How deep is your Love?

I took My Brother to Nant Gwytheyrn on Friday..

Daphne the miniature Schnauzer came along for a walk, didn't bag any seal or sheep, or gulls, but did eat a few egg cases...

So we wandered along the beach to the end, and being low tide, I couldn't help myself but have a quick scramble to check out the depth under the potential deep water soloing..

The end of the beach, and the start of the adventure

First peek...

The kelp wafted gently below the cliff, it was still a couple of hours before low tide, and there was at least a couple of meters of water in the zawn, and a couple of meters of barnacles above the water. very promising for a high tide venue

Wandering over the top, muchos steepness, and it looks above the deep...

A quick paddle on the other side gave a good view into the zawn, certainly worth a visit once the sea temps improve mid July..

After a nice meal at the cafe, we moved on to Trefor, as it was the home of our Great Granddad, and Chris hadn't been before. This allowed me to pop down to Tick 10... 

Not good. the pebbles have risen another 2-3 feet. Basically written off unless there's a mahoosive storm at the right turn of tide. We continued along the cliffs and spotted this little bay..

A new hope? might require an interesting approach.....

Training part 2 - George's Crack

Today I bit the bullet and trudged off to work someone elses boulder problem. Yes, I know, it is normal to try established classics, even to have a series of sessions to achieve that elusive goal...

George's Crack is quite hard, quite technical, and quite long. The old guide has it at V5, which on pressing Mr Panton, was an arbitrary offering and a bit of a wheeze. However, F7A does seem about right for the level of brainwork, burl, and fitness it requires, and it is rather specialist.
I've been on it twice before; the first time was mainly flailing, as the description was obviously written by the large of fist, and long of limb. It took a long time to realise I was better off innovating, as one persons fist was someone elses butterfly.
Next visit was with the Wide Boyz, being a good North Wales Wide host. Wide pony was the buzz word , and Pete did laps on it with a weight vest on. A quite heavy weight vest. It goes to show the fitness and bullheaded nature required to get Century Crack done (even dragging a weight vest up to George's crack in the first place) This trip I got nowhere as my ankle was a bit dodgy and didn't like being hung off.

Today I went up determined to get some training value out of it. I started by going through my physio routine, sprawled on a bouldering mat up in the mountains, my mobile's metronome measuring off a myriad of hamstring stretches. The routine takes about 10-15 minutes and is a twice a day affair at the moment; its hard to fix yourself when you're 40.

It was a good warm up though, and mixed in with some dishes, and arm waving, I moved onto taping up. The gloves I started on the last Tosheroon attempt were shaping up nicely, and fortunately didn't smell of barnacles. Camera phone wedged on a rock and rolling, the training commenced.

1st Attempt. 1 minute 20 sec. Tried to get into wide pony, but my ankle, hip flexors or the width of the crack meant it wasn't working.

Rest 5 minutes.

2nd Attempt. Time unknown (camera fell over) played with keeping both feet leading heel first and it seemed to work, but still struggling to make proper use of my hands.

Rest 15-20 minutes, looking for better rocks to prop my phone with.

3rd Attempt. 3 minutes. Pretty chuffed with staying on this long in invert. Discovered I could get a hand-hand stack in after the starting jugs, and I was away. A lot of struggle and experimenting got me to the end of the widening and above mat one, the stack after the widening remained elusive. I was also aware that if I got to this point, going further would be scary...

Rest 16 minutes.

4th Attempt:

So kick up and walk the heel toes (heel first), advancing them with some cheeky wide pinches, until a sit into a hand-hand stack is possible. Walk on the hooves until you have to leave the stack, where some sneaky cups against the knees keep things moving. Once past the widening its hand-fist stack time....

Only I didn't quite get there, firstly because I was trying to arrange the stack wrong, secondly because I need to work further on my hamstrings, and thirdly because I was knackered. Still I got to the same place as attempt 3 in 2/3's of the time.

The main goal of this training is to totally crush Tosheroon, the secondary goals are to complete George's crack, and give me more motivation to do my physio exercises. All I need is a bit more invert sit up practice, longer hamstrings, and a spotter, because that top out looks scary on your own!

Tick Report - May

So its been a weird Month....

The Bads
My psyched-for trad project got a dusting of someone else's bolts
My back, or more specifically my pelvis is still killing me periodically
My elbows have flared up at inopportune moments
My Work life has got unhelpfully stressful
I'm Feeling Weak

The Goods
I have some cool boulder projects where I am making progress
My Tribe is going to be joined by my first daughter (4th child)
I'm making progress on my journey towards Development coach
Sam and I had our first mini-break away from the kids in 6 years
I'm getting regular free physio (thanks NHS)
Our house is having a bit of a posh make over.

So there we go.
As a result of all the mess in Twll Mawr, and with Little Miss Dicken due in September, I've sacked off the trad for this year. That's not to say I might have the odd jolly, but I've given away my projects, and will be leaving Twll Mawr alone for a bit. The fact is that with the imminent arrival of Little Miss, I'm bordering on contentment, at least my perspectives have been altered.
I am also trying to get some consensus on ethics for Twll Mawr, and will be raising it at the next BMC Cymru meeting. My views on Twll Mawr, specifically the Back wall, have be documented on this blog many times (eg here and here). I'm aware that the new sport routes have proved popular, and I know pretty much all the ascentionists of the trad routes personally, and could probably get them all into a quite small room. However, the climbing is unique and special, and historically routed in the ethics and mindset of climbing in North Wales.
Currently the Back Wall looks something like this:

Cue the scrappy topo..

The Routes

1 Taith Mawr (2008) Trad

2 Long in the Twll/ the North will rise Again (March 2015) Sport

3 Tân y Ddraig (4^th May 2015) Sport

4 Hamadryad (1971) Trad

5 Desolation of Smaug (April 2014) Sport

6 Antiquarian Direct (September 2014) Trad

7 Twll Love (September 2014) Trad

8 The Baron (1^st May 2015) Trad

9 The Razors Edge (1971) Trad

10 The True Finish (1989) Trad

11 Bushmaster (1982) Trad

12 Scorpion (1981) Trad

A= Retro bolted belay first used for True finish

B = Retro bolted belay first used for Twll Love

When Smaug appeared, I was concerned that it might effect existing routes, and to some extent it did, although not so much as to harm their character. I was also saddened that it removed some of the risk for subsequent new routes, and that it was in an area that was pushed heavily into in a ground up ethic. The result was Antiquarian Direct, and Twll Love.

It must be said, however, that the reduction of risk may have prevented catastrophe on the 2nd pitch of Twll Love (or prevented an awesome display of onsighting and my hardest route to date, we'll never know).

Smaug also opened the bottle. I chatted to the first ascentionist at the time about what it meant for the future, and expressed my opinion that all right of smaug should be left of future trad. At the time I thought this view was shared. When the Long Twll team starting their bolting mission, They sent me many long emails, agonising over how existing trad routes could be avoided, and encouragingly, also how potential trad lines could be given space too. On the whole this worked too.

But the lure of the longest sport route in the UK was obviously too much.

Maybe also the lure of the arete too, many people had tried to get to it via traditional means over the years, with True Finish coming closest.

Enough maudlin mumbling, if all those existing trad line weren't enough to tempt you, here's an unadulterated version to spot the blanks, and the actual lines I scribbled over..

I've deliberately kept these picture files big so you can search around, The lines on the back wall are all strong, but hidden by perspective tricks. This is the best angle I'e found so far to reveal them. There's a strong line on the right that Mr brown got within half a pitch of the top, for instance...

Next Month

Get up something

Stop aching

Stop moaning

Testing, Training and Trixibelle

So I got my shoes back from Llanberis Resoles:

Really nice job, the new edge is crisp and an integral part of the front of the shoe, rather than an added piece, and the new knuckle patches, don't change the fit or crush my toes. I was keen to put them through their paces, so I stomped up to Big Bad Bari..

So it did take a while to get there, I'm not going to lie. Some fitness is going to be required one of these days, but this trip has certainly whetted my appetite. I warmed up by climbing Bari from the chockstone, then got stuck in from the start.

I ended up throwing 3 laps on it, Just great climbing, and the knuckle patches may have made it a bit easier, or I'm just awesome... Anyway it was great training.

I then moved onto Trixibelle who is Tick no. 9. This project is based around the great keel of Bari Island, starting off the lowest chalked up holds

This section is an exercise in body tension, slopers, and a lot of center of gravity stuff (not throwing myself into the bushes). Needless to say I threw myself into the bushes a lot. I'm finding that the problems that excite me up here really expose my weaknesses; core and flexibility will have to be worked to continue here.

As to where Trixibelle will go, I'm moving away from ideas of busting for the lip direct, as that seems about E8. Instead if I continue questing below the lip I can stay above mats and in reach of non IRATA spotters. There is also a direct version close to the finish of BBB, but the big journey currently appeals more.

Continuing to work my weaknesses, I turned my attention to the thin crack on the right. I'd been annoyed that the block underneath means you can only really access the front 3 feet or so. But then I got the crazy idea of trying to link into it from BBB:

Continuing in the tradition of naming projects here after boats eaten by Big Bad Bari, this one is henceforth known as Miss Boo Boo. Kicking off my account I managed to top from starting with my left hand on the pinch immediately below the lip. My right hand was in the fingerlock in the crack at the terminus of the crimp rail diverging from BBB.

I tried a lower start with my left hand on a crimp above the fingerlock, but although I could hold it static, I couldn't move off it. The reasons for this lie a little bit to finger strength, but mainly arm and core. I finished myself off by starting with a heel toe in BBB, left hand on the crimp rail and yarding into the fingerlock. My core is almost up to this, but my tight forearms made getting into the backhand fingerlock awkward, requiring a flatter body.

All in all, the very things I require for future projects can be honed here: slopers, core, strength and flexibility. Furthermore, the hurdles are small and the goals attainable (reaching for apples, not the moon).

I think Mymbyr season is well and truly open.

A Caterpillar just below Bari Island, so grass, heather, reeds or bilberries for you then..

 The Mighty Quack Crack Bloc, might play here too as things improve..

Happiness is found at 600m

After the events of the last couple of weeks, I've sorely needed a visit to my happy place. With the forecast being a tad dour, I sent my boots off to Llanberis Resoles for some TLC and some offwidth cheating upgrades, and got out my Scooter.

Marchlyn Mawr seemed an obvious choice, let me try to explain....

I have in my "Marks Boring Rocks" folder on the family computer a file called "tick list". This little campaign strategy table contains the 14 ticks for this year as well as staged goals, conditions requirements, and special kit needed etc. It seems to be getting a lot of red on it (ticking off the accomplishments), but it has also acquired two new columns; Am I Finished with this, and Can I be Arsed.

With two ticks on the Had Enough list, the motivation assessor has only 5 ticks approaching the Red Setter mark.

The sitter into Tumbleweed is one of them.

The Goal

The walk up to the Dam took 32 minutes (scooter and v. light bag, a couple of photo's and a quick chat on way) and the tide was well out already (1030 no less) but that probably could be blamed on the election..

The excuse for coming up was to apply a bit of science to the problem. Mainly this meant identifying a sequence, The issue being that there was two possibilities; go out left to some opposing sidepulls, or slap up right up the arete. Going left seemed unfeasibly hard to start, then relenting into the realms of merely trying very hard. I could slap to the arete (and did last visit) but making progress into the stand would require these.

Steep!

An impossible start or impossible finish? I decided to only attempt the possible bits, and then try to yard between them... slap into the arete and then connive to throw back left into the sidepulls. Who knows? it may work!

A sloper

So back to the science

Issue 1:
I need to improve on slopers
Solution:
Actually use a Beastmaker

Issue 2:
Most of the movement initiation is from Foot clamp derivitives
Solution:
Increase core and Practice practice practice

Issue 3:
The sidepulls are well crimpy
Solution:
In reality I probably only need a 20% increase in finger strength so just climb more!

Issue 4:
It a bit overwhelming
Solution:
Staged goals- Tiny ones! and hoover up some satellite problems to keep the happy coming while you're at it.


After that it was a bit of cleaning, a few more rocks to the patio, and off to scoot!
Just as the rain started.

The patio is getting well gucci

10 minutes 50 seconds to descend, hindered by one crash due to the action of rain on the breaking system*, and some wimpy attempts at preventing a second crash by reducing general velocity.


Happy (and not too sore)


*wet cold wheels mean no/reduced breaking, as they get hot the water evaporates and you get lots of breaking. In reality this meant shit shit shit LOCK, a bit of fishtail and a running dismount. Constant gentle breaking seems to be the way to get wet wheels dry and breaking in a less laxative fashion.


PS. I was trawling through the stats on this blog, and it seems the "Baron and the Bolt Fairy" was a popular choice of referral for a number of Russian porn sites. I guess I should be a bit more careful with my title choice.....

The Baron and the Bolt Fairy

Today, Calum Muskett and myself climbed "The Baron" E4 5c,5a,6b,- in Twll Mawr. This line was one that Joe Brown attempted, and a line he still remembers to this day, one that got away.
He was thwarted in part by this death block, threatening to take out the entire party:

 .. Which I booted out on abb when cleaning the line in October. I'd been psyched for this line ever since Mr Brown had pointed it out during the slate guide research, and now that it was clean, I was just biding my time until weather, drainage, and a Monday or Friday morning aligned.

I will confess to dragging Calum along, as I didn't fancy a siege, and the top pitch did look a bit spicy.. I was however, going to give everything on the offwidth pitch.

This proved to be everything that I was hoping for, and as I arrived at Joe's high point I felt humbled; both by his efforts, and the gaping maw above.

Joe's Highpoint (hopefully to remain insitu)

Getting stuck in

This was my first lead since Twll love, and I felt fully out of my depth. Calum talked me out of cheating, and with the Camalot #5 pushed as far as it would go, I committed to a series of jams, heel hooks and expletives (in my head). This resulted in a scraping rockover full of rope drag, lifting me out of the maw into the sun above. I was Chuffed.

The drag was a bit too much to push on, so I belayed there and brought Calum up, who pushed on through instead.

The Baron follows a seam that slices the full height of the back wall in a clean direct line,

RP1-cam#5

As I seconded the amusing "bramble crevasse" pitch (no bridge present, so you have to jump across) I noticed Calum was belayed at the Twll Love belay. The poor one.

I joked across about how many RP's he had in.

He replied "None, I'm clipped into these Bolts".

Deep in Bat Country, the Bolt Fairy had visited. It didn't stop there, the sharp arete immediately left of The True Finish now had a line of shiny 12mm's. Now this arete was the right wall of the seam we were following, the seam with abundant cam placements. The seam in a historically adventure trad area.

I didn't cry. I did moan. I knew this pitch well as I'd already cleaned it, and two things were clear to me at this point, Calum was going to have to lead this pitch as I was knackered, and this trad route was going to be spoilt a bit by bolts.

It was, but that shouldn't detract from Calum's efforts, the route follows the crack until a wild leap catches the arete, truly cool move. Once on the arete, its thin and unbalanced until you arrive back at the crack at the end of the steepness. trad gear then returns, but the bolts don't stop here. To my great sadness they continued up the line I'd cleaned, even up the easy and protectable dolerite finish.

Calum resisted clipping the first bolt he came too, but as things got spicy, he wasn't foolish enough to pass on some 12mm steel, and 2 bolts got clipped.

So there we go. A great line eyed for generations, spoilt by a sport route in the sky, I shudder to think what they were thinking.

However, as there was also a line of drilled holes and an insitu rope over by Long in the Twll, the pessimist in me concocts a worst case scenario of a line of bolts right across Hamadryad continuing through the crux of Twll Love.

Calum reckoned this pitch would have been E6 boltless.

Being nice

The sport pitch does look great, we did climb half of it anyway. its follows a great feature, one eyed by many and tackled in part by The Direct Finish. If only it was bolted a bit more sparingly and sympathetically with area and with its history, it would be a great, safe, and a sporting E4.

The Twll Love belay has made Twll love a lot safer, without removing much of its seriousness.

Bolt do have their place on this part of the back wall, Just Not Sport Routes.

Being cross

Don't people talk any more!! Don't people respect an area so steeped in adventure history, and fairly abundant in gear, that they think they can bolt anywhere they like.

Both previous bolting expeditions up the back wall have been characterised by active consultation, consideration and respect for the area. This seemed more like smash and grab.

Its not the first time; Igam Ogam, the Weetabix Connection... yes the routes they spoilt were already established, but the attitudes the same. Selfishness.

Just because its the quarries isn't a carte blanche to do what you like, regardless of what's gone before, and its potential for the future.

The Baron E4 5c,5a,6b,- 125m

1. 40m 5c. Follow Razor's Edge to the first bolt (best to run these first two pitches together now for RE as the belay tree has been dead for many years). Continue straight up to the offwidth bomb-bay chimney (Cam #5). Pull out left to a slab and belay above on a ledge. Thread and cam belay.

2.20m 5a. Follow the seam up to the Twll Love belay, via an amusing hop left over the seam, and a pit of brambles.

3. 45m 6b. Go up the crack until on top of the pedestal, where gear and some tecky fingertip jams allow a lurch onto the jug on the right arete, follow the arete to where it rejoins the crack, gear, and continue up the dolerite band above to belay on a ledge. Once on the arete you have the choice of clipping many bolts.

4. 20m -. Scramble off as for True Finish.

Calum Muskett, Mark Dicken 1/5/15

...So there it is Tick 1 complete.

Tick Report - April

This month, as ever, the focus has mainly been on bouldering. this is mainly a time consideration, however it also means (along with exploration) I don't have to be too honed. Llugwy has been a real eye opener, exploration wise, with acres and acres of crap boulders, I seem to have found some alright ones, The 600m bouldering club is going strong, and may give a substantial tick, given time, replacing Tick 14, which was rubbish.

April also heralded the long awaited return to Cae Dafydd. I was able to bring along Mike Goldthorp, who's a bit strong at the moment, and he liked the place. Although the Koyamada boulder apparently has too few footholds... Or has it.

Llugwy has also given me some more scootering fun. my own scooter now has one of Logan's old fairly decent wheels on the back and I'm keen to see if I can melt that too...

Physio is moving forward, I can lift my legs to 60 degrees whilst lying on my back, and 9 times out of 10 in the morning I can stand on one leg to get dressed. Increased flexibility has meant that the real buggers, the tight little minor muscles, are being exposed so progress but the backs not pain free yet.

However, training is now back on the cards, I've had about 3 months off climbing other than my Monday and Friday morning jaunts, and core training was suspended until we progressed more with my back. Last Monday evening at work I had two sets of clients that wanted to work on upper body and core, this meant 2 sessions of Rings, jumbo campus, and knee-bar sit-ups. Suffice to say Tuesday and Wednesday were achey tummy days...

Enough text, here are some pictures. After my last visit to The Tosheroon (and before core training was resumed) I got an evening pass to visit with the old Team; a broken Ben on spotting duties (bad knee) and Charlotte once again on the camera. Its definitely a "one spotter & no mat" set up, and this worked well enough on this day. Unfortunately once more their were no victory drinks, as I was simply not match fit, maybe one for June. It didn't help that my assessment last visit that the crux was a couple of moves to easy ground was erroneous, The crux section is more like 2m which in offwidth terms is 10 times that many... Must try harder:

Taping up, headtorch and old jacket already deployed

The starting moves. My left hand is still jammed on the chockstone that takes you off the deck, my feet following the juggy initial rail

First jam, first squeeze, first knees. Bens still at the start, no need to spot yet.

Squeeze entered, double knee-bars, and thrutching fists

Turning through the squeeze

Through and getting upright

Time to face the other way...

Mid switch

And rest.... Theres a crux coming!

 I've already covered 4m or so.

Misunderstanding the length of the crux section I kick through

Fail! note the high squirm rail, and the lower flare of the cave, this keeps the climbing up in the rafters

Second attempt, and this is mre like it. Horizontal and leading with jams. However I needed to utilise foot jams more and my core wasn't good enough to hip scum onto the squirm rail. This may be the Key.

Nothing Left

(Me, or Ben it seems)

Next Month, Twll Mawr (today actually), and Llugwy, I think. Although I'd like to get to the Cube if I can get a posse.