Having forgotten to take my camera out yesterday to Eagle Crag, Borrowdale, I’m afraid you’re all going to miss out on sharing in the amusement of ‘classic’ Lakeland mountain rock. Those in the know will understand what I’m talking about – suffice to say I’m still finding bits of greenery in places it shouldn’t be!
To make up for it, I took it with me to Malham instead with the intention of getting some good shots of me on Obsession on the Upper Tier. Unfortunately, the combination of a stiff wind and a fair amount of cloud cover meant I spent most of the time trying to keep my fingers warm.
Having made good progress on the route a couple of weeks ago I was looking forward to piecing it all together again with a view to starting to try and lead it. Having warmed up on the Lower Tier as usual, by the time I’d got sorted up above I was frozen again. The first section of the route requires lots of small movements on small, undercut holds, mostly with rubbish feet. I find it hard enough as it is, but being cold and stiff and not being able to feel what little I was pulling on made for a frustrating day.
Focussing on the positives though, I did manage the top section again and it felt easier than it ever has. I’ve also found a cheeky half-rest halfway up, so hopefully next time I’ll be back to considering the red-point… fingers crossed.
Not sure where I’m off to tomorrow yet, but hopefully the camera will be there too!
Good name for the route, and a good summary of what you need (other than skill and strength) to succeed at these sport routes; and also something I don’t think I’ll ever have… 🙄
Good luck next time you give it a try. 😛
Sounds like you’re getting really strong… but I want to know what happened in Borrowdale.
Hmmm, possibly, but clearly not strong enough! 🙁
Having never been, I decided it’d be a good idea to have a look at Eagle Crag, Borrowdale. On paper, it looks great, lots of stars and good grade spread. Unfortunately, being east facing, it gets little sun and so is pretty green. Combined with occasional bird bans and an unpleasant grassy scramble approach, it’s not quite as enjoyable in reality. 😥
We ended up doing the ‘classic’ VS as a way to get off, assuming this would see the most traffic, but other than ambitious sheep and the resident Peregrine, it doesn’t look like anyone’s been up there since the 70’s. :angry:
Oops – this comment from Terry should be against this thread… Sorry.