Another nice day on't Moors, i decided to spend a couple of hours at a crag shunting. After Sunday Lunch i wandered up to Highcliffe Nab, above Guisborough to check a few lines out.
Stargazer (E3 5c**), is a great little climb but it is generally thought to be difficult to onsight and probably trickier than 5c. However, its 'direct' variant gets E4 6a*** but i have to admit that i've always been skeptical about it's grade, the top looks hard!
I decided i'd just ab down it to 'see'. However, after looked i decided i wasn't going to O/S it so i may as well shunt it first! Starting at Desperate Den Direct (E6 6c*), i made the terribly hard move up to the small crimp, with a bit of a pop i nearly held it but blamed the top rope for unbalancing me! From here i pulled up to the break and quickly made my way up the pitmarks, direct up from the pocket hold on the Stargazer traverse break.
I did the same first move, using the hidden sidepull and 3 finger pocket but reaching up and slightly right to a small, sharp gaston. Using this, i reached through to a deep 1/2 finger pocket and pulled to a similar hold. Foot went into a hold that it didn't feel it would stay in and i made a reach for the break.
Ok - tricky, slightly bold but you wouldn't hit the deck. E4 6a ** i'd say as it wasn't really amazing. However, at the large break where Stargazer finishs up a crack, i was a couple of metres to the right at a 00/0 cam slot. Ok, i thought so just make a move up to...
I pulled around the bulge and quickly fell off. Where the hell to you go from here? I'm on a positive crimp hold with a metre and a bit to the slopy top and grass. I tried to rockover but couldn't i tired to pull on a slopy sidepull thing but that didn't work either...was it too warm? God knows but it's fucking nails! E4 6a** to the break below the bulge... at least 6b to gain the actual top of the wall in my eyes - maybe i missed something?
After this, i cleaned and worked Rockhopper twice. It's a bold move made tamer by a bit of work. It's a crap line and the move is more bold than good but it was worth doing anyway. Scary like defintely felt E3 5b!
I felt pretty happy about this, soloing around and about, doing some of the easy VD's and VS's i'd never done before then soloed Queer Street - which is never enjoyable! I moved the rope over to Moonflower and tried Moonflower proper. Unfortunately i found the SelfBelay made the climbing quite a bit harder than it actually is so i dogged around on Moonflower Direct (E4 6b) which i'd done before and then, without the unbalancing rope soloed the line with the rope hanging. Ethics out the window top rope practicing a line i'd already done, but it was a satisfying solo for me anywho!
I finished by working and soloing another route i'd fancied 'just doing for the hell of it', a route called Scar - E1.
I tackles a short, steep crack and after a work i soloed it. 5c move was good, well protected for leading and quite scary to solo. Grand day out i thought as i quickly packed my gear away before i did anymore solo shitpieces.
However, as i began to walk away from the crag i remembed 'Flower Power' English 6c. It's a traverse of Moonflower wall, so i turned back, shoes and chalk out and searched for holds.
Holds found, i worked a sequence tried it and fell off twice then did it third go. I found the moves quite enjoyable (so it's probably 6b rather than 6c!) but it felt a tad easier than Waylander so it's prbably Font 6b+/6c.
Grand day out - the only other things i got from the day is that Esmerelda(E7 6c**) had chalk on it and looks hard and that Magic In The Air (E5 6b***) is definitely G/U territory with the cams over in Stargazer. Psyched.
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