Scrabble

Scrabble

Our eyes met. Neither moved. Slowly the slender leg of the heron reached forward and delicately stepped closer to the water. Still our eyes locked, and yet the heron was simply not there….. an illusion of idealism in a world of silent beauty adjacent to the jetstream of human activity. 

But it is was there, it just took me too long to see it. A chance connection, a fleeting moment like the light at 2 ends of a tunnel meeting, the alluring goddess stepping back into the shadows. The frail form a ghost drifting away against the landscape. A fleeting moment past, but a moment etched. A perfect symmetry with the previous day’s fateful encounter.

Our eyes met for a split second as the fox glanced back. Nothing registered. On it trotted, head down, hood covering a sly smile spreading across its face, eyes glinting in the morning sun. The predator knowing another unsuspecting victim stood no chance. An easy kill. Another satisfying meal. Some kills are easier than others, but this was beyond belief. The slow patient approach, the distracted prey, the predator in plain sight. If only I could see what was hidden in plain sight.

And then it registered. By but by then it was too late, far too late. The simple equation of what was happening hit me like a sucker punch in the gut. A wave of sickness, weak knees and anger enveloped me. Forcing my legs straight, I had to stay upright. A forced smile for a good man….. ‘Hi Tim, how’s it going?’  The pray stood no chance.  By now the fox was nowhere to be seen. The easy pray. 

Content with having been well and truly bent over, Ally and I played kiddies games and settled for a consolation game of Scrabble, all the while eyeing up the big boys game with envy. A full word score later we topped out and descended into the coire.  

‘Have you a number 6 cam Andy?’ The fox howled down with laugher. Bastard.

Onward the heron drifted into the horizon.... 

 

 A glorious morning to get bent over

 

 Kiddies game pitch 1

 Ally on Kiddies game pitch 2

The People

A recent article in a prominent climbing magazine on the important physical and psychological part a belayer plays in attempting, let alone succeeding, on a climbing pitch, got me thinking a lot about the friends that I've had the pleasure of sharing adventures with in the mountains, and the unforgettable memories. From the days when it all feels easy in the sun, to the days where the weather wont let you stand and the howling banshee tears at your face! And with large snow flakes falling outside the winter and the winter season now underway, it feels appropriate to doff my cap to the few! ..... oh and maybe a great opportunity to highlight the numerous emotions behind an expression..... excitment, apprehension, appreciation, fear, relief, pain, horror, luvin' it, I nearly died and get me the hell out of here! Some are easier than others to pick! Roll on another winter.... :-)

Euro Ice Climbing

Its been a while since I have had (made) time to update the blog, so with no work today (!) and still feeling sore from a training session and sufferfest (turbotrainer group suffering) yesterday, excuses are running low.

Having quit my job in January to persue a few months of climbing and skiing, it seems to have been quite productive so far..... trips to the NW and west coast to do routes and visit places I have longed to experience came to fruition.... Beinn Bhan, Beinn Eighe, Tilt, Shanghigh, Postern, Blood Sweat and Frozen Tears (maybe the best scottish winter route I have done). All brilliant, memorable days out in great company!

Since then 3 weeks of dotting round europe to Cogne, Chamonix, Kandersteg and Monaco (what you've never heard of the awesome ice climbing on the cote d'azur!) have maintained a feeling of transition and shifting objectives. The initial focus of trying to remember how to climb ice efficiently quickly drifting away to be replaced by the steeper, harder mindset..... well except for Monaco sport climbing which proved somewhat of a reminder that polished limestone and no finger strength is a horrible combination for me!!!

Anyway, with a crap camera that detests the cold, and an affinity for shaky pictures, I managed a couple of ok shots, so rather than another 2,000 words, here's a few pictures from the last few weeks with Ally Fulton, Ally Swinton and Alastair Robertson....

Lillaz Gully (Cogne) and the village of Lillaz

 

Alastair on Lau Bij (Cogne)

 

 

 Sogno di Gnomo (Cogne), the right facing corner line that might have been slightly out of condition...! Avalanche stopped play after (on) the 3rd pitch!

 

 

  Tradimento Direct (Cogne) - No pictures of the crux pillar although in more sporting conditions: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9E78XVqeT1g&feature=youtu.be

Flash Estivo (Colonne Centrale)

Foehn wind loading up the slopes above (and firing the temp up!)

Repentence Super (brilliant route!) on the left and Flash Estivo on the right

Stella Artice (not a bad fall back route for the day) - Cogne

 

 

Ally abseil into the classic Nuit Blanche (Argentiere)

 

Rattenpissoir (Kandersteg) - Polish and French teams creating a proper mess..... nice to see the euros can do it as well as the brits! ;-) Properly wet first pitch resulted in 4 hours of drying kit in the van in the afternoon.

Ally with Rattenpissoir in the background (the pillar)

Ally taking a shower on Grimm/Haizahne, backed off and did it the next day instead after doing another 4 pitch WI5+ which made for some tired arms!

All that remains now is to finalise a few things then get on a plane to the Rockies! Hello Canmore!

Having spent years flicking through Sean Isaac's book Mixed Climbs in the Canadian Rockies, its so exciting being able to get on a plane and go experience a few of the classic venues! Few other places have such inspiring/terrifying/intriguing route names..... nemesis, terminator, nightmare on wolfe street, sea of vapours, riptide, the list is endless. Should be a blast!

Dolomites

I'm just back from an excellent couple of weeks in the Dolomites. I'm a big fan of Dolomites climbing - the combination of big routes, adventure, quality rock, incredible scenery and good food is hard to beat!

The first week was just Ally Fulton and I. The plan was to climb hard this week then have a slightly more chilled out week the following week, but forecasts for afternoon thunderstorms deterred us from doing too many big routes. In the end, the whole week felt surprisingly relaxed despite getting a fair amount done.

The first route was the Steger Route on the Catanaccio. This takes the strikingly obvious big cracks visible from the valley. Definitely a three-star line, although maybe not quite the same rock quality or interesting climbing as we got from some later routes.

Looking up at the Catenaccio. The Steger takes the obvious cracks leading to the highest point on the wall

Ally loving the chimneys!

Nice exposure on the upper section

The next couple of routes we did were shorter so avoid thunderstorm risk - the Messner on the Second Sella Tower and Via Irma on Piz Ciavezes. Both were really good routes, short by Dolomites standards but longer than most Scottish routes! The Messner felt pretty bold in places and route-finding wasn't obvious, so it would probably warrant E2 5b back home, whereas Via Irma was technically harder but the difficulties were short & well-protected, maybe E2 5c (or maybe even stiff E1) overall.

Wondering if I was still on route on the Messner

Ally pulling through the roof on Via Irma

Next, we headed to the Tofana di Rozes, intending to try the Pilastro. Unfortunately though, the weather was still a bit unsettled so we opted for the easier line to the left, starting in glorious sunshine but, in true Scottish style, finishing in the clag.

The second week was more sociable. I did two routes with my wife, Elizabeth. The Hexenstein seems to be one of the most popular Dolomites routes, being relatively easy, non-serious and high-quality. The next day, along with 2 friends, we did the Delaggo on the Cima Casson di Formin, which was less well known and a little more serious but still very good.

Elizabeth enjoying the Hexenstein

After that, Ally and I made time for one more big route - the Vinatzer (with Messner finish) on the South Face of the Marmolada. I'd wanted to do a route on this wall for years and the Vinatzer/Messner is the classic mid-grade outing on the face. We had ideal weather - clear, settled and mild without being outrageously hot (we are Scottish after all), and beautiful views from the approach.

The view from just above the hut on the approach to the Marmolada

 When we got to the base of the crag, there was another team just setting off up the original start. We set off up the alternative start and, but the time the two lines merged after 3 pitches, we had passed the other team and seemed to be going really well.

Ally starting across the easy traverse pitch (P10 or thereabouts)

We were at the big ledge over half-way up the face by 11am, so thought we'd a good chance of making the last cable-car down. Sadly, the route-finding on the Messner finish was a lot more complex. After much uncertainty about the line, we ended up in a dead end (with loads of tat - we clearly weren't the first!) and had to do a long diagonal abseil to get back on route, costing us more valuable time.

Tricky route-finding on the Messner finish

In the guide, there are 3 pitches on the route given UIAA VI+: pitch 4, pitch 7 and pitch 28. Clearly there was a sting in the tail waiting for us! I ended up getting this top crux: probably E2 in its own right (albeit with quite a lot of pegs in situ) with hard-to-read sequences and mind-blowing exposure. In the end, none of the moves were that hard but when tired, it would be very easy to make a mistake here.

Glad to be topping out, even if we had missed the cable car

From there, it was relatively easy to the top. We ended up missing the last bin by about an hour, but the descent of the ski slope in trainers was straight-forward and we managed to hitch back from the Fedaia pass to Malga Ciampela easily enough.

Descending towards the Fedaia pass

All in all, a great trip and a part of the world that I'll be keen to visit again.