A Wintery Weekend

John Shepherd entering the crux chimney of The Hoarmaster


A short cold snap in the latter part of last week prompted John (Shepherd) and I to get going for our first Scottish trip of the winter season. Destination for the weekend just gone was the Cairngorms and more specifically Coire An Lochan. This is usually a good bet for some early season sport so we were both psyched for some hooking and scratching.



Unfortunately conditions were not as good as expected. Things were frozen with temperatures well below zero but a lack of snowfall meant that buttresses were not particularly well rimed (in fact some were quite black) and routes were only just "in winter nick." Saying that, a fair amount of ice was forming in some areas.

On Saturday we chose to climb Hoarmaster, a strenuous but well protected V6 which gave good if slightly lean sport. The only company we had were a pair of climbers on the route Deep Throat (which looked a little more wintery than our option) Apart from that the coire was deserted. From chatting to people in the pub later on it sounds like the nearby Sneachda was only marginally better (but a fair bit busier!)


Exiting the chimney on pitch one of The Hoarmaster

In terms of climbing, this was the first mixed route I have done for about 4 years and everything seemed a little alien. Rock climbing in crampons is bizarre and not just being able to bray your tools in fat ice is also a little odd. Technical hooking and torquing was the order of the day but we soon got used to it,well kind of! What can be said though is that we enjoyed a fantastic day out in the hills in brilliant weather and we'll definitely be back up for more! I really like the contrast between my usual sport climbing challenges and the more adventurous nature of ice/mixed climbing and have a sudden yearning for more.


Climbers enjoying Deep Throat



Unfortunately this is likely to mean getting up at unworldly times, freezing my arse off, spending a fortune on fuel, and getting scared...really scared on a regular basis. No bolts and warm rock like I'm used to. all I can say is bring it on!

But...


It may not be for a week or two as I twisted my knee bouldering last week. A tearing sound (like my pants ripping) and then pain. It soon seemed to settle down but after Saturday I could barely stand up! Totally gutted. The lesson: look after injuries and don't come back too soon. Oh and bouldering is obviously far more dangerous than mixed climbing!

A Slice of Life

Mark Katz enjoys a rare day on rock, bouldering at Brimham

Life as a climber in Britain can be frustrating and rewarding in equal measures. The winter season is a funny one (with much time being spent training in the wall,) whilst occasionally being able to grab a day on the rock if the weather allows. For me this time of year normally follows a pattern. I try to get a week abroad every 6 weeks (I'm lucky as my job allows this) and in the time in between I try and stay as motivated as I can so I can be in good shape when I hit foreign soil.

And it's the same for many. Going to one of the many indoor walls on a weekday evening or weekend and you will find the place packed with people trying to get their fix. The only motivation will be that upcoming week away where the weather will be kind and the rock dry.

Compare this to climbers in France and Spain who can climb at world-class crags all winter and it sounds like we've got a raw deal. But things aren't that bad. The scene is generally good, people are keen to train and improve, there is always some lively social in the pub, some banter and some bickering.

I often think it would be better if I lived abroad (being mainly a sport climber these days) but the grass is always greener. I live within 30 minutes of some of the best limestone and gritstone in the UK but familiarity breeds contempt as they say. So who's to say the same wouldn't happen if I lived in Catalunya?

It can't be that bad here and actually it's not. The difficulty of the weather makes us appreciate it when we can get out. We also have some incredibly diverse climbing in such a small area, oh and there's the grit...

Which leads me on. The first thing I think when I hear of a group of talented foreign wads coming to the UK is "why?"

But actually it's great. It seems like many come for the grit, to taste this dark art and try to emulate the English mastery of it. Although this time our visitors "Team America" are showing us who the real masters are! It's great to see too. It would be nice to see some other beasts come and tackle our sport or mountain trad routes in similar style. But maybe they never will, I mean would you fancy 15 days a month at the climbing wall and 2 on the crag when at home those stats are reversed? Tough decision hey?

Finalese Fun

Having just returned from a week long break in the beautiful Finale Ligure on the Italian Riviera where temperatures in the early twenties allowed evening strolls in a t-shirt it was quite a shock to hit the Stansted tarmac to the tune of clear blue skies and 4 degrees C! 

Despite a nagging cold and some worrying sinus problems

 (gobbing up huge blood soaked phlegm balls!) it was great to go somewhere new and take a rarely grabbed holiday with Ali (who is saintly in her tolerance of my obsession with climbing.) Staying in the town of Finale itself enabled us to share a relaxing week together amidst the beautiful architecture and bustling bars and restaurants whilst being within a short journey of the climbing. 

For anybody who has not visited this place then I would highly recommend it. The traditional Finalese crags of perfect grey stone offer some technical challenges that definitely feel tough for the grade but they are highly rewarding and there is is most definitely something for everybody. The 350 page guidebook is certainly proof of that!

Also for those whose tastes are perhaps a little more modern there is a hidden gem only 40 kilometres away. The Val Pennavaire is home to around 30 crags of red and blue rock. Steep, vertical, slabby, crimps, pockets and tufas- the place has it all. There is another guide for this area called "Oltrefinale" itself running to some 300 pages, which again gives you an idea of the scale of the place. I won't say too much only that I have not been anywhere else that is better.

In terms of the climbing for the week, fortunes were mixed. Illness meant days were short and sleep was needed in plentiful amounts but towards the end of the week things appeared to be on the up and the best day gave a 7a, 7b+ and two 7cs all on-sight. I probably ate way too many pizzas and drank too much beer (and mojitos) but it was a HOLIDAY after all. 

Been out to Almscliff for an hour this afternoon, more on a photo mission than a climbing one but I did do a quick circuit of problems myself. Although it's not my favorite crag it was nice to catch up with a few people and enjoy one of those rare sunny and crisp days. Better make the most of it as it will probably be raining tomorrow.

Back To Britain!

British climbing is never boring. Sometimes you don't have to be actually even climbing. Web-talk, slanging, arguing and debating- I've been abroad for a week and it's all happening, but luckily some save their talking for the crag.

At the moment it all seems to centre around grades. The "E" grade, Britain's beloved brainchild, but now some are having the audacity to suggest that it may be flawed. Jens Larssen (the father of 8a.nu) has written about the fact that many foreign climbers see a big grade like E12 and think F9b. And why wouldn't they? The Rockfax grade comparison table suggests that E12 is this level of difficulty so if it was safe then maybe it would be F9b? But what if it is certain death, physically how hard would the climbing have to be then? What about if it's a two move boulder problem 50 feet up, what grade then?

I've often thought that the "E" grade is flawed at the upper end. For me it makes perfect sense in the majority of cases up to say E6/7 but then t starts to get confusing.  Take E7 6c. Well... how hard is the climbing physically? Is it F7c with good gear? F7a with death consequences but only one hard move? A short well protected boulder? Does the "E" grade tell us enough? Maybe it isn't supposed to. After all it is a system built upon the spirit of adventure, the unknown and the on-sight! Oh, the on-sight. So what happens when the first ascent is after repeated top rope practice? Well, the usual thing is for the route to then be given a proposed grade for an on-sight. But does that proposed grade reflect what a prospective repeat ascender is likely to find? Well, maybe but maybe not! 

Basically, my feeling is that at the upper end the "E" grade becomes confusing-  it's confusing for Brits who are familiar with it, never mind foreigners who are coming to crush our so-called test-pieces in super quick time. So maybe a new revised rating? Jens may have been questioned for his audacity at suggesting we change our system when the pesky foreigner has no "real" knowledge of it but I have to say that in this instance he speaks a lot of sense. Okay, he may not be the best person to suggest it, but others have also suggested it before him. To me the US system (eg 5.13a x/r) which gives an indication of the difficulty (physically) and the danger or lack of it is pretty good. Yeah it's not perfect as it doesn't take into account the sustained nature (or lack of it) or if it is a bouldery crux but easy below and above, but then perhaps nothing is going to be perfect and anyway, there's nothing wrong with a little uncertainty. Don't we like adventure?

There's nothing wrong with change, things move forward and evolve and we should all be open to suggestions of it. Perhaps it's a good thing when a group of foreigners come over and tear our crags to pieces, realising that E10 is not F8c+ on shit gear, but actually quite attainable. It doesn't take anything away from the first ascent when someone ground-ups a route that has previously been only head-pointed, it's just positive evolution. It helps to enrich climbing. New attitudes, new styles and surely new motivation for our climbing communities.  It's about time more climbers from abroad came to taste our wonderfully diverse brand of rock-climbing. The routes are great and  the climbers who climbed them deserve recognition but it doesn't mean we always know best. 

The questions are complex and the answers remain unclear but I'm sure the debate will always continue! Hopefully it might even fire a few of us up to get out and climb. We've seen what is possible- let's evolve!