Spain, Spain, Spain!
With the nights closing in and the weather getting worse, a few of us decided grab a few days in Spain, get a bit of sun, and make the most of what was left of summers fitness.
The choice venue was, once again, northern Spain, taking advantage of the seemingly endless amount of rock in Cataluña. The first port of call was the huge expanse of conglomerate at Montsant’s Raco de Misa sector. None of us had ever visited this crag before and it lived up to its reputation; a set of massive walls of varying angles with long, sustained routes navigating their way up a sea of two finger pockets!
The amazing Raco de Misa wall at Montsant. Photo: J McCormack
Jim on Hidrofobia in the late evening sun. Photo: Rory Shaw
Not being used to constantly pulling on two finger pockets, this kind of climbing really takes its toll on the skin and the tendons, so we decided to head north and grapple with some tufas for a bit. We arrived at Terradets hoping to get stuck into some on-sight action, but being Brits, our arrival was marked by the arrival of what seemed like the monsoon season. We decided to bail to Santa Linya instead, always a good venue in the rain, but not a place to be if you’re not feeling at the top of your game! As the rain came down, me, Dave and Neil all decided to warm up on things that weren’t anything like warm-ups, then get stuck into something to redpoint, while Rory made the most of the umbrella effect of the cave and get stuck into redpointing a bottle of wine and some chorizo…some of us were on a proper holiday!!
Rory enjoying holiday sun on a mega F6c at Montsant. Photo:J McCormack
The following day everything was totally soaked, so it was down south again to get stuck back into some pockets. Margalef is one of the “in” venues of sport climbing at the moment, and forms the other side of the Montsant massif. Most of us had been there before, but it offers a truly endless amount of climbing of all different lengths and angles, from 3 bolt boulder routes to 40 meter stamina fests, there’s something for everyone. After a few days though, our thoughts turned back to the start of the trip and unfinished business, and so the following day we found ourselves back at the sun drenched walls of the Raco de Misa.
Jim on an onsight attempt of the classic Magic Festival at Raco de Tenebres at Margalef. Photo: Rory Shaw
Dave Evans high up on the classic F7b+ Montsantrat. Photo: Neil Dyer
The last two days were spent up at the wall, with an amazing bivvy below the huge walls, illuminated by the full moon on a crystal clear night. The last day seemed to see all the action, with me getting a pre-breakfast redpoint of the classic 8a Hidrofobia before the sun swung onto the face, Neil flashing it for his warm up, and Scottish dark horse Iain Small showing who the stamina king was by taking 30 minutes to “rest” his way up it in the full sun…a truly amazing show of not only fitness, but also, for a winter-climbing-uber-wad, tolerance of hard climbing in 30 degree heat!
Neil attempting the classic F8b+ of the crag, L-Ments. Photo: J McCormack.
Iain Small escaping the shade on Hidrofobia (F8a). Photo: J McCormack
