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Shopping. At some point, it has to be recognised that there's only so much that can be done, and that after a while, you have to take responsibility for yourself. However, when Heather postulates; “You wouldn't think it was acceptable to jump in a car and drive without having some professional instruction first. ... your Dad wasn't seriously hurt, sounds like a scary place to take a tumble! Should we be putting up warning signs? We need to look at ways to keep the site moving forward whilst maintaining our key aim of allowing free access to everyone to our main content. The Aonach Eagach is a rocky ridge lying to the north of Glen Coe in the Scottish Highlands, boasting two Munro summits. The Northern Corries alone accounted for 38 call outs for the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue team in the same five year period. The slopes to each side are extremely dangerous, with steep grass … How does it compare with Crib Goch in terms of difficulty, exposure and danger? Skills Calling in … So it was back to school on Monday morning with another war story to tell. They can catch out the experienced and the inexperienced - different people will be caught out by different things. The Aonach Eagach “ We get around 80 call-outs a year and about 60% are to two places ”, says A ndy Nelson, Leader of Glencoe MRT and IFMGA Mountain Guide. In wet weather or poor visibility the descent is quite unpleasant and exposed in places. The second of the two challenging scrambles on the Salomon Glen Coe Skyline race route, Aonach Eagach.It was incredible!!! Should venturing into the mountains be any different?” I find I cannot agree with the analogy. The idea that anyone should be denied access to a hill for want of some kind of licence or instruction is nonsense. Perhaps the way forward is to encourage and foster a culture of self reliance through the provision of training. A recent coroner's report on a fatality on Ben Nevis in January 2008 draws upon Rule 43. The signs warned hill walkers of 'snow and ice on all upland paths above 300m'. Muriel Gray tackles the Aonach Eagach ridge, taking in the Munros, Meall Dearg and Sgorr nam Fiannaidh. Hear pronunciation Press to hear pronunciation. In the five years from 2004 – 2008 there were 101 rescue call outs for Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team to incidents on the tourist track. The central section, some 2 km in length, is very rocky and the route along it requires scrambling ability. The press love to get hold of a mountain rescue story – the avalanche incident (resulting in three fatalities) in Coire an Tulaich on Buachaille Etive Mor last winter resulted in a huge amount of press coverage. The Aonach Eagach (Scottish Gaelic ... (fatal accidents have occurred here). Erik also makes the sensible suggestion that books and other forms of guidance should direct readers away from known danger spots. Personally, I think that's a lesson worth learning. Images . Should a list be published and reviewed regularly of locations where accidents are occurring? That's not meant to sound complacent, but the impression sometimes given is that the general public are somehow at huge risk every time they step onto a hill. Police and a search-and-rescue helicopter were sent to the scene but he had sustained fatal injuries. A considerable amount of money has been spent on the summit of Ben Nevis to do just that. A series of large well constructed cairns guide folk to and from the summit, around the top of Gardyloo Gully and past the potentially dangerous ground of Five Finger Gully. Should they show danger spots? The whole article seems to lead up to a suggestion that people pay money to go on courses organized by...the body behind the article. By the law of averages the more people there are, the more accidents are going to happen. © 2006-2020 SummitPost.org. Tap to unmute. Of course it doesn't take a genius to work out that the largest number of accidents happens where the largest concentrations of people go. The Mountaineering Council of Scotland, the body which represents the interests of Scottish climbers and hill walkers, promotes the importance of self-reliance in the mountains. I suspect many of us head into the mountains to get away from our increasingly litigious and sanitised world. You can help us by becoming a UKC Supporter. I consider myself to be a fervent advocate of promoting safety in the mountains through education and increasing public awareness. Copy link. I did Crib Goch last easter, after the aonach eagach and found it easier and less exposed. Are we putting ourselves at unnecessary (and in some folks eyes unacceptable) risk? Is there anything wrong with learning by other peoples mistakes? I guess it wouldn't do any harm, but how many people would actively go looking for such information? All rights reserved. Apart from the little 'accident' the aonach eagach proved a spectacular scramble and well worth while the drive there (and back). "I love deadlines. That makes it the highest number of call outs to one specific location in Scotland. Access to a year's subscription to Rockfax Digital. Are there places we should avoid in the mountains? Research into the Scottish Mountain Rescue statistics reveals the accident hotspots. Parents refers to a larger category under which an object falls. It is rated as Grade 2 scramble. The first recorded incident on Sharp Edge was in January 1961, to a young man who had slipped and fallen 100' and sustained a fatal head injury. Man, traversing Aonach Eagach E to W slipped at the pinnacled section of the ridge and fell down S side for 200m. Five people have died on Half Dome in the past nine years alone, and most of those accidents happened when the rock was wet. If all works out I might be doing the ridge in winter conditions over the next few months – watch this space! Route Map. 1 – (NN 17333 56746) Follow the path out of the car park up the hillside keeping up a good pace to escape the bite of wee beasties. Hear pronunciation Press to hear pronunciation. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." Famed as the narrowest ridge on the British mainland (though Liathach and An Teallach must run it close), the Aonach Eagach gives a thrilling and spectacular traverse for keen scramblers, linking the … Many thanks to Bob Sharp for his kind support and information regarding accident statistics. Within the mountaineering context, we could sensibly replace qualified by suitably experienced, in line with the HSE definition of competence. The Aonach Eagach ridge is located in Glen Coe, which is in western Scotland and forms part of the Scottish Highlands. This again reflects the popularity of these locations. I kind of thought if it's a hillwalkers route it can’t be much different than that. Considerable care should be taken'. It's perfectly possible for someone with no experience whatsoever to make a happy ascent and descent of Ben Nevis with no alarms - hundreds, probably thousands of people do this every year. However despite the warnings, the rescue team continued to get called out to recover folk stuck on steep frozen ground. It is folk with inadequate experience and equipment who are exposing themselves to a greater level of risk. What struck me most about the article was just how few MRT call-outs there have been over the surveyed period 2004-2008 - 101 call-outs to the Tourist Track on Ben Nevis. Discussions are on-going as to whether the close proximity of some of the cairns to the precipitous North Face is likely to 'lure' somebody over the edge in winter conditions. The Aonach Eagach is a rocky ridge lying to the north of Glen Coe in the Scottish Highlands, boasting two Munro summits. The ridge towers at 953m high and is often thought of as the UK’s toughest … If you have enjoyed this post, why not share it in Facebook, twitter, etc. (5), Comments The Aonach Eagach is widely regarded as being the finest ridge walk on the UK mainland. The tourist track on Ben Nevis is top of the league table for Mountain Rescue call-outs to one specific location in Scotland. Current courses on offer can be viewed at www.mcofs.org.uk In conclusion, I would suggest that it is not the mountains that are the killer. Below shows the route outline for Aonach Eagach. "It was just an accident," he added. A gentler alternative is to continue along the ridge, until reaching the bealach between Sgorr nam Fiannaidh and the Pap of Glencoe. 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S quite a serious undertaking likes to attribute 'blame ' it ’ quite. Eagach four times, the Northern Corries alone accounted for 38 call outs the.

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