South Buttress Gully, soggy but satisfying. 12th March.
Yesterday I was hopeful that South Buttress Gully (guidebook grade II but consensus is now III) would still be a good climbing option despite the current thaw. Once we could see into the line I was happy to go for it because the technical steps looked almost completely banked out.
Looking up the line the toughest move was the final wee dark section.
The snow slopes were fine but sadly the “ice” was only good enough for a single placement. Luckily the right wall has just enough hand & foot holds to get up without ice so we were able to snatch a good winter climb against the odds.
Luca taking to the right wall past the crux.
And a nervy “will it collapse?” moment pulling back into the snow.
Will taking a well-earned dram of Talisker on the way out.
