Movement in the mountains so far this summer has been rarely static. A whole bunch of long classic hill races in Scotland and the Lakes has necessitated some fitness for running up inclines, so climbing has had to take a back seat.

After a shuffle of things and completion of most of the major races I ended up having a free Sunday afternoon so went in search of some mountain craggin with Findlay last weekend.

With limited time and recent rain the highest crags were out, so we opted for a more modern climb that is rapidly achieving classic status not least for its recent appearance in the new Scottish Rock select guide. Millennium slab is perched at a modest height on the north side of Garbh Bheinn, west of Corran. The most popular climb is Indian Slab, VS 4b, with there also being a few other lines at a similar grade. 

The crag itself is a large sheet of easy angled Gneiss in the upper reaches of Glen Gour. Approached via a 4x4 track and then only a short section of untracked ground, by all accounts it should be a fairly straightforward walk-in. The track up Glen Gour was actually pretty rough going, and although the guidebooks all suggest taking bikes in anything other than a prolonged heatwave you’d be best cycling in a wetsuit with the amount of water on the path, some sections of puddles of which were over 100 m long! 

Looking down the long and excellently positioned 3rd pitch of Indian Slab 

After arriving at the crag drenched in sweat it was obvious that we’d accidentally walked into the Lions den dressed as a couple of prime steaks. Within minutes we were the focus of a few thousands wee beasties which forced rapid gearing up. With all the hill running and walking I’d rarely been still long enough for midges to be a problem, however we were now very much not moving and they were flocking to us like we were a free bar. Lucky for me my handy midge net kept my sanity a little. Findlay learnt a valuable lesson in that moment that’s for sure and I felt very bad, but not enough to offer him a go! 

The climb itself was good. Whilst given a grade of VS 4b, there is probably no moves harder than 4a+ and the gear is okay, if a little fiddly. The holds are small and sometimes rounded but the friction is exceptional. The big 3rd pitch slab is great and used up the full 60 m of rope.

The descent was classic Scotland big mountain crag stuff, being a combination of traversing on collapsing ledges followed by a steep grass slope which was rutted to waist depth. At least we were moving fast enough to out run the midges though! 

You can’t beat a good ferry crossing, even if it is small by Scottish standards

All in all the route was a good outing, but being such a soft-touch a full rack felt a bit overkill. The easy angle and regular breaks / grass ledges probably makes it a great candidate for a solo mission. Going on and up through the rocks above the crag looked interesting and would make a fine day if combined with Great Ridge.

Next day we did Direct Route on BeM. The 4a crux on that was significantly harder than anything on Indian Slab… 

Findlay just before the smooth crux on Direct Route