[MCR] N ridge mt Buller

[Public Mountain Conditions Report]

Spent a cold but nice day on the North Ridge with two clients yesterday. The ridge was mostly free of snow except at the short crux.
There was no verglass to deal with but I suspect with warmer day time temps and cold night that icy veneers will be an issue this week on many rocky faces,trails and approaches.  The crux, despite being short it was touchy do to the snow covering.
We descended the N gully back to our car.
The gully was "tedious" and time consuming it had a considerable amount of hard frozen ground and water ice. The gully could be a good option in the spring or early summer with the right snow pack.

 It was my first time up there. I will likely do the route again. I found it enjoyable but in similar conditions or dry conditions I think the regular approach as described in the scrambles book might be a better descent.

Cheers
Patrick Delaney
ACMG Alpine guide
www.yamnuska.com
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network