Yesterday was another nice day with slightly lower temperatures and a bit of fresh snow to make it feel a bit more wintry. The snow was down to 600m or so and with a gusty westerly wind there were some heavy falls of spindrift for Dan, Neil and me. We climbed The White Line having checked out the exit the day before from Tower Ridge. The cornices sit a bit further right over The Upper Cascades so the lines of The Gutter, The White Line and HaleBopp Groove are all free from cornice problems.
The White Line gives six long pitches of great climbing in an impressive situation for grade III climbing. Of course some of the ice is not well attached to the cliff and some care is required but over all it was a great climb. It warmed up during the day and the mist cleared a little to reveal a few of the crags. Comb Gully Buttress is mostly cornice free and iced up and Comb Gully itself was climbed recently. The Comb Left Flank looks good too.
Today is warmer and wet with strong winds. Cornices will be falling off again and the thaw continuing to melt away the snow and ice. The forecast is for windy but slightly cooler conditions over the next few days so there will be more winter climbing days on offer for the keen mid-grade climber (such as me!).
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