The Cairngorms are ‘a little piece of the arctic in Scotland’ according to the SMC Munros Guide and the area contains many of the tallest peaks in the East Highlands. Ben Macdui (1309m), Cairn Gorm (1244m) and Braeriach (1296) are probably three of the better known and the whole area is full of steep corries and high plateaux. Access to the mountains is typically from Aviemore or Braemar.
I attended a 5 day winter skills course at Glenmore Lodge from the 4th to 8th of March 2013. Day 4 was a group expedition day, where myself and 4 companions planned our own winter day, with the supervision of our instructor taking account of the anticipted weather, avalanche forecast and other skills that we had learnt. We chose a route that left directly from the lodge and ascended Bynack More by the north ridge, decending North West into Strath Nethy via Bynack Beg, once we had been able to confirm in the field that that route was good. This course was my first walking trip to the Cairngorms (I had skied on Cairngorm many years previously)
