley – quite impressive for the Lakes on a nice weekend. We ended up on Fairfield and took a quick dip in Grisedale Tarn before returning home.

On the second day, we did a quick round of some hills we haven’t done before near Kirkstone Pass. We also managed a quick paddle along a stream.

Links to our photos are here:

Dave’s photos – nice landscapes and a few of scrambling

Jo’s photos – mostly ghyll scrambling

Scotland (van-less)

Posted on June 6, 2013 by yellowvanmountaineering

While Dave was working hard on the van last week, I went to Scotland for a week’s post-thesis/teaching holiday. It was wonderfully sunny and equally wonderfully midge-free, and a reminder that in the right conditions the Highlands are difficult to beat. Most of the trip was spent camping with Alison, David and Ruth at Ardmair just north of Ullapool. The site was delightful: right on the shore with views of the surrounding hills and out to the Summer Isles, and it also afforded the opportunity to snoop at various camper vans staying there!

The weather and time of year meant long days on the hills, although some time was admittedly spent sitting on the sun-warmed rocks admiring the view! Ascents of Ben More Assynt, Conival and Glas Bheinn; Cul Mor and Cul Beag; and An Teallach put us at the heart of the magical Assynt landscape: steep sided ridges of layered Torridonian sandstone rising from a lochan-strewn gneiss plain and capped with glittering quartzite, against the backdrop of an incredibly blue Hebridean sea. It’s been eight years since I was last there on a first-year field trip, but I hope not to leave it that long next time – it would be a really fantastic place to explore in the van.

On the way to and from the far north, we made various stops: a weekend in Edinburgh to catch up with the duffer contingent there, Schiehallion (for David’s Munro completion), Beinn a’ Chuallaich north of Kinloch Rannoch, Ben Wyvis, and Ben Tee by Loch Lochy.

Some photos from the trip are below; there is a more extensive and better quality collection here.