Quite unbelievable conditions in the Lake District today, almost summer!

I met Ben in Ambleside and we headed into the Langdale valley for an introduction to rock climbing course.

Whilst plenty of time on rock was always on the agenda, Ben was keen to learn more about the mechanics of climbing, the rope-work, anchor selection, belaying, and more. So we interspersed climbing routes with looking in some detail at all these areas.
Still, with warm, dry rock, it was hard not to be drawn to the simple pleasure of moving upwards over steep, rocky things - rock climbing.
And wow Langdale never disappoints, always providing quality climbs, whatever grade takes your fancy. Today we had the crag - Lower Scout Crag - to ourselves, and couldn't see any climbers on either of the upper crags.

Stunning scenery perfectly lit by the low sun made being out in the Lakes today extra special.

About half a dozen routes in the bag before the sun dropped behind Side Pike and we bailed back to the Stickle Barn for the return drive to Ambleside.

Thanks for a grand day out Ben. Hope to see you again soon.

Mark

The photo above shows a climber on one of the big routes on El Penon de Ifach in Calpe. This huge Limestone sea cliff is famous for amazing climbs in the most impressive of positions. What the brochures don't talk about too much is the seriousness of the place and the amount of loose rock, there's loads!
An absolutely brilliant place to climb, let there be no doubt about that, my best days in this area have been on the sea cliffs.
Before going to these places, I find it reassuring to refresh a few basic rescue skills and techniques, to be on top of the game. 

Recently there's been a few articles published on-line regarding self-rescue for climbers. Indeed it's an important subject for any climber, whether leading or seconding and regardless of the grade they may be climbing, mishaps can occur anytime and often when least expected.

It was years into my rock climbing career before I started to think about the 'what ifs' when things go wrong (I wasn't working in the climbing sector back then), why it took me so long i'm not sure, but my best guess is, it isn't something that many climbers bother to consider, and the subject had never arisen. Pretty unbelievable really. And when I did start to question people about the techniques for getting out of trouble, knowledge was sadly lacking. We're talking here about climbers who were frequently operating on sea cliffs and big mountain crags, so self rescue skills to some degree are essential rather than optional.

Thankfully over the years a selection of skills courses and self learning has left me in a far better position these days. Mostly though, what I discovered is that only a few quite simple techniques are required and these can be applied to a variety of situations (like many of life skills).

Rule 1: always make sure to keep yourself safe when going to help others
Rule 2: calling for help is always a good idea. If you can then do so immediately
Rule 3: Think simple. What's the simplest solution to the mess you're in. Simple = quicker = more efficient = probable better outcome :-)
Rule 4: Devote some of your climbing time (yes it's precious, but so is life) to learning & practicing a few simple techniques

The photos below show:
1: a tied off belay device. Quick and easy to learn, useful to know
2: set up for an un-assisted hoist - useful if you need to haul your 2nd up to the belay ledge or passed a tricky move
3: counter-balance abseil in the process of being set up. Useful as a means of descent to an injured 2nd

The 3rd photo showing the counter-balance abseil being set up is a technique at the forefront of my mind at the moment. Only a few weeks ago, whilst on a multi-pitch route, the leader inadvertently dislodged a large block. I heard the shout from above 'BELOW' and moved accordingly, the block missing me be only a few feet, phew!
A counter-balance abseil being the next step, should I have been injured and unable to continue. A sobering thought. Thankfully, I was climbing with a knowledgeable partner that day, so know the right steps would have been taken.  


How to learn these skills:
Study a relevant book;
Ask friends whom you climb with, they may be able to help;
Practice these techniques in a safe place, with a back up rope if necessary;
Book onto a self-rescue for climbers course - we can arrange these in the Lake District; Snowdonia; Peak District; and Costa Blanca areas
 

Last minute work today. A guided walk to on the Coniston range.

I met with Michelle & Justin who were staying at the Yewfield B&B near Hawkshead. A delightfully positioned B&B which got the thumbs up and certainly appeared to be a well appointed place.

Michelle, a yoga teacher and founder of: www.adventureyogi.com was here in preparation for weekend retreats she will be arranging in the Lake District next year. Click on the link to check out her website.

We began our walk at the Walna Scar road, high above the village of Coniston. Initial footpaths to Low Water are fairly gentle and this gave us a warm up prior to the steeper slopes that lead on to the summit of Coniston Old Man.

Cloud level was around 900m but steadily dropping and as we left Low Water the summit was already shrouded in cloud, so sadly views from the top were limited. However, this does add to the atmosphere of the day and appreciate the views even more when they decide to return.

Descending to Goat's Hause, the wind suddenly increased significantly and the cloud began to lift to create dramatic views of Dow Crag, Harter Fell, and the Scafell range. A feast for the eyes for sure.

We discussed route choices from here and it was decided we would descend to Goat's Water for our return to Walna Scar.

Thanks to Michelle & Justin, a pleasure to meet you both.

Mark

A visit to Manchester this week to see family & friends. But as usual, the climbing kit was packed just in case a few hours cragging fitted in.

Colin, who is responsible for introducing me to rock climbing, was keen for a few hours cragging at Windgather rocks on the edge of the Peak District. So we headed out in reasonable weather to an empty crag, bonus :-)

The wind was howling up there, but the rock dry and the views as splendid as ever.

We geared up quickly and I checked with Colin he had all the correct gear before I set off to lead the first route. Harness, helmet, warm coat & gloves were all yes's. Belay plate? Oh now where have I put that came the reply! Left it at home no doubt. However, Colin has been climbing for so long now, he was brought up on the waist belay. As I felt totally happy about the routes we were climbing, we continued and a waist belay employed. This is the first time I had seen this method used for a lead climber, and was suitably impressed by the speed and efficiency of it. Of course Colin is an old hand with such a skill so no need to be worried, in fact the system gave me more confidence than more modern methods, in some cases at least.

To give a little background to this. Windgather was the first place I tried out rock climbing (it is a perfect venue to take beginners) and it was Colin who was then providing me with a waist belay, albeit I was a 2nd on that occasion so on the safer end of the rope. I still look back to those days and draw from the experience they provided. Seeing Colin at the top of the crag sat in a grassy hollow and not actually attached to anything whilst providing me with a belay. I was falling off quite a bit and that's good proof the method works well, but like with most things, only works well when employed in the correct manner. And certainly it's an area to be extremely cautious of, that of not being attached to anchors whilst belaying. Thankfully Colin knew exactly how to use these skills to best effect.
Whilst the waist belay is no longer (or at least very rarely) used in rock climbing, it is still used on scrambling terrain and can provide an excellent and very quick way of providing additional security to a fellow scrambler. So a skill well worth learning.

Wanting to keep the 'old school' theme alive I decided to revert to old fashioned rope work on a couple of occasions, so instead of tying back the rope to my harness with clove hitches, used tied off half-hitches directly to the belay loop. This may have been the first time i'd done this, as a clove hitch is quicker and less cumbersome. But this set up certainly felt nice and secure and if nothing else, added a sense of nostalgia to this memory lane outing.

We climbed about 8 routes before the rain came. Neil arriving just prior to the rain - maybe he fetched it with him?!

We duly retreated back to Neil's place in Whaley Bridge for tea and biscuits, thanks Neil :-)

Shame the rain came when it did, but hey ho, still a grand day out on rock.

Maybe some of the skills we used, or indeed some more up-to-date techniques are of interest and you'd like to learn more.

Please feel free to get in touch. We provide skills courses and guided climbing / scrambling days in the Lake District,  Snowdonia, and The Peak District. During December & January we run similar rock climbing & scrambling courses out in Costa Blanca, Spain.

And we promise never to forget the belay device!

Having only just returned from 25C heat in Spain, it was quite an awakening to be back out in the Langdales on Saturday.
Julie had bought one of our Gift Vouchers for friends Julie & Stuart, and after a false start earlier in the year, here we were for a day out amongst the magnificent Langdale Pikes.

The weather was being a little unkind, but nothing too dramatic, just a touch of cloud and a splash of rain. We set off from the Stickle Barn car park and headed for Stickle Tarn, our first stop and time to catch our breath, have a bite to eat and make an onward plan.

Low visibility at the tarn made for atmospheric conditions. It was decided to aim straight for Harrison Stickle, the highest of the Langdale Pikes. The ascent was quick and easy, everyone making rapid progress on the well maintained and occasionally steep path. The summit was breezy but quiet, in fact we were the only people around. Wind chill meant this was not a place to linger, so we made haste for the top of the Dungeon Ghyll. Having followed the rightmost path to the stream, I decided to continue onto Loft Crag and backtrack to our descent route from there. On a clear day the views from around here are spectacular, with parts of the mighty Gimmer crag revealing themselves for the eyes delight. Alas, today our visibility was mostly less than 20 metres!

Prior to our descent we passed near to the Neolithic axe working area. To think folk were 'commuting' to here thousands of years ago, incredible and humbling.

Having ticked the summits of both Harrison Stickle & Loft Crag, we returned to the valley a little damper than when we set off, but pleased with our day. The weather had kept the masses away, leaving solitude to be enjoyed that little bit more.

Thanks to Julie, Graham, and Stuart. A pleasure to meet you all and we hope to see you all again before too long.

I've been having a go at getting back into fell running. It's been a while since I took this seriously, so am taking it easy at the moment.
So far the runs have been a success. Today I built on that and went for a run on Cauldale Moor to Stoney Cove Pike. The weather was 'Cumbrian' so couldn't really see much! The terrain is actually pretty friendly, although boggy in places, but stones are in place for the worst sections, so no swimming required!
 
It felt great to be moving fluidly in the mountains, covering distance quickly is so satisfying. Don came with me too, he's a complete natural of course and maybe wondered what all the fuss was about and why I might be out of breath and still going so slow!!