It’s been 10 years to the week since I first went to the Languedoc with Keith and friends. So I was quite excited to be returning…
However, on our first day of climbing at the fantastic new area Keith was keen to show us, Labeil, the conditions were less than ideal: a bit damp, light drizzly rain at times, and decidedly overcast. Therefore, perhaps/perhaps-not in part due those conditions or at least how they made me feel about my climbing, it was also my last day of climbing on the trip!
On the fifth route of the day, a nice looking F6b+, I managed to fall off with a slight swing due to being slightly right of my last clip. It was a biggish fall, maybe something like 8 metres or so, so I had gathered some speed and ended up catching my foot quite hard on the rock as I swung back in as the rope came tight to catch me. At first I thought I was fine, but when I tried to weight my foot again it was immediately clear that I had hurt myself. Three weeks later and I’m still limping around and most certainly not able to climb! 🙁
Damn!
Although we did have one day that was a total wash out, on the other days I managed to put a brave face on it and hobble along following the boys (Keith, Nigel, and Ed) as they visited other crags in the region. Thankfully the weather was better, so I mostly just sat about on the rocks – nicely warmed by the sun – and read.
Here are a few pictures from those days…
