I imagine, based on my own experience due to a lack of planning, there's be more articles on night climbing in winter as an involuntary experience rather than as a carefully chosen proposition.
I was thinking the same -moonlight traverses excepted.
Beginning in the dark and ending in the dark aren't too unusual. Planning to do the middle in the dark as well might be a good way to catch the best of these milder winter days.
I'd recommend "Mountaineering in Scotland" by WH Murray if you're interested in writings about night climbing in winter. It's a classic collection of essays - a 'must read'.
"Although some famous hero's of the past seemed to thrive on late starts and climbing through the night, do not attempt to emulate them unless you enjoy being frightened and uncomfortable"
> Reminded me of Steve Paget and Alan Mullin on The Steeple.
Love the last sentence:
"Winter climbing in the Great Wilderness is not something to be undertaken lightly - after topping out on the most remote Munro in Scotland, the pair were then faced with a ten-hour walk back to their car."
It can be fun (or scary or tiresome)! Did some ice climbing in the great winter of 2010 at night - simply because I had a wee baby boy and had to wait til hubby got home before I could get out. A good head torch is recommended! Don't know any articles about it though. I have also ended up climbing in the dark due it taking a bit longer than planned, I remember an atmospheric climb up Curved Ridge after doing North Face Route in late November and climbing in the dark in Chamonix to get back to the top station or to climb back down to the hut.
Thanks all. Up there first/second week in Feb so if one of you could arrange for the snow and ice to be perfect, sky to be clear, moon to be bright and wind to be non existent that'd be grand.
When you fix a specific week in Scotland in winter the conditions are always great yep?
> Thanks all. Up there first/second week in Feb so if one of you could arrange for the snow and ice to be perfect, sky to be clear, moon to be bright and wind to be non existent that'd be grand.
> When you fix a specific week in Scotland in winter the conditions are always great yep?
Hmmm, I think most people are telling you the opposite. But if you decide to climb in the middle of the night, make sure no one phones the mountain rescue after seeing your head torches half way up something.
> If you go out deliberately night climbing but end up put for longer than you wanted, have you become be-dayed?
Damn you you got there first!
It was a comment somemade during a moonlit ascent of Central Gully Great End in the early eighties. One guys crampon came off and he spent ages trying to fix it, when someone commented " Never mind the worst that can happen is that we might get bedayed"
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