Clachaig Blog - Winter 2008
19th March
Last weekend was a fairly busy one for Glencoe Mountain Rescue with 3 call outs in 3 days, plus lending a helping hand to deal with the casualties in a fairly serious accident on the A82 (see below!)
On Friday we were called across the Corran ferry to Garbh Bheinn , Ardgour, to search for some climbers well overdue on the mountain. The call out itself was quickly over and without incident and the notable thing was the new Sikorsky S92 helicopter.
We're used to Sea Kings used by the RAF or the Navy, but on this occasion the chopper was supplied care of the Coastguard. I used to think that the Sea King was a bit of a beast, particularly compared to the old Wessex. This shiny thing sounds more like a Chinook flying down the glen! Didn't manage to hitch a ride in it on Friday but quite looking forward to trying it out one day.
11th March
So you've been to Glencoe? Unless you arrived by helicopter then you have travelled along the A82. Appalling isn't it?
The road runs from Glasgow, up through Glencoe and Fort William and on to Inverness. Along its entire length, its difficult to find a stretch which could be reasonably described as up to modern standards. And the section along Loch Lomond between Ardlui and Tarbet is little better than a cart track. Temporary traffic lights tha thave now been there 30 years! And the 'Flood' signs have now been replaced with 'Ford', a reflection of the fact that the road never dries out.
Enough ranting. The road isn't being upgraded because there is no political will to make it happen. But there is a campaign to try toand change this. Visit their web site and log your own views of the A82.
And if you do nothing else, sign the ePetition so that the case can be heard in the Scottish Parliament. The petition should be signed before 4th April.
6th March
Febfest 2008 drew to a close on Saturday 1st March with Johnny Hill getting everyone’s feet tapping in the Boots Bar on Saturday night as the last Febfest revellers enjoyed a range of ales from Caledonian, Harviestoun, Williams & Cairngorn Breweries.
The Highlight for some was surely the Whisky tasting session with Gerry Brown from Gordon & MacPhail, where better to learn all about our national drink than here in Glencoe!
The Clachaig Winter Experience Lectures (running every Tuesday throughout February, continuing through until the 11th of March) have so far been very well received, with a few late comers struggling to find a spot in the Bidean Lounge! Angela MacLeod (bar supervisor) presented Mike Pescod with £53 raised during the Quiz Nights over the festival.When it was all over though the work certainly didn’t stop for all of us here at the Clachaig! Having had 45 ales from 8 different Scottish independent Breweries, there was more that a few empties to be sorted, shifted and made ready for collection, thirsty work some may say, However, we managed to squeeze a few more drops of ale to quench our thirst!!
3rd March
Ah, yes. March. Spring is in the air. Daffodils coming into flower, sunshine peaking over the mountain ridges, light evenings and, of course, snow down to the floor of the glen.
Not quite what we expected today, but in fairness, not that unusual at this time of year. I had to meet a flight in Glasgow and the roads over the moor, though snow covered at times, were quite ok. Even in Glasgow snow fell on and off for most of the day before clearing to a beautiful sunny evening.
Great to see the glen covered in snow with some superb sunlight on the mountains. Just how the postcards will have you believe it is all the time. And in true West Coast style, expect rain to all levels on Wednesday!
21st February
Every now and then you find yourself enjoying one of those magic 'Scottish Highland' moments, and Tuesday morning, waiting in the early queue for the Corran Ferry was certainly one of them.
The plan was to use the continuing good weather to head down to Morvern and re-new the acquaintance with the Post Route; an ancient track leading over the hills from the remote village of Drimnin to Kinloch Teacuis.
The drive across to Strontian and then south over Liddesdale and on to Lochaline was a delight, as ever. And that sense of anticipation and excitement can fuel a dozen rainy days as bikes are assembled in the sunshine and a fresh cuppa tea is ordered from the tea shop adjacent to the ferry terminal.
And the ride..? Well, absolutely stunning! 10 warm up road miles down the Sound of Mull and then up and over the indistinct Post Track. Time to catch the sunlight on the coloured houses over in Tobermory before heading off down on a fantastic downhill on the other side. More on the route on our mountain biking pages.
What a belter of a day!
18th February
Here's a pic from the Oban Times this week. It took a while but we got there in the end. Thanks to all our customers and staff who contrbuted to any number of raffles and the odd quiz to help raise over £1000 and help keep the Ballachulish Baby & Toddler Group in funds.
Here at Clachaig we aim to keep a rolling programme of fundraising activities to help local good causes who otherwise might struggle for funds. Read more about our Environmental Impact and Sustainable Business Policies here.
We're currently seeking our next 'good cause' and we will of course keep you posted. In the meantime, current fundraising activities such as our Jimmy's Big Frizzy FebruaryFest Quiz will contribute towards Mountain Safety iniatives such as the Winter Experience Lectures.
14th February
You tell folk that you live in Glencoe and the usual reaction is that we all lead a charmed life, forever away skiing and wandering the hills whenever we choose. As I'm sure anyone in the trade will tell you, this ain't necessarily so. However, we don't do too badly. Take last night for example.
Wednesday night is the weekly night ride for the local bike club, West Highland Wheelers. We've had a few soakings of late so with the promise of a crackin' starry night we decided to head for the CIC hut, beneath the north face of Ben Nevis.
And what a night it was. Some surprisingly enjoyable singletrack, particularly once back on the way downhill again, a sky full of stars and the snow on the ben reflecting in the moonlight. Admittedly, perhaps not everyone's cup of tea. But a charmed life indeed for those masochists amongst us!
Laggan Wolftrax next week!
13th February
A mere 316 years ago to the day since the infamous Massacre of Glencoe. Usually, the occasion is marked by suitably sombre weather. However, today we've got yet another day of wall to wall sunshine, and for those lucky enough to be in the glen for this half term week, it looks set to continue right the way into the weekend!
A quick update on progress on the bridge works on the A82 Clachaig junction. Looks like they're already behind schedule. The reorganising of the car parking by the old loop road has created some new space for parking in the long term - site offices in the short term. At present, the work is concentrating on creating the realignment of the A82 in preparation for the siting of a parallel Bailey bridge.
Once in place, all A82 traffic will have to take a slight detour over this, with the added complication of the old road junction creating a third direction for traffic within a tight area.
However, traffic disruption at present is minimal, and even once the main works are underway, delays should be little more than the usual to be expected for a set of traffic lights on a main road. And at all times, access to Clachaig and the old village road will be maintained.
12th February
FebruaryFest is now well underway here at Clachaig. So far we've seen a wide variety of carefully selected cask conditioned ales from acclaimed breweries including Houston Brewery, An Teallach Brewery, Williams Bros. Brewing, Hebridean Brewery based on the Isle of Lewis and a little closer to home at the Atlas Brewery, Kinlochleven.
Entertainment from old regulars Heidrum and Flint has set the mood for a much anticipated 3 weeks of exceptional ale and entertainment, rounded off on this first weekend with Jimmy 'the Bush' and his Band of Gypsies (among a few other willing musicians!)
2nd February
Isn't Scottish weather great! The thaw last week was so considerable that not only did it strip the lying snow, but it all removed much of the base which we thought was safe for the winter. Come Monday, the chances of skiing this week looked pretty slim.
However, a couple of days of fairly wintry weather at all levels and we're back to some excellent winter conditions again. The wind blown snow today made for poor visibility and some testing conditions for some of the wee ones, but the news from the hill today was that it was excellent.
I'm heading off to the Chamonix valley tomorrow so see if the snow is as fickle there (ok, its a poor excuse) but the rest of the team will be staying behind to get the final prep for FebruaryFest sorted.
21st January
Wouldn't it be great to be 3 years old again! To you and I the prospect of emerging from the top station at Nevis Range into a howling winter gale with blown ice particles stinging your face is perhaps less than ideal. However, when you're 3, its straight out there and onto those swings!
The good bit was that the wind meant I didn't have to do the usual pushing bit - the swings moved themselves. After that we found a snow filled gully, more like a luge track, and jumped on the sledge for a good few runs. I'm not sure who had the most fun, me or Sam.
The wind began to ease during Saturday afternoon and the skiers came back and reported another good day out at Nevis Range. Good to see the pubs at both Clachaig and The Grog & Gruel full of folk with satisfied grins and glowing cheeks on Saturday night.
16th January
I thought it must be Christmas all over again! You'll have to excuse my error but when there's 2 fantastic blue sky winter days in the same week, chances are Santa Claus has been reading my wish list.
Popped out to the Post Office at lunch time and it was looking so nice that I just had to go for a wee wander. The views from the Pap of Glencoe are always excellent.
There's more snow than I'd realised and it was rock hard in places after the thaw and then the freeze today. And that's despite being out on the tops last night with with the rescue team. You'd think I'd know better. Ice axe and crampons are definitely required on the hills at the moment and judging by the amount of lying snow, will be for some time to come.
The views were fantastic and it was great to sit a while with the binoculars and peer into the snowy face of Stob Coire Beith across to the twin buttresses on Bidean nam Bian.
Note the avalanche debris below the snow line in the extreme bottom right of the photo - looks a whole lot closer from the Clachaig office!
14th January 2008
Wow! Saturday was the day of days this winter. The stormy weather of last week cleared to a calm blue sky day, crisp and clear. The snow cover was excellent with many saying it was like the good ol' days when we used to have winters.
Clan Daynes went to Nevis Range for the day. Despite a very busy car park there were no queues for the gondola (ski hire being a different matter entirely) and all seemed to be functioning very efficiently.
The whole of Fort William seemed to be on the hill and little kids and big kids alike had a fantastic day, whether it was skiing, boarding or sledging. If only every Saturday was like this!
Climbers can check out these blogs for some more of the latest. Abacus Mountaineering. Ice Factor. SAIS Lochaber.
A bit of a thaw and heavy rain yesterday, but the snow pack seems to be holding up well and with a return to colder conditions forecast from later today, it should all consolidate nicely. Check out the web cams at Nevis Range and Glencoe Mountain.
With some good availability here at Clachaig and Carefree Holidays, there's still time to book a last minute short break and enjoy the snow.
10th January 2008
Clachaig in Marie Claire magazine? Fashion, Beauty, Celebs... Clachaig. Shurely, shome, mishtake? No. We're there. Popular girly fashion magazine has included Clachaig in their web site Lifestyle section as No. 3 in their Top 10 Winter Pubs. Fortunately we've been spare the embarrassment of appearing in the actual magazine. Not that we ever read it you understand...
Check us out at Marie Claire
8th January 2008
A wintry day today with lots of new snow on the mountains. Sorry, haven't been able to go and take a photo of it so here's a photo of an idyllic frozen Glencoe Lochan to try and set the scene instead.
We're all just catching a breath at the moment after another hectic and successful Hogmanay. However, chances are we'll be back to it very soon as the phone won't stop ringing and the inbox is filling up as we enter the peak period for accommodation enquiries.
And we're also busy with the finer details of FebruaryFest, putting together dates and packages for Octoberfest and Hogmanay 2008, along with the rest of the 2008 season.
We'll be back on the blog very soon with details of the A82 bridge replacement, news of our fundraising activities as we finally reach the £1000 target for the Baby and Toddler Group and perhaps some news from the snowy mountains.
As they say, watch this space. And all the best for 2008.
