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Mountaineering day on Ponoch

19/2/2020

The huge face of Ponoch

After a day of single pitch lead climbing yesterday, Jo & Michelle were keen for bigger adventures today. So we headed to the mighty Ponoch (Monte Ponoig) to sample the via ferrata there.

Despite the weather looking slightly unsettled, the car park was fairly busy and one other team had the same objective in mind.

We set off at quite a pace, so gained height and the base of the route very rapidly. After a briefing on kit usage and safety procedures, we set off up the 'iron way'. It is steep and unrelenting from the start, but with good technique there is no need for this to feel overly strenuous.
We soon gained ground over the other team, so was nice for all to have plenty of space. Lots of photo time for Michelle.

Our aim had been to then continue from the top to include the brilliant scramble on to the summit plateau. Alas, rain and thick cloud put a dampener on this and we called it a day. Making our way over to the abseil stations. Stacked abseils all the way for added safety, we whizzed back down to base. Lunch under these awesome walls before a gentle walk back to base.
After tea and coffee back at base, it was back out for some late afternoon sunshine. Trail running this time. Just a short one at about 6km, but enough given what we had already achieved.

A grand day out, thanks to Jo & Michelle.

Mark

About to set off on the Via Ferrata (photo courtesy of Michelle)

A short traverse section part way up

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Mountaineering day on Puig Campana: Aristoteles & Pepsi Crest

12/2/2020

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Late afternoon shadows and moonrise

Last week we had another fun adventure on the mighty Puig Campana. Climbing any route on here is Going to feel big and take a while, most likely all day. We decided to string together two routes and have a bit of an explore of the mountain whilst we were there.
The walls here are big, no, massive. What Costa Blanca is so well known for is the excellent and varied 'Sport climbing'. Venture away from these easy access and well bolted venues and walk up into the mountains to see a whole different perspective. The Costa Blanca has so much more on offer, and those willing to dust off the trad gear are in for a treat.

We have climbed on most of the big mountains in the region, but it is Puig Campana which keeps drawing us back. Maybe it is the iconic look and feel of it, as a mountain should be. Or maybe the juxtaposition with Benidorm, which is quite surreal. Could it just be the top quality climbing and strong natural lines. Most likely it's a bit of all these. Anyway, we love the place.

Having climbed 'Aristoteles' a few times now and always enjoying it, I was keen to extend the climbing and find a better descent than that offered by 'Aristoteles'. So me and Neil set off to link this route with 'The Pepsi Crest' which is another 4 pitches at about the same grade, so think UK Hard Severe but with a few bolts / tat here and there.

We climbed Aristoteles quickly and efficiently, in maybe only 7 very long pitches. Neil Kindly showed me a harder variation pitch from the halfway ledge. This proved to be a wonderful pitch and well worth doing. After a short abseil into the descent notch at t he top of Aristoteles, Neil led the initial pitch of Pepsi Crest. The route was marked with threads so easy to find our way. This pitch gave about 20m of good climbing then a scramble/walk led to a bolted belay.
The next pitch wandered around rather too much, so I cursed the rope drag! But did include a sensational climb on a very narrow arete. Neil led through and up to a spacious belay which was bolted.
A few more metres of climbing remained and I led this, again up a narrow arete leading to a pine tree at the top of a small gully. Neil then took the ropes around and up to the top of the huge pinnacle to finish things off on a high. This was now over scrambling terrain, although it was certainly easier to stay roped for it.

The views and exposure were pretty special, with sheer walls heading down into the descent gully and the massive South-West face towering over us. Wow this is a big mountain!!
A bolted abseil station at the top of the gully led us into rather bushy territory and a further abseil brought us safely to ground level. Walking and easy scrambling was all that remained, as well as plenty of looking around to scope out future adventures on these mega walls.

Aristoteles is a really good first big mountain route as it offers an easy escape half way up. So if time is running short it is easy to run away. With 2x60m ropes the abseil descent is straightforward too. Adding The Pepsi Crest is another matter. Route finding is a little more tricky, the rock is generally less solid, and the abseil descent has the potential to give plenty of problems.

We climbed about 470m in total, so a fairly long way. On the route for about 5 hours, add in approach and descent brought the total time to around 8 hours or thereabouts. This was taking it easy, but we also had the advantage of knowing the initial 370m pretty well.

Big thanks to Neil for joining me on this adventure.

Mark

Neil arriving at the top of Aristoteles

The rather dramatic descent gully

The final scramble back to base. Part of our route forms the skyline

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Sea cliffs in the sun - Costa Blanca

2/2/2020

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The middle pitch of the ultra classic Parle 6a+

On Thursday I as showing Wayne around the fantastic sea cliffs of Sierra de Toix.
Best known for lots of fine and easy access low - mid grade climbing, Toix is situated on the outskirts of Calpe. We know the crags there really well, having visited many many times. For those in search of more adventure, a walk under the main crags and down to the sea cliffs are in order. That is what Wayne was looking for today, and not one but two of these magnificent routes.

I predicted Parle would offer us more morning shade so despite this being a much more difficult route, we started with that.
The abseil into these climbs is for many the most memorable part of the day, each time I look at the Parle abseil I see why. It's crazy!!
Wayne took this in his stride, and once he was back in the swing of abseiling on a GriGri came down super smooth. We alternate led the route, with Wayne taking 2 pitches while I just led the middle pitch. I don't know how long we took, but not long.
After lunch we walked the very short way to reach the abseil for Magical Mystery Tour and Candelabra Del Sol. Another wild abseil onto ledges above the sea. There was already an abseil rope in place, but this had not been properly equalised so we set up our own using 3 bolt anchors.
After the initial scrambling we climbed the route in 3 pitches, all of which are bolted these days. The belay ledges were sociable as we kept meeting up with a couple of friendly climbers from Benidorm. It was noticeably hotter on this route and we were glad of the easier climbing and even happier to emerge back at the top where cool drinks and comfy shoes waited for us.

Both these routes make for a fantastic day out as does doing them during a single visit. Both a in very atmospheric settings and offer wonderful climbing on excellent quality rock. Both are extremely exposed though, so if that isn't your thing, it would be worth getting more used to exposure prior to a visit.

These are bolted routes, just don't expect a bolt every couple of metres, the well spaced bolts make sure the adventure element is well and truly retained.

Locating the abseil stations are probably the most difficult part of climbing on a sea cliff. These ones are relatively straightforward to find, but can still give some confusion. If considering having a go at these routes but feeling unsure about route-finding / logistics, why not hire a guide for the day. We know these and many more routes really well, will deal with rope management and setting up the abseils, leaving you to simply enjoy the journey.

Thanks to Wayne for the climbing and to all those reading :-)

Mark

#magical-mystery-tour-costa-blanca-spain

Cruising up Magical Mystery Tour on the Toix sea cliffs

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Bernia Ridge traverse

1/2/2020

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Enjoying some airy scrambling on. the Bernia

Storm Gloria has disappeared and the sun has made a welcome return. Temperatures are soaring and winds light. Near perfect conditions for a traverse of the Bernia ridge.
Last winter Wayne had booked to do this with us, but conditions didn't come good on the days we were both available. So rather than just going for it on a 'so so' day, we waited until yesterday. The wait was well worth it.

The whole ridge to ourselves, didn't even see any Goats this time. Dry rock, far reaching views inland as far as the Sierra Mariola and Serrella, and across the sea to Ibiza. About as good as it gets then.

We moved swiftly without any rushing. Without a cloud in sight there was no reason to be rushing anywhere, this is to be savoured, and we did. As Wayne is an extremely competent sport climber, projecting routes in the mid 7's we only used the rope for the abseils and 1 pitched section, all else was soloed.
Some may be wandering why such a competent climber would hire a guide for a relatively easy route? There are plenty of reasons, here are a few:
Route finding; reduced stress; help with kit prep; timings.

This is mountaineering after all and a world away from single pitch sport climbing. Mountains have loose rock in abundance and knowing the difference between solid and loose is pretty crucial on exposed mountain terrain.
Benightments are all too common in this area and usually avoidable. Poor prep, lack of planning, and inefficiency are usually the cause. A guide will hugely reduce the risk of this by having a well thought out plan and being efficient.

If thinking of bigger objectives during a visit to Costa Blanca and feeling a little unsure. Get in touch. We'll do our best to help and are very happy to simply share information if that's what you want. If wanting to hire a guide for the day, we can arrange that too.

After a fantastic time up on the ridge, we were back down at the road by 3pm.

Thanks for reading

Mark

At the start of the ridge

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Mountaineering day on Ponoch

Mountaineering day on Puig Campana: Aristoteles & Pepsi Crest

Sea cliffs in the sun - Costa Blanca

Bernia Ridge traverse

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