NO SWIMMING TODAY! WE MADE IT TO CAIRN GORM!

Paul enjoying the 'great s**t'! His name for neve

Crampons up to Windy Gap

Morning coffee at the Moraines

Ok, we still have a wee bit of knee deep stuff!

Spot the climbers on Mess of Potage

Pauls first winter Munro, Cairn Gorm very busy

After two days of hard ploughing through knee high snow drifts and high winds, we were blessed with a much better day today. There is skiing now at Cairngorm and it was very busy for the first skiing of the season. Good for Paul and I as we made it to the Cairngorm carpark! We set off for the Fiacaill Ridge area for some steep ground but we were being followed in the trench heading into Coire an t-sneachda by about 35 Uni folk on a winter course - I really do mean 35, at least! All walking one behing another. So Paul and I changed plan and or route for the day, walking into the coire and round to Windy Gap. Lots of folk climbing on the Mess of Pottage. After a wee bit of ploughing in soft snow again we eventually got onto more icy terrain to give Paul his first taste of cramponing this week. Windy Gap lived up to its name but a bearable 40mph. Some light snow showers as we headed to the summit of Cairn Gorm (busy again!).  Paul renamed the hard snow/ice we found today has 'this is great s**t' that's a new name for neve! He even persuaded me to have a coffee at the Ptarmigan café (or is it just a number now?) on the way back down. Great day out and good to get high today.