Trad, bouldering, sport. Three very different facets of the activity of climbing. And yet sometimes they fall so very close to one another. Like three adjacent sides of a cube, each distinct and separate and yet all meet at a point.
Earlier this week I went to Stronstrey to try a couple of possibly unclimbed lines with G-lah. Top-roping, working the moves like a sport route, but there only short so bouldering on a rope, but then on the sharp end it would definitely be bold trad. I'm not at the sharp end at this time, but with more work... Turning the trad into a sport boulder problem??
This morning was an early start, a very early start. To the Nook where a kindly soul had rebolted Lockless. Sadly climbing chums tend to be thin on the ground at half-seven Sunday morning so only Bammers had to suffer witness of my flailings. I conspired to work my way up Lockless on the shiny new bolts in a bizarre improvised self-belay system of dubious safety. The route is very short, very much a boulder problem, and it consists of a couple of slappy moves that I wanted to wire. So I got them sorted and then checked the top was steady away. Now what to do? I can climb the route, conditions are good, I feel pretty fresh considering the early hour. Hmmm... In the end this route is a boulder problem, so a solo is viable. I stick the mat at the bottom and solo up dragging a rope behind to lower off. A bit bo(u)lder than clipping the bolts, but also easier and quicker. A trade off that I'm comfortable with.
Then I bouldered out Theorea start, but it's pretty dirty and I can't be bothered messing around with the rope anymore so I trundle over to Dog Dinner Buttress for a brief dabble on the uber traverse before heading out past the arriving masses at the Cornice. Bammers has a bit of a mental on the way out and starts barking at some incoming sportsters, apologies if that was you.
South Snowdonia Bouldering Videos
5 months ago
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