A Short Tale of Adventures in Wales: Exploring the Welsh countryside.
Easter break means one thing for climbers that pretend to be students, not overdue dissertation work not revision for fast approaching exams and definitely not 4 weeks of family time. 4 students at Leeds University, Jacob Cook, Luke Tilley, Conor Cussell and Ben Finley took the first opportunity to make the most of winter training and a bank of Yorkshire grit trad with a spree of big ascents. The trip was for Luke a whistle stop guided tour of 3 new climbing areas on 3 completely new rock types. Jacob had trad head in high gear and with new fitness from a driven first 2 terms of heavy training, unleashed a solid performance of big onsights. Conor and Ben where in for the ride and getting a footing on the classics.
The trip was blessed with stunning summer conditions, the lads hit 3 big crags delving into 3 very different styles. Sunshine on Gogarth started the trip with a big main cliff route. Luke and Jacob set off up Citadel late in the day with high chances of getting benighted but made for a satisfying big E5 6b journey to start the trip. The team took the classic E2 5c “The Strand” by storm and left with hunger for more welsh material.
All the ends lay in the open there for Jacob to piece together. As the clouds built up over the Cromlech the ends knotted into fear within everyone as Jacob pushed passed the poorly loaded cam and makeshift sling, unable to fit the pink tri cam sold to him that morning as crucial gear. He pressed on desperately lonely creating moves from some of the smallest cromlech holds and a fine tuned trad head. The relief of the top was a shared experience that stayed with the small team as they headed home exhausted but satisfied with the adventures unlocked within their neighbouring country. A brutal dip in the sea brought them back to reality, back to the exams, back to dissertations and family commitments. A welsh fairy-tale, a foggy memory, a tick in the guide.
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