Last week a proper cold snap arrived. A good dump of snow and temps down to minus 8 meant that for a full week we had wonderful winter weather. Alas the heavy snowfall meant that the roads were not drivable and as I was working every day I wasn't able to get to the mountains until Saturday. Indeed it felt a little surreal driving back and seeing the fields either side still under a white blanket and the roadsides high with snow where the snow plough had been. Once I turned off the main road beyond Killarney I was relieved to find that the road all the way to Cronins Yard was okay with a little care. My oh my but the mountains looked wonderful. It was also clear that there was a substantial thaw underway and the rock ridges and faces were fast becoming snow free.
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| The rescue were on a training exercise |
I left a fairly quiet car park and set off in the trail towards the Hags Glen. What a gorgeous morning it was. Crisp without being cold and clear skies and little or no breeze promised it would be a great day. Crossing the wet stony ground towards Coumeenoughter only confirmed the extent of the thaw and the snow was quickly turning to slush. I suspected and feared that when I reached Curve Gully I would be sinking deep into the snow. The climb between level one and two of the coum was up a snow field and there was a good set of steps to follow. These weren't too deep and provided a reasonably firm footing. Hope rose. When I finally reached the banked out base of the route I decided to see what it was like without crampons. It was fine all the way to the top. I just used the ice axe for security. I had thought that if The Step was in condition I would have gone up that route instead as it offers a nice Grade 2 outing but it was far from complete as was The Lick.
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| Everything disappearing fast |
I really enjoyed the climb. It was stress free on decent snow from the bottom to the top and once it was over I topped out to brilliant sunshine and wonderful views. There were a few people on the summit and each were marvelling at the benign conditions. I sat and had a bite to eat before making my way to the top of the Devils Ladder. I decided to descend here and things were initially easy as a good bank of snow was well stepped so progress was swift. Alas the bottom third of the gully had less cover and it became an exercise in trying to avoid breaking through the snow into the streams below. Torturous was how I would describe it and I was very tired and relieved to reach flatter ground near the bottom. There still was a fair old way to go but eventually I reached the car a tired but happy boy. Curve in winter offers a delightful way to the top of the mountain.
