Even the best laid plans...are subject to change

Soooo remember how I said Alan and are going to Ireland?  Yeah...about that.  We've changed that plan.  It came from a couple things.

One was the realization of the goals we want to accomplish.  We want to climb and climb a lot.  We want to be able to have different options available in case of inclement weather...and that means not just heading to a pub.

We also had a discussion about previous goals and unfinished work.  Things that were essentially left "un-done" the last time we were in Britain.  I think we both came to the conclusion that you only get so many shots at these kinds of big trips and if there's a possibility of doing something really cool, take the shot.  If you get a 2nd shot at something, you damn well better take it or you're just plain dumb.

And finally...this is what sealed it...I had a discussion with my friend Simon who's climbed fairly extensively in Ireland and Britain.  Simon's advice was to stick with Britain.  Ireland, (especially the areas where we planned to go) while lovely, can be difficult to climb.  The weather is one factor but the aspect of many cliffs is that they are north facing.  He said it's great if you have the time and can pick exactly when to go out there...in other words, you live there.  But otherwise, we're better off picking another place.

In the end, Alan and I talked it over and came to an agreement on Scotland.  I've somehow managed to get three (yes three) weeks off from work this summer for this trip.  That means I basically can't take any other time off but in the end I know it will be worth it.  And this time we're flying into Edinburgh, Scotland.  Though it was a bit more difficult to figure out, it should save us time since we won't have to travel up from London.

We have three main goals for this trip.  Anything beyond these will be great but these are where we are focusing our efforts:

1. Climb "Centurion" on Ben Nevis.  The last time we were in Scotland (late May 2010) there was still too much snow to safely climb on Ben Nevis.  So this falls under the "2nd shot" I mentioned.  It's a classic 7-pitch route that goes at about 5.9 (UK grade HVS 5a).  I would also like to do "The Long Climb", another classic route on Ben Nevis that goes at about 5.75.8 (VS 4c), but at 10-pitches and about 425 meters long (just a 1/4 mile).  For more info, check out this blog entry: http://yorkalpineclub.org.uk/blogs/?p=373

But what makes Ben Nevis even more daunting is that it's really an alpine day to do a route on it.  When Alan and I were last in Scotland we had an approach hike in to Etive Slabs that took us about an hour or so.  Two Scottish climbers we met there told us that it was easy by Scotland's standards.  We haven't forgotten those words and know very well that we have to factor in probably a 1.5 to 2 hour hike-in just to the base of the climb.

Ben Nevis

2. Climb the "Old Man of Hoy".  This is a dream climb for both of us.  The Old Man of Hoy is a sea-stack just off the coast of the Island of Hoy in the Orkney Islands.  It's a 4-pitch climb at about 5.9, but we may have to contend with some Fulmars (sea birds) that live around and on the stack.  Hopefully none of them decide to puke on us...which is known to happen.  Just getting out to Hoy will be a challenge.  A long drive to the very north end of Scotland, then a ferry ride to Mainland Orkney (the big island), then another ferry ride to Hoy.  Then after we climb the thing (fingers crossed the weather is good for us!) we get to reverse the route.  It will all be worth though if it comes together anywhere near as-planned.

The Old Man of Hoy

3. Climb the granite cracks of the small tidal island of Erraid, off the coast of the Isle of Mull.  This place is just beautiful and remote.  We'll have to take a ferry out to the Isle of Mull, which is on the west coast of Scotland.  From there we drive to the far western end of the island and park the car.  We then hike out to the island, crossing a tidal sandbar.

The main bay on Erraid

Beautiful walls of granite

I randomly found this place when flipping through the Scotland climbing guidebook I have.  I thought it looked pretty cool and the more Alan and I looked into the place, the more excited we both got to check it out live and in person.

So that's the new plan.  We also have a list of a bunch of other smaller crags and places we want to get to.  We're going to mostly camp, either in campgrounds or "in the wild" as they call it there.  Scotland's laws on wild camping are very lenient and we'd like to take advantage of that and do it on the cheap when possible.  That'll also let us shorten some approaches some days which is always a good thing.

The trip isn't until later this summer but I'll be sure to keep y'all up to date as things get closer.  Until then, stay safe out there everyone and thanks for reading!