First lead! Climbing at Trevor

Last weekend (first bank holiday of 2010) was a bit rubbish :( I had planned to run the South Wales Three Peaks Trial but lack of organisation meant it wasn't too be.  I went bouldering Saturday and as the night went on I got pain in my hips and back again which wrote the Sunday and Monday off.  Since then I've been doing a lot of stretching, coupled with a massage or two from Katie and I was back out running again by midweek, one of which had Katie chasing me on her mountain bike :)  While I was hurting I got myself some Inov8 Mudroc 280 fell trainers so I am busting to get out in them!  There are are a few sites coming up on the Mercia Fell Runners site including the Wrekin Streak albeit short and detracting from my goals of mountain marathons and beyond.

This weekend I was busting to get out and do some climbing or failing that fell running but my normal climbing partner Chris is building an extension and therefore a bit tied up so I wasn't hopeful.  I put a post on the WMC bulletin board and Sunday morning I got a message from Perry and it was game on!  I had wanted to do some multi pitch stuff in Ogwen but given how late it was we head for Trevor for my first attempt at bolted climbing.  When we got to the crag Stewie was there with a friend.  I didn't manage to get any photos of me, but there are some of Stewie and his partner and Perry.  We started on Suspect Wall with Prime Suspect (F4) first before moving onto Innocence (F5) the adjacent climb to the right.  We then walked down the crag to Impact Wall.  I had a go at No Evasion (F5) which I started skirting up using the flake on the right.  I couldn't reach the bolt (which is very high for a first bolt!) and under the roof was wet and shitty so I bottled it and down climbed around the flake.  I then had a go at Sudden Impact (F4 in the Rockfax but F5 on UKC) which was nice, no positive holds but they kept coming!  Anyhow I then moved back to Suspect wall and tried Cluedo (F5+) but could only get the first low bolt because it was ridiculously polished.  I think F5+ might not be valid anymore.  I finished up on Forensic Science (F5) a cracking last route.

Stewie's mate on Innocence (F5)

Perry on Sudden Impact (F5)

Perry did a couple of climbs I didn't even attempt, one was Impact Imminent (F6b) and before that a F6b whose name I can't remember - both much harder than anything I can do!  The first climb (unnamed one) seemed harder pulls and Impact Imminent was more more fingery.  As you can see from the sky on the photo of Perry above it was a beautiful day and what a view from the crag!  An excellent day :) 


It's also suddenly dawned on me that the Alps are beckoning so its getting about time to start making plans!