We'd been waiting a long time for a weekend to get our millennium climb done, between Tom and Alice both working different shifts and the appalling summer of 1999 it looked like it wasn't going to happen that year. Then one Friday the four of us were free for the weekend and 'Heather' on the weather was more optimistic than usual so we decided to go for it next day.

We arrived at the NTS car park just before eleven with the weather now looking very dodgy and overcast. My guess was rain before we even reached the start of the route. As always fears about the changing weather made us rush the walk in, an injustice to the wonderful Torridon scenery which deserves to be more fully appreciated. On reaching Coire Mhic Fhearchair it seemed brighter than when we had set out and the focus of our apprehension shifted from the weather to the awesome Triple Buttress now in full view before us. Mountain routes seem to have a way of being intimidating no matter what grade they are in a way that doesn't apply to crag routes. This was certainly the case here as we stopped by the loch, all being in agreement with the sentiment that “No way anything up there looks like a Diff”. I was feeling particularly nervous as I had recently had my first leader fall on a local crag and hadn't done much climbing since.

We set off to scramble up to Broad Terrace, Tom and Alice Taking a different route to Joan and I. We ended up too high and started along the wrong ledge which soon petered out to nothing giving us the first scare of the day. Eventually much shouting to and fro led us to Tom and Alice who were on the correct terrace which wasn't as narrow as it had looked from below. We traversed along to the bottom of the route and looked up. As is often the case it didn't look as bad from close up as it had from a distance. We could see it was blocky with what looked like good holds; good protection and good belay ledges.

After gearing up Tom set off to lead the first pitch with Alice belaying: Joan and I would follow as a separate rope. Soon we were all on the route and started to thoroughly enjoy ourselves. The weather had stayed fair and the climbing was great, nice and easy but at the same time totally exhilarating. It was rock all the way with none of the grassy rakes which sometimes spoil the continuity of easier graded routes. After the first pitch or so Tom and I both picked different (equally good) lines which allowed us to climb in parallel and cut out any waiting. The view back down to the loch and beyond was spectacular with not another soul in sight the whole day. Our only tricky moment was a rope jam near the top but this was easily overcome. The top of the route was reached at 5.30 pm - a three-hour time for the route of five or six pitches. Confidence had soared to the extent that Joan and Alice led out the last couple of pitches, something that had most definitely not been their intention at the start! By now we were on such a high that we decided to complete the day in style and bag both the Munro's as well. This was duly done and on failing legs we slid and scrambled down one of the path cum scree runs arriving back at the car at 9.15 pm, a ten and a half-hour day on the hill.