A link-up on idwal is something I've been trying to complete for a few years but each attempt has been thwarted by bad weather, tiredness or just plain laziness. However this time it was different. I had a reasonable free weekend but was struggling to find a partner for the whole 2 days when Killian said he was free for the saturday afternoon and sunday. A plan was hatched which entailed us driving up late on the saturday, then walking in to bivi out at Idwal so we could get a pretty early start. The early start would then lead us to climb and climb and climb up Idwal, Heather Tree Wall, Continuation Wall and finally Grey Slab to evetually top out and tick off the summit of Glyder Fawr to make it a mountain day. This was the great plan anyway. Added to all the climbing, because the weather was so nice I'd be shooting as much video as I could on the day.
Like I said I've attempted link-ups on Idwal before, I've also attempted to sleep on Idwal before and had decided against that as an option because of a few reasons. I simply value a good nights sleep (this is coming from a guy who regularly couch-surfs or dosses under a boulder). I'll define a good nights sleep as at least 6 hours, good sound sleep on a comfy thermarest, then the ability to make a cup of tea with minimal movement from from sleeping bag. See my criteria isn't exaclt stringent, but lugging all that kit up 300m of up to VS climbing didn't exactly sound like fun. I knew sack hauling would have been nessessary so instead we opted for a different approach. That was the other reason; climbing light (well relatively speaking). We'd sleep at the bottom, enjoy an early(ish) start and leave our kit behind carrying only our little 25litre "day" sack, rack, ropes and water. In the end we carried a pretty full rack. I know you can climb up most of idwal with just a decent (read: large) set of wires but I'd thrown some extra cams in just in case. I didn't know what grey slab area was going to be like for gear.
Enough of the planning. Lets just suffice to say that it was like all good plans. We made it hastly with rather ambigious arrangements like "Do you have a bivi bag?" "yep" "right then we'll bivi, just pack light ok?" "ok". (Our planning really didn't amount to more than that). Infact we took 2 stoves in when we could have got away with just the one. We parked up by the boulders near the ogwen car park. Seeing as the actual car park doesn't offer any way to pay for a ticket overnight, we found a place to stay without paying. I really resent doing this. I know that the national park needs to generate revenue from somewhere and me dodging parking fees is well, it's a little off. There a few things that they could do to encourage better uses of facilities and generate more income, like overnight parking options, a decnet bus service with an understandable timetable and a car sharing mentatily (ok the last one is there because I needed a third).
So parked up (for free) we first enjoyed a nice brew in the evening sun. Having arrived much earlier that I thought we would. I had originally planned a late walk in, like when it was dark. Anyone would think that we'd be rearing to go. But we'd both had crappy weeks at work and were just glad to be out of big cities and in the mountains. With this is mind we took a leisurely walk in, taking the path to the right round the lake and along the beach before finding a spot to crash right at the base of Idwal. We'd brewed up, done a little soloing before the bloody midges came out. Then the fun started.
We spent the next 2 hours wandering around the idwal area searching for any breeze that would drive them off. It go to the point where we decided that leaving all our stuff there and going to hide in a pub, or car would be the best plan. Instead we stuck it out. We actually met loads of nice people who where finishing thier days out walking and borrowed midge repellent (that didn't work) off them. After what seemed like an eternity the temperature dropped and the midges left us only to drink tea and snuggle down in our sleeping bags.
I woke up to a weak sun at 0440, it couldn't have been a more perfect wake up.
I didn't actually get out of bed until around 0700 because there was no way I was moving from my nice snuggly sleeping bag (didn't need the bivi bag either). Instead I dozed, brewed up, and only got moving when someother eager people arrived at the crag and got moving before we'd actually got out od bed. They didn't actually seem too amazed by our sleeping out.
As for the climbing, well it was just great. The sun slowly climbed ever higher into the sky as we climbed onward. I'll avoid a pitch by pitch description for once. I've climbed Tennis shoe so many times over the years but that doesn't take away from how much I love the route, it's just that I'm sick of writing the same description. However what was different this time was watching my friend Killian on it. He took pitches 2 and 4 and it was great to watch him lead them. See I've not really climb with Killian much, in fact this was our first mulitpitch route together and he seemed a little shakey at first on the lead. Soon enough thought he found his feet and was flying up the 2nd pitch, filling it was gear. So we'd reached the lead of the last pitch and made the little walk across to rebelay beneath it. In my mind the pitch was a decent 4a line with good gear. I guess I must be getting old as my memory is fading a little. Kill jumped on the lead (well more of politly shoved) and set off. Considering the sudden exposure and polished footholds he didn't back down and made good upward progress. I actually felt really bad as he struggled to find more gear than was present but he pushed on. I felt even worse when I actually seconeded the pitch and realise what a shock it must have been to suddenly have that much exposure. I was glad the see a relieved smile on his face as he belayed me up.
Then we scrambled across the top of Idwal and did Javelin Gully (HS 4b). It followed the first pitch of Lazarus, which Killian took much to his amusement. It seemed like a massive clamber which kept swithing backwards and forwards up this wide gully. He even manged a ligitamate heel hook for one of the last few moves. I took to second pitch which was as the guide described runout, but it's only runout in the top second after the difficulities. It is actually a really good route and great value for HS. I had a bit og trouble getting myself up at the few points. I carried straight on to lead groove above (S 4a) after I'd brought Kill up. This route isn't just all about the first move (which is bloody hard) so I'd suggest that everyone should do it.
Then a rest, a scramble and amble (like scrambling but with red socks on) till we found the little scrap of flat ground below grey slab area. After a brief foray into the guide book I selected to go Grey Rib (VS 4b) and then the second pitch of Grey Slab (VS 4b) which gave us 100metres of decent climbing. Kill was tired so I lead. We scrambled up Grey Rib as high as we dared and belayed. I then linked both pitches together but still only managed to find about 4 pieces of gear. Then we belayed again, did a short pitch to beneath our final pitch (grey slab, p2) rebelayed and I set off, again only finding something like 4 pieces of gear. I tooped out happily thinking that these routes confirmed our grades from the routes I've put up at the Lleyn (here & here). Killian flashed up these and than haistly pulled off his shoes as he was suffering from cramp.
And it was just easy scrambling up Seniors ridge to the top. Once we gained it we had to descend down the back of Idwal to get out cached kit which had been safety just left at the start of tennis shoe, under the premise that no-one touches the bag of climbers at Idwal because they just assume they are climbing a route above them. Then we walked out, a little dehydrated.
I actually really enjoyed just being able to spend a night out in the mountains. I think we took the right approach with out day kit, but in future I'll be carrying more water.
Like I said I've attempted link-ups on Idwal before, I've also attempted to sleep on Idwal before and had decided against that as an option because of a few reasons. I simply value a good nights sleep (this is coming from a guy who regularly couch-surfs or dosses under a boulder). I'll define a good nights sleep as at least 6 hours, good sound sleep on a comfy thermarest, then the ability to make a cup of tea with minimal movement from from sleeping bag. See my criteria isn't exaclt stringent, but lugging all that kit up 300m of up to VS climbing didn't exactly sound like fun. I knew sack hauling would have been nessessary so instead we opted for a different approach. That was the other reason; climbing light (well relatively speaking). We'd sleep at the bottom, enjoy an early(ish) start and leave our kit behind carrying only our little 25litre "day" sack, rack, ropes and water. In the end we carried a pretty full rack. I know you can climb up most of idwal with just a decent (read: large) set of wires but I'd thrown some extra cams in just in case. I didn't know what grey slab area was going to be like for gear.
Enough of the planning. Lets just suffice to say that it was like all good plans. We made it hastly with rather ambigious arrangements like "Do you have a bivi bag?" "yep" "right then we'll bivi, just pack light ok?" "ok". (Our planning really didn't amount to more than that). Infact we took 2 stoves in when we could have got away with just the one. We parked up by the boulders near the ogwen car park. Seeing as the actual car park doesn't offer any way to pay for a ticket overnight, we found a place to stay without paying. I really resent doing this. I know that the national park needs to generate revenue from somewhere and me dodging parking fees is well, it's a little off. There a few things that they could do to encourage better uses of facilities and generate more income, like overnight parking options, a decnet bus service with an understandable timetable and a car sharing mentatily (ok the last one is there because I needed a third).
So parked up (for free) we first enjoyed a nice brew in the evening sun. Having arrived much earlier that I thought we would. I had originally planned a late walk in, like when it was dark. Anyone would think that we'd be rearing to go. But we'd both had crappy weeks at work and were just glad to be out of big cities and in the mountains. With this is mind we took a leisurely walk in, taking the path to the right round the lake and along the beach before finding a spot to crash right at the base of Idwal. We'd brewed up, done a little soloing before the bloody midges came out. Then the fun started.
We spent the next 2 hours wandering around the idwal area searching for any breeze that would drive them off. It go to the point where we decided that leaving all our stuff there and going to hide in a pub, or car would be the best plan. Instead we stuck it out. We actually met loads of nice people who where finishing thier days out walking and borrowed midge repellent (that didn't work) off them. After what seemed like an eternity the temperature dropped and the midges left us only to drink tea and snuggle down in our sleeping bags.
I woke up to a weak sun at 0440, it couldn't have been a more perfect wake up.
I didn't actually get out of bed until around 0700 because there was no way I was moving from my nice snuggly sleeping bag (didn't need the bivi bag either). Instead I dozed, brewed up, and only got moving when someother eager people arrived at the crag and got moving before we'd actually got out od bed. They didn't actually seem too amazed by our sleeping out.
As for the climbing, well it was just great. The sun slowly climbed ever higher into the sky as we climbed onward. I'll avoid a pitch by pitch description for once. I've climbed Tennis shoe so many times over the years but that doesn't take away from how much I love the route, it's just that I'm sick of writing the same description. However what was different this time was watching my friend Killian on it. He took pitches 2 and 4 and it was great to watch him lead them. See I've not really climb with Killian much, in fact this was our first mulitpitch route together and he seemed a little shakey at first on the lead. Soon enough thought he found his feet and was flying up the 2nd pitch, filling it was gear. So we'd reached the lead of the last pitch and made the little walk across to rebelay beneath it. In my mind the pitch was a decent 4a line with good gear. I guess I must be getting old as my memory is fading a little. Kill jumped on the lead (well more of politly shoved) and set off. Considering the sudden exposure and polished footholds he didn't back down and made good upward progress. I actually felt really bad as he struggled to find more gear than was present but he pushed on. I felt even worse when I actually seconeded the pitch and realise what a shock it must have been to suddenly have that much exposure. I was glad the see a relieved smile on his face as he belayed me up.
Then we scrambled across the top of Idwal and did Javelin Gully (HS 4b). It followed the first pitch of Lazarus, which Killian took much to his amusement. It seemed like a massive clamber which kept swithing backwards and forwards up this wide gully. He even manged a ligitamate heel hook for one of the last few moves. I took to second pitch which was as the guide described runout, but it's only runout in the top second after the difficulities. It is actually a really good route and great value for HS. I had a bit og trouble getting myself up at the few points. I carried straight on to lead groove above (S 4a) after I'd brought Kill up. This route isn't just all about the first move (which is bloody hard) so I'd suggest that everyone should do it.
Then a rest, a scramble and amble (like scrambling but with red socks on) till we found the little scrap of flat ground below grey slab area. After a brief foray into the guide book I selected to go Grey Rib (VS 4b) and then the second pitch of Grey Slab (VS 4b) which gave us 100metres of decent climbing. Kill was tired so I lead. We scrambled up Grey Rib as high as we dared and belayed. I then linked both pitches together but still only managed to find about 4 pieces of gear. Then we belayed again, did a short pitch to beneath our final pitch (grey slab, p2) rebelayed and I set off, again only finding something like 4 pieces of gear. I tooped out happily thinking that these routes confirmed our grades from the routes I've put up at the Lleyn (here & here). Killian flashed up these and than haistly pulled off his shoes as he was suffering from cramp.
And it was just easy scrambling up Seniors ridge to the top. Once we gained it we had to descend down the back of Idwal to get out cached kit which had been safety just left at the start of tennis shoe, under the premise that no-one touches the bag of climbers at Idwal because they just assume they are climbing a route above them. Then we walked out, a little dehydrated.
I actually really enjoyed just being able to spend a night out in the mountains. I think we took the right approach with out day kit, but in future I'll be carrying more water.
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