I was busy ignoring my alarm and enjoying a snooze this morning, when a loud knocking on the van door dragged me into the world of the awake. It was Emma, letting me know that it was time to get up and get the day started.
I got up.
Some time later we parked up in Seatoller, where I encountered the same National Trust Ranger as last week. This time however I paid for a membership.
The walk in to Raven Crag is the the best part of an hour. Made longer by my forgetting my lunch. Fortunately we had not got far before I realised my mistake.
Raven Crag is a proper mountain crag. It sits high above the valley floor and appears to be this large expanse of towering broken cliff. All very impressive. The route we had chosen to do, Summit Route, was 177m long requiring 9 pitches of climbing. Quite an undertaking. It started next to the very impressive gully that cuts the crag in half.
I got up.
Some time later we parked up in Seatoller, where I encountered the same National Trust Ranger as last week. This time however I paid for a membership.
The walk in to Raven Crag is the the best part of an hour. Made longer by my forgetting my lunch. Fortunately we had not got far before I realised my mistake.
Raven Crag is a proper mountain crag. It sits high above the valley floor and appears to be this large expanse of towering broken cliff. All very impressive. The route we had chosen to do, Summit Route, was 177m long requiring 9 pitches of climbing. Quite an undertaking. It started next to the very impressive gully that cuts the crag in half.
Emma gearing up at the base of the climb.
Emma took the first lead and we got into the swing of things. The route was a mixture of engaging climbing, tricky route finding and the odd move that required a certain amount of self motivation to get over. Oh! and long periods of inactivity while belaying. If I'm honest, the pitches have rather blurred into one confusing mass of rock, grass and the sound of the river next to us.
Unlike the rock on so many of more accessible crags, the rock here had a rough texture. Its good sharp rock like this that is a real joy to climb. Even the smallest or most dubious of foot placements feels solid on rough rock.
Unlike the rock on so many of more accessible crags, the rock here had a rough texture. Its good sharp rock like this that is a real joy to climb. Even the smallest or most dubious of foot placements feels solid on rough rock.
Emma looking to place gear on the first pitch.
This climb truly was a long climb. It felt like time was standing still as we climbed. I can safely say that when I clambered over the last rocky step and walked to the summit that I was glad to see the top. Thats not to say that the climbing wasn't good or fun but to say that it had been a long day. When Emma joined me on the summit there was no talk of a second route (it was now nearly 6pm) just talk of our elation at being able to take off our climbing shoes.
Emma cheerily greeting me from her belay.
After the effort of a long days climbing the views were superb and the walk back off the mountain to the van felt very quick. Now back at the van the race was on to make it back to Emma's cousins house before the baby went to bed, if we wanted any hope of grabbing a shower. Fortunately we got back just in time. All in all a great day out!
Glorious views from the summit.