Another Weekend in Wales... with Stewie

Finally Stewie has been given a pass out from his wife and been allowed to come and play for the weekend. We snuck 3 days in North Wales this weekend just gone taking adventage of the excellent weather. We had some fun at Gogarth and Llanberis Pass again, getting on and ticking off some classic routes.

Friday, Gogarth:
Another trip to Wen Zawn to do Wen, which we actually managed to not do! We kicked started the day with a HVS 5a called Minute Man. As it was high tide I have the unenvious posistion of a hanging belay 10ft above the sea. This wasn't exactly how I had imagined I'd start off my weekend and I was scared stiff. I just stupidly let everything get to me. Stewie took the first pitch (4b) and I took the second which wondered under some overhangs before a solid 5a moved broke you out above them. I managed to drop my revolver crab and a sling on this route. This was the start of my gear loss this weekend. From there the route eased and took a nice line to top out. Our next route was a point of contention. It was a classic route called The Trap, HVS 4c. In the guide book it states that "climbers of larger stature will struggle" and this route has been the "scene of a few epics". Infact it require climbing into the back of a massive gash in the cliff and then backfooting up a chinmeny that got thinner and thinner. I managed pretty much all the route, albight being very scared and then was stumped by the squeeze chimeny afterwards. Apparently I'm a "larger frame climber" because I couldn't fit. This now means that I get ribbed for being "the fat guy" all the time. Stewie felt the need to comment on my waistline everytime I ate something for the rest of the weekend. So I left a prussic loop & 'biner and lowered back to the floor. Stewie then lead Britomaris and I did the second pitch as our escape route.

I brief lull in our climbing allowed me to expand my waistline somemore and have some lunch. We then headed for Wen. We'd accepted that we'd just do the high tide start (from the ledges) but as we came to abseil in, guess what? someone was already on the route before us! grrrrr, We did a climb named Dde (HVS 5a, low for the grade) as a consolation prize. This was a realy nice route and I took the second and 5a pitch which had a stunning little bit and a laybacking sequence to finish. I ran it out for some reason just enjoying the climbing and the sea crashing beneath me.

Saturday, Llanberis Pass:
Stewie wanted to do Cemetary Gates (E1 5b). I'd agreed to belay him on this, no matter how long it took so after an early start and a quick breakfast we slogged up to Dinas Cromlech. We where first to arrive and just got straight to it. The meant alot more to Stewie than I did to me so he took the first pitch. This was the harder of the two and I settled to belay him for a good while. He climbed it well, although unconfidently. I suposed the wieght of such a classic route is heavy than any gear that you carry. I know that when I'm pressured to climb something onisght, then I normally mess it up and fall off, something I was to find out later.

Needless to say that Stewie fell off. It was the last move almost and the apparent crux of the route. All the way up Stewie Stewie plowed in gear almost running out of runners so he thought. At a few point while he rested before a move I thought he was going to ask to be lowered off. This wasn't going happen and I was prepared to stay all day belaying if thats what it took. He made it in the end, and good effort to him for it. Even on second (and I'm not just saying this) but it was a hard pitch. I know when I reached the belay I was suffering from pumped out arms.

I took the second pitch, which I didn't feel was easy. It was pretty exposed out on the crack by the arete. I enjoyed it. I then jumped on Left Wall, which I'm not going to write about here. I didn't finish it and backed off in the end, but see my next post for why.

Then we finished off with a VS so I could rescue my 'biner. We did Noah's warning and Stewie let me lead both pitches complaining his arms where still pumper out. I didn't mind leading (I never do) but I struggled up the first 4c pitch. The rock was just sharp & loose and the gear was less than to be desired. The second pitch was much better, with cleaner with much better gear. We topped out in burning sunshine and I set off the rescue my nut as Stewie walked down. Back at our bag we where greeted by a new face, that of Toaf who'd come out to join us for the rest of the weekend. Stewie was now done climbing so off to the pub we went.

Sunday: Gogarth, again:
So originally we where heading to the slate but I wasn't inspired to climb there at all and I plummed for Wen at Gogarth. We'd set out to do it in the first place, and amazingly Toaf agreed to join us. I think the bump on the head he had recieved falling over on the scree the day before had him confused. Toaf refuses flat out to come to Gogarth, but us assuring him that it was a massive slab seemed ok. Off we went.

It was agreed that me and Stewie would lead, and because we where doing the high tide start Stew would take the nice straigh first pitch from the ledges and I would take the second that wondered around with a little traverse. Toaf would be joining us for the route for company and as our "gear-removal technition" (I'll explain in a bit). I rappelled in first, set the belay and was joined by Toaf. I genuinly didn't expect to see him abseiling down to join me on the ledge. I'd built my belay on the widest part of the ledges as so not to have us hanging off nothing. Stewie arrived and set off up P1.

He climbed it fine, and brought Toaf up first. I came second and couldn't get my size 7 nut out. I was gutted as this is my favourite nut. Now was Toafs tie to shine as he down climbed and saved the nut somehow. I knew we'd brought him for a some reason.

The next pitch was gear climbing. The route and the moves where perfect. The route left a little then takes a traversing line to avoid the original "direct" finsih, which involves some choss and loose rock. The traverse was pretty scary. By now I was high above the ocean on a hanging slab, I was scared. I managed the moves but was afraid I'd loose my balance at some point. Both Toaf and Stew where fine coming across.

Toaf then even agreed that he would maybe come back to Wen zawn, well like he wouldn't discount it as an option. We decided to call it a day and go and see Tom (another friend in North Wales) who currently has a torn ligament in his finger so he can't climb. I actually got home early for once and could sort myself out to start back at work...