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Monday 28 August 2017

Froggatt Edge - Hairpin and Pinnacle Boulders

Two days in a row climbing in the peaks? It must be summer!  Amazingly we had a bank holiday weekend with fine weather every day so despite the cocktails last night we decided to go climbing again - Andy and Ceri couldn't make it yesterday so wanted to get out and it didn't take Liz and Kelly much convincing to join us.  QWe were looking for somewhere for Ceri to get back in to climbing after injury, so it was a toss up between Stanage Plantation and Pinnacle Boulders at Froggatt and Pinnacle won - mainly because of the fear of Stanage midges.

Once parked up we started the walk in, and decided to warm up on Hairpin Boulder as it is so close to the parking.  As usually happens when we get to this block I mange to climb the easy problems - Hairpin Scoop, Hairpin Arete and Flake Problem - before trying and failing on something harder.  This time it was Crash Test, not much harder but a sit start and I just could not make it work. Still, I wasn't going to beat myself up over it as there was plenty more to climb, and we walked on to the Pinnacle Boulders proper.


Plenty of fun here - some nice warm up material on Pooh Bear and Teddy, then the significantly harder Teddy with a sit start which took me a while as sit starts really are not my thing (I know, I need to work on them) and then a nicer climb on Pick Pocket.  I tried and failed to start on (Ahem) Starter Motor so went on to try Areet - I got to the top and then bailed, realising when I got down that for the easier grade I should have broken left to finish, but also I had missed the sit start. I couldn't face trying it again...


I went back to join Liz round the back for some light relief on Bear Pooh, Rupert Bear and Bare Rupert, then news came back that Andy and Kelly had cracked Starter Motor so I went to steal beta and watch them trying Areet.  While they tried I practised my sit starts on Baby Bear which is a great little problem for precisely this purpose, and Liz successfully topped it too. Back on to Starter Motor and it all clicked, I was up.  Andy and Kelly were trying Northerner now and I spent a while working it with them, I got as close as any of us did - reaching a ledge we think you need to mantle, but on my best attempt I bailed right and finished on Teddy, so I'm calling this climb "Northern Bear". None of us finished it, but on a cooler day it might go.


From here we moved up a few boulders, Flatulence refusing to go for me (!!!) and Air Bear was it's typical inelegant self.  I did the not particularly tricky Mini Mantel before stopping for a rest and really failing to get going again, I looked at some of the other problems on Air Bear but couldn't bring myself to try them so napped in the sun with Liz and Ceri while Andy and Kelly finished up some more climbs.  Soon it was time to head to the pub for a couple of pints and then home after another successful day out.  The next time we climb outdoors may well be in France, it's not long now!

Today's Logbook

Sunday 27 August 2017

Robin Hood's Stride

It was a bank holiday weekend, there were no plans, and the weather was fine.  We'd been talking idly for a while about trying some crags away from our usual stomping ground, and Cratcliffe was one we'd highlighted as it is a bit of a different setting, with jumbles of boulders in amongst trees - almost reminiscent of Fontainebleau.  With others in our group having things on it ended up being Liz, Kelly and I making the 1hr journey down past Bakewell, and parking up for a short walk in.


We followed the Limestone Way until we could see Dorsal Fin, and walked over to Green Boulder before dropping down to The Lower Boulders. Joy of Ledge and Joy of Noledge went quickly, but Flake Slab and Flake Slab Arete seemingly had no joy in them and as we were warming up still we moved on and tackled The Arch, T Slab and T Slab Arete - a few non commital attempts at Arch Direct and we decided that the description of "A desperate static move" was not very enticing, so wandered back up to Green Boulder and paused for a bit of lunch.


Kelly and I decided to take on Short Arete, and after a bit of cleaning and a bit of effort Kelly got up it, but I just could not get comfortable enough on my feet to enjoy it.  I am currently climbing in either a pair of Evolv Shaman II which need resoling but it'll have to wait until after Font now, or an utterly destroyed pair of Five Ten Anasazi's - the Shamans are miles better where I need good feet but I am saving them for Font in a few weeks at the moment - currently on the lookout for another pair of Anasazis to tide me over as I'm all too aware I could destroy the Shamens if I am not careful.

From here we moved on to Dorsal Fin which was a really nice bit of rock, we soon sent Dorsal Arete, JT and JT Crack and then Vandals went soon after - so named I assumed after some fairly terrible behaviour several years ago. Potty Time really wasn't worth the effort required to send it (but we did anyway) and Flipper / Flipper arete were frankly terrifying.  I'd have tried harder on Flipper Arete were it not for the fact the landing was terrible - a huge lump of rock behind you just where you would fall.


After this we headed to the Main Edge and Muscle Slab.  Kelly got up it with it's interesting mix of slab and overhang, but I again suffered a lack of foot confidence and bottled it despite having cracked the first big move eventually.  From here we headed to The Square Block and some nice slab/mantle practice, finishing up on Angle Arete before it was time to head home for a barbecue.  We will be back to Cratcliffe, plenty to explore on the main crag which we never even got near. For now though it's time to wash the sunscreen off and fins some meat to grill :)

Logbook for the day