Getting in some flight time

June 15, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

15th June 2013

Ariege – Auzat
Secteur Principal

Tomio – 4 – Second
Roxanne – 5+ – Second
Dure Limite – 6b – Lead (dgg’d)
Chippie – 5+ – Second
Grimsel – 6a – Second
Bassine – 5+ – Lead
La Sabine – 5+ – Second

This was to be a final busy day climbing. We returned to Auzat, a favorite of ours over the trip, but this time to the main sector.

I had it in my mind that this would be the day I tried an 6b and so it turned out. After a getting warmed up on a couple of routes we ended up at the base of a fierce looking crack. With my confidence high I set about tackling the first section which went well until the traverse. This stopped me in my tracks and despite trying to force myself through it by shear will power I couldnt get it wired.

Chris stepped up and made the move that I had struggled on so badly only to come unglued at about 2/3’s height through the shear strenuousness of the route. However he got himself back on and finished the route for a great first 6b for the team.

Tom after initially struggling on the same move as I had, then proceeded to climb the route which left me in a real dilemma. I needed to lead it again… despite being a bit bollox’d. So once again I set off to tackle the crux moves, which laughed at me as I peeled off, level with the second bolt having run out of steam. The fall was exciting to say the least, with me finishing a few feet off the ground and Chris having to work hard to catch me. (Many thanks Chris).

Me after finally getting through the crux

By this time I was seeing red and I’d decided I was going to get this done if it was the last thing I did… which was a possibility if I kept taking falls like that. Reaching the same point as I had previously I moved a few feet higher so I could lock out on a good juggy hold and clip the second bolt to my relief. Yee haaa… at last. Mind you the effort of getting here meant I had little left for the remainder which I unashamedly dogged all the way to the top. Sometimes its the finishing that counts, not the way you do it. Elegant I was not!!!

The three remaining climbs of the day were all crackers. They are all on the same face and all given loads of stars and quite rightly. Each has its own character but all are challenging. Tom’s final lead on Sabine (probably the best of the three) was a job well done and probably his toughest lead of the trip.

So with everyone absolutely spent we returned to Tarascon for a final Leffe in the beer garden and a chat with two travellers heading for a party in Spain. Cool road trip.

I think we will be back to Ariege next year. There is so much climbing, and the area so beautiful it will be hard to resist. Next time it will be with Dave so that he too can experience the beer and cheese.

La Sabine, probably the best route on this section of cliff.

Climbing

Crash Test Chris

June 14, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

14th June 2013

Baychon

Le Bon Sens – 6a – Lead
Mehare – 5+ Second
Pussicat – 6a – Lead
Oriane – 6a – Second
La Vista – 5+ – Lead

You would think that this trip just consisted of getting up and climbing. On the contrary, we had a number of routines which became part of this extended climbing trip.

Mornings were not early. We knew they should b,e but we couldnt roust ourselves that well and so a leisurely breakfast and ubiquitous cup of coffee sorted us out for the short but beautiful drive down to Tarascon. Aston is a really sleepy village and nothing seemed worth rushing for when you’re there. A quick stop at the patisserie for Pain aux raisin’s and then off to the crag. On this day we were in for a treat.

Baychon is probably my favorite venue in Ariege. Set away from the crowds in an idil valley above a small Hamlet it has a real feeling of remoteness and solitude. Getting there isnt a problem unless you have a Chris with you. Then you have to contend with reversing out of a tiny hamlet which you should never have gone to in the first place. Chris needs to read more than one line at a time. Then the clearly marked ‘DO NOT DRIVE INTO THE HAMLET’ may have been on his mind.

There is though very good parking just across the road which made things easier and once again we were the only ones at the crag.

Le Bon Sens is a very cruxy 6a. The climbing is straight forward until you reach the slightly overhanging thin corner crack. You need to tackle this with conviction in order to make the jugs higher up. Once through here there is a technical corner but its all in the one move really. Pussicat was a far better 6a. Much more challenging with a very thin move onto the upper slab where friction is your friend.

Pussicat - not quite. — Pussicat – not quite.

Chris took on the devious Mehare, which has a step up that took me ages to figure out. It’s completely off balance and at no point did I feel in control. Great fun! Oriane proved to be Chris’ undoing on this day.

Too many long and tiring days probably contributed but Chris came off a couple of times, both at very unexpected points and probably due to a lack of concentration. I think by this time we were all feeling the heat and after one final route called La Vista, which was confusing, we made tracks back for an early supper (after our traditional Leffe at the hotel of course).

The river kept rising cos of the meltwater. Kayakers dream

In the evening we set off on a walk through the woods up the valley. The river produces a wierd effect. The air surrounding it is freezing, but either side it was boiling. Just goes to show how cold the meltwater was. The woods turned out to be a great walk. By time we returned it was pitch black and very spooky.

Clearly this trail is an old shepherds trail, with now unused field systems either side. It gives an insight into times long gone in the area. All we needed was Bears and Wolves and strangely enough……………….

Early morning mist before the heat really set in.

Hot and Sunny climbing – you cant beat it.

Climbing

Cheesed Off…. Literally!

June 13, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

13th June 2013

Calames
Sector Le Col and Presse Puree

Kecsecsa – 6a – Lead (partly dogged)
Le Goujon de Plus – 5 – Second
Lichen – 6a+ – Second

OK. Lets get this straight. When you go on a climbing trip where you’re burning calories by the trillion you should loose weight not gain it. However, if your continental diet consists mainly of Bread and rich French cheeses then this may not be the case.

Tarascon with Roche Ronde and Calames in the background

Our diet included masses of the said French cheese and lunches were to be savoured with fresh fruit and bread accompanied by Brie, Camenbert, Emmental and a hard cheese that I cant remember but which was lovely.

So having returned to England following the trip it was no suprise to learn that both Chris and Tom had managed to put weight on!!! It must have been a close call though given the amount of sweat and effort we put in over the duration. On this day we returned to Calames as storms were predicted for the afternoon and we wanted somewhere easy to get into. Strange then that we headed for the highest and furthest point away from the car park.

I had returned to try the 6a bolt on flake route called Kecsecsa. This proved to be my favorite route of the whole trip. Despite twisting my rope around a draw I found this one challenging but OK. A great overhang followed by amazing slab climbing in real exposure. Terrific.

Chris picked a hard 6a+ to cut his teeth on and despite early setbacks did brilliantly to get through and reach the top. He gave me a bit of catching practice but got through what was a bold section near the start (I never like that as you always think you might deck)

Toms lead at Le Colon Le Goujon de Plus was a strange one bending around a cave entrance and needing clever footwork. This one is a lot harder than it looks and when Tom found a Krab (he’s been hunting for free be’s) he thought his luck was in. Unfortunately it had been left there because the in situ malion was in bad repair. Better luck next time Tom.

The Griffon Vulture had disappeared later in the day to be replaced by ominous thunder clouds which duly did their thing scaring us to death. It’s no fun carying a sack of mettle gear in a lightning storm.

Joe, here's a roofing job for you! — Joe, here’s a roofing job for you!

The day was finished with Pizza in Tarascon at a Restaurant by the river where we watch the strange small dipper type birds dive into the fast flowing water. How they dont drown I dont know. Our cheese fest finally hit an all time high on this day as Chris and I had cheese Pizza and realised we’d OD’d. Maybe it was time to back off, but I doubt it.

OOhh Your tight german shorts izz so manly Ya

Climbing

Mountain Bells

June 12, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

12th June 2013

Roche Ronde

Entre Chat – 5 , 5+ -Alt Lead
Cotton Club – 5+ – Second
Netoyage de Printemps – 5+ – Lead
Konslediz – 5+ – Second

This was slightly different from our last visit. Previously rain, this time bright sunshine and very hot. This remarkable outcrop was pretty quiet on this day, but I could image with the convenient parking it could get busy. Possibly the strenuous walk up to the crag might put a few off, that and the dodgy approach – one is polished and scary, the other steep and scary. Take your pick.

Roche Ronde is fairly vegetated, with detracts slightly from its routes and despite appearances is probably not as steep as some of the crags. But it has its charms, chief of which is the spectacular view down into the valley with the small nestled villages and the sound of church bells echoing up to our terrace. Its a venue to savour and relax at – except of course we were there to climb.

One of many villages nestled in the valley

Another couple were on the routes we had singled out so we started on a two pitcher which turned out to be a bit overgrown. A shame really becasue Entre Chat couldbe a good route but in this condition it is just hard work.

Entre Chat with the impressive Roche Ronde rising up behind

Chris got the best lead of the day on Entre Chat which is probably the pick of the 5’s at Roche Ronde. My lead on Nettoyage was similar as was Konslediz. What we hadnt realise until we started to leave was that there were a number of climbs hidden in the small rvine to the left of the main venue. These actually looked in better condition, but we will have to sve these for another time.

On our return to Tarascon we made the now regular stop for provisions at the supermarket which included the necessary 6 pack of Ice Creams. You cant get them in less so we pigged out and went for a beer in town. The river was continuing to rise, an indication of the increased snow melt. It made for some reflecting on whether the snow in the high mountains would have cleared quickly. In hindsight though I think we need to be more aware of condition so that our plans more reflect what is possible rather than what we wish we could do. That said, it would take a lot of the adventure and uncertainty out of travelling which for me is a big part of any trip.

Walking

The Ordesa Files

June 9, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

9th to 11th June 2013

Ordesa National Park

Goriz Hut Route

With the weather having gone bad in Ariege we set off for sunny Spain. The GPS sent us on a strange Z shaped route which takes you across the Pyrenees through a long timed tunnel (Bielsa Tunnel near Araganuet). The traffic lights change every 10 minutes to let cars through from each side. Very impressive and our first experience of the high Pyrenees and snow… which Tom proceeded to walk on in his flaps.

It was great fun to be on the twisty roads and getting a change of scenary. Even a stop at a French MacDonalds didnt detract from the journey (free Wi Fi you see). As we dropped down the Spanish side, past flooded villages from hydroelectric projects (it’s the Spanish way – just drown the occupants) the temperatures started to rise a little, but there still seemed to be an alarmingly large amount of snow about.

Once into Spain proper, everything became crispy and the lush green forests turned to brown scorched mediterranean type scrub. We started to make the most of our air conned CashCow (I like these BTW – nice cars). This warmth was giving us a false sense of security as it happened for what was coming at Ordesa.

Torla is a stunning village, nestled in a valley leading up to the main gorge. With a church perched on a granite pillar it is striking. After some searching for a campsite which was open; we seemed to be about two or three weeks ahead of the season in both France and Spain, we had a chat with some locals at the outdoor shop. We should have guessed really by the amount of snow present on the gorge tops, but all the high routes at Ordesa were shut because of too much snow and avalanche risks brought on by the suddenly warming weather. Once again about a week too early.

Undaunted we spent the evening discussing our alternatives. The snow line was at around 1800-1900 metres, very low and they had had 100cm of snow during the preceding week on the tops. We wernt equipped for this so suddenly our plans for Pic Du Midi and Perdido went out the window. We settled on a recon walk the next day up the gorge to check conditions.

It was a good plan because in the end we exceeded our expectations and made The Goriz Hut which we had been led to believe was under a metre of snow. There was snow but not so bad we couldnt negotiate it. The walk turned out to be amazing.

The head of the canyon before you exit onto the high slopes

Ordesa is so beautiful. The river was in full flood because of melt water so the waterfalls really turned it on.

It was baking hot as well so a few tea breaks using the trangia made for a chilled but energising walk through ever cahnging scenary. On reaching the head of the valley we saw a couple descending from the higharea towards Goriz. ‘Whats the worst that could happen?’ echo’d around the team and we set off traversing high on the wall of the canyon and crossing snow fields as we passed through Marmot territory (they’re a lot bigger than you realise)

It was actually really hot despite the snow.

We got back to the car as it was getting dark and treated ourselves to a few beers in Torla that night at a bar tucked away in one of the may cobbled streets. We had a choice of more walks in the local area, although they would have to be low level, or heading of for some Spanish sport climbing. The latter one out and the next day we headed for Cavaliers.

This proved to be a dodgy choice actually as we were advised by the most helpful tourist assistant I’ve ever met in Vielha that Cavaliers was still covered in snow!

And what were we doing in Vielha anyway ????? Magellan in the front seat had navigated us over a mountain pass and 30 miles past our turning in true form. So the decision was made to return to Ariege where hopefully the weather had improved (it had). The drive back this time was truly spectacular. Twisty winding roads across the Col du Menthe and Col de Portet made for a real adventure and the car was put to the sword.

Our arrivalback at the campsite was greeted with deathly silence. It seemed to have shut again but we eventually roused our very laid back site warden and settled in for the duration. A great trip to Spain and next time maybe we’ll pend a lot more time there. Its worth a trip in its own right.

One of a number of snowfields we crossed.

Why its known as the Grand Canyon of Europe

One of many stunning waterfalls. Tom playing tourist

Melt water fueled the rivers in the canyon

Climbing

What a difference an hour makes

June 8, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

8th June 2013

Roche Ronde and Calames

Interdit Aux Veoce – 5+ Lead
Zebulon – 5+ – Second (Chris Lead)
Kecsecsa – 6a – Lead (dnf rain)

Our first day of very iffy weather. We awoke to low cloud and very damp conditions. The condensation in the valley is horendous when the humidity is high as it was on this day. With our never ending optimism in full flow we headed for Roche Ronde.

From a distance Roche Ronde looks fairly insignificant nestled below the larger venue of Calames. As you draw near though the scale of this face become more apparent. Its a fairly long and tough walk up through the forest on slippery rounded stones. When you find the base of the crag orientation is not obvious. On this visit we went up the central gap which actually is a nasty approach and I rekon you should avoid this route. There is a more hidden approach which is a lot steeper but is a lot safer and not so polished. Keep your eyes open for a tell tale arrow point leftwards into the trees as you traverse below the lower face.

Unfortunately our luck ran out this time and steady drizzle KO’d any chance of climbing so we trudged out…. only for the sun to come out and transform the day. If we’d waited an hour we would have been OK.

Packing up in the car park below Roche Ronde

Instead we made our way to Calames and the Presse Puree sector. I kicked off on a tough 5+ called Interdit aux velos. Tucked away in the corner it is innocuous enough, but has a difficult transition from the slab to a rib. A good route to get started on.

Tom on the tricky part of Interdit aux velos, Calames

Chris’s route Zebulon was in the mould of a trad route, with some tough bridging to start with and a bold move around the bulging overlap. I’d had in mind the idea to try a 6a called Kekcecsa. This is unique in that it has a bolted on flake! The route though looked excellent and I was making good progress when a boom of thunder announced the arrival of a thunderstorm. The circling Griffon Vultures had long gone heading for shelter and we were forced to do the same fleeing off the crag with our rucksacks full of iron mongery.

The thought of being caught out on the crag in a lightning storm is frightening. Even the locals get off quickly when a storm approaches.

A hot meal always cheers you up when it rains. Chef Chris at work.

With a changeable weather settling in and an unsettled day behind u,s we had to make a decision on whether we stayed or went for Spain. I think there was only one choice really.

Climbing

Where the trees explode!

June 7, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

7th June 2013

Auzat – Le Far and Montcalm

Deconfiture au petit dejeuner – 5+ – Second
Trajectoire Quartzienne – 5+ – Lead
Pic Nic existentiel au bord d’un lit – 5 – Second

Although I didnt realise it when I suggested going to Auzat, it’s a granite crag. Not the same really as our highly crystalline version in Cornwall, but definitely more familiar than the limestone of the previous day.

Auzat is a fairly high crag. We could tell because as we passed through the town we saw all the ski hire shops and chalets. The temperature definitely drops with the altitude, but given we were cooked the day before the shade from the trees was welcome. Finding the parking was straight forward but then finding the path into the crag proved tougher. It didnt help that my new cut price french shorts didnt allow me to lift my leg properly resulting in a ballet style pirouette while negotiating a rope gate and a hard fall on my arse. It goes without saying that they were abandoned for climbing…

Unlike my shorts though the climbing is really good. The granite feels grippy and provided some top routes. Both Chris’ and mine were tough at the grade. Chris’ had a nervy right traverse onto the face right near the top and mine had the same but to the left. Once again the climbing feels thin, with small holds and edges. Great reliance on feet then with a couple of airy moves.

Toms, although graded 5 could have done with a few more bolts. It’s as though the equipers have gone “Its a 5, we’ll only use a couple of bolts. However this belittles the fact that the climbing was quite tough, particularly on the most run out section. Tom did really well leading this. Personally I would have felt happy with a few rocks on my harness to fill in the gaps. The climb has a couple of possible variation finishes. Tom and Chris went left and I went right, but I think the grade is pretty even which ever way you go.

Tom heading for the final tough moves on PNEABDL

We figured that as there were three sectors to Auzat we’d try one with a number of short routes, the upper tier at Montcalm. After a few wrong turns resulting in way too much walking and climbing with packs, we found the correct path. As we approached the Upper Tier it was clear that something had happened. The trees were shattered and the path disappeared into a jumble of stacked boulders and tree trunks. One tree had been split in two and another, about a foot in diameter, was sheared in two.

A massive rock fall had destroyed the route in. Red markers which should have pointed to the crag were now underneath rock which had been spun over and pointed at the sky. It must have been awesome to witness but I’m glad I wasnt there at the time. Probably occurred during the winter as it looked fresh.

All this faffing meant that just as we set up the rain came in putting an end to that particular adventure so we retired back to the campsite for a coffee. Of course by then the weather was back on, with the sun out.

Verdun – Sinsat

Dilletente – 5+ – Second

Gluttens for punishment we made a final sortie to Verdun, a crag high on the east side of Sinsat. Yet again another very beautiful walk in but steep and hard going in the heat.

Our campsite vally from Verdun high on Sinsat

We had time for one route which Chris set off on. This proved to probably be the hardest 5+ we did on the whole trip. The climbing was on small edges to a bulging section. At this point a series of very committing moves would see you through. To be honest, it was as technical as any of the moves I made later in the week. A bit of a sandbag at 5+ I reckon, but good climbing nevertheless.

And so eneded another long tough day of sport routes. I could get used to this…

Climbing

Lets start as we mean to finish

June 6, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

6th June

Calames – Ariege

Les Instantfataux – 5+ – Lead
Blues pour un chat noir – 5+ – Lead
Les Herbes Amieres – 5+ – Second
La Nauc – 6a – Lead (dogged)

We lucked into a quiet campsite in a little village called Aston,; in fact we were the first ‘campers’ of the season which entitled us to a free night and choice of any pitch on the site. Tucked away in a narrow valley it sits next to a fast flowing (very at this time due to snow melt) river, the roar of which keeps you constant company but doesnt detract from a good nights sleep.

We woke up on our first morning raring to go, so it was into the hired ‘Cashcow’ and off for a morning coffee in Tarascon. This leisurely approach meant we managed to arrive at the crag as the sun started beating down, a lesson quickly learned which we proceeded to ignore for most of our ventures to the crags. We were just not early risers.

The sunny weather by all accounts was unusual for 2013. Up to this point the weather in Ariege had been poor so it seemed a good omen. One of the most notable crags in Ariege is Calames. You can see it clearly from Tarascon and the number of different sectors makes it an obvious choice for an opening venue. Tom, Chris and I are used to some arduous walk ins. Cornwall has plenty of them, but with the heat the walk up through Bedeilhac and across the ridge felt tough.

As is often the case, finding your bearings is difficult, but we rocked up to Sector Le Papy without too many wrong turns. What I like about French Sport crags is that they write the name of the crag on the rock! How cool is that. It didnt seem to help us though as I picked out a three star 5 called Theiere de jardin and proceeded to immediately go off route and climb its neighbour Les Instantfataux which was a 5+.

This is something to bear in mind. The routes are tightly packed. Unlike the routes we are used to in Cornwall where an obvious line is picked (which could meander around a bit) the limestone routes sometimes just go straight up. Looking for a line is likely to take you off route on many pitches. Just follow the bolts. It makes for some different climbing as it pushes you through territory you might not naturally take on. At the same time it tends to make the climbs more difficult and sometimes a bit weird. By the time I left Ariege I was loving it, but to start with it feels a bit ‘false’.

So to the climbing. My first route, Les Instantfataux turned out to be a cracker. Both Chris and I led this one. I soon discovered that many limestone routes are about small crimpy holds and delicate footwork. I needed to trust my feet and work through some of the tricky technical sections. To be honest, on this first day I was struggling to be confident in my footwork, but this soon evapourated as I got a few routes under my belt.

Chris on the headwall of Blues pour un chat noir 5+

‘Blues’ turned out to be significantly harder, making me realise that there are 5+’s and 5+’s. Similar for the most part to LI, the headwall provides some hard technical climbing. It was around this point that I started to realise that my earlier view that 5+ equated to around VS 4c back home was seriously flawed. It seems that a 5+ tends to equate to 5b back home putting it nearer E1 at times, but obviously with bolts.

Tom on the first overhang of Les Herbes Ameres 5+

This of course is where the idea of comparing grades falls down. You can only really compare the technical grade for the most part. While I climb hard on trad routes, I definitely on the whole dont climb as hard as I had to on the sports stuff. This was a refreshing change, although it took me until almost the last day to switch off my trad head (with the little voice saying “dont fall, dont fall”).

Chris made a good job of the first pitch of Les Herbes Ameres, a tough 5+, before we decided to look at a 6a called Le Nauc. This is all about one sequence through a bulgy section and my head let me down big time. Daft thing is its well protected as the bolt is in exactly the right place (unlike some routes we did later on). Still a valuable lesson learned. Go for it…

The trudge back was made sweater when we stopped off in Tarascon for a Beer at Le Hotel Confort, a residence clearly aimed at the touring biker, but which served up ice cold Leffe beer overlooking the river.

Leffe time in Tarascon. Calames is the smaller outcrop dead center of the picture.

Back at the campsite, we commandeered the barbeque hut for our private kitchen/diner, a luxury we retained for the duration of out stay in Tarascon and had our first helping of Tuna Something. A very tasty dish which hit the spot, but the recepe for which is a closely guarded secret only known to Chris.

Starting to get very hot. Les Instantfataux

Chris taking abreather on Les Instantfataux

The campsite is tucked away in the valley.

Climbing, Walking

Rise of the Super Foreigners

June 5, 2013 dillwat Leave a comment

France and Spain 2013

5th June – 16th June
Ariege and Ordesa

Take three Brits with minimal language skills, no experience of Sports Climbing and little idea of how to pack a rucksack so that it weighs 20 kilo’s and you’ve got the makings of a great trip.

This was our first great adventure into the world of alpinism (not really but it sounds good) and climbing on bolts; and we demonstrated considerable naivity to back this fact up. The comments of “its only 6b+” and of course we can do 16 pitches in a day” evaporated after our first single pitch route. This though didnt detract from what was a brilliant trip which taught us a lot about limestone crags, French curry powder and mountain weather.

The Magik Rock

Monthly Archives: June 2013

Getting in some flight time

Crash Test Chris

Cheesed Off…. Literally!

Mountain Bells

The Ordesa Files

What a difference an hour makes

Where the trees explode!

Lets start as we mean to finish

Rise of the Super Foreigners

Why it never rains on a Friday!