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Posts Tagged Climbing

Cneifion contrasts

Dec 23

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 1 Comment

Up to Cwm Cneifion again today, following reports of good climbing conditions after a dump of snow earlier in the week. James was mad keen for a taste of winter climbing after last year's foray up Parsley Fern Gully, and I fancied leading something more involved than a snow plod (although I still say you can't beat a good plod at times).

We had a rather leisurely start and got to the upper section of the Cwm at 10:30. There were already teams on Easy Route (I), Hidden Gully (II) and spread across Clogwyn Ddu (crazy hard). I fancied Tower Gully (I/II 2), a line which goes up the side of Maybe Tower Rib (Grade 3 scramble). On arrival, it looked a bit steeper and more hairy than I'd anticipated, but the internet had informed me that it was all fine, with nice neve in the upper half and simple ice steps throughout (albeit three of them instead of the one mentioned in the guide book).

Tower Gully (I/II 2) goes straight up the middle. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Tower Gully (I/II 2) goes straight up the middle. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

The internet lied. The entire route was alternating sections of good ice and horrible knee-deep graupel which gave way under the slightest bit of pressure. None of the climbing was particularly difficult, but the penalty for failure was high and the chances of a slip also reasonable under such dodgy snow conditions. Nevertheless, it was a useful exercise in pushing myself; there was a distinct lack of gear placements in the gully walls so each pitch got a single ice screw protecting the steep step and that was about it! I'm not normally very good at getting anywhere above gear, so was pleased with my performance today.

Start of the second pitch - leaving horrid snow and getting onto nicer ice. Photo by James Devine. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Start of the second pitch - leaving horrid snow and getting onto nicer ice. Photo by James Devine. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Right from arriving in the cwm we noticed people on some seriously hard looking routes over on Clogwyn Ddu – turns out we were watching a clean ascent of Cracking Up (IX, 9), the hardest winter route in Wales. On the way out we also saw Rich Cross and Ian Parnell on Travesty (VIII, 8), and another party got up the oft-lauded El Mancho (VI, 7).

James at the top of Tower Gully. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

James at the top of Tower Gully. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

On topping out, we were treated to views over much snow inland, and out to the Isle of Man and Ireland in the opposite direction. The weather held out all day, and we had a very leisurely walk off down Devil's Kitchen, which entailed walking very slowly and messing about an awful lot. Coming down the Kitchen we met a lady who'd been on South Gully (IV 5) and The Screen (IV 4). There were actually loads of teams heading into Idwal this morning, even though most of the ice routes actually looked a little thin. I think the whole area needs a good thaw and re-freeze to get the snow into condition (and preferably more snow too!), and a longer cold spell before the popular ice routes get into the kind of nick where they can withstand large numbers of holiday ascents!

The Glyder plateau in atmospheric afternoon light. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

The Glyder plateau in atmospheric afternoon light. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

So a hard day on a grade I/II, while those at the other end of the experience / talent scale had a marginally harder day on the other side of the cwm. It certainly gives us something to aim for…

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You win some…

Dec 8

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 1 Comment

You win some, you lose some. I took a gamble last weekend with a trip to Snowdonia, and I definitely won.

After reports of good conditions the previous weekend, and exciting things being done throughout the week, I decided a lightning raid on North Wales was required in the hope of catching some early season snow. With everyone else busy due to financial / eco-warrior / christmas dinner commitments, this was to be a solo mission. Driving along the A55 at 06:00 on Saturday morning, the thermometer in the car read 9 degrees C, and my hopes of getting anything done were fading. I pulled in to Ogwen caff car park at 07:45; there were two cars already present, and I feel we all bonded as we sat there, looking gloomily past flailing windscreen wipers at the nearly-bare Glyderau. However, I hadn't driven all that way to go for a ramble, so I bunged the pointy things in my bag and ventured up to Cwm Cneifion anyway.

Climbers on Easy Route. You can see my footprints pretty much all the way up the route. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Climbers on Easy Route. You can see my footprints pretty much all the way up the route. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Mercifully there was still some snow left! Despite a major thaw most other places, the north-facing headwall of the upper cwm had retained some gully snow that was still climable. At the end of last year I had a look at Easy Route (I), but found it full of slush. This time it was perfectly doable, so do it I did. It lives up to its name, serving as a nice start to the new season. The top section gets a bit steeper and more interesting, and I was up on the plateau pretty quickly. With my desired route for the day dealt with, I pondered the most interesting way down. Y Gribin was still plastered in snow and ice, and looked a bit dicey, so I opted for Senior's Ridge. Plans soon changed when I decided to traverse from Senior's back into the upper cwm, and have a nosey at Corner Gully (I/II).

Repeating Easy Route. Do steps count as cheating? Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Repeating Easy Route. Do steps count as cheating? Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

As I reached my initial start point, I met another bloke who had his eye on the same route. He went up first while I demolished a bacon sandwich, and I then followed him, taking a slightly different line at the top. Like Easy Route, I was surprised at the quality of the snow; despite a couple of soft patches it seemed I'd managed to get away with two routes. On the plateau once again, we went our separate ways and I plodded down Senior's Ridge. It seems my recent gym and running regime has paid dividends, because – full of enthusiasm – I went back again and repeated Corner Gully! Heading down Senior's Ridge for the third time that day, I promised myself just one more route. I'd been eyeing-up a nice looking line in the corner towards Tower Rib, which the guide book later informed me was the top end of Tower Slab (II/III). While doing Corner Gully for the second time, I'd noticed a few bits of rock thawing away from the cliff and descending at speed, so aborted that plan and repeated Easy Route instead. By this point there had been a lot of melting everywhere, and I figured four laps was probably enough! Being a little sick of Senior's Ridge by this point, I descended over Glyder Fawr and past Devil's Kitchen. Going under Idwal slabs I saw a party of three backing off Ordinary Route, which brought back fond memories of last year's MPS trip.

Too much stuff for one person? Drying kit in the 'van. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Too much stuff for one person? Drying kit in the 'van. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

I spent the night in the caravan, drying things off and listening to the seventeen hours of non-stop rain which followed my descent from the Glyders. I had a leisurely start on Sunday, waiting for the rain to stop (which it did, eventually). Given a rather horrid forecast, gleefully summed up by Becs on the phone as "chilly, windy, soggy", I decided to head up Moel Siabod via Daear Ddu, the east ridge. I parked in Capel and walked the first bit to the top of the horrible tarmac track, at which point I started running. Despite a rather viscious but short-lived hailstorm, I made reasonable time to the ridge, which is a Grade 1 scramble. No matter how many times I do it, I just keep coming back to it; you can make it as easy or as hard as you like, and nowhere is it particularly scary. I had great fun picking an interesting line up the ridge, and then made it from the summit back to the car in just over half an hour. So, that was my first proper run over a mountain, and I think we can class it as a success.

Descending from Siabod - Capel, Llynau Mymbyr and the Carneddau in the background. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Descending from Siabod - Capel, Llynau Mymbyr and the Carneddau in the background. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

All in all, it seems I managed to wrestle a bit of snowy fun and a decent hill run from what could have been a very wet and generally dismal weekend. Roll on the rest of the season.

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Bamford

Nov 16

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | No Comments

Yesterday saw my first trip to Bamford, and the same for Gareth and Jamie. It's made up of a few different sections spread out along the edge, but the rock on each bit is really broken up and disjointed so there's loads of lines all over the place. The first thing that my partners in crime did was slap me on a Severe 4a, Bamford Wall, without telling me what it was. I got halfway up  on lead before bailing. That said, I was pleased with the first half, which I didn't really want to do in the first place, if I'm honest. I was also quite relieved when they revealed it was harder than anything I've ever led previously; if it had turned out to be a Mod or something then I wouldn't have been impressed!

G takes over on Bamford Wall (S, 4a). Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

G takes over on Bamford Wall (S, 4a). Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

After that Jamie led Short Curve (HVD) and Recess Crack (VDiff). Gareth then did something involving finger jams and suggestions that it wasn't as hard as the guidebook reckoned (Bilberry Crack, VS 5a). Despite a bit of dampness early on, the sun broke through around mid-morning and the rock was perfectly dry for most of the day.

Scoping out Short Curve (HVD). Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Scoping out Short Curve (HVD). Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

As usual when us three make it to a crag together, I don't think it could be described as the most efficient session ever witnessed on grit. That, however, is not the point – it was a lot of fun, conditions were great, and we finished the day in true style on a Mod first climbed in 1900 (Easy Chimney). You can't really ask for much more, can you?

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Found: One Gritstone Mojo

Oct 29

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | No Comments

After last week's shambolic trip to Birchen, it seemed best to just keep up the momentum and get back out on rock again. Phil, Ben and I went to Burbage North today to do exactly that, and had a very productive day.

A relieved Ben tops out on Wobblestone Crack (HVD 4a). Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

A relieved Ben tops out on Wobblestone Crack (HVD 4a). Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

I started by seconding Phil up Cranberry Crack (VDiff), and then followed Ben up Triangle Crack (HVD) which was definitely more of a struggle. After that I was dragged around to Monkey Wall, a Mod about which the old guide book says something like "if you get scared on this, you're in the wrong game". After some umming and ahhing, it turned out I was in the right game, but only because some old bloke climbed up it while I was prevaricating, and I couldn't then face the embarassment of failing to get up it.

Mod number four, End Slab. Disclaimer: May look steeper than it actually is! Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Mod number four, End Slab. Disclaimer: May look steeper than it actually is! Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

After that, things just kind of clicked. We didn't bother getting the rope out again for a while, except for Ben to lead Wobblestone Crack (HVD 4a). The route was Phil's first lead, and he was convinced it was wonderful. I can't repeat what Ben said as he topped out, but Phil wasn't looking too impressed by the time he'd seconded it either. We continued our amble along the whole of Burbage North, soloing Mods and Diffs, which was exactly what I needed to get back into the swing of things. My confidence was right back up by the end of the day, when I got some jamming practice in on 20-foot Crack (S 4a). I really do love jamming, so that finished the day off in a fine manner.

Sunset over Higgar Tor. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Sunset over Higgar Tor. Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Final tally: five Mods, three Diffs (depending which guide book you read) and three others. Excellent.

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Return to grit

Oct 22

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 2 Comments

After the recent confidence-building session on Tryfan Bach, I ventured to Birchen yesterday to get back out on grit. I was hoping to get some VDiffs and maybe one or two HVDs done, but it didn't quite turn out that way.

<strong>Ben wedged in <em>Torpedo Tube</em> (HVD 4a).</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Ben wedged in Torpedo Tube (HVD 4a).Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

First route: Torpedo Tube (HVD 4a).
Result: Got halfway up on lead and backed off.
Assessment: A horrible, horrible route that ruined my t-shirt when I seconded it. Squirm your way up and twist your legs through 90 degrees for maximum discomfort. Minus one star.

Second route: Lieutenant's Ladder (Diff).
Result: Got halfway up on lead and backed off.
Assessment: I really should have got up this. Probably would have done in the dry, when I'm not going mental.

Third route: Prow Wall (Mod).
Result: Finally, managed to get up something!
Assessment: It defeated me last time, so I was reasonably pleased with this. Although it was just a Mod.

I also seconded Ben on Cannonball Wall (VDiff), which was fine, and soloed Tar's Gully (Diff). I'll admit to being a bit downcast about this performance, and was about to chalk it up as a rubbish day. However, since subsequently checking my UKC Logbook (registered partners only), I've realised that the last time I put on rock shoes was the beginning of December last year. So perhaps expecting to lead the same grade after nearly 11 months off is a little much to ask. The problem wasn't physically doing the moves, it was committing to them on lead. I didn't feel anywhere near as secure as I knew I should do, so I think some time needs to be spent on some even easier routes to get some mileage back in. And probably on a dry day, too. Bit gutting, but at least there's a game plan and plenty of potential climbing coming up. MPS is overflowing with climbers at the moment, which is great. Speaking of which, Ben had a great day today on his third (?) day climbing outside. He lead two routes and soloed nine others up to HVD, and also had some lessons in placing gear and building belays. The sun came out just as we finished climbing, and Ben (the other one) and Greg also had some fun in dirty chimneys wrestling chockstones.

<strong>The brief appearance of sunshine goes to Ben's head.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

The brief appearance of sunshine goes to Ben's head.Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

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Tryfan-fest

Oct 17

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 1 Comment

Last weekend's MPS trip was Tryfan-tastic, continuing my recent trend of visiting nowhere else in Snowdonia.

Saturday was the first time I've been out since April, so I wanted to get on easy routes in boots to get myself back into the swing of things before winter starts. Sean, Josh and I pootled up four routes on Tryfan Bach in conditions starting at "wet" and ending at "damp". First we went up the Mod / Scramble that I've done a few times before, and then I led a Diff which I think was Crack 4. The first pitch was fine, but on the second I trended off to the right and ended up in Chimney Crack; I think the sensible route was to carry on up the slab even though there was less gear. Nevertheless, the required move (described by Sean as "a bit sketchy") certainly got my heart racing and was a good first play around after six months off. Sean then led something with a lovely top pitch on Mossy Slab, and we finished with Chimney Crack, another Diff. The day was designed as a confidence-building exercise, and worked well in that respect. We also finished in time to get ice cream in Llanberis.  :)

<strong>First pitch of Crack 4.</strong><br />Copyright Sean Clancy 2009.

First pitch of Crack 4.Copyright Sean Clancy 2009.

Sunday dawned dull and rainy, so a group of us opted for the North Ridge of Tryfan, always a safe choice in cruddy weather. It was Chris' birthday, but I get the distinct impression he spent it cold and wet! He did get presented with a lovely specimen of golden syrup cake on the top of Tryfan though, so hopefully that helped salvage the day. On reaching Bwlch Tryfan I left the rest of the group and went up past Llyn Caseg-fraith to Y Foel Goch. From here I did my first actual run in the hills, down to Capel. It wasn't very far, and was distinctly boggy, but was great fun. In other good news, I wasn't crippled the next day, so fell-running here I come!

<strong>Birthday boy looking a bit sinister on the south summit.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Birthday boy looking a bit sinister on the south summit.Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

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Terrace Wall session

Aug 12

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | No Comments

I spent a pleasant hour down at terrace wall last night, after the usual evening of thesis-writing. Despite the surprisingly early onset of darkness, I allegedly climbed a 5a (I reckon the grades are closer climbing wall style than true outdoor style), and it was nice to experience some actual social interaction as opposed to continuing the gradual wearing out of my computer keyboard. :)

<strong>G climbing on into the darkness.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

G climbing on into the darkness.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

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It's All About the Aretes

Feb 10

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 5 Comments

Chris and I spent the weekend climbing a couple of classic ridges in Snowdonia, along with an icy gully for a bit of variety.

On Saturday we got a respectably early start, and were among the first of many parties to climb Sargeant's Gully, a grade II route that I backed off a few weeks ago with James. On reaching Cwm Glas we had a bit of a route-choice crisis, and after considering pretty much everything within view we decided on Clogwyn y Person Arete (II/III,***).

<strong>Chris on easier ground towards the top of Clogwyn y Person Arete.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Chris on easier ground towards the top of Clogwyn y Person Arete.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

After battling up the (allegedly easier) west gully through a horrible chimney, we got onto the ridge proper. While Chris led everything and I struggled with remarkable regularity over the first few pitches, we watched a quite ridiculous number of people going up Parsley Fern Gully. At one point I counted 12 people in the bottom half, with another three stood at the bottom! Anyway, the arete provided more than enough sport for the two of us. We joined the ridge on Crib y Ddysgyl and took the Pyg Track back down, complete with steep snow at the top of the zig-zags – I've since heard talk of a cornice forming on it at one point over the weekend!

After meeting some friends in the pub on Saturday night, we had another early start on Sunday morning, this time deciding to check out Cwm Cneifion.

<strong>Walking in to Cwm Cneifion.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Walking in to Cwm Cneifion.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Feeling a little tired, we opted for Cneifion Arete (III,***), and promptly ignored the guidebook, choosing a more difficult single pitch to start (maybe not entirely intentionally). After that we moved together for a bit as the ground eased, although higher up the climbing got harder again as we were forced back to the crest of the ridge. A little easier than Clogwyn y Person, I thought, in that the climbing was still sufficiently difficult to be challenging, but I didn't feel anywhere near as likely to fall off! Maybe I was just getting more confident in dealing with rocky stuff in crampons…

<strong>Fun ground on Cneifion Arete.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Fun ground on Cneifion Arete.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

An attack of apathy when faced with Y Gribin led to a hasty retreat to the car, with the threat of a boring weekend successfully staved off for another week. Photos on the gallery as usual.

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Parsley Fern again

Feb 1

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 3 Comments

Back to Parsley Fern Gully (I,***) this morning, for James' first proper winter route and my consolation for not going on the MPS Winter Skills trip. The wind was a bit mental on the walk in, but soon calmed down once we were in the cwm. The snow's incredible at the moment, and it was a nice solo all the way. There's a bit of a cornice, but it seems pretty solid and is avoidable on the left anyway.

<strong>James enjoying his first snowy outing.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

James enjoying his first snowy outing.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Ridiculously windy on top – I've since heard that gusts of 100mph were recorded at Clogwyn station! We walked back down the Llanberis path, past several people in trainers – a bit of a worry, given conditions up there. By the time we got back to the car at Gwastadnant, streams on the Glyderau side of the pass which had been running free this morning had started freezing well, right down to the road. Hopefully with some more cold and a bit of snow forecast for this week, conditions will hang around a bit longer.

<strong>Clogwyn y Ddysgyl. Parsley Fern Gully is the big gully towards the right of the shot. The stream at the bottom is Sargeant's Gully.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Clogwyn y Ddysgyl. Parsley Fern Gully is the big gully towards the right of the shot. The stream at the bottom is Sargeant's Gully.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009

Photos in the Gallery.

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Kinder Downfall by night

Jan 10

Posted by Haydn in Outdoors | 1 Comment

Well, as usual everyone's been getting very excited, and it seems that the cold weather has indeed brought Kinder Downfall into some kind of condition. So Hamish and I headed up last night for a look around…

After leaving Nottingham at 7pm, we set off from Snake Pass under a clear sky with a full moon. The temperature had been below freezing since Nottingham, and was -7C all the way from Ladybower. Headtorches weren't needed until we reached the Downfall, where there were already three parties climbing and another arriving at the same time as us. The 'Direct Route' up the main waterfall wasn't quite in, although the icicle was nearly reaching the floor. As a result, everyone was doing either the 'Downfall Climb' or 'Central Direct'; we plumped for the latter because Hamish likes taking the hard way up things. :)

<strong>A busy Kinder Downfall.</strong><br />Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

A busy Kinder Downfall.
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

It was actually a really nice route – a little hacked up just through sheer traffic, but very enjoyable nonetheless. Everything went fine until just below the top. The UKC route description says "traverse leftwards, normally past a large icicle runner, then up a short vertical ice wall or corner to finish.". Rather than go past the runner, Hamish made the executive decision to lead up it instead, and had to search around a bit for foot placements. I'll give anything a go with a rope on, but just when I thought I'd got my feet up past the worst of it, my right axe popped and I was suddenly back down on the ledge. Worse still, the axe took a lob all the way to the bottom!

<strong>The Downfall the next morning, showing were I fell - about two feet up from where the top climber is.</strong><br />Thanks to Mat Galvin for the photo - copyright Mat 2009.

The Downfall the next morning, showing were I fell - about two feet up from where the top climber is.
Thanks to Mat Galvin for the photo - copyright Mat 2009.

I therefore followed the route as per the easier UKC description up to the top of the corner, until I could converse with Hamish, at which point I was lowered down to retrieve the fallen axe. He carried on and added another little icefall to finish off his night, and we met up again on the main path. The walk back to the car did drag, despite the clear night and lovely conditions, but we eventually made it back and returned to Nottingham about 04:15. Nice.

There was ice everywhere! Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

There was ice everywhere!
Copyright Haydn Williams 2009.

Photos now online in the shiny new gallery.

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