Rain Day. Italy

Yet more rain ...  just hanging around and getting wet ... every time it seemed to be stopping, another band would come over

this time the change of venue has not helped us ..  we had a couple of great days out, but spent a lot of time hanging around the tents waiting for the rain to clear up.

This was it really and we gave up and headed home.

At Dover, we got hauled over into the customs shed, and they wanted to go through the car... the second bag out of the back was my rucksack and after they got down to the black bin liner full of stinky wet clothes from week one .. that was it ... they had seen enough and we were allowed to continue, without any more troubles. No doubt their eyes lit up when they saw three disheveled student types in a beat up car coming in, but the stereotype ended there.

Punta Sud, Italy

There was one route in this area that I was keen to do, and the weather had not helped, however we had a window of opportunity when the clouds lifted, but did not disperse.

We had explored the approaches the other day when we went to the Kliener lagazuoi, as they share the same departure point.

Leaving the car at the col we walked up tot he pass below the cable car, before taking the track around the Grosser Lagazuoi to the col behind where there is a bivi hut.

From here the route really starts with a bang ....  up the near vertical face near the the remains of the old wartime wooden ladders

From here an airy traverse, and up to the middle layer, which gives a bit of respite before the chimney up to the final wall.





Going up the left side of the ridge and over the gendarmes before coming out at the top.



The top allowed all of us, and the other parties we had been sharing the route with, plenty of room for everyone to sit and admire the view.

The descent continues the traverse down some vertical sections and more airy traverses to the Faniss saddle.

From here a major path leads back to the first col we came to earlier in the day.

The route held up to all the expectations..  a fantastic day.

Kliener Lagazuoi, Italy

Another wet day ... we woke up to the rain, but by mid morning this had eased to a light drizzle ...  the days spend reading the scrambles book. In it was a novel route .. down the inside of a mountain - following an old tunnel, from the first world war.

Taking the cable car to the top of the Kleiner Lagazuoi, we stepped out into the clouds, but soon followed the signs into the interior of the mountain.

I was soon glad we had brought our head torches.  the way down was on angled steps, which would be OK on the way up, however on the way down it was treacherous, especially when matched with the rain we had been enduring for several days.

Various galleries on the way down, provided some distraction, and we soon came out at the lower entrance.  ..   there was still a fair way to descend

It did provide a suitable excursion for an otherwise damp day.

Rain day, Italy

More rain ... so a day for exploring the flesh pots of Cortina!

Monte Cristallo, Italy

There was a lot of high cloud around, but no precipitation. Jim and I feeling a little stir crazy decided to go off and do a via ferrata.. There was some thing quite close in the Monte Cristallo massif. and looking in the book there were two routes to the main peak ..  Crazy idea, but we decided to climb one and descend the other.

So Ken dropped us off at  a path in the Val Grande and we followed a wide path up into the massif. and reached the col die Stombi.

From here it was a scramble up scree and around the Forcella Zurlon, and the first piece of ripe rope, protecting some slabby angled rocks. From here there was a metal ladder that lead back up to the ridge..  then some more scree to the Forcella Alta.

Now up on the south side of the Crest Bianca on a series of ledges with rope and wooden walkways. This is the Ivano- Dibona high level route.

More ladders and following the ridge to the highest point on the ridge. Down two ;ladders and we were then on a high suspension bridge.

Supposedly the longest in the dolomites...  but certainly very ricketty then a couple of tunnels.

Following the wire rope on the northern side of the ridge gave us good views down the valley we would ultimately descend.




It did not look too bad from here.. but later when we were in the eat of the bowl and getting very thirsty we would reflect back on this moment.

From here we could have taken the chair lift down and walked down the val Grande back to Ken, but we decided to descend down steeply to the Cresta Bianco glacier - really just some snow and a lot of scree.

The begin the long walk out down the valley - behind us the suspension bridge could be seen for miles between the two high points.

We eventually met Ken waiting for us with a welcome beer at the Ospitale.

Cortina, Italy

From lake Como we took the mountain road to Bolzano and then on to Cortina. and found a campsite just outside the town.

lake como, Italy

The next day it was still damp,  and drizzly, so we decided to cut our losses, and after last years' success in the Dolomites, head there.

We packed up and drove off up the Rhone valley heading for the pass at Simplon. Then because we had some time we cut down the lake Locarno, and across to the lake Como.

Here we found a campsite on the lake and and did the tourist bit

Retreat, Switzerland

Unfortunately the weather went back to unpleasant, so we retreated to the valley again.

Montet Hut, switzerland

The skies cleared up, and we made a break for the Montets hut.. so we could be in a position to go for the Zinal Rothorn if the weather continued to improve.

This was exactly the same route as four years before, and the memories came flooding back.

Rain Day, Switzerland

Rain, and more drizzle, stuck in our tents

Bishorn, Switzerland

The next morning the cloud was down on the glacier ...  about half way up. but being a simple glacier walk, with few complications we chose to go for it.

The start was OK and we made good progress to the cloud.  from here visiility was minimal and we blindly followed the trail in the snow.

Breaking through a small conice  (that was not there when we came back in later years, so we were not on the simplest route.

A quick pause for photos with another party who emerged out of the gloom, and we set off back

From the hut in daylight it was easy to see where the cloud reached ... it had not moved all day so we continued straight on back to the valley. However we had attained our first peak of the year.

Tracuit Hut, Switzerland

The day awoke with clear skies so we went straight on with plan A.

One of the problems with only using 1:50000 maps is that the  distances look shorter than they really are. No although we were relatively fit, nothing prepared us for the distance and hight gain to the hut. However this was also the case later on when I came back to do the traverse of the Weisshorn.

Leaving the valley on the path we climbed up the side on a gradual gradient
Working our way up through the trees.

It was hot and humid as I remember and we all lost a lot of fluids.

At around the half way point you escape pout on the upper plateau, and meadows ...  from here you can just make out the hut sitting on the outcrop at the end of the glacier. There is little understanding of how far it still remains to go!

1985 Summer Mountaineering Tour, Switzerland

This year we (Jim, Ken and I) decided to go back to Zinal ... there was a 4000m peak called the Bishorn that was a very simple route and was suggested as a good warm up day. I also wanted to have a go at the Zinal Rothorn, after looking at it from the hut several years ago.

We followed the same route as we had for the first two years through France, and then headed around the Swiss roads to the Rhone valley.

Zinal was growing and many new buildings had been added, but the camp-site was still there and we settle in almost as if we had not left.

Trip Time Line

	|
	|	Arrive Zinal
Tracuit Hut	|
	|	Bishorn
Rain Day	|
	|	Montet Hut
Retreat	|
	|	Lake Como
Cortina	|
	|	Monte Cristallo
Rain Day	|
	|	Kleiner Lagazuoi
Punta Sud	|
	|	Rain Day
Go Home	|

Great Gable, Wasdale Trip

Jim and I were planning on another trip to the alps and wanted to get some practice and also improve our fitness.

We headed up to Wasdale and the day turned out to be sunny and dry

First we headed up to Sty Head pass and across to Napes Needle.
A quick diversion up the needle, as there was no one around, and we started off up Needle ridge.

A good day with great weather.

High Street, Lakes Xmas Trip

A visit to high street .. old roman road through the lakes ...  but only a section as we did a circuit.

Tomorrow our trip ends with a return home, after cleaning up the cottage

Helm Crag, Lakes Xmas Trip

Helm Crag ... or Lion and lamb or piano player ... all depending on which side you look at it from..

A gentle walk

Grisdale pike, Lakes Xmas Trip

Another classic mountain walk .. no pictures though