CONFUSION AND CONTRADICTION
Bad weather, unpredictable climbing conditions and a general lack of snow are what weve come to expect in a Scottish winter. All perfectly normal but who would have ever imagined that a foot and mouth epidemic would be responsible for the premature end to what has been a very good season.
Late March and early April are often superb for climbing on the Ben and personally speaking I can't bear the thought of missing out on my favourite time of the year, while the skiers are having all the fun!
On Thursday 1 March, a very despondent Tim Walker (Principal of Glenmore Lodge) announced closure of the centre until further notice and a ban on climbing in the Cairngorms and all other climbing areas. The decision was influenced by the Scottish Executive and supported by the BMC and the MCofS. As the Scottish National Outdoor Centre, I suppose the Lodge is under pressure to be seen to be setting an example.
It is the busiest time of the year for all those involved in the outdoors and the Lodge is no exception. They stand to loose somewhere in the region of £120,000 over the next few weeks. Plas Y Brenin, the English National Centre who are normally based near Ballachulish for the duration of the winter, have cancelled their courses, as have all the smaller outdoor companies and independent mountain guides, including military centres.
It has been a devastating blow for all livestock farmers but when you think about it everyone in the country is affected to some degree or another. As for the outdoor industry, the knock-on effect is now in evidence as pubs, hotels and accommodation, cafes, restaurants and retailers have all felt the dearth of visitors to the area. Tourism has suffered considerably over the last two years and it looks like this year is going to be even worse.
Hugh McNicol, manufacturer of Mountain Technology crampons and ice axes, told me that his sales have stopped dead since the outbreak of the disease. The worst of all of this (from a climber's perspective) is that conditions for winter climbing are excellent and the weather superb. My heart goes out to all those who attended the International Meet at Glenmore Lodge, especially the 50 guests from all over the world. What with strong winds and heavy snow restricting access to a number of venues at the start of the week and then being told that climbing would no longer be possible because of the foot and mouth disease, must have come as a devastating blow.
In a crisis like this we all want to gel together and help in the best possible way. We need advice, a directive from local authorities but I am not at all convinced that this has been given properly. The climbers on the Meet were fantastic. They all addressed the situation, respected the problem and listened to advice offered by the BMC and the McofS. Impressive given that climbers are notoriously rebellious and anarchistic in their attitude. The Meet organisers did a fine job in entertaining the guests and I was surprised to discover just how much climbing had been achieved, despite the situation and how much they all enjoyed themselves.
However, like myself and many others they couldn't understand why the ski slopes were still operating and that skiers were allowed to ski on the hills while climbers were not allowed to climb. Making matters worse was the deplorable manner in which the ski companies presented their reasons to climbers. I can think of at least one ludicrous example where a friend decided to visit Aonach Mor with a view to climbing on Aonach Beag. To work round the access problems, he approached in skis and touring boots but on leaving the summit tow he was literally apprehended by an outraged member of staff. However after a confrontation, the person "commented oh it's yourself, that'll be okay then"!!
I understand that local authorities are under pressure to be seen to do something about the situation but why walkers and climbers have been treated so harshly is uncertain. What's more is that recent statistics show that the revenue generated by walkers and climbers is ten times of that generated by skiing! Reading between the lines, the link between local authorities and mountain guides, walkers and climbers is not as close as it is with the ski companies. Rumours suggest that climbers have caused some upset in the past.
For example, in the Lochaber area, climbers stomping across the golf course has caused problems but only because the council seemed unaware of the Ben's reputation as one of the world's great ice climbing venues and did not address the problem with an alternative access route to the North Face. Nor had a proper car park for climbers been considered, resulting in an abundance of climbing vehicles in the golf course car park and on the verge of the busy A82. And yes, climbers can be a little noisy after a glass too many of the amber nectar but then who isn't in Fort William on a Friday night! The Forestry Commission and British Alcan padlocks have suffered numerous blows - literally. Apparently a Chouinard ice hammer worked the best, indicating how long ago this must've been. These padlocked gates provide access via a private track to the BA dam, part way up the Allt a Mhuilinn. But you know all this was a long time ago and I find it hard to believe that these isolated cases are the reasons for such prejudice.
Confused and frustrated I went for a drive into Glencoe which is only a few minutes from my home in Ballachulish. My thoughts were that I could park the car and stick my lens out of the window and photograph the surrounding landscapes, with little or no risk of contamination to the immediate area. As I drove through the Glen the scene adopted the air of an aftermath of a nuclear holocaust. This was normally one of the busiest times of the year but today there was not a car to be seen in any of the car parks, save a foot and mouth notice nailed to a post "urging" climbers not to go into the hills. The Buachaille looked fantastic, basking in sunshine and surrounded by cloudless blue skies. Crowberry Gully appeared to be in excellent condition - a climb I wanted to photograph. God it was frustrating!
West of Altnafeidh, an English-registered four-wheel drive pulled in and a family sat out in the sunshine for a picnic. Only a few metres away the recent snow had driven large numbers of deer to feed close to the road, opposite sheep munched furiously as if their days were numbered - there's nothing new in that! And a short distance along the road, the White Corries ski area was fully operational. I started to feel more and more annoyed about the way walkers and climbers have been treated.
Considering the ridiculous situation, the contradictions and the ironies I had observed on television, radio and in my own surroundings, I decided that I needed to go out and take photographs, after all it is my livelihood. I recce'd Beinn Udlaidh. Conditions were good, I saw other climbers and guides and there were no foot and mouth signs to be seen. So that night I organised two climbers to photograph. As the problems mounted overnight and the number of new outbreaks increased, I was confident that there would be a sign at the farm on the approach walk in.
There was and typically it suggested that we should not climb. I wished it had said climbing is banned, or climbers will be prosecuted, or it is illegal to climb - anything less ambiguous would have done. I reminded myself of the skiers, the attitude of the local authorities towards climbers and the illegal transportation of contaminated livestock. I decided to continue with my day. To be discreet we parked elsewhere, away from the normal car parks, where other climbers had already parked. It was an excellent day. Minus twelve in the shade and warm in the sun. I got some good photos but the day was marred by a sense of guilt. It really niggled me that I felt this way, that I shouldn't be there and feeling like a cat that had just raided the larder!
Over this last week Alan Kimber has initiated meetings with Nevis Range, local authorities and other relevant bodies in an attempt to gain limited access to main climbing areas in Lochaber, Glencoe and Creag Meagaidh. Although permission has been granted to the East Face of Aonach Mor, I fear that access to remaining areas is unlikely. Climbing in the Cairngorms, particularly the Northern Corries appears to be sort of acceptable but not really, if you see what I mean.
Well I'm off to Spain for a week, hopefully by the time I get back, the conditions will have improved again, and the overall situation stabilised. Better book now for a holiday abroad before they run out!
Cubby
10/3/01
