It's raining, so I've managed to get to my computer and I've also managed to not finish 2 E4's recently, which is very annoying.
It started with a fun day of climbing with Soames in Wales. We headed up for the day and settled on some single pitching in Ogwen valley (Wales has actually got tonnes of single pitch crags, you just need a bit of nouse and a definitive guidebook to find them). We went to a little crag called Craig Caseg Fraith Isaf and started ticking through the routes. First up Soames lead Hollt Lydan (S) with a little 5a start, then I took Bulge (VS 5a). Soames them did Canol (HVS 5a) and I did Llech (HVS 5b). All the climbing was on good rock and pretty much good gear all the way up.
We headed up the crag a little to what looked in the guide book like another slab buttress with a little break at half height. The "little break" was a ledge you could have slept on and gave some broken but fun routes. Soames took A5 (HS) and I lead Olwthio (HVS 5b).
Then I jumped on Leaning Crack (E4 6a), which looked like a really nice little line. We spent a long while looked at the gear before I actually go on it. Eventually I had to. The first few moves where easy and then it became super intense for a short way and I had to place a cam really blind on the crux. I was pumped out and lowered off before jumping back on and having another go. This time I was over the crux, but with my feet wrong! I should have had them the other way around and it would all have been gravy baby but nope. As I made a really balancy move for a good hold, my feet slipped off and down I went... and out came my cam and one of the nuts beneath it. I slid down the slab pretty hard before landing with Soames (airborn at this point) about a foot off the floor.
Pretty bumped and scraped I stumbled away from the crag, humbled but happy.
Night passes and I headed up to skyline with Rach with nothing in mind. I guess my mind had other things planned and I got it into my head to try Wings of Unreason (E4 6a). Off we set with a pad, trad rack and a full flask of coffee. The wind was up and we had managed to dodge the worst of the rain by the time we got to the bottom of the route, not with me sliding leg first down a gully. It took me a while to crack the first move/sequence and I tried it a couple of times down climbing each time to reassess. Eventually I committed myself to it (accidentally) and found myself above a irreversable move. So onward and upward.
I got a good cam in a low pocket slightly off route and then made the middle pockets and the final piece of gear. From he I rocked into the pocket and ditched the rest of my gear. And here is pretty much where I stayed. I couldn't bring myself to do the last move. Rach recons I spent about 2 hours on these ledges trying to convince myself to make the final move.
[BETA ALERT]
I'll point out that the final move is a dyno (well for me at least). It should have been pretty simple as it's not very far, but I didn't have it in my. Talk about no having your head in gear!
And thus ended our jaunt to skyline as I backed off sheepishly. It's still been an awesome couple of days as climbing isn't about how many grades you tick off or how hard you climbing, but about having the most fun, and for me finding out as much as you can about yourself.
I'll have to go back and do Wings of Unreason though.
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