Author Archive
Sunshine Bouldering
Recent good fortune has led to days off blessed with glorious sunshine. A tiny bit of pottering around the hills in the snow was good fun but it didn’t feel quite wintery enough to concentrate on winter routes, so went bouldering instead!
My renewed enthusiasm for bouldering has coincided nicely with a Panton induced forthcoming guidebook buzz, meaning there’s been no shortage of people psyched to get out. Here are some photos of some recent sessions…
Jack rocking out the classic Pinch (v7/7A+) at the Sheep Pen. Photo: Oliver Cain
Lewis caught in a rare moment of slab climbing on the sunny side of the Ultimate Warrior boulder. Photo:Jim McCormack
Ollie Cain on the final moves of the classic Paul O'Grady (7B) in the Ogwen Valley. Photo:Jim McCormack
Jack hitting the gnarly pocket on the fierce Gnasher (7A/+) at the Sheep Pen boulders. Photo:Oliver Cain
Jim setting up for the crux move on the hard to find but super classic Ultimate Warrior (7B+) in Cwm Pennant. Photo:Joe Chorley
Simon Panton aka Mr. NWB on a tricky warm up arete on the main crag above the Rhiw Goch boulders. Photo:Jim McCormack
It's not bouldering but a nice shot of Joe Chorley on the mega-classic Pull My Daisy (E2) on the Rainbow Slab. Photo:Jim McCormack
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
Recent bits and bobs!
More good scenes down the Diamond again yesterday afternoon (cheers Gaz, Jack & Bertie for letting me leave work early!!) with a good bunch of people and what felt like the best conditions for some time!
Another first ascent too, this time courtesy of Tommy. The Empire State is now a stern 30m F8a taking the full height of the crag. I belayed Tommy on this the other day and it looks awesome…good effort Tommy!!
I seem to have spent most of my time at the Diamond lately, but here are a few photos of recent bits and bobs…
Joe Chorley enjoying the morning sun at LPT on Mean Mother F7b. Photo: Jim McCormack
Gus Hudgins throwing shapes on Boat People F7c ...erm, nice colour vest Gus!! Photo: Jim McCormack
Jim attempting to revisit former glories, Jerry's Problem V10/7C+ at the Sheep Pen. Temps have been dropping recently...the bouldering psyche is returning! Photo: Matty Lewis
BIG Tim Neill cruising Boat People. Photo: Jim McCormack
Evening light at the Diamond, looking across Llandudno. Photo: Jim McCormack
The Diamond
Since returning from the Alps I’ve been fully back into sport mode, with my mind on finishing redpoint business down at LPT! Through the summer there was a long list of people all with projects down there, but as the summer drew to a close it seemed I was the only one left behind. After 3 weeks of pull-ups before work and not eating seconds I finally managed to climb my long-term nemesis, Melanchollie F8b…I could finally relax, and was able to get down the Diamond with everyone else, free from the chains of a long-term project.
Pete Robins making the most of the brand new bolts on Robinson Cruiser F7c+. Photo: Jim McCormack
The Diamond is one of the real unsung gems of British sport climbing, but, like many crags on the Little Orme, is bird banned for much of the year. This, combined with major access problems due to the tidal range and the more than fickle conditions, makes it a difficult place to climb on. Nevertheless, when August 15th comes around, there’s always a band of Diamond devotees, ever keen to get down.
Caff high up on the recently re-bolted Wall of Evening Light, an epic 50m F7b+! Photo: Joe Chorley
The crag was largely developed in the late 80’s and early 90’s, with George Smith and Steve Mayers being the main protagonists. After this wave of development the Diamond went out of fashion, and for many years was forgotten by all but a select few! Three years ago however, North Wales bolting machine Pete Harrison took it upon himself to remedy this, and improved access with hand line; all of a sudden the tidal window became less of an issue, and Diamond climbing was fully back in business. With every subsequent year the momentum has built, with this year being the busiest yet. Many of the old routes are now fully re-equipped, seeing their first (re)ascents in probably 20 years, along with some notable first ascents becoming instant classics. The list of these was added to on a busy Saturday afternoon this week, with the Brute getting it’s 3rd ascent from Caff, Ding Dong nipping up an old open project to give Dumpster Divers F8a+, and Non-Tidal Screamer F7c seeing its first ascent in some years after recently being re-bolted. The activity continued with Never get out of the Boat, a now super classic F8a getting a couple of ascents from Owen and Ally, and Pete nipping in for a quick 2nd ascent of Dumpster Divers; with more routes getting cleaned up and projects being scoped out left, right and center, hopefully October will be a bumper month at the Diamond!!
For more info on the Diamond check out the North Wales Limestone Wiki;
http://northwaleslimestone.wetpaint.com/page/The+Diamond
And for all the beta on Ding Dongs new route, watch the video!
Summer Alps Hit
Recently got back from a few weeks in the Alps. As usual we headed out with lots of routes planned, all we needed was endless sunshine! As it turned out all the places we wanted to go to were under snow or soaking wet, so we aimed ourselves at the Ecrin…often much better weather being a bit further south and always pretty chilled!
We got there and, as promised, the weather was good, but things could have gone a little smoother with our mode of transport with Jon’s exhaust falling off in Ailefroide!!
Jon assessing the damage!!
Still, the van seemed to sound okay so we carried on regardless and managed to get some climbing done!
Heading up towards the Aiguille de Sailouze. Super Pilou starts up the black rock at the base, before following the slabby shoulder in the sun to access the upper walls. Photo: Jim McCormack
The first route we did was on the south-west face of the Aiuguille de Sailouze. Super Pilou is a largely bolted route of about 12 pitches with difficulty up to about F6a on solid, golden granite, that tops out at aroun 3,500m. With a big walk in to a bivvy spot the evening before it was the perfect route to brush the cobwebs away!
Jon seconding the first pitch of Super Pilou. Photo: Jim McCormack
Jim on lower pitches of Super Pilou. Photo: Jon Byrne
Jon approaching the steepness on the Sailouze. Photo: Jim McCormack
After a rest day and a bit of valley cragging we headed for a long route on the compact limestone of the Tete de Colombe…only to get snowed off the last 2 pitches. After a very wet retreat and walk out, we went to the bakery, ate lots of pain aux chocolate, and went to Ceuse. I always forget how good this crag is-the climbing is just amazing! After a good day of on-sighting the weather was on the up in the mountains, so off we went.
Next up was another long granite route, this time on the south side of Les Bans. Pas D’Asile pour Pazazu is a nicely sustained route about 500m long on fantastic, compact rock.
The Contrefort Median on the south side of Les Bans. Pas D'Asile pour Pazazu takes a line up the centre of the buttress, just right of the vague groove feature. Photo: Jim McCormack
Jim on Pas D'Asile pour Pazazu. Photo: Jon Byrne
The timing was marginally better on this route, climbing and descending in the sun, until the last 2 abseils and the (long) walk out accompanied by heavy, heavy rain! Another few rest days (if only to dry the ropes!!) and we set our sights on a classic route on the Tete du Rouget.
We’d seen the less impressive side of this mountain before, from the fairy tale-esque Aiguille Dibona, but had been told of an amazing, long route on the south side up solid, red granite. A slightly committing abseil approach left us at the base of the wall and our first look at the route. Solid, red patina catching the morning sun got us pretty psyched and the climbing didn’t disappoint. Le Tresor de Rackham le Rouget has awesome climbing up to F6c, with many sustained 6a/6b pitches through some unlikely terrain, and stunning views, left us in no doubt why this route had been recommended.
Jon on the belay of the first pitch of Le Tresor de Rackham le Rouget. Photo: Jim McCormack
Jim traversing out from the belay on the start of the crux 6c pitch. Photo: Jon Byrne
Jon on a bold 6a pitch, close to the summit of the Tete du Rouget. Photo: Jim McCormack
The following morning, with not a single pain aux chocolate for sale in the whole of the valley, we departed in search of our chocolaty elixir! Later that day the rain arrived and we decided to head home. A brief stop in Chamonix on the way north (thanks Jack for beer, food and entertainment!!) and that was us done!
Frankenjura
The past month or so there’s been a trip to the Frankenjura on the horizon! Happily this has coincided with crappy weather, so bolt clipping on the Orme and endurance training on the boards hasn’t been too difficult to get into.
The Frankenjura is one of those places where anyone that’s into sport climbing and pushing their grade has heard of, but very few people have been! It’s a climbing area steeped in history; Kurt Albert started the redpoint there, Wolfgang Gullich invented the campus board to train for specific routes there, and Jerry Moffatt rode his motorbike and got his knee down there (and did some climbing too!).
Chris Igel on the stereotypical steep, powerful, pocket-pulling Saftfeld (7B+) at Marientaler Wände. Photo: Jim McCormack
Although its reputation is for steep, powerful, pocket pulling, there’s a massive selection of lengths and angles, and while pockets are the order of the day, there’s plenty of crimping to be had too.
Old skool DMM logo and Monkey...cool!! Frankenjura strongman and DMM climber Heiko Queitsch's van.Photo: Jim McCormack
I’d never been before but ever since hearing about Action Directe, the world’s first 9a, I’d always wanted to go. DMM were holding an event there at the Eichler Campsite so it seemed like a good opportunity to tag along. I felt like I’d been in full redpoint-battle mode down at LPT too, so a week of carefree on-sighting was pretty appealing!
Ben Slack on Wounded Knee (7b) at Marientaler Wände. Photo: Jim McCormack
After a full 24 hour drive in a cramped van we finally ended up at the campsite, where we were greeted by the legendary Marta (owner of the campsite), closely followed by coffee, and more importantly, the (in)famous Frankenjura cakes!! Refuelled and psyched to be out of the van, we went for a look at one of the nearby crags; the not very German sounding Eldorado-home to the classic Jerry Moffat routes Ekle and Stonelove. Super-psyched by the look of the routes we were desperate to climb but the onset of darkness sent us back to the campsite.
The Frankenjura isn't all about climbing...there're weird number-plate covered houses too! Photo: Jim McCormack
The following morning we set up the DMM stand, then, at last, it was finally time to climb. The following 5 days took us to too many crags to name, mostly because I can’t remember, ( separated by copious amounts of coffee and cake consumed in the vain attempt to get rid of the perma-pump I had seemed to develop in my forearms), and I can honestly say all of them were stunning, each with its own character, and all with multiple classic pitches.
Jim trying not to look too pumped on the Kurt Albert classic Fight Gravity. Photo: Joe Sterling
What did suprise me was the amount of trad climbing going on! Lots of people were keen to come and test out the DMM gear; wires & cams as well as the quickdraws. Then out at the crags there were plenty of teams fiddling in gear in the crack climbs and, not too dissimilar from many of the Orme routes, placing gear where there is natural pro, between more blank sections protected by bolts! New trad lines are still being put up too; local Frankenjura climber Heiko Queitsch put up a bold new UIAA 9 (about 7c) while we were out there. He has also been spearheading the “Greenpoint” trend, climbing existing sport routes on trad gear only, ticking classic routes such as Fight Gravity (pictured above) and the John Bachar route Chasin’ the Train…both would be well into the E grades, with Chasin’ featuring some tenuous moves with 7c climbing (it felt like a long enough fall on the bolts)!!
Jim attempting to onsight the classic Ab durch de Mitte (7c+) at Marientaler Wände. Photo: Kat Dunbar
All in all, the Frankenjura is amazing. The local climbing scene was super friendly, the cake (see the developing theme) was fantastic, and the climbing was stunning. A great week made all the better by great company in a beautiful location…I couldn’t recommend the Frankenjura enough!!
Did i mention the Cake! Photo: Kat Dunbar
Font Photos
Hypercondri-Jack has recently been to Font. Good weather and wine induced dehydration meant Jack tore his bicep on the first day but he did manage to take some photos…
(All photos by Jack Rattenbury.)
Dave Noden sending Le Mandarin (8a) at Roche Aux Oiseaux
Joe Sterling "warming up" on Brazil (7a) at Roche Aux Oiseaux
Joe gettin' colorful on Aerodynamite (7b+) at Bas Cuvier
Nodder on Aerodynamite
Nodder looking very shapely(!!?) on L'Angle Ben's (7a+) at Franchard Isatis
Joe on Action Directe assis (7a+) at Roche Aux Oiseaux
Mr Zig-Zag!
Spring!
Spring in North Wales is one of life’s true pleasures as a climber and the last few days-off didn’t do anything to alter that opinion! Thursday morning was a bit damp and grey so Keith and I headed for the Orme…which as usual provided dry rock and sunshine. Not having been rock climbing much recently this came as a bit of a shock to the system, especially trying to warm up in the cave!
We ended up tying on and getting a couple of quick redpoints on routes we’d not done before which feels like a nice way to kick-start the season; Keith did Werrys Woof Woot Left-Hand F7b while I did Tomorrow People F7c, then we both went and blasted our arms on the overlooked and very steep Mask F7b+…steepness and pump factor rarely encountered on the upper tier of the Orme!
Keith lapping up the evening sun on Mask of the Red Death E3 5c (crap quality phone shot as the camera died just beforehand!!) Photo: Jim McCormack
The following day saw us at Rhoscolyn. One of the good things about frequently working on the weekends means you get the crags to yourself at midweek, and indeed we had Rhoscolyn all to ourselves ‘til the after-work teams turned up. The arms were tired from the Orme so the Savage Sunbird E2 5b was the perfect warm up in the sun. Keith followed suit with Wild Rover E1 5b, then we reacquainted ourselves with the pump on Warpath E5 6a. I’d not done this before so was pleased to get it done while trying to remember how to place wires at the same time as fending off the pump. We then finished off in the last of the evening sun with the awesome Mask of the Red Death E3 5c. This is usually done in two really contrasting 5c pitches, but Keith fired it off in a single mega-pitch…what an awesome route!
Finally today saw full team-psyche up at the Cromlech. Rhys and I did Memory Lane E3 5c, Cemetery Gates E1 5b and Left Wall E2 5c while The Thing E2 5c, Resurrection E4 6a, Right Wall E5 6a and Ivy Sepulchre E1 5b also saw early season ascents, all with the warm sun on our backs…and it’s still only mid-March!!
Great Expectations
With big plans and little time, the conditions were perfect. No snow for weeks and weeks meant miserable skiers and happy climbers. Nothing but ice in the gullies and bomber névé meant big routes were being fired off all over the place…’til we got there!!
Our arrival in Chamonix was greeted with a layer of fresh snow and still more forecast…shit. The prospect of being avalanched or falling down a crevasse didn’t appeal so our thoughts turned to skiing. Not being much of a skier I spent most of the next day trying not to smash into the 1000 other people on the slope who also thought that’d be a good way to spend the day, while Jon, being a much better skier than me, stood around waiting for me to catch up.
Having survived that ordeal and with a better forecast we turned to more familiar activities and headed to Cogne. Neither Jon nor I had ever been there and word on the street was the ice was fat…we were psyched again. An hour and a half after leaving Cham we found ourselves in a new winter wonderland with massive icefalls all over the place, a shit topo and no idea where to start! Above the parking was an easy looking gulley line with a quick approach. After a pleasant romp up what turned out to be Lilaz Gulley (a very steady WI 4), we looked for something a little steeper. Our arrival at the base of the classic Tuborg was met with Jon and me looking at each other wondering who had packed the screws; arse…not enough daylight to go back and get them that was us done for the day!
Jon approaching the steepness on Lilaz Gulley WI 4 Photo: Jim McCormack
After a late start due to a broken heater in the van (getting up early isn’t my strong point, especially when it’s -20 outside), the following day went a little better with an ascent of the classic Stella Artice (WI 5). A stunning route with a crux second pitch, on a vertical, free-standing curtain!
Climber high up on the crux second pitch of Stella Artice WI 5 Photo: Jim McCormack
More snow followed that evening so a return to skiing it was. With improving visibility in the afternoon Les Houches offers stunning views of the Tacul and across to the Verte…
The view of the Verte from the Les Houches ski lifts! Photo: Jim McCormack
These trips never quite turn out how you plan them, but it’s pretty hard not to have a good time when the worst weather means you have to ski, and places like Cogne are on the doorstep where you can climb steep ice with sun on your back!
