Black Ladders ice

Crag: Ysgolion Duon
Routes: Central Gully (wIII 3,2,3,2,1,1: Led p.2,5)
Peaks: Carnedd Dafydd
Area: Carneddau
A memorable start to 2010: this was a long and satisfying mountain day centred on a tremendous and atmospheric 1000ft-long gully line up one of the most impressive (and classically 'seasonal') crags in Wales. Pretty awful weather throughout, contrary to the forecast, which all added a certain piquancy to what is actually a fairly simple mountaineering route. A pre-dawn semi-Alpine start was refreshing, but hard work, as we ploughed up Cwm Llafur in the half-light at 7.45. The notoriously long walk to the Ladders was made harder by deep snow as we entered thick clag near Llech Ddu then slogged up to where we hoped the base of the crag was! A brief clearance miraculously revealed the entire very impressive face, draped in ice and snow, seemingly in perfect nick. We contoured across to the base of Central Gully, an immense and deeply incised cauldron and a very compelling winter line, although upward views were soon swallowed by the mist. Vic led a long pitch up the superb initial ice pitch - great fun, steepish, but all too short - which led to another little wall followed by an easy ramp of soft snow into the gully proper. I then led up a short icy wall to gain the easy slopes of the huge main gully up to the cave. The weather then worsened - spindrift pouring down from the upper slopes, freezing wind, and very poor visibility as Vic traversed the gully to ledges on the left. I got pretty cold at the stance, serious wind chill and heavy snow showers, before enjoying the traverse followed by an awkward chimney which led to a stance in a small cave. We then traversed the walls of the gully in worsening weather to gain a rock saddle. Dire conditions now, strong winds and snow swirling around as I ploughed up the easy slopes of the upper gully to belay off a wedged axe. The visibility was so bad as I followed Vic up the top pitch that it was initially hard to detect the top of the gully as we emerged on the Carneddau plateau in howling winds and a white-out. A tiring but satisfying struggle into the teeth of the wind along the ridge gained the top of Dafydd. Things gradually improved as we navigated down the broad ridge to the north in appalling visibility, getting the dog-leg spot on to finally gain a view of Bethesda's twinkling lights as we finally emerged from the clag just above Cwm Llafur. Dark as we arrived in Gerlan.