scarce, and I was rather glad to reach the belay on the Chimney Crack route; Andrew said our variation felt like Hard Severe. As the boys came up, it started to rain, and I contemplated finishing up Chimney Crack. However, the moment of weakness passed and we finished the route proper.
Iain and I went for a big ridge along the Carneddau, following a recommendation from Clare to incorporate some scrambling at the beginning. It was a superb long ridge walk with rime ice forming on the tops and some big gullies still jam-packed with snow. It wouldn’t have taken much to be “in” for winter climbing.
To finish the day, Andrew led Mossy Slab (S 4a) just as John and Adam arrived from their day out on Tryfan proper. While Iain and I waited for Andrew to build the belay, the rain started, and we had a truly miserable top out. John and Adam didn’t even wait for us to finish the route, but left us to soak on the ledge and headed for the warm, dry car. Dinner was in Pete’s Eats: fish and chips, but the guys on the next table looked to be having a fantastic burger, which sowed the seed of an idea for tomorrow’s dinner.
Andrew and Adam headed out to climb something near “Clogwyn Y Bastard”(?).
Lucian had a day out with the old guys (Gary and Dave) at Tremadog where they did some classics including Poor Man's Peuterey (S **) and Valerie's Rib (HS **). Richard, Sarah, Eva and Bryn headed for the sea at Gogarth. North West Passage (E1 5b **) at Gogarth got done, although Dream of White Horses (HVS 4c ***)was apparently great despite them going off route a bit, scaring Sarah silly on the traverse and finishing up Wen (HVS 5a **) to maintain a clean sheet on the crying girls front! Pete, Mike and Clare headed for the cold of the Llanberis pass and had success on Wrinkle (VD), Skylon (HS), Crackstone Rib (S 4a) and finished in the rain on Ribstone Crack (VS 4c). Sunday Breakfast for some was in Pete’s Eats, which was fast becoming established as the most-frequented attraction in Snowdonia. As Clare was preparing for her navigation test, we dropped her at Plas y Brenin and she spent the day wandering around the woods, eventually heading up onto the hills. NMC County Climber
As the geriatric team had been to Tremadog yesterday, they planned an ambitious link up on the Idwal Slabs in Ogwen. It was to be Tennis Shoe (HS 4a), Lazarus (HS 4a) and then something else to finish but following the walk in to a busy Idwal Slabs and a very slow party of three on the first route, it was discovered that Gary had forgotten his shoes, so a retreat to the Deniolen hut was made to retrieve them, hence a second visit to Tremadog was made as it was too embarrassing to go back to Idwal! They had fun on Craig Dhu Wall (HS 4b ***) and Christmas Curry (HS 4b ***), but had to back-off one of the climbs following a scary foot traverse! Richard, Eva, Sarah and Bryn also climbed at Tremadog along with Pete and Mike who enjoyed Poor Man's Peutery (S), Grim Wall (VS 4c) and Christmas Curry/Micah Eliminate (HS 4b). John and Lucian headed for the Pass, we had arranged to meet them at the pub at the top of The Pass later, but found the pub wasn’t serving food so we went down to Pete's Eats and left them to their own devices. John and Lucian hitched back from the Pass, and in Deniolan got into discussion with the locals who extended a welcome to Lucian to come and live in the area, but John, as an Englishman, was “not welcome.” I’m not sure the locals knew what they would have been letting themselves in for! Dinner was in Pete’s Eats, and I had the burger I’d been eyeing up the day before. It hit the spot.
June 2010
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