Wednesday 10 June 2009

Another King line...

Blair 5 metres in to the big traverse project, just 25 to go. (click the pic for a big version)


After I bagged the E8 Donald King pointed me at the other night, I gave Donald a bell to say thanks for the tip off. Always a man for knowing what’s out there, yet seemingly right under our nose, he came back with another recommendation to look at.


This time spoke about a long limestone crag with potential for a very hard and long traverse along the overhanging base, again something that might ‘have my name on it’. A limestone crag, with good friction, with a 30-40 metre overhanging traverse project that might stay dry in the rain, half an hour from Fort William??? If it had been anyone else I would have told them to pull the other one.


But it wasn’t. So today Blair and myself went to check things out. It was even better than I expected! I spent four hours working out the moves on the massive rising traverse, often on big burly undercuts with absorbing technical but really powerful climbing. Brilliant stuff. By the time I’d made several short links along it, I was ready to lie down and sleep in the evening sun.


I think this one will come in about route grade 8c or 8c+. Every time I tried to link I was thinking more 8c+. There’s my endurance training through the rest of June right there!


I’ll keep you posted on progress.


Thanks again Donald, thats two pints I owe you.

2 comments:

  1. So, hard straight ups to be had too?

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  2. Bizarrely enough, not really. Sky Pilot is still the place for hard straight up projects.

    ReplyDelete