A further break from Tradition; France 22.05.09

A trip involving 4 days driving, 2 days of family fun and a further 2 climbing on a little known, large crag in the foothills of the French Pyranees. With only a handful of 5s and a 6a climbed, it would have been nice just to have had an extra day to make the most out of this impressive venue. The trad seems to be off the agenda all of a sudden. Sport climbing has been the focus of the last month's activity, with a trip to Harpur Hill followed by a bout of bolt clipping in France and an encounter with Blackwell Halt, and with this a blog about a journey back into the world of trad climbing! Oh well, what ever floats your boat. All in all, it's been enjoyable. 

Firstly, the trip to Harpur Hill was geared around its proximity to Buxton. Taking bikes on the train with us, we managed to cycle most of the way, giving in to two particularly steep hills, in about 20 minutes. There was a fearce wind blowing and I was worried that it would be too windy to climb but skirting round the back to the so called Dark Side we managed to find a peaceful area devoid of turbulence and with a nice bit of sunshine too. 

Climbing without a Topo (AC printed off the better buttresses but not this particular one) I elected and easy looking unbroken slab which turned out to be a 5+ which had a tricky start, almost too tricky for the Crabb , but not quite. The next was a short bouldery vertical route with one really bad hold in the middle of a sequence moving up on undercuts. The top was fairly bad and the chains were worryingly rusty. They held though and I turned it into my first 6b+. Redpoint. After that, I repeated a 6a+ that I did on my first visit to Harpur Hill, though this time with a rest below the crux(!) at which point it was surely time to leave.  

A break from the traditional; Lakes 01.05.09

Day 1 of the trip of trips gets off to a rocky start,

 consisting mainly of poor memory engagement, poor time allocation and appalling route finding skills. Thankfully with a mere 2 pitch VS 4c selected as a warm up (which ended up as the main route of the day and the warm down also) a definate feeling of tranquility abounds. 

Multi pitch then, a slight change from the ordinary peak 14m short sharp challenge. Here the ground isn't a concern, rather the belay ledge is the thing you want to avoid falling onto. In addition, the amount of concentration maintained, looking after both partner and self, creates a great deal of fatigue. Pitch one is perhaps a soft S 4a up a slab and arete, which tops out onto a large belay ledge. Here, a hanging stance is assumed, ropes racked over a leg, as the second is brought up. A mindful transfer and a step to the left off the belay until shouts from below point out that it is rightwards that the route goes. Right, up left and, a step into spacewith a drop 35m straight down. Wow. Exhileration, self talk and it's done. Rather than fear, the second half is found to be pure thoughtful acceptance of risk and confidence in ability.

Extremely Severe; Bamford 26.04.09

So Bamford's on quite a busy little road. Having survived a flypast by a thousand TVRs and the like, we got the sunny, if slightly windy day out at Bamford Edge started with Bamford Wall, a pleasant and well protected Severe 4a.

Next it was a short and sharp 3 star HVS 5a Bamford Rib which had hard moves and minimal gear. Really good, slightly pumpy but easily done. After this, with a slight pause and people on the routes that were supposed to come next, the rythm of the day went and a disappointing failed attempt at Access Account which rather than the claimed E1 5c turned out to be E2/3 6a. This turned sights to The Crease which went down very well for all involved.

And with that, the day was done. Not the busiest of days but nicely successful none the less.

HVS: a re-introduction; Froggatt 18.04.09

The uphill track though trees and Grindleford village along to Froggatt edge in the sunshine and home again for 3 o'clock.

Wandering over to the downhill racer area, we raced up Allen's slab a vaguely-protected, rightward tending S 4a to top out in the sunshine. Seeing that Tody's Wall was free, a tussel to gain a stance on the block under the lip lead to an easy move up and over and straight-forward finish up the slab and crack. The Crab dispatched the route quickly enough, promtly topped out and I set my sights on the inpending (but not overly imposing) Strapiombante. Climbing up, a feeling of uneasyness set in so; place large cam, down climb and shake out, climb back up and accross to a good rest. A shake out here and two pulls up the higher crack along with two cams and, fail; a rest on the last cam, unable to comit to the last move. After a quick psychological rest the last move gets dispatched and, with another hour to go a sprint up Sunset Slab and Sunset Crack in the midday sun and back down to the train stopping for a cup of tea before departure.

Northern Rail stopping service Manchester - Sheffield. Grindleford and up through the village.

Hargreaves Original; Stanage 12.04.09

One week on and a short overnight trip to a personally important crag results in bagging a couple of VSs.

Day 1 involved a relaxed start; train to Hathersage, setting camp at North Lees, followed by two VS ascents on a mild Easter afternoon. Route 1 was a short slab, offering plenty of opportunity to pause for thought and to place protection. The second proved too much and once again, beaten by a VS, a third route was selected. An overhanging crack splitting into two further up which proved far more of a challenge. Indeed the Crab was unable to follow; a chance to practice setting up a top-rope and clean the route on absail.

Day 2 required a very slow start after a clear and chilly night. Two classic VDiffs gave a perfect warm up and allowed another two VSs to be swiftly dispatched: Hargreaves Original, a formidable offering from 1928 and then a short 2 star 4c crack climb, giving the second a chance to practice some jamming. 

The outing consolidated what had been learned last week in terms of gear placement and belay assembly. However, movement on rock felt more fluid and the climbing itself more challenging encouraging confidence at the thought of the next outing. 

Northern Rail stopping service Manchester - Sheffield. Hathersage to North Lees campsite.

First lead in 5 years: Kinder Scout 05.04.09

A run up to Kinder Scout from Edale station on a sunny Sunday afternoon with the Crab resulted in two successful Severe leads and one unsuccessful attempt at a VS.

Selecting and assembling the rack before catching the train out proved cathartic, as did choosing climbs from guide book descriptions with a look at the routes themselves prior to climbing.

Explaining exactly what was happening to the belayer; before, during and after the ascent, meant that every decision and action was backed up and thought through thoroughly.

The end result was a great sense of achievement in removing any preoccupation of grades rather, slowing down, starting at the beginning and gaining a foundation on which to build.

Northern Rail stopping service Manchester - Sheffield. Edale station to Kinder on foot.