[RichK]

  I had my first taster of Scottish(mainland) summer cragging last weekend & was blown away Wow, its vast, with amazing big skies & so few folk around. We managed to van doss in some amazing spots with no hassle at all.

Anyway, keen to get back up for more & looking for inspiration/local knowledge on where is best to go once the midge season is on us. We climbed in Glen Nevis, which was getting a bit midge, Creag Dubh was horrendous & Dunkeld was fine. As the summer progresses what are the midge free options if any Presumably high up is ok? How is Reiff, Torridan etc??

BTW, I've already done a lot in the Hebrides so looking for mainland, Midge free long weekend hits.

Guides; We used the Latter, Scot Rock Vol 1 which seemed very average
& the Kev Howett select which seemed better. Useful midge rating. What are folks opinions on best guides - how are the SMC ones

[Bonjoy]

Yer not wrong about the midges in Glen Nevis. Was there on Sat. My legs now look like a ginger teenager's forehead. Managed not to get any ticks though (Fi and Spike were both less fortunate).
Had been on Skye for the week before and didn't see many midges (and no ticks), but this was probably mostly due to difference in weather.

[galpinos]

Got eaten alive by midges on the LAMM this weekend. I'd forgotten how bad they can be.....

[Fiend]

As the summer progresses what are the midge free options if any

Breeze, breeze, breeze. It all depends on the breeze. 10mph upwards ideally. Just check the wind before you go and go where is getting it.

Sea-cliffs can be slightly better, East Coast is better (although the climbing is not Scotland at it's best, Caithness is good tho).

[GazM]

As has been said my many before, flexibility is key in Scotland!
 
Midges love warmth and humidity and dense vegetation but hate a breeze.  Look for crags exposed to the wind, with rocky bases (sea cliffs) or where it's colder (mountains).  That said, I've been midged on sea cliffs and mountain crags on still days - wind is the only real salvation!

It just so happens that the 3 areas you visited are prime midge habitat!

The North West is the most spectacular part of Scotland, with some of the best climbing, and there's enough variety to get stuff done in most conditions - Reiff has a good variety of aspects so you're bound to find a breeze somewhere.  Likewise, Gairloch/Gruinard area has enough crags to find somewhere that's OK.  This list could get quite long...

[SA Chris]

What others have said - no-where is midge free; they aren't anywhere near as bad on the east coast as the west but I have been bitten whilst in the back garden. Nothing like the swarms I've felt on Skye and Glen Nevis but enough to be an irritation.

They can't cope with any wind, don't like direct sunlight and struggle to fly if the air is thin (low humidity) so you can often be OK during the day, but find evenings horrifc, so camping is often a bit of a swine unless you time things right and are in the pub, a hostel or zipped up in a tent before evening.

As others have said, east coast doesn't have the swagger or stature of west coast venues, but places like Pass of Ballater, Glen Clova, the Granite North of Aberdeen, Logie head, Rosehearty are all very good gragging venues along with others as well as many good climbs in the Cairngorms.

Reiff is a good option as the campsite is pretty breezy, close to the pub and has crags facing every direction, as well as classy mountain cragging options like Stac Pollaidh.

[Johnny Brown]

Not much to add to all that, other than to note you can generate the required breeze by running around, flailing your arms and swearing.

[SA Chris]

Never underestimate the usefulness of a midge net. I wish these were downscaled to a portable size;

http://www.midgemonster.co.uk/

( I think there's a market for renting those things out!)

Otherwise, try taking Vitamin B1 (marmite and other yeast based products including beer!) smoking or using one of several slap-ons, none of which really seem to work.

Oh and it's worth getting some of this if you are vanning it http://www.midgie.net/

If you buy the "Midge netting large" you can close it into the front door of a van so it covers the window opening. I think that the large is enough for both doors, with a fair bit left. You will need to go to a dump to strip some strip magnets out of fridge doors to seal along the bottom of the window. Then you can get ventilation in the van and not get eaten to death.

[Johnny Brown]

Ah yes, I forgot smoking. Always take up smoking roll-ups on scottish trips. You don't need to inhale if you don't want to.

The other thing which is great for camping/ vans are little fly-papers which come in little cardboard tubes. Keep a moskil burning in the doorway too...

[dave]

Midges are attracted to carbon dioxide, so simply hold your breath.

[SA Chris]

Guides; We used the Latter, Scot Rock Vol 1 which seemed very average
& the Kev Howett select which seemed better. Useful midge rating. What are folks opinions on best guides - how are the SMC ones

Tricky one. For cragging the Latter Guides (vol 1 & 2) are probably your best bet for weekend /holiday hits. The SMC guides are very good and comprehensive, but are more text heavy than diagram heavy, and also include vast swathes of winter climbing which I am guessing you have no interest in, and are an expensive outlay if you want the whole set.

The SMC "Scottish Rock" is maybe a good addition, but covers a lot of the ground covered by the "Latter" Guides  and is already 7 years old. Interesting you think the Howett Guide is OK, I think it's prettty terrible, and I've not opened my copy for at least 5 years.

[SA Chris]

Midges are attracted to carbon dioxide, so simply hold your breath.

I think it's a bit more complicated than that, so don't hold your breath.

[Fiend]

Not much to add to all that, other than to note you can generate the required breeze by running around, flailing your arms and swearing.

Particularly good for Glen Nevis death slabs 

[John Gillott]

Single pitch by the sea is my recommendation. Fair chance of a breeze, more likely to be sunny than in the hills, and easier to run away / generate a 'breeze' by moving around than if involved with a long multipitch. I remember belaying on the Fiddler's Nose once when they were out in force, desperately hoping that the breeze would pick up...

[Johnny Brown]

Aye, strapped to a belay on the Etive slabs one June evening when the wind died away... aaarrgghh.

[RichK]

Guides; We used the Latter, Scot Rock Vol 1 which seemed very average
& the Kev Howett select which seemed better. Useful midge rating. What are folks opinions on best guides - how are the SMC ones

Interesting you think the Howett Guide is OK, I think it's prettty terrible, and I've not opened my copy for at least 5 years.

I'm echoing my mates comments who has done more up there than myself. I liked the fact the crags had a midge rating, although how useful this is considering the comments above

Cheers for all the tips fella's

[SA Chris]

Aye, strapped to a belay on the Etive slabs one June evening when the wind died away... aaarrgghh.

One of my most crushing defeats was cycling in to Creag Ghlas in Strathconon to do Salamander. Felt OK on the cycle in, but as soon as we started the steep heather bashing approach they started on us. We pressed on hoping there would be a bit of a breeze at the crag, and some gusts gave us the faintest of hope to press on, as well as the sight of two people on pitch 3 who gave us some hope. by the time we were halfway there it was obvious the belayer was huddled into his hood and cursing continuously under his breath. By the time we got to the bottom of the route they were both cursing violently and setting up to abseil off. We turned around and headed back down the hill without even unpacking gear, and spent a pleasant few hours back at the van stripped off and removing the half dozen ticks or so we collected on the way.

[Pebblespanker]

Was at St Brides Wall (near Callendar/GlenOgle) on Monday - all seemed well on the walk across the field, decent conditions, dry rock ... within 20 mins of getting the boots on the little feckers were out in force and tucking into the other half and me despite the Jungle Formula Tropical sacked it off after 1 problem and inhaling one too many - went to Wolfcrag (Stirling) and it was pretty much fine despite the quarry feeling a little humid

Arbroath sea-cliffs have been good recently too but given the constant breeze its not surprising so I assume Portlethen, Muchalls etc would be OK too??

Sadly the leson learnt seems to be even if there appears to be minimal activity give it half an hour and then reassess - not ideal if you have just done a 40 min uphill walk in to one of the more remote venues, or are half way up a pitch when they emerge ...

[Adam Lincoln]

What do the shelterstone and Creag an Dubh Loch tend to get like with midges? Is their generally a breeze? On  side note, is the water at creag an dubh loch drinkable or do you have to boil it first?

[SiWitcher]

Shelterstone and Dubh Loch are ok for midges, once you get up and away from any grass ledges. The camping spots can be bad though. The routes usually seem to be cool and /or breezy enough to keep them at bay, and they're nowhere near as bad as the highland outcrops and the lower bits of glen coe. The bottom line though is always have some 50-100% deet ready to go. headnet or hoodie recommended for when you find yourself being feasted on, only 5mins into a 60min belay duty.

[SA Chris]

I assume Portlethen, Muchalls etc would be OK too??

Never had a problem anywhere on the Aberdeen Coast, except Muchalls Shore , which is very sheltered by steep cliffs and loses sun early on. Been unpleasant on a couple of evenings, but still just about bearable.

And what Simon says about Shelterstone and Dubh Loch; not as bad as west coast, but can be unpleasant, DL is probably a safer bet of the two. Bike for Dubh Loch approach is very useful, and I wouldn't trust the water; it might be OK, but not really worth the risk; all it takes is one dead animal on the catchment.

[Stewart]

I had my first taster of Scottish(mainland) summer cragging last weekend & was blown away Wow, its vast, with amazing big skies & so few folk around. We managed to van doss in some amazing spots with no hassle at all.

Hi Rich, presume that was yourself we met on the Tuesday morning below cave crag at Dunkeld. Did you manage to find Weem crag from my dodgy directions?

[Icebun]

Hey Adam, Don't worry about the water at the Dubh Loch, never had problems (I'll regret saying that). There will be plenty of it there though it has been pishin down for weeks now

[RichK]

[/quote]

Hi Rich, presume that was yourself we met on the Tuesday morning below cave crag at Dunkeld. Did you manage to find Weem crag from my dodgy directions?
[/quote]

Yes Stewart, that was us. Thanks for the directions they were indeed poor in the Latter guide. It should say strike up the hill once your 5m from steps. We spent a good 30 mins trying to find it, gave up...then stumbled across it on our way down. We did the 2 classic 7's which were excellent. Nice little crag.