Me climbing in Mallorca back in May 2009, the shot was taken for the updated Rockfax guidebook to the area. This route was about 7a, only the bolts were all pretty well rusted which made it feel more like an E5!
Photo by Mark Glaister.
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January 30th 2012 Just back from a ten-day ice climbing trip to Cogne, Italy. I was out there with Gabriel Mazur, Lucy Creamer, and Tim Glasby. We had originally planned to spend the week in La Grave, where I hadn't done much previously, but a week before we were due to drive out we had to accept that there was no ice to be found in La Grave, so switched to Cogne. The word was that there was pretty much no other ice to be found in central Europe, so we were in the right place, though it was a bit warm and because autumn has been quite dry, there wasn't as much ice formed as is usual. On the plus side, there was very little snow, despite a massive dump of snow on the other side of the Alps. This meant that a few routes that are usually out of bounds due to avalanche risk were relatively safe to do. I was climbing with Gabriel, and managed to get plenty done: we started off with Lilaz Cascade, which was a bit thin in places, but still very good. The top was in the sun and I pulled out the camera and got some nice photos of Lucy.
Above: Gabriel pointing the way to the last two pitches of Lilaz Cascade.
The next day Gabriel and I did Cold Couloir (4+), a winter ice route that thinks its an alpine route. It is pretty long - 600m if you top-out. It was one of the routes that is usually avoided due to a very high avalanche risk, but this time there was hardly any snow, so we felt it was safe to climb. Great climbing, we lost count of how many pitches we did, around eight. We felt like we had the route to ourselves, probably because we picked the day with the worst weather to do it - it was windy and snowling lightly all day. We stopped before we got to the top as we were both getting pretty tired. The route isn't very well equipped for an abseil decent, and we ended up abseiling from all sorts of bootlaces.
Above: Gabriel making the first of many abseils to descend Cold Couloir. It was a windy, snowy day and the route felt more like an alpine undertaking than a winter ice route. After a rest day we ticked the grade 5 Erfaulet - which was another route that is usally threatened by unstable snow, but this time there wasn't any to worry about. Gabriel lead the crux pitch, which was his first grade 5, and I got the next one, which was less steep but thinning out a bit at the top, to the extent that there was a hole in the top of it, through which I could see that the ice fall was just a hollow shell with a waterfall running down the inside. Below Left: looking up the crux pitch of Erfaulet.
The following day we did Lau Bij, a route frequently given 5+, it was in thin condition, and I had had a bad time on it the previous year when I inexplicably fell off seconding the first pitch then lost my nerve leading the second and had to reverse and aid back. It was in slighter harder condition this year, but just as exposed. Using better tools (a new pair of Nomics) made a difference and I was determined to get it done. The climbing was hard with lots of swapping on the tools, some cutting loose, and the need to recover on what was surely overhanging ice. To make things a little more worrying, as I approached the top of the ice I realised that there was a deep and wide gap between the ice and the rock where the rock had warmed in the sun and melted the ice, as the whole route pitch was free-hanging this made that final section a bit of a head game. Below: Lau Bij
Our second rest day turned out to be an unfortunate one for Lucy. She and Tim headed off to do Cold Couloir, and Gabriel and I headed off to Cogne to get some groceries. Just as we arrived back in Lilaz Gabriel received a call from Tim saying that Lucy had broken her leg and they were slowly making their way out. They asked if we could hike in and help them out. I didn't think it was a good idea to try to get out on foot so, with help from the Hotel Nigritelles, got through to mountain rescue. I asked for some ground transportation, but they insisted on sending a helicopter. Within minutes I head it pass overhead - an amazing resposnse time. It picked them both up and took them to the hospital in Aosta. Gabriel had already run up to pick up their bags, and I headed up on foot to help with the carrying. There was only enough light to walk in, and out with the bags, so it was definitely a good call to send the helicopter. We picked up Lucy and Tim in Aosta that evening - Lucy had a clean break in her lower leg, and will be off her feet for a little while.
The next day Gabriel and I wanted to check out Repentence a classic 5+/6 at the end of Valnontey. The hike was gruesome and when we got there we found a guided team in place. We waitied but the more we watched them the more we didn't wish to follow. It would have been a very slow day and we were getting cold waiting. Later we heard that this team were not well matched with the route and were resting frequenly by clipping into their tool and resting on screws. Disappointing not to have a go on Repentence but I think we made the right decision. Our back-up plan was to do Monday Money (4). A couple of Spanish climbers were coming down from it when we were waiting for Repentence, claiming it was wet and couldn't be protected. There were four British climbers waiting for it, and they were going to abandon the route based on the advice of the Spanish climbers. I have always found it worthwhile to take tales of terror with a pinch of salt and so Gabriel and I got on Monday Money and though it was running in places, we were able to find a line that mostly avoided the water and got to the top. The Brits followed our line and we all managed to get the route done. The final day we headed out to try Di Fronte al Tradimento (5), however there was a slow party just starting off when we arrived, and again we didn't feel like we wanted to climb below them, taking every belay, so we headed back down the valley. On the way back we found a short but steep ice fall that was fully in the sun, the route was a 3 but our direct line was more like a 4. Below: on our first rest day there was a dog sled racing even going on in Lilaz where we were staying. I followed Tim Glasby out and took a few photos with my Lumix - not quite as easy to use as my Canon SLR, but I was quite impressed with the results. The event was fun to watch - the dogs were loving it.
October 31st 2011
The last three weeks has been spent out in Kalymnos. It has been a couple of years since I'd been there previously and I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of development that had gone on since last I was there. I had hoped to get get on a project I'd bolted the previous time I was there but a niggly elbow and a plethora of other routes to do conspired to keep me away from it. I got stacks of routes in the 7b-7c range done onsight, and got to take the hundred-metre rope right to the very end a few times. While I was out in Greece I got see the proofs for an article I wrote for Climber magazine on La Gorge de la Jonte - which is included in the Languedoc guidebook. The article is looking great and should be out next month. The last week in Greece was spent coaching for Simon Rawlinson's business 'Make the Next Move' - I used to run coaching holidays in Kalymnos nine years ago and it felt strange going back. The climbing areas are a lot busier there now than they were back in 2002 when we pretty much had the place to ourselves. Though, there are of course a lot more routes there now than there were back then. Just one thing about Kalymnos that I feel strongly about: money provided by the municpality is being spent on bolting new crags - nothing bad about that you may think but I think it could be spent better elsewhere. Bolting routes is hard work, but it's also a true pleasure, one of the attractions of Kalymnos is the fact that there has always been so much undeveloped rock. There is no shortage of people who, at their own expense, (or assisted by the bolt fund organised by Steve at the Glaros Bar) are willing to bolt and climb new routes. What is actually happening is a large number of routes are being bolted by folk like guidebook author Aris and local French guide Simon and named, but often not even climbed. This has lead to some badly placed bolts and disputes as to who names routes. Bolting some new 9a is hard, but let's face it, not as hard as climbing it. In fact one of the new routes at Kalydna was half bolted by myself - does that mean I get to name half of it? I think that maybe this has something to do with there being a commercial incentive to generate lots of 'new routes' for a new guidebook, even if many of them have not been climbed or even properly cleaned. Ego no doubt has a big role to play in what is happening. The day will come when a lot of bolts will need to be replaced in Kalymnos - and when it does there won't be a penny left. In summary, my view of the situation is this: 1) First ascentionists have the right to name, not the person who bolted it. Rant over. Out in Greece I was trying out a new camera - a Panasonic Lumix. I usually use a full-size SLR for my work, but thought it would be nice to have a compact camera that would be close to hand - I was very impressed with the results, though I prefer the feel of my Canon EOS, I have to say that functionality of the Lumix is beyond my criticism. The following shot is a two-shot stitch of Telendos after it had been raining. The next is the sunset - not quite as well composed as I was hoping for - but that boat was zipping along so I didn't have much time!
August 17th 2011 The last couple of months has been mix of working on the Rockfax Peak Bouldering guidebook and coaching both on the gritstone in the Peak District and the limestone down in Portland. Last month was mostly spent in the USA, where Audrey and I spent two weeks climbing on California granite. Starting from San Francisco we headed for Yosemite National Park, both of us have previously made a bee-line for the valley, but figured it would be too hot in July so headed for Tuolumne Meadows. Up in Tuolumne it was indeed a lot cooler, with a lot of snow still to be found in deep patches. There wasn't anywhere to camp in the park so we had to stay in Lee Vining and commute in each day. We started off with a day at Stately Pleasure Dome - the first route was a slightly frustrating exercise, we chose to do Hermaphrodite Flake and The Boltway (5.8). After a few good pitches I found myself in a place where the topo suggested I would find a bolted belay - but there was no such belay so in the end I had to reverse the whole pitch to avoid having to walk-off. Next was Great White Book (5.6R) - this was a great route, Audrey led the runout crux pitch and we did the walk-off descent. I'd heared that the decent was a bit technical, so opted to do it in my climbing shoes - this was a big mistake as my feet were really sore from having so much weight put through them all day (not something I get to experience much in climbing) so did it barefoot. My the time we'd got down my feet were rubbed raw and for the rest of the two weeks I had to take great care not to burst any blisters. Tuolumne would be so much more pleasurable if it had proper bolted abseil descents! After just two relatively easy routes we didn't have the energy to do any more, the altitude was taking its toll so we called it a day.
Above: Stately Pleasure Dome. The corner up the middle is Great White Book. The next day we did America Wet Dream (5.10b R) on Mountaineers Dome. The crack climbing pitches were challenging, but enjoyable and well-protected. As often happens the part of the route the guide flagged as difficult felt fine, but the last pitch, which involved fifty metres of friction climbing with gear up to less than half height felt positively dangerous - I was pleased when Audrey opted to lead this one, though she was less than pleased to find out that the gear was so poor. Having both climbed 5.10 with some reserve we felt ready for a challenge, and so the next day we headed on up to Drug Dome with a view to doing the classic 5.10d 'Oz' and then carry on up and do Hobbit Book (5.7R). We hadn't walked far when we realised that it wasn't terribly warm. The path was blocked in many places by huge piles of snow. The route was clear of snow, but the temperature was quite low. I led the first pitch and brought Audrey up, but it was a struggle as she had got really cold belaying me. When she arrived at the belay she was still freezing so I led the next pitch. Even colder now, she couldn't follow me, and returned to the belay. At this point I was quite a long way off to the left. I figured that if I could carry on and climb the next pitch I'd be in a much better place to abseil down and return to the first belay. I set off up the third pitch with about 35m of rope drag. The pitch was amazing but I had a bad feeling about the distances involved and I was getting low on cams at this point. I got maybe 1/3rd of the way up when I asked how much rope was left. It would be really close and if I ran out I'd have to reverse the whole 10d pitch. I opted to bail and reverse just the first 1/3rd. I was able to get back to the belay with a bit of mucking about and we abseiled down and made our way to the sun. That afternoon we did the Direct Northwest Face (5.10c) on Lembert Dome - which was brilliant, and a lot warmer. After three days we were ready for a rest. Rather than sit around, we decided to drive down to The Needles, which was our other planned destination. On the way (well, sort of) we stopped off at Bodie, a well-preserved 'ghost town' where you feel like you're walking around some of western film set, only there are more cameras.
Above: Bodie, California. The Needles is a remote spot in the Sequoia National Park. A series of tall granite spires with some fantastic crack lines scorching their way from the bottom to the top. The downside is that the walk-in is long (an hour and a half each way). The first day is the toughest as you have to hike in with all your kit, after that you can stash your bad at the crag and just bring your foot and water. We got off to a good start, doing both Fancy Free (5.10) and Igor Unchained (5.9) - both were brilliant, but felt tough for the grade, especially Igor which was a mistake to climb in two 70m pitches. There is currently no guidebook to the Needles, so we were using California Road Trip - the problem is the book is so big we didn't want to carry it, so often ended up getting confused as to which way to go. Because of this we didn't actually do the top pitch of Fancy Free, which was a bit of a shame. By the time we'd finished climbing it was getting late, so quickly stashed our bags and started the long walk back. We'd done the first third, which is the worst bit when Audrey asked where the car key was. It was of course in my bag, which was at the crag. All our food was in the car, and I if we'd had more energy there would have been some cursing and crying. It was too late to walk back to the bags and it would have been grim, so we carried on back. I had a faint hope that I might have forgotten to lock one of the doors, but no luck. Then I looked underneath to see if I could release the boot, again, no chance. I considered smashing a window, but I vaguely recalled our insurance excess was sizeable, so just stood glaring at out food in the car, in the dark. We were saved by some friendly natives who shared their meal with us, so at least we didn't have to go to bed hungry. In the morning, Audrey volunteered to do the hike back. About mid-day she returned with the key and we had some breakfast. There was no climbing that day, so we drove down to California Hot Springs with the hope of finding some of the eponymous facilities. We weren't disappointed. The next day climbing we decided to do the ultra-classic Thin Ice (5.10b). I have to say that there the guide we were using let us down. It had us start up the (brilliant) first pitch of Atlantis, which we did before learning that we were in the wrong place. So, we abseiled down and got on the right route, only this time I forgot you're supposed to go left at the top of the first pitch, and carried on up what was increasingly obviously not 5.10. We had strayed onto Ice Pirates (5.11b) but were able to get back on track, and as it worked out we probably avoided the least pleasant part of Thin Ice.
The Sourcerer, The Needles - Thin Ice takes a link up the middle in two 70m pitches. The next day we wanted a challenge, so set off up Spook Book (5.10d). I'd heard that the first pitch was the crux and I soon found myself looking at a tricky friction move to get stood on a big chicken-head where I'd be able to clip a bolt - this wasn't very well protected and a fall could have been very unpleasant. It took a second look before I felt confident that I was going to do the move. With the bolt clipped it felt fine. I'd been told the second pitch was a crack-climb and so felt pretty confident, however by this point the sun was glancing the rock, and the pitch turned out to be harder than I thought. I could hardly see what was coming up and the crack was getting so thin as to be almost useless. Reluctantly I reversed the pitch, and traversed off to join Innersanctum - which turned out to be a brilliant 5.9. We finished off by doing Airy Interlude (5.10a) which felt really easy as it was all on the arms rather than the feet.
The Witch, The Needles - the prominent groove/crack up the middle to the summit is Igot Unchained (5.9). By now, we both felt a bit beaten by the walking and the climbing, so felt like a rest day. As before, we didn't want to sit around, so used it to drive back to Tuolumne where there were still a few routes we wanted to do. The first day back we did Lucky Streaks (5.10d). It was probably one of the best routes there, but we ended up behind a slower party. We should have just stopped and waited, but would have got cold and in the end had to take belays hanging in the middle of cracks so as not to crowd the other party. It was hot, slow, and very uncomfortable - shame as the climbing was brilliant. On the last day we'd had enough of multipitches, and enough of cracks, so went to Low Profile Dome - where there are a bunch of fun face routes, a bit runout, but not hard. We had a fund day, and ticked everything up to 5.11b and said fairwell to California granite. June 7th 2011 I'm just back yesterday from a five-day trip to Denmark where I was delivering climbing workshops and a lecture as part of the first ever Danish rock-climbing festival on the Island of Bornholm. The island itself is in the southern Baltic sea, between Sweden and Poland, laced with cycle routes and a real sense that nature is allowed to rein. The island is of some significance to Danish climbers as its granite sea-cliffs and quarries are Denmark's only domestic climbing areas. Recently, permission was giving to develop a recently inactive quarry with sport routes. Moselokken Stenbrud (the quarry) is at the north of the island (where most of the climbing is) and you can see where it is in the map below. The quarry has some very impressive lines, many of which have now been bolted, but a lot are yet to be developed. A big effort went into cleaning them as the quarry was until recently very active. To guage the level of excitement, consider what it would be like for climbing in south-east England if a crag like Millstone were to be found in south London.
Above, there are a few good little routes at Hammerbruddet, at the time I was looking for a venue to coach thirty people!
Above: this wall at Hammerbruddet is amazing, but there's no permission to bolt it - too bad! I had two days on the island to prepare for my workshops. One day my 'handler', Stefan Jacobsen and I checked out some areas, and got back to the campsite where a TV van had turned up to get some filming done. I was asked to go and do and interview and some climbing for them to film, which we did at a crag called Hammerbruddet. This was an old quarry with a handful of good crack climbs and an amazing wall that unfortunately can't be bolted - Steve McClure had been there the previous year and top-roped some of the lines. If they were bolted they would almost certainly be the best routes on the island and as good as the best routes anywhere - such a pity! The next day was the day of the official opening of Moselokken Stenbrud, and the climbing competition. Now back in the UK there is a firm understanding that outdoor crags shouldn't be used as venues for competitions, and so I was a bit uneasy about taking part but it was the only way I would get to do the routes, so I agreed. The first hurdle was my head. Not the contents but the cover. While everyone spoke flawless English to me in person, the briefing was in Danish, so I didn't realise that everyone had to wear a helmet, which I hadn't even brought with me. Caught a bit of guard I found myself getting into a warm discussion on whether it was wise to remove the element of personal choice and within seconds there were two news cameras on top of us. I figured this wasn't really what was needed, and eventually I borrowed a helmet and starting ticking off some routes.
Above: Moselokken Stenbrud quarry's opening-day competition The idea was you got points for doing routes according to how hard the routes were, rated on a scale of one to four, and how many bolts you clipped. It was fairly obvious that as there were only four routes rated as the hardest and I'd need to get them all. The reality of competing on a newly cleaned quarry was evident on the second route where the start was hard, dirty and with a few loose bits. Both my partner and I slid off. I pulled back on and found the top to be very enjoyable, and rather disagree with the opinion of my judge that it 'didn't count'. The most impressive feature at the quarry was a prominant arete. I watched as the local favourite, who cruised it early in the day. I asked what sort of grade it was and was told 7c or 7c+. There was no way I was feeling warmed up enough for that so we continued with more routes. I did do one of the routes that was rated amongst the hardest, but I had an alternative sequence that turned a desperate slappy arete into a steady slab, this did make clipping the bolts hard so I lassoe clipped the second bolt - which was apparently against the rules so wasn't counted!
Moselokken Stenbrud quarry, the wall with the banner on it was the scene of the final, there was a port-a-ledge with a camera operator and a crane-cam overhead. One hard route hadn't received an ascent when I started up it.I quickly learned why - it was wet, a bit dusty, the belay was in the wrong place and it was fairly desperate. I fell onto the top clip. I was supposed to lower at this point but decided it might be helpful to others if I found out how to do it. I managed to work a very dynamic solution out to the right that wasn't envisaged by its equipper, chalked up the right holds and subsequently it got an ascent. I didn't get on the big arete as it had got pretty hot and I didn't fancy my chances on something that hard on granite in the heat, but made a note to try it some other time. All the while there were TV cameras everywhere - I think there were seven film crews, a crane camera, and even a news helicopter. There was more media interest in this one competition than there has been for every climbing compeition in the UK combined!
The TV vans! Unsurprisingly I wasn't in the final. I heared that the favourite amongst the women didn't win as she pulled a loose hold off. Under indoor climbing competition rules she would have had a chance to climb again and probably would have won, but not here. I felt really sorry for her, and could empathise as I'd fallen from slipping on dirt that really should have been cleaned. I think an equally great day could have been had without needing a competition, and while I doubt it would have attracted the news folk, it would have been a better opening.
Some of the excellent granite bouldering at Bornholm. The following day was the first of two days of workshops I was in Bornholm to delivery. Normally when I'm coachng I work on 1:1 or 1:2 ratios, so when I was asked to work with 60 people over two days - it took a fair bit of head-scratching to come up with a plan - in the end we decided that there weren't enough routes to work on leading, so we scheduled three half-day workshops at a nearby bouldering area - not hugley extensive, but the problems were good and it turned out to be just right as a venue. On the Sunday afternoon I managed to get a belay and did four routes at the quarry - including the finals from the competition - though I did take a fall on the men's final (about 7b) after picking the wrong sequence. I finished by climbing the big arete that I'd wanted to do from the first moment I saw it, I was pleasanlty surprised that rather than the 7c/7c+ I'd been told, it was closer to 7a+, and completely brilliant. There is a video of the event online here. My interview is about 24mins into it. May 23rd 2011 Well, the big news is I've finally finished and handed over the Languedoc guidebook, and have that familliar empty feeling I get when something that has taken so much focus for so long is suddenly out of my hands. I was in France for the entire of April taking photos and generally finishing things off. It was a pretty manic month with not a day to spare. I was joined by a number of people who replied to my posting on UKC, and was very pleased that everyone seemed to having such a good time. I managed to get photos of most of those joining into the book - but not all - sorry! Starting in the Ardeche, we had about ten days there climbing at Mazet, Cirque de Gens, Les Branches, and Actinidias. I could easily have spent a lot more time there, even if it was unseasonably hot. Unfortunately I had a bit of a finger injury which I was taking easy for the first couple of weeks, and didn't get much climbing done - not that there was any time to spare in any case.
Sam Harvie on Aero-Strates (6c) Mazet Plage The next place we stopped was Orgon. The first time I went to Orgon I just went to the Canal Sector - a very steep hard crag with lots of manufactured routes. It was impressive, but I wasn't sure it was really suitable for the guidebook. However, a previous visit last winter showed that there was a lot more to do, and I knew it had to be included. Basically, the main part of the area is a couple of ridges of immaculate limestone, giving two west-facing cliffs, and two east-facing cliffs. In between is the campsite, it was close the last time I went, but this time it was open and it's hard to imagine a more convenient set-up. Plus it's possible to get there on public transport, so a possibility for a car-free climbing trip. I think it deserves to be a lot more popular. Orgon is also less than a thirty minute drive from a few other notable climbing areas, two of which are also going to be in the guidebook: Mont Gaussier and Mouries. Mouries is a perfect fin of rock with lots of technical, fingery wall climbing in perpetual shade. Mont Gaussier was somewhere I'd never been, so I was delighted to find it was absolutely amazing - lots to go at, with some really long single pitch routes that were some of the highlights of the trip.
Audrey Seguy onsighting Appel de la Foret (6c), Mont Gaussier We stayed at Orgon for a couple of weeks, and it was hard to move on, but it had to be done. The next stop was Thaurac and Hortus. Thaurac is an extensive area and I had to be very selective. In the end I included six individual sectors, and dropped a couple that weren't quite as good as they looked. Hortus is a very impressive crag with an intimidating look. Audrey and I had climbed there once before, and the route we did was only so-so. This time I'd studied the crag photos and had a good idea as to where to head. We did two routes the day we went there and they were both utterly brilliant. I took my camera up the wall and got some of the best photos of the entire trip.
Jenny Barber on La Cagne (5+) Hortus The bet day's climbing for me was the day we went to Cantobre. I needed a couple of good action shots, and so we drove over and started on the vertical walls on the right-hand side of the crag. I got some good shots of Andy Gibb on a brilliant 6a then we moved over to the most impressive part of the wall. Audrey wanted to redpoint something, so got onto a 7b+. I warmed up on a 7b that woke me up a bit suddenly, then went looking for something to redpoint quickly - and found an amazing 7c+ that followed a stark orange streak right up the middle of the cliff. Working the moves and resting on the bolts I reached the belay thinking there was no way I could redpoint it - but I'd been there before and reworked it over and over until I was happy that I had the best sequences. Audrey redpointed her 7b+ first go, then I got on the 7c+ - I pulled on knowing I could do the top half, but I hadn't worked the start. The plan was if I got through the start OK I'd just climb as fast as I could. The plan worked and I got to the belay almost fresh. Next I onsighted a brilliant long 7b+ and Audrey flashed it with a bit of beta. We'd been getting so engrossed in the climbing, I'd not noticed the light fading, so I wasn't able to take any photos of the best part of the crag, fortunately I'd asked Andy to take some with my camera if he saw something worthwhile. Later, back at the campsite I went through the photos that Andy took and one of them was absolutely perfect - so I managed to make it into the book!
Me on Gazoline (7c+) Cantobre The last day of the trip was at the Boffi - I needed one more photo. I got the photo OK, but while we were there it was obvious that the local guidebook had the routes all mixed up, and each route was shown taking the line of the route to the right! This was fairly obvious in retrospect as I levitated my way up a line I thought was 6b+ (it was a 5+) and John Eales got spanked by a 6c that he was under the impression was the 5+. Needless to say, I've corrected that little error!
Ali Baylay on Retour aux Sources (5+), Le Boffi Back in the UK I've been busy with the coaching both in the Peak District and in London. In order to help me with my book projects I've got an Ipad - and quickly realised that this was a brilliant took for giving video feedback when coaching technique. The original purpose was to be able to view PDFs at the crag without printing out, as I've had just about enough of rip-off printer cartridges! Early next month I'm off to Denmark and the island of Bornholm where I'm giving some workshops and a lecture. Then in July I'm off to the USA with Audrey where, after attending her brother's wedding were going to California for a trad road-trip - which we're hoping to be fit for. A big thanks go to Jenny Barber, Harry Crank, Jamie Veitch, Tim Parkinson, Piers Cunliffe, Kenny Watson, Andy Morris, Nikki Holbrook, John Eales, Andy Gibb, Laurent Moseley, Sam Harvie, Simon Armand-Smith, Kathryn Pashley, and Tom Kendall for coming out and helping. February 4th 2011 I'm just putting the finishing touches to this, my face-lifted website. I got a bit bored with my old one and thought I'd rekindle my vague knowledge of Dreamweaver and Fireworks. So, time to update with the events of the last four months...
Also in November I traveled over to Holland to give a day of lectures of the Dutch National Climbing Body - NKBV. The theme was teaching trad climbing - in particular looking at the mental side of the sport. The venue was an impressive climbing wall not far from Amsterdam. The surprise of the trip was the ferry crossing - we took a night ferry direct to the Netherlands - which turned out to be very comfortable and excellent value. Thanks to Harlald Swen for hiring me - and the enormous ball of cheese - that took about three months to finish. I've not got a huge amount of climbing action to report from 2010 as I spent lots of time converting a van into an all-singing all-dancing campervan. As with so many things, it took three times as long and cost twice as much as we expected. The base vehicle is a long wheel base VW Transporter 4motion. Due to some rather scary incidents in a 2WD last winter we were keen to get something with 4WD, and the van came with a second set of wheel which we had winter tyres fitted to - and a good job too. Out first trip in the van was a drive down to the south of France to spend Christmas. The day we drove the autoroutes were filled with snow and only one lane was clear - though filled with slow-moving traffic. No problem for the super snow-mobile, we drove across much of northern France on snow and pretty much had our own private lane. Not wanting to upset all the chelsea tractor drivers that we overtook, we made sure to give them a little wave. We had planned to visit some of the areas in Chris Craggs' new Rockfax to Cote d'Azur - however it rained for five days - very unusual. On the way back up we did stop off for a few days on the ice. Two days in Ceillac and one day at La Grave. At Ceillac we parked up right at the base of the icefalls, and weren't too worried about the -12.5 degrees it was outside as we had a heater. Unfortunately our gas ran out, then we realised that our backup gas bottle was empty despite being sealed and unused! So, it was one rather cold night and in the morning the van was thickly coated with ice - and that was on the inside. All was forgiven once we'd got some full gas bottles. I hadn't been back in the UK for long when it was time to hit the road again - for a proper ice climbing trip. For the last week of January and the first week of February, Jake Wrathall and I got in the van (now safely stocked up with gas) and headed back to the cold stuff. Starting off with a day in La Grave (Mini Moulin (4+), then onto Fournel where we were beaten off by water running down the second pitch of Hiroshima. We settled for a go on a short but very steep Dessous Chics (5) - which was a real challenge as no-one had climbed it that season and I must have released a ton of ice as I slowly fought my way to the top.
Above: Left - success on Dessous Chics (5) (it's not really that short). Right: approaching the end of my attempt on Lau Bij. Both photos by Jake Wrathall. Next we drove to Cogne, where we were to stay for a week - this time forgoing the comforts of the van for a room at Les Nigritelles. Unfortunately this is where I came down with a cold, which lasted ... well I still have it, which wasn't good timing. Still, we ticked plenty of great routes including: Stella Artice (5), E Tutto Relative (4), Stalattite di Cristallo (4+), and Patri Left (4) and Right (4+). We intended to finish the week on Repentence Super, but with the cold having gone to my lungs, it was just not going to happen. It wasn't all successes, one day we hiked up to try Lau Bij (5) - now the day before I'd borrowed a different pair of ice tools that were clearly much better at climbing pure ice, switching back to my tools suddenly felt very awkward, combined with the fact that the walk-in almost destroyed me I didn't do too well - at one point while seconding the first pitch I smashed a huge plate of ice off and took my first fall on the ice. This wasn't doing my confidence the world of good, and on the second pitch I climbed far too defensively until I got to a feature than looked quite unstable. It was all too much and I backed off. I wasn't too bothered though - and the way I see it, if you're not prepared to back off - you really shouldn't be there. So - back in London now where I've still got a bit of a cold. The coaching is booking up thick and fast for the spring, which after day after day of sub-zero temperatures, feels like it's in the air. 2010 Entries are here. |
This summer I've been busy with coaching in the Peak District and working on a Peak Bouldering guidebook for Rockfax which is rapidly taking shape. At the beginning of this month I was busy making the final corrections to my second France guidebook to the Languedoc-Rousillon region of France - this should be out in just over a week and you can order a copy from the 
