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GENERAL INFORMATION
FIRST ASCENT details have been included to supplement
information on the climbs. In some cases, where this is appropriate,
the date of the
first winter ascent is given. This normally would fall
within the period
designated winter by the UIAA which is 21 Dec to
20 Marchinclusive.
GRADING OF CLIMBS as indicated in the margin
is determined
Not only by the general level of technical difficulty but also by the
seriousness of the
enterprise reflected in the associated objective
danger, length,
altitude and commitment. An attempt has been
made to grade hut
walks, and one or two passes, for the benefit of
the walker as
opposed to the alpinist. In order of difficulty these are:
P, which refers to routes on good footpaths
with little or no objective
danger and on which
steep sections are made safe. Such a
designation suggests
that the route is suitable for any reasonably fit
person. PE, which
refers to routes that are suitable for the
experienced mountain
walker, who does not mind a degree of
exposure and who can
find the way when paths become indistinct or
none existent. Use
of hands may be necessary to maintain balance
and snow and/or dry
glacier may have to be traversed. RE, which
refers to routes suitable
for the experienced scrambler. Rockmoves
of grade I or II may
be encountered, possibly needing a rope. Steep
snow fields may have
to be crossed, requiring the use of an ice-axe to
maintain stability.
In the rock-climbing section
traditional routes have mostly
been given
adjectival gradings, as is the normal practice in
numerical grading
which usually refers to the hardest section
encountered on the climb. A glance at the topo will indicate whether
or not the climb is sustained at the grade.
On all mountain routes,
whether on rock, snow or ice, an
adjectival grade is given which should not be
confused with the
British rock climbing grades.
In order of increasing difficulty:
|
F |
Facile (easy) |
|
PD |
Little Difficult (not very hard) |
|
AD |
Access Difficult (fairly hard) |
|
D |
Difficult (hard) |
|
TD |
Trbs Difficult (very hard) |
|
ED |
Extreme Difficult (extremely hard) |
Further refinement of grades is possible by
adding plus or
minus signs to the grades up to TD, whilst
the ED grade is made
more open-ended to cater for rising standards
and better grading of
existing routes of this standard eg ED1, ED2 etc. On the climbs
where the main difficulties are on rock,
unless otherwise stated, the
overall grading reflects a free ascent even
though there may be an
abundance of in situ protection (aid?) on
various pitches. Some
climbs, graded AD to TD, although not
technically demanding are
extremely serious for their grade and this
has been noted in the
introduction to these routes.
UIAA numerical gradings have been used for all rock
sections. A table of international grading
comparisons has been
included but should only be used as a general
indication, especially
at the higher levels. Artificial climbing is
graded from A1 to A3. On
A2 and A3 slings or, better, 6triers will
generally be necessary but
short sections of A1 with in situ aid points
can be overcome by most
strong climbers wearing rock boots simply by
pulling on the gear.
Some pitches have been graded AO, this
implies that the pitch is
climbed almost entirely free with just the
odd move requiring a pull
on in situ (usually) gear.
SNOW AND ICE.
With climbs involving technical difficulty on
snow and/or ice, grading is less precise due to the variable
conditions throughout the season and from one
year to the next.
Some areas of glacier can, at times, become
almost impossible to
cross. Routes involving hanging glaciers and
ice slopes with sierac
formations are undergoing constant change. As
a consequence
difficulty and objective dangers on these
climbs will vary
enormously and it would be wise to seek
up-to-date information
before making an attempt (probably hut
guardians and local guides
are as good as anyone to ask). No attempt has
been made to compare
the difficulty of alpine snow and ice with
Scottish grades, as it is
more likely that the two will only really be
comparable on mixed
terrain. When difficulty exists on ice this
is generally indicated by
the steepness of the slope but even this must
be considered in
relation to the prevailing conditions of snow cover and temperature.
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