I have always loved the quarries for climbing, ever since the first day I went there and was taken to Rainbow slab in a snow shower. I lowered down and top roped Red and Yellow….
The places has inspired and enchanted me for twenty years since then. There are still places that are left to explore. Forgotten memories round every corner. Climbing with friends from a life time ago, those who are on the edges of your Facebook friends and even some no longer with us. So many of those not so young people now who shared the ‘best years of my life’ at University.
Today I remember Craig taking the whole height of Watch Me Wallaby…., Llion taking the monster lob on Short Stories and my first time up Seams the Same, when the top required a rack of RP’s. The placement of so many over the years has cause the soft rock that is Slate to enlarge and all you need is a good few rock 1’s.
I also headed up to Slippery People on Yellow Walls, a less frequented area but still packed full of classic routes. I started off on Slippery People I think it was one of Tom and I’s many adventures in the quarries. I knew full well that the reach for the first bolt was awful for a man of my stature. Still none the less I headed up and spent a good two minutes trying to reach that extra inch without letting go. I think both me and Si breathe a sigh of relief, as I was slightly above ‘catching height’.
The rest of the climb is OK, but it is a really good example of how Trad routes on Slate differ from the modern Sport offerings. This route has character, you will remember it for a long time. Yet most of the easier routes fit into a generic bracket and it is sometimes hard to tell one from another.
Si then lead Short Stair Case to the Stars and nearly took the prophecy of the route, when his foot popped going for the bolt. He was at a spottable height and I thought I was going to get squashed, but he somehow hung on in there!
The weather quickly crapped out as the sea fret became hill fog. So we retired for coffee and cake.