Is winter back?

Yesterday wasn't feeling very wintry, however today was a different story! Stephen, Andy and I headed into Glencoe and ascended the Zig-zags on Gearr Aonach. The snow line was about half way through the route but it was all slushy and wet so we were able to make a rapid ascent. It was a good option today as it remained pretty sheltered from the westerly winds, sleet and snow. It was Andy's first time out in the mountains so we wanted to give him a little variety in terms of something hands on but also give him the opportunity to pick up some important winter skills for the future. After walking along the top of Gearr Aonach we nipped into the corie and covered lots of winter skills which the guys were eager to learn. We looked at moving around with and without crampons, ice axe arresting, moving on rock and snow and plenty of digging into the snow pack to develop their knowledge of avalanche awareness. Several teams out today, Dorsal Arete had an ascent, a couple of walkers on the NE ridge of SCNL and I'm sure there was much more going on! Finished off the day with a good session in the bouldering wall.