Carnedd Y Filliast

An interesting start to what was almost a bad day. The weather looked a little bone to say the least. After throwing around a million and one different ideas we braved the bad weather to go climb Sub Cneifon Rib and then maybe Cneifon Arete to boot! This plan was going great until I got a screw through my tire. Instead of going climbing me and Andy set off to Bangor to find me a new tire and Rob, Soames and Tom went off into the mountains.

I wasn't exactly best pleased and having to shell out for 2 new tires, but they would have have to have been replaced eventually and seeing as it was only about 12 o'clock Me and Andy decided to have a crack at a couple of routes on Carnedd Y Filliast (Crag of the greyhound bitch). These slabs are at the first or last cwm in the Ogwen valley and a high up. It's a deceptively long walk to them as it's a good 40 minute up hill jaunt. A friend of ours had called up to warn us of apparent 90mph winds that day so we bore this in mind as we plodded in.



posing with a new beer towel in the wind



The crag, if you've not stood beneath it, is actually quite big. I couldn't ever really get the scale of the thing from the guidebook, not properly. We'd planned to do a HS 4a called Savannah on the Red Slab then do Left Edge (VD) on the White slab above. I had a right laugh when the guidebook noted that you would need smears from hands and feet on the climb, no sh*t Sherlock, it was a slab climb. I really didn't know what I was in for, but with a full rack and a brave look on my face I stepped on the face.



To say it was windy is an understatement, to say it was simply the strongest wind I've climbed in much better. I've never been almost blown off a slab before but this time I almost was. There was also about 5 runners all the way up to a crap belay, however the climbing was fantastic. I swear if chalkstorm had this much friction it would be E2 5b!. The belay was a little lacking, 2 small cams that were hardly in and nothing to really brace off because well... it was on a slab. I figured they'd hold and took in before yelling "ooooooon beeeelaaay" into the wind.

Andy climbed it pretty quick, but he, just like me almost got blown across the slab he arrived at the belay and I yelled to him that I'd lead us out. The next (and final) pitch looked ok, but it was seriously threatening to rain. We where shouting to each other the wind was so strong. Quickly reflaking the ropes and swapping the gear off I set, battling into the wind.

This was an awesome pitch mainly because the wind was so strong and I could lean back into it and walk with my feet flat on the slab. This went well till I topped out and the wind threw me over and I tumbled into the rocks. I couldn't help but laugh. I belayed off a braced stance and a back up nut, yelling again that I was safe and Andy could start climbing. There was snot getting dragged out of my nose by the wind. Andy topped out and went to get out of the wind behind a boulder, and thus ended the climb but not our day out.



I stumbled behind his boulder to see that it provided as much wind protection as a crisp packet. I ran off yelling something about finding somewhere better and dropped over the ridge. It was marginally better, good enough for us to sit down and de-kit. "Don't fancy the VD then?" I asked. All I got was laughter in return. I knew the day was over and we'd start descending. We'd snatched a great day out despite a flat tyre, threatening rain and seriously strong wind and we ended up going car to car in under 4 hours. It doesn't get much better than that.