I’ve tried to write a couple of blogs, the first was during a period of very heavy rain when we were confined to the van and bars of Albarracin. It had a pretty negative and whinge ring to it. It’s now been sunny for a week and so things are looking very positive. We’ve come up to our first months anniversary of sleeping in the van and Steve still hasn’t fulfilled his promise of spending most the trip bivied out.
What I wanted to write about was the climbing. There is a lot of stuff to climb here.
To start with are the roofs, there are so many roofs to yard your way across, but usually the problem is the top out, I regularly flash the 7B roofs and then get spanked pulling through the slopey mantel. There are plenty of 30 to 40 degree overhangs on positive crimps, slopers and rails, all require maximum body tension. Every move your feet swing out and are then forced back onto the rock. We have worked through almost all the 7A’s to 7B+ here, but are cut short at the 7C’s. There are plenty of 7C’s, but often they are hideous mantels, or crazy campus moves. There is almost nothing in the style of the 7B’s which we are climbing so well on. There are plenty of 8A’s which we have made massive progress on, but we just aren’t strong enough yet in our core and back to achieve the massive throws which almost always make the crux.
Steep Walls
Another technique you quickly master here is the foot cam; with so many horizontal crack and pockets, often at the start of the problem you place your foot in the hole and torque it, taking weight of your hands which crucially let you hold those small crimps and slopers. At times these can be a bit unnerving with a high foot cam and poor holds which if you ripped off would leave your leg stuck in and then probably broken. To prevent this you often need a very close spot and I’ve had to catch Steve in my arms a few times.
Sick Mantels
With less than a week left we are frantically trying to finish off projects. Steve who has spent most of the month complaining of poor skin and often cutting short our sessions on the rock has found a new wind and is pushing for his fourth day in a row climbing. I have a line which I am certain will go, but so far has eluded me and am resting up for a big effort tomorrow. Fingers crossed the rain holds off and we can finish those final problems.
