A weekend off?

Well so much for the WMC trip to the Lakes. It'll be alright as there'll be one there at the end of the summer so we'll go on that. Being honest I did miss going as I was so looking forward to some Lake District rock. Anyway, enough moping, I blame the weather.

As I said we'd planned for the Lakes but it looked bad weather wise, so me and Stewie decided on Llangollen as a meeting point. Being close enough to north wales to head over on sunday, but far enough away that we could bug out if the weather was bad this seemed like a good idea. I'd gone up to Stoke with Toaf to pick up Ceara on the Friday night. As it was Alex flemmy's graduation we went to ember and got way to drunk and stayed up too late. In the morning we all groggily got into the car, got as far as Spar and Stewie called saying the weather was bad and we should bail on the Llangollen plan. We planned a day in the peak on sunday instead.
So we had a massive breakfast (mainly thanks to Ceara) and chilled out all day watching movies. Claire and Anna came to join us and eventually we got our arses into gear and went slacklining. We took 2 lines (mine and Dan's) so had a really long yet slack slackline (by the end of the session I couldn't walk to the middle as it was on the floor it had stretched so much) and a really tight short line. Toaf was feeling really ill from the night before so he went shopping with Claire (brave lad). The rest of us just slacklined the afternoon away.

I love slacklining. Apart from being great for your balance and core strenght its just plain good fun, regardless of how good you are. That said it takes a while to be able to walk along it. I remember when I started and used to watch Dan walking backwards and forwards. Damn I was jealous. Thankfully determination set in and many hours slacklining alone in the park listening to the ipod paid off... Now I can balance on a piece of webbing! (note: use of sarcasm)

Anyway its almost more fun when your learning, as you fall off alot more when just standing is a challenge. I'm trying to think up more challenges at the moment. I find to hard to tighten the line when I'm on my own enough that I can jump on it. Dan and Alex helped set up the line, so it was super tight! Therefore a day of simple jumps and 180's ensued, with varying degrees of success. I landed a 180 once so thought I better leave on a high note.

As we were all still feeling the effects of the night before (ie me, ceara and Toaf) we had an BBQ at Andy's house. A good and proper British BBQ hiding under a tarpauline from the rain. Holloway came out and brung some guys from Stanley Head down and we drank the night away (eventually having to move inside due to the weather). It was a good night including the dumb game (obviously invented by the guys) which involved throwing a haki-sack at each others crotch. Guys will be guys I supose. (having proof read that I sound rather high and mighty and also like I wasn't involved... I was).

We made an omlette for breakfast. Well me and Anna did, after we'd found all the spare breakfast food we'd not been able to eat the day before. Seriously Ceara did like 2 packs of bacon, 12 sausages, beans, egg, mushrooms and toast... for 3 people! We spent alot of the day deliberating about the weather and eventually went to the Roaches. I dived straight on the Pincer (VS 5a) and promptly came straight of the slab section. Its a great route. Proper little boulder problem start until you get your first piece of gear, then a traversing crack to a slab. I put some high gear in and then tried to step out onto the slab. I had 1 slopey foothold, very poor hold for my hands and I just couldn't do it. I was also ademant the route didn't go that way (still have not checked the guide book). I tried it anyway and once I'd stood on the slab I realised I couldn't reverse it. I carried on up on crap smears, and slid off. I tried this again and fell off before I admitted defeat to the slab and used the traversey ledge and smears, then crack to finish. This felt much more like 5a but I'm not going to complain.

It turned out that my first piece of gear had been left at the start (Ceara!) and after several unsuccessful attempts to reboulder the start in approach shoes I got some help. To guys watching me fail toof pity on me so Claire knelt down and then the random guy bent over making a large and wobbly staircase to rescue the gear. I only wish we'd got a picture of it.

We headed over to Left Hand Route (HVD 4a) on Blushing Buttress after this. It was Ceara's lead as she'd been begging to go out all weekend. Left hand route is also no push over. Its got a really commiting rockover/mantle on it, above your gear. Not looking confident she set off up the route, placing her gear well and backing up the final peice before the crux. The wind was blowing a hoolie (don't you just love that phrase?) as she went for it......and of course she made it, shouted she was safe and built her belay. Claire and Laura seconded the route. Laura decided the crux was beyond her and Claire decided the crux was stupid as of the lack of holds, but made it up. For Ceara's hardest lead to date she did well.

We then went to join the to others who were playing on Black and Tans and Sloth area. Anna was going to lead the Sloth (HVS 5a). She had a whale of a time on it as she was grinning manically when she finished. She did manage to drop her sling for the cheese block, but all the haki sack throwing practise paid off and I launched it back up to her. Watching her on it, I thought to myself "you know what, you should do it, stop putting it off". So I did.

The start was easy and getting to the cheeseblock and slinging it went well. However I couldn't work out how I was going to get out under the roof whilst I stood on the pedestal. I stood there for ages self doubt eating away at me. I seem to have a knack for falling off or bailing off classic climbs (dervish, cenotaph, Valkyrie...). I could just envision something going wrong.

I'm not sure what changed, but I eventually I went for it. I headed out into the roof and started to enjoy it. I enjoyed it enough that I cut loose from the handjam on the edge (just as Stewie had told me I had to). I topped out well and Paul came up. Ceara gave it a damn good go as well. And so ended our climbing in stoke. We had pizza for tea and then spelt in Ceara's living room ready for another 6am start back to Birmingham for work.

All in all, a very good weekend.