Scotland Northern Highlands this weekend

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 jbpilon 03 Mar 2020

Hello !
Me and a mate are coming up to the northwest Highlands on Thursday for a bit of adventure and fresh air. Can't wait, it looks amazing.


We are thinking on :
- Thursday late afternoon : Get to the Suileag bothy 
- Friday : Canisp
- Saturday : Suilven / then relocate to the Shenavall bothy
- Sunday : An Teallach

Looking for some advices from the local and people who know the area and the weather around there.
Weathercast says Friday is ok, Saturday is pretty clear, Sunday seems a bit more rough.

What do you think ?
Other option could be An Teallach on Friday / Canisp AND Suilven on Saturday / And then open to suggestion on Sunday.
Maybe that's better.... 


Other questions :
- How are is An Teallach from Shenavall ? Is it icy / snowy right now ? We ll have crampons and ice axes but no ropes.
- Is it worth bringing a tent, in case the bothies are full ??
- Is it safe to leave gear in the bothies while we do our day trek and pick our stuff on the way back ?

Looking forward to hear from you.
Please feel free to share that post to people you know could know some of these answers so we can make most of our trip

Thanks !
 

 Mark Bull 03 Mar 2020
In reply to jbpilon:

Lots of snow at the moment: http://torridonblog.sais.gov.uk/2020/03/sunshine-and-light-winds/

Forecast has a fair bit of uncertainty still, but according to Met Office and BBC not looking good for Saturday. 

> - Is it worth bringing a tent, in case the bothies are full ??

Full bothies unusual at this time of year, but you can't tell for sure. 

> - Is it safe to leave gear in the bothies while we do our day trek and pick our stuff on the way back ?

Can't legislate for random idiots, buy very unlikely to be a problem. 
 

OP jbpilon 03 Mar 2020
In reply to Mark Bull:

That is a lot of snow... 
To be perfectly honest, we are not very experienced and the one guy in our little group who had a little more winter experience pulled out this morning due to a bad flue.
I did a few good treks (Mera Peak, Gran Paradiso, Rysy in winter condition, Snowdon, a random 5000m in Tajikistan, etc...) but it's usually always been with locals or alpin guides or sherpas.
That's my first time in the area.


What's Suilven condition / avalanche risk ?
Any tips on where to get real time information is welcome.

Thanks !


 

Post edited at 22:30
 Mark Bull 04 Mar 2020
In reply to jbpilon:

Suilven has some steep ground to gain the ridge, but from the col to the summit is easier. I would expect the steep section to be snow covered, since the general snow line is around 400m, but it is probably low enough to be reasonably well consolidated - of course you should use your own judgement on the ground. 

SAIS reports and blogs are probably the most reliable sources on online conditions info fro the area. You might get lucky and get a relevant report on the UK Ground Conditions Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/345833125602252/

You should probably moderate your ambitions with respect to An Teallach: just going as far as the top of Sail Liath would be rewarding in terms of views on a nice day. It is possible to gain both Munro summits from Shenavall via  Coire a' Ghamhna, but this could be hard work and/or avalanche prone. River crossings permitting, Beinn Dearg Mor would be a good objective from Shenavall - it looks spectacular, but there is a a fairly straightforward route up its SE corrie. 


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