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firefly


Posts: 2149
Joined: May 2006
Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 11.28hrs on Fri 11 Sep 09
As far as I can tell, and I wait to be corrected, the remaining snow in Scotland is (in no particular order):

1. Garbh Choire Mor, Sphinx
2. Garbh Choire Mor, Pinnacles
3. Garbh Choire Mor, Michaelmas Fare
4. Aonach Mor, Protalus
5. Aonach Mor, just south of The Web climb
6. Aonach Beag, Queen’s View (main patch)
7. Ben Nevis, Point 5 Gully
8. Ben Nevis, Gardyloo Gully
9. Ben Nevis, Observatory Gully

Now, I expect that Observatory Gully will split into various patches, and that there are probably one or two rogue patches between Observatory and Gardyloo Gullies, but I think this will be broadly accurate as of today.

I plan to go to Garbh Choire Mor on the 26th September, for those that are interested in coming along?




Edited 1 times. Last edit at 11.29hrs Fri 11 Sep 09 by firefly.

firefly


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Joined: May 2006
Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 15.22hrs on Sat 12 Sep 09
A very useful photograph of Ben Nevis from Tarmachan Mountaineering, although the wispy cloud in the pictures is a real pain!

Looking at the width of the patch through the haze, I estimate its length to be around 50m, with the same for length. Gardyloo has a couple of patches higher up, too. Larger Point 5 patch in the region of 20m wide, I would estimate. Smaller one will probably go in the next week or so.



Edited 1 times. Last edit at 15.25hrs Sat 12 Sep 09 by firefly.

firefly


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 09.55hrs on Mon 14 Sep 09
Picture, courtesy of Nic Bullivant of Cairngorm Mountain, of Garbh Choire Mor, taken on the 12th September. For those not in the know, the smaller of the two patches (Sphinx, the higher of the two) is the one that always lasts longest in the Cairngorms, and is Britain’s longest-lying snow patch, having melted only 5 times in the last 100-years: 1933, 1959, 1996, 2003 & 2006. By my reckoning, the ground under the Sphinx patch has only seen daylight fewer than 10-months in the last 100 years. Maybe not even as much as that?

Attachments: Garbh Choire Mor - 12.9.09.jpg (71kB)  
firefly


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 12.22hrs on Mon 14 Sep 09
The temperatures on Aonach Mor and Cairn Gorm are alarmingly high at the moment. Aonach Mor showing 13 & 14 Celcius, which will be killing the snow. The temperature can’t be much different to Fort William? Very strange.

alan


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 12.37hrs on Mon 14 Sep 09
There was a marked inversion layer this morning with CairnGorm basking in sun higher up, damp drizzly and horrid looking in Aviemore.

coaster


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16th Jan 2017
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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 12.46hrs on Mon 14 Sep 09
Firefly here is a pic from this morning clearly showing the upper two patches.The left hand patch is a lot smaller.

These patches are getting exposure to weakening sunshine and high temperatures due to the temperature inversion,the visibility was excellent this morning.

Attachments: A Mor 14 Sept 09.JPG (119kB)  
firefly


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 20.56hrs on Tue 15 Sep 09
Thanks, coaster. Not much left unfortunately, though we did say when we went that mid/late-September was the probable melt date for the snow there. Probably protalus will have some good sized chunks hidden from view, and would be useful to see pictures of it. I've tried to sleuth some pictures from various websites, but to no avail!

On the brighter side, Alan Halewood (whose blog Blair Fyffe put me onto), a mountain guide who is often up the Ben, has furnished me with excellent photographs from today of his jaunt up Tower Ridge. I contacted Alan recently to ask him if he'd be so kind as to take some snaps when he's up the Ben, and he's come up with the goods! The photograph below is from today, and you can view it in large size here.

Main Observatory Gully patch in decent nick. Starting to take on the late-season 'M' shape it always does. Compare the photo below to the one from the 29th September 2007 and the 22nd September 2008. The similarity between 2007, 2008 & 2009 is striking. Weirdly so. 2008 and 2009 are (come the 22nd) going to be virtually indistinguishable. As for 2007, it's a similar shape, but smaller in the 2007 image, with the top-left spur missing. Probably going to be very similar in size by the time we get to the 29th September this year. Remarkable similarity.

The depth is more difficult to gauge, but I would estimate it still to be around 6 metres at deepest. There's been a fair bit of melting since the 22nd (as you would expect), but not severe.



Another couple of Alan's pictures can be found on my flickr account, which I've uploaded them onto (with due credit going to Alan).

David Hosking


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29th Jun 2010
Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 07.59hrs on Wed 16 Sep 09
doen to 1c on Cairngorm and 1.6c on Aonoch Mor at 8am this morning, should help firm things up a bit.

coaster


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 13.50hrs on Wed 16 Sep 09
I have not been on this thread since my last posting and by pure coincidence(honest!)i went up to view the Aonach patches this morning.

It was a superb day for a drop down the back of A Mor with sunny skies and conditions underfoot considerably drier than the saturated conditions we experienced on our August trip.

First stop was a look a A Beag,the surface of the patch is filthy and though smaller than last year it is still a large patch of snow and a long way from melting.Due to the size of this patch i elected to give the drop down for a closer look a miss until later in the season.

Next stop was a drop into A Mor following the route from our last trip,as i scrambled round to get my first view of protalus i was met with a sight that i had not seen there for a couple of years-NO SNOW.From there i couldn't see the upper patches a they were too small so a quick scramble up revealed 2 sorry looking patches on the brink.The largest on the right was 4mtr across ,3mtr long and only around 1mtr deep,the second was 1mtr across, 2mtr long and .5mtr deep.

Interestingly given the low morning temps mentioned by David Hosking these patches were dripping profusely much like myself at this point 12.15.Conditions were mild to say the least.

I managed to scramble up Easy G no mean feat given my love of heights but worth the saving in time.

On my way down i noticed the ski resort was gearing up for the season with the goose tow running and people repairing a section of fencing at the goose.There was even a chopper making multiple trips up to the restaraunt dropping off bags much to the delight of the numerous tourists.

A cracking day on the hill.



Edited 2 times. Last edit at 14.18hrs Wed 16 Sep 09 by coaster.

Attachments: A MOR 16TH SEPT 09 2 patches.JPG (132kB)   CIMG1614.JPG (129kB)   CIMG1617.JPG (131kB)  
coaster


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 13.52hrs on Wed 16 Sep 09
firefly


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Joined: May 2006
Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 14.35hrs on Wed 16 Sep 09
Excellent, coaster! I was wondering how Aonach Beag was getting on, as I’d given up on Aonach Mor. Looks like it won’t last longer than another couple of days.

That said, though, I’m more than a little concerned that Aonach Beag is under siege from the current weather. It’s starting to look small-ish now, and it’s noticeably smaller than the 22nd September 2008. I actually think it’s about the same size as when I visited on the 18th October 2008, which is worrying. I hope the cold air currently swirling around in the far north finds its way to Scotland before too long, or we’ll be in danger of seeing the disappearance of Aonach Beag before mid-October. I must say my gut feeling is that it’s not looking good this year.

The only saving grace, I think, is that this snow will be very hard neve, having been around for the best part of 3-years in pretty much in its current form. Melting, therefore, will be limited, and – as Adam said to me – the snow will be better suited to rainwater run-off, being very hard. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

By-the-way, well done on your solo exit from Easy Gully! I reckon it shaves about 20-25 minutes from the journey.


firefly


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 14.55hrs on Wed 16 Sep 09
Attached is a photograph of Garbh Choire Mor from the 11th September, showing the (small) Michaelmas Fare patch as well as Sphinx and Pinnacles. This was not visible in Nic Bullivant’s photograph from the next day.

Attachments: Garbh Choire Mor - 11.9.09.jpg (160kB)  
firefly


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Joined: May 2006
Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 06.32hrs on Thu 17 Sep 09
A message from Alan Halewood last night that there is still 'a lump' of snow at the top of No.2 Gully on Ben Nevis. Here is a picture of Point 5 Gully snows from yesterday, again courtesy of Alan Halewood, which he took from Tower Ridge.

Alex Hofmann


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Point 5 gully
Date Posted: 08.03hrs on Fri 18 Sep 09
How long does Point 5 gully normally last? From that photo it looks like the surviving snow in Point 5 is the ledge at the base of the first pitch where you normally gear up and/or pee...

firefly


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Re: Attention all walkers! 2009 snow-patch season
Date Posted: 08.46hrs on Fri 18 Sep 09
In 2007 it lasted until the end of September (30th, from memory), and last year it persisted until the new snows arrived (21st October).

This year I would expect it to last early/possibly mid October. If lasting snow arrives at the same time as last year then there's a chance it will survive.

And, yes, the snow sits at the bottom of the gully where you gear-up.

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