Friday 19th April 2013 |
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Hot and sunny at Moy today
Rich and I had a pleasant afternoon at Moy Rock. Rich climbed the left extension to The Seer on his first attempt and I climbed The Fear (albeit with a sneaky wee rest in the alcove at the bottom of the steep section which the purists amongst you might not approve of.)
There were a few other teams out enjoying the climbing. It still felt quite cool in the trees and out of the sun but it was almost 'tops off' weather in the sun. |
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Tuesday 9th April 2013 |
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Back to the snow and ice today
After a month off from the snow and ice I headed back to the Ben for 1 last day of Scottish Winter. Andy was really keen to do Orion Face so that's where we went.
The Ben was pretty quiet but Orion Face was still popular with 2 other teams on it. Tower Ridge and Tower Scoop were climbed today. The ice was a bit brittle here and there but overall it was a great day out. |
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Saturday 6th April 2013 |
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Fun session at Moy Rock
Davy and I headed to Moy rock today. Davy had a project to complete and I decided to get on something I hadn't been on before.
To the right of 'Ave It at the far right end of the crag is a line that Andy bolted and gifted to Davy. Davy had tried it a couple of times but today was the day. Good cool dry conditions meant he got it on his first red point of the day. So another new line is created at Moy, a good 6c with an unusual layback flake feature to start.
I decided to get on The Fear, the right hand extension to The Seer. On the onsight I got up to the steep upper section before a fall put an end to my first attempt. After a wee play around I decided to opt for the easier left hand extension which I got on my first red point. This left hand extension makes for a great pumpy finish to the technical lower section of The Seer. |
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Thursday 4th April 2013 |
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Great rock climbing at Diabaig
Today I was out with Red and Martin again. We climbed Route Three and Dead Mouse Crack at Diabaig. Route Three is a classic E1 on the Main Wall. Dead Mouse Crack is certainly less classic and as a hard VS 5a has probably had a lot less ascents.
Today was Red's final day of training before he attempts The Old Man of Hoy in June. Yesterday Red was out with Martin and Alex and they climbed the Cioch Nose at Applecross. Three great days of climbing in the highlands and no rain! |
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Tuesday 2nd April 2013 |
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Spanish sport climbing and back to the sun in Scotland
During last week I was climbing in Chulilla, Valencia. This big limestone gorge is in Eastern Spain just west of Valencia city. I had a great week climbing with Gaz enjoying the long (up to 40m!) vertical pitches.
Today I was back in Scotland climbing at my local sports crag, Moy. I was working with Martin Moran. We were out with Red, a client who has retinitis pigmentosa. This eye disorder means that he has very little vision but it doesn't seem to effect his climbing too much and he was able to climb 6a without too much difficulty. A very inspiring guy. |
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