Cascade and Experts Choice

Today I was working for Abacus Mountain Guides with Dave and Brin who wanted something around the grade 5 mark. As they haven't been climbing for a while we opted for the Cascade (IV,5) on Ben Nevis. To get onto this we climbed a long pitch of about grade 3 ice below and left of the Cascade. We climbed the Cascade in two pitches then shot over and climbed up Experts Choice (III,4) to find a buried axe belay at the top, thanks Mike. Then followed a nice sociable walk down the Red Burn. The mountain was very busy today, was great to see so many folk out enjoying the weather and conditions. Teams on Glovers, Tower Ridge, Number 2 gully Buttress, Comb Gully Sioux Wall, Strident Edge, Route 1, Ledge Route plus many more. The snow was generally good, seemed to be bonding well but with fresh snowfall due tonight it may well be a little different tomorrow.