Sundance is by no means the best HS at Gowla, but the ab down to the ledge at the bottom of Rainbow Games is one to set the pulse going. It’s been a while since I climbed here. I think the last time was when a group of us top roped the two E2’s here and that must be going back to 2012!
Looking at Rainbow Games I still get the urge to have a crack on the lead. I think realistically this will have to be after I’ve had my hip done, but it’s there and calling….
Sundance is as described. Pleasant. I think it falls nearer Severe than HS. Possibly the pro might up the severity rating, but the climbing is straight forward. Mike and I cruised this one. We split the climb just above the rib and Mike led the final section. First lead in a long time I think and Gowla at that.
We were cheated out of our usual amazing sunset by a cloud bank. And boy are the evenings drawing in fast now. It wont be long before the evening sessions will have to wait for spring. I would add that for anyone thinking of climbing this buttress the walk in and out is steep. I must do something about how heavy my climbing pack is. Probably sneeking it into Mikes might be a good bet 🙂
Some climbs were created to put a smile on your face and make you very content with life. Obviously this sometimes comes after you’ve been through the whole gambit of emotions…. fear, relief, uncertainty, bravado… beforehand
Hunting out the stakes. Make sure to use both of them.
Supernatural can do that. It is truly an adventure. Finding it can be tricky, despite the fact it is reasonably close to the car park; getting to the starting belay ledge is a mission in its own right; and then launching up 50m of amazing crack climbing (without running out of appropriately sized gear) to a loose finish.
Moving up from the belay
Dropping over the edge on the ab rope feels like leaving the world behind. Mike, on only his second visit to Gowla was loving it. After what had been a few years away from climbing, the two of us are racking up some memorable routes. This one though is in a different league.
Stood on the belay ledge
Beta – Some advice for the route. It takes a lot of medium sized gear. By that I mean Camelot Size 1 or larger (the red one) and medium Hex’s are useful. It is longer than you might expect. Also we flaked our twin ropes into a rope bag before descending and hung it of the ab rope once we got down there. This keeps everything a bit more tidy. And finally, watch the belay station at the top. Anything you knock off heads down straight towards your second.
It is steep
As far as the climbing goes, it’s amazing. I’m sure it felt harder than the first time I climbed it, but I am a few years older now. The crux was tricky, but that could be because I didnt sort my feet out very well. Mike did fantasticaly well and didnt seem overawed bythe route at all. In fact he had ‘the smile’ on when he hit the top.
A long single pitch route
What a buzz! And as usual we were accompanied by an amazing sunset to finish off with. What a year this is turning out to be.
For me, this was a bit of affirmation that I can still climb at VS with reasonable comfort. My hip is causing me to adapt my climbing style and technique regularly to avoid over bridging or high steps. Mind you it’s amazing what adrenalin will do for you at certain moments haha.
A great venue to pick after you’ve had a hard workout on your quads is Carn Gowla…. not. Despite knowing that walking down to and out of most of the crags on Gowla equals pain, Mike and I decided that this was cliff for us. There’s nothing like that end of session slog back up to the coast path to make you reflect of life choices.
Looking across to C Buttress
That said, I couldnt resist returning to this little gem of a climb on Indian Buttress. Easy to get to (for Gowla) and amazing positions at a really amenable grade. I missed out the bottom part of the climb up the arete because of the sea state, but to be fair it is the top wall that is the money shot.
Loads of positive holds and foot placements, grippy fresh rock and pleasant belays adds up to great climbing. It’s the gear that probably justifies the grade, although this is good if you take your time to find it. I’ve done a lot harder VS’s but few that are in such an awesome postion with maginificent exposure. The waves and light made for a great addition to the whole feeling on this evening. I could tell by Mikes smile that he was loving it.
Fantastic Atmosphere
Carn Gowla is not everyones cup of tea, but you cant deny that for adventure and a fairly unique experince in Cornwall it has it all. Once again you cant help but pat yourself on the back for being so lucky to live in this climbing paradise.
Not a bad belay
We had checked out Supernatural which was our original target, but the waves and wind drove us off from there. It was good to know that there are at least two good belay stakes still there. However I think I’ll take my portable stake with me when we go in the next few weeks just for added comfort … haha
A beer and some food helped make this a memorable eveneing as we watched the sun go down. A common occurance in this year of drought and clear skies.
Been a long time coming, but finally I’ve done the great odyssey of JtI. What a route! Fragile Rock, huge exposure, tricky route-finding and rope drag. It’s got it all.
Looking back up the ramp having established the belay at the end of Pitch 1
When Nick had suggested climbing, I didnt anticipate Carn Gowla, but once again the dry spring meant a often wet crag was in condition. Couple this with a lifting of the ban which had been in place last year because of Peregrins and JtI was on.
Pitch 2
It’s 5 pitches. Pitch 1 is a descent of a ramp to what is really the first belay. Then the interesting climbing really starts. Each pitch has its own character. I would say P4 has the single hardest move (and the most exposure), but P5 is the most sustained and has the additional problem of rope drag, which should not be underestimated.
Belay at the end of Pitch 2
It’s a full outing, but so engaging time just flies. Add in the impressive sea state with roaring and surging surf, wind and seagulls and your senses are overwhelmed. It is such a privelege to be able to climb in these areas. Something few get to witness which makes it feel even more special.
Nick nearing the end of Pitch 4
It was so good to climb together with Nick after what has been a long break. I’m sure now we’ll get on it and bag a few more epics before the end of the year.
OK, so I’ll admit that its been a while since I’ve led E1 and I was decidedly mentally rusty. Its a benchmark grade for an average climber and marks a transition between Hard but safe, to hard but maybe not so safe (excluding horror killer HS’s from hell).
Looking across at C Buttress
So for Dave and me to decide to head for scary Gowla and get straight onto an E1 was a big deal. In this case it wasn’t just the climbing. The logistics of setting up on Alex of Gowla were complex, as was the rope management and setting up belays. No wonder it took a while to get going. Even then, Dave couldn’t avoid a bit of a shower as the dropping tide suddenly created some turbulence. Still, its all part of the adventure…
Dave descends
The route itself is solid climbing. Not too hard, but committing and with an atmospheric crux. The bottom section is protected with small wires and some smallish CAM’s come in useful higher up. Definitely worth the effort and one of the more solid (as in less crumbly) routes at Gowla.
After the traverse under the overhang
Dave was chuffed because the route help to give him a benchmark on where his improving finger strength has got to. By the way he was climbing, he has no problems so its a VS at Predannack for him!
Now I’ve got a taste for it again I’m going to hit a few more of the E’s I have on my list.
Well there’s a few lessons to be learned from this climb. When guidebooks refer to Carn Gowla, they are basically using a different form of climbing dictionary..
‘Generally good rock’ = ‘Some holds may remain attached to the cliff”
‘Reliable protection’ = ‘Placements will only explode after you load them’
‘Good holds’ = ‘They may break and you will plunge to your doom’
‘exhilarating climbing’ = ‘You’re going to die’
I base this upon the adventure Dave and I had tackling Silver Dollar and fantastic, if mentally draining climb on the Baptist Cliff. The abseil in sets the tone for the adventure. A long drop down a V groove which involves free descending for a way. Then having arrived at a ramp in an amazingly beautiful but overwhelming section of coast you traverse across to a large cave and the start of the climb.
The ab in
From the bottom it looks intimidating. Once on it, it becomes a mental game of you vs the unreliable rock. I had the honours for the first pitch which climbs slightly rightward, angling over the cave initially and then cutting back to finish under the silver dollar.
The view down towards Mercury
The climbing is great, forcing shapes and moves, but none too hard. The pro is spaced and only just adequate. Of all the pieces I placed I would probably only have really trusted 3 to definitely hold.
Pitch 1 Silver Dollar
However, the cliff forces you into a level of concentration you normally dont have to create. Move delicately, test each hold and foot placement and work your way up into a magnificently exposed part of Gowla. So good and so terrifying at the same time.
1st Belay
Dave set off from my only just adequate belay and moved up and around the Silver Dollar. We used the Pat Littlejohn guide and I think the route diagram is wrong in this book. It stay too far right of the dollar. The climbers club book is more accurate. As a result Dave ended up on the upper reaches of Castaway, an E1 variation. This was still brilliant climbing but was definitely more 5a than 4c and more E1 than HVS for pro. Still Dave handled it well and reached the second belay, which was effectively a pile of tottering choss. It was in keeping with the final 10 metre scramble across mounds of earth, grass tussocks, loose gravel and paper thin flakes of rock.
Dave on p2 of Silver Dollar
As I crawled over the edge onto the grass above I have never been so relieved to grad a Rabbit Burrow, which was the best hold I encountered during the whole of the last pitch. Next time, we will be placing a pre placed rope for the final section. God it was awful!
Breaking onto the grass
The evening’s end though was not. A setting sun, warm breeze and massive amounts of contentment and self congratulations capped of another Gowla epic. Will this place ever stop scaring me?
Well this was good for a leg workout. I decided to take the right hand buttress down from the Coastguard lookout in the mistaken belief I could get to Sluice from the ‘Crystal’ section of crag. All this got me was a long walk back out with a full pack so I could drop down the other side.
The waves always create the mood on any climbing day
Then of course I lobbed my belay device into the sea (wouldnt be the same if I didnt sacrifice gear at Carn Gowla) so had to haul another one up just to ab in. Not an auspicious start. But it did get a lot better.
A slab like biscuit
I arrived a bit late to find Joe on something rediculously hard and overhanging. Desire an E2 5c with a wicked strenuous crack. Nothing new there then! After sorting out a lack of a second rope, Dave and I finally got started on Sluice a strange but enjoyable HVS on the corner of the buttress. With a good swell running the whole area was pretty dramatic and Sluice added some spice being crumbly and unreliable on the hold front.
Dave nearing the top of the upper slab on Sluice
There is a short but slightly bold start which leads to a couple of ‘bomber??’ threads. Then you move up and over the overhang onto the upper slab. Its a great exposed move onto some thin foot flakes. Tread lightly as they dont take much to break as Dave found out. Then a final nervous sequence up the wall on good but strange and sharp holds. I didnt want to load them son spent most of my time getting my feet right. For our first evening out this was great fun and hopefully lots more Gowla adventures to come.
Carn Growlerrrrr
I might even go back and try Desire one day if I’m feeling particularly strong 🙂
Carn Growlerrrrr
After the move out onto the slab
The waves always create the mood on any climbing day
The fact that Dave and I had arranged to meet at 6 pm should have rung a few alarm bells, especially on a trip to Carn Gowla. A route we’d not done; had no idea where the ab spot was or how difficult it was. Only two entries in UKC and both of them a while back.
A rare view
Still, it was Dave who found the ab point. Left to me we would have been into some serious E stuff and probably prussiking out. And the ab was long too! Very scary, especially when it is into the unknown and only one way out. On the descent I noticed that the route was abit run out but it looked good climbing. Mind you the white blocks at the bottom and the green shit seeping out of the rocks made the first few metres a bit unpleasant.
Dont step in the guano
Dave conceded the lead of the first pitch to me (many thanks) and it was off on a great adventure. A disgustingly smelly corner leads to a run out slab, in turn to overhangs and finally an amazing (although very dodgy looking) flake crack to finish on. Wild positions, wild atmosphere and all the beauty of Gowla thrown in. Very magical with an amazing setting sun as the backdrop.
Dave starting the flake
Dave was clearly enjoying himself when he arrived at the flake with that wild Gowla look in his eyes. Gowla does that to you. Its a sort of a ‘thank God, we’re still alive’ look. Mind you with the light fading fast he didnt have time to reflect.
Dave looking good on Deceleration Lane
The second pitch is a bit of a mare. It looks like you can go straight up off the slab. Uhhmm… no. Dave tried that. No gear; teetering rock and plenty of grass made him decide to traverse up right facing in. This led around a corner to an equally tricky step up. Added in was the potential for a hideous Gordian Knot in the ropes so Dave belayed and I came around to do the final bit.
Looking North
At this point the light was gone and we were in the gloaming. Head Torches on and gear stuffed haphazardly into our bags, we mooched off, with me having an interesting conversation with Chris on the mobile. It was nearly 11pm!
This one will be seared into my brain for a while I think.
The intention had been to find ‘Cave Wall Traverse’, described as isolated in the cc book. It turned out to be not just isolated but illusive as well.
Looking across at Indian Buttress – Line of Indian Country
Having been down to South C Walls on a previous occasion and experienced the nightmare of being caught out on an exposed , loose and very steep descent I fortunately knew about the hidden entry point to the gully. This is still a bit loose but considerably more amenable than the alternative.( Remember to head out towards the seaward face and then double back into the gully)
Nick and I stared at where the traverse should have been but it gradually became obvious that there has been a large landslip here. It’s hard to say from where we were stood, but the climbing looked considerably harder than HS (the guidebook grade). It lookslike there is a route there, but the description in the guidebook didnt match the face we were looking at. Because it was fairly late, neither of us fancied getting stuck in some hopeless position on the face and then being be-nighted.
A good line up to the shear
The scar on the Traverse
So it was off around the corner to South C Walls. Its a great hidden area, with a useful platform and some good climbs. Nick chose Fine Line and it proved to be true. It looks good from below and the climbing is engaging and exposed. The rock as with the other routes here, is a bit suspect in places, but not enough to ruin a great outing.
With the good weather going on and on, you have to wonder how long we’ll get Gowla this year. At the moment its more likely to be light that stops play.
Looking across at Indian Buttress – Line of Indian Country
Dave and I decided to grab a late climb at Gowla. Initially we’d thought about Silver Dollar, but with a brooding sky and the possibilty of rain we felt 2 pitches could be pushing it.
I knew how Dave would be feeling as we abbed in. The cliff here is intimidating and given the conditions it felt bang on for a Gowla epic. As it happened Dave thoroughly enjoyed the climbing after anervous start. The crack is way harder than 4b and its sustained in places. The whole venue pushes the route into HVS territory. A VS leader embarking on this one would have a rude awakening.
The loose top out provided the most nervous part as usual, but we couldnt help but realise we’d stolen a march on the weather to get this one in.
Why it never rains on a Friday!
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