It must have been 25 years since I first saw pictures of Squareface and Mitre Ridge in Classic Rock, and for all that time I'd dreamed of climbing them. Dreams started to become plans in the last 10 years, but those plans were continually thwarted by the weather. Until last year, when the start of our annual week's trip to Scotland coincided with 3 days of forecast good conditions.
We drove up to Braemar on Friday afternoon, May 30th, arriving at Invercauld just after 6, and decided we had time to cycle as far as the Fairy Glen that evening. Good tracks through the forest were followed by rough tracks up the glen, until we were approaching the Fairy Glen. Carmen had had enough biking by then, and suggested that we dump the bikes there for the weekend and walk the rest of the way. "Bang!" agreed my rear tyre as the inner tube exploded.
A lovely camping spot, relatively midgeless, and with a cuckoo for company in some nearby trees – a good spot to linger. But we had a long day ahead, so were early to bed and up before 6 the 
next morning, on our way by 7. After walking another 8 miles or more, we set up camp on the top of the Beinn a' Bhuird plateau. Following an unusually snowy winter, our intended camping spot in a hollow was under several feet of snow, so we were forced a bit higher to just below the 1150m contour. Luckily the winds were light as it could have been pretty exposed in bad weather.
Tent duly in place, we headed for the foot of Mitre Ridge. The normal descent was under snow so we picked a way down loose ground by the stream and made our way over the the ridge towards our intended route – Cumming-Crofton Route (Severe).
The next problem was getting to the start. All approaches to the crag were under deep hard snow, and our route turned out to be the only one that could feasibly be reached at all. But even this involved descending into a bergschrund, chimneying out again higher up, and then making a tricky stride back onto the rock.
I led the first pitch, as it was a chimney with a bit of a reputation – but it turned out to be miles easier than expected. The next pitch was Carmen's, and was both bolder and harder than the 
S 4a grade suggested, with some tenuous smearing some way out from the last protection. I led the next 2 pitches in one long run out (very traditional mountaineering, with some grass, mud, and loose rock), and Carmen finished off with Bell's Variation – easy but hugely exposed. I then took the final flatter section over the pinnacles.
A magnificent route, and well worth the trip by itself. But we weren't finished yet!
It was only 3.30, so it was now time for Squareface (VDiff). And yet again, the main obstacle was getting there. The normal descent route was a snow-filled gully, so after some investigation we decided on a long descending traverse from the right. This worked fine until we had to cross the aforementioned gully to reach the route. I crossed OK, but Carmen was on her way when a large lump of ice arrived from above – fortunately with no worse result than a bruised shoulder. Later on we watched as a huge rock fell down across the traverse line we'd followed…
I quickly climbed the first pitch – Carmen was safe from the gully, but we wanted to put as much distance between us and the fall line as possible! Carmen led the next. Curiously, the guidebook doesn't follow the obvious crack line, but crosses it and climbs the wall to the right – previous editions take the crack so maybe it's a mistake. I finished with the best of the pitches, up an exposed flake and across an even more exposed wall to the top. Another superb route, though we both preferred Cumming-Crofton.
All that remained was to brave the snow that lay between us and safety, then it was back to the tent for a well-earned meal. To compete the day we walked up to the summit of Beinn a' Bhuird, half a mile away across the plateau.
Next day the forecast was for a fine start, with rain arriving later in the day. Although we were both tempted by Angel's Edgeway, a VS up the edge of the Squareface slab, we couldn't face risky the approach again, so decided on a quick ascent of an obscure 1-star Diff on the other side of the corrie – Pinnacle Ridge on Stob an t-Sluichd.
Although the upper part was clearly visible on the descent, Pinnacle Ridge took an age to find – the guidebook was very vague and working out which buttress to start on required 2 false starts. But eventually after 50m of nondescript scrambling, the ridge narrowed and formed a couple of pitches of nice exposed climbing. I think I took a 
more direct line on the last pitch, which was more like VDiff or Severe. A good route – not in itself worth the long trek to get there, but a good quick (if you can find the start!) option if you're there for one of the other more famous climbs.
It was now 12.30, and all that remained was the long walk back out, followed by a long cycle (for Carmen)/bike push (for me) back to the car. A few minutes after we'd stowed the gear in the car, it started to rain.
It would be perfectly feasible to do the two Classic Rock routes in a weekend without bikes. Walk to Fairy Glen and pitch camp either Friday evening or early Saturday. Leave the tents there, walk to Garbh Choire, do the routes, and walk back to camp on Saturday and a leisurely walk out on Sunday. Or as one team did, walk from camp, climb Mitre Ridge, and back to Fairy Glen on Saturday, then walk back in again and climb Squareface on Sunday, before heading out.
But I'd recommend doing something similar to what we did. Or add an extra day or two if you get the weather – make the most of a very special place.
We'll certainly be back.
More photos here
