Our two week summer getaway this year like so often stayed within the British Isles. And with so much to do on the tick-list north of the border we headed for the Scottish Highlands with a handful of objectives. Having already climbed the Old Man of Hoy we were keen to continue with the Old Man trilogy and headed for The old Man of Stoer.
On route to the Stoer we stopped at Diabaig. This hamlet on the shores of Loch Torridon is home to some fantastic Gneiss crags in a beautiful setting. There is one drawback however. Midges. And with humid cloudy weather and no wind, midges were out in force.
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 | | Gloomy skies at the village |
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 | | Midgy Loch Torridon |
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We knocked out Route Two (HVS 5a, 70m), and retreated in haste to the loch for a dip. The route was a 70m pristine crack climb and climbed like granite (pitch 2 the harder of the two). However upon abseiling to the ground the midges were swarming heinously, forcing us to hightail it to the loch and jump in for a refreshing wash.
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 | | Pilar following |
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 | | Pitch 1 |
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 | | Some harder moves on P2 |
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 | Me summiting, No midges here at least
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Nothing like a dip in a mountain lake to wake you up and afterwards the locals invited us for pizza and beers on the jetty. They were having their regular pizza gathering by the loch and even had a pizza oven stationed on the jetty. Quite a special evening.
 | | The midgy walk down |
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 | | Fun crowd! |
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 | | What to do in Scotland when you cant climb |
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 | | Torridon on the drive up to the Stoer |
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We made it up to The Stoer the next day and walked in in sunshine. As per all sea stacks there is the issue of descending the cliff face. And as per usual it was steep and a bit sketchy. The Tyrolean to access the stack was in place (as we suspected) and teams were already summiting. We arrived at mid afternoon and low tide so the crossing on the Tyrolean would be stress free with no chance of a dunking (unlike the team before us who apparently were waist deep).
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 | | Sketchy down climb |
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 | | Wonderful walk in |
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 | | First view of the Stack |
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 | | Pilar traversing |
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Another two teams were behind us making the whole thing quite a sociable day out (rare for us we are usually alone in these sort of places). Local guide Sam Percival who had placed the Tyrolean line earlier in the season was guiding an American client (Brian) and climbed the neighbouring route (an E1) made the whole experience more fun as we shared belays. The climb itself was excellent quality. Pitch one which can be wave washed, soaked and a bit hairy was completely dry for us.
 | | P1 Traverse |
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 | | Pilar |
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 | | Me enjoying the sandstone |
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 | | Pilar finishing up |
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Five very short though winding pitches on beautiful sandstone in which Pilar and l swung leads just having fun. It certainly didn't feel like and adventure climb. More like a sunny cragging day by the sea. Crossing the Tyrolean was definitely novel and you really can't beat a sea stack summit for coastal views and a feeling of isolation. A great tick.
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 | | Summit shot |
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 | | Me hauling myself across |
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 | | A father and son team |
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 | | Pilar descending |
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Getting down is one long abseil, completely free hanging the whole way and very quick.
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| Me coming down |
Sam and Brian were heading to Am Buachaille next and suggested we tag along. This stack, similar in stature, requires a swim and has more tidal considerations. It is definitely a more adventurous outing. We jumped at the chance.
