Ailefroide Multipitch

Alastair BegleyEcrin, Rock Climbing Short Link

As the weather has remained excellent in Ailefroide we have stayed here to focus on multi-pitch rock rather than heading off somewhere else to do more alpine climbing. Palavar les Flots, 12 Pitches, 430m, 5c We started with the long but relatively straight forward classic of Palavar les Flots, which is a 12 pitch 5c which climbs the dominant arête above the campsite. The climbing was relatively sustained all the way up at 4b-5a which made for an enjoyable day out, the crux pitch was notably harder than the rest of the route but had an enjoyable sequence up the slab. Despite being stuck behind a slower group of three, we made quick time up the route and we were at the top by lunchtime. After lunch on the top, we made the long abseil back down to the valley. By the time we were back down at the base of the route we were in the full heat of the afternoon sun, so we made a hasty retreat to a hotel in Ailefroide for a beer and some ice cream. Little Palaver, 8 Pitches, 300m, 5c Next to Palavar. Read the full article…

A Week in the Ecrins

Alastair BegleyAlpinism, Ecrin, France, Mountaineering, Rock Climbing Short Link

For the past few years the weather has always been very unsettled during the time I have spent in the alps, so it has been great this year that the weather has been very stable since the day after we arrived. This year we have started our Alps trip in Ailefroide in the Ecrins. On the first day the weather forecast for the afternoon wasn’t brilliant so we headed for some local multi-pitch rock climbing before the storm came in. As it was the first day we were a bit slow getting started, so our early start turned into a leisurely midday start. After enjoying six pitches of excellent climbing on brilliant rock we got to the top just as the forecast downpour hit. This lead to a rather soggy abseil off in the rain, before walking back and enjoying a well earnt drink in Ailefroide. Roche Faurio With a stable weather forecast for the next week we decided to head up into the high mountains for three days. We chose to acclimatise by climbing Roche Faurio at 3730m before climbing the Barre des Ecrins at 4102m. What I didn’t. Read the full article…

Rock Climbing in Langdale

Alastair BegleyLake District, Rock Climbing Short Link

Having made multiple trips up to the Lake District with the hope of climbing only to be thwarted by bad weather and ending up at Shepards, it was great to finally have a weekend in the Lake District with decent weather and dry rock. Over the weekend I climbed with Becky and Andrew and come home having completed a decent haul of routes Pavey Arc – Capella – E1 5b, 5b – *** Pavey Arc Golden Slipper – HVS 4c, 5a, 4a *** Gimmer – Intern – E1 5b, 5a *** Gimmer – Whit’s End Direct – E1 5b *** Gimmer – Gimmer String – E1 4c, 4c, 5b *** Gimmer – Detour – VS 4b – ** Day 1: Pavey Arc – Capella & Golden Slipper Having left bristol at an hour which should not exist we were enjoying a coffee and breakfast in Ambleside at 9am while looking at the unfortunately grey sky. Despite this we held our nerve and carried on with plan A, which was to climb a link up of two classic routes on Pavey Arc. Having spent too little time in the the mountains and. Read the full article…

Diedros Mágicos

Alastair BegleyCosta Blanca, Rock Climbing Short Link

On our last day we headed up to the the impressive south face of Puig Campana to climb the classic corner of Diedros Mágicos which is a 5 pitch f6a. Unusually for Spain, the route had no bolts other than for the belays which gave the route a UK grade of E1. Also unusually for Spain there was actually a decent size walk in, although it looked pretty short from the car as the south face is so large. After a hot walk in with a fantastic view of the south face, we were soon at the crag which other than a team on the classic ridge of Espolón Central we had to ourselves. From below the groove of Diedros Mágicos looked very impressive so I was pretty psyched to get onto the route and the lack of bolts made me even more excited. The first pitch was much harder than I was expecting, but the climbing was amazing. It involved excellent bridging and laybacking up the steep corner, with excellent unpolished rock, loads of gear and it finished at a very comfy cave belay.   The next two pitches involved more of the same, just a bit. Read the full article…