It’s getting to that time of year again, the temperature has started dropping then rising, but the ding of the thermometer in the car when it hits 4 degrees and the snowflake appearing, funnily seems to get the heart going. By this point last year I’d had my first trip up to Scotland, 3 routes under my belt and already planning the next trip. However this year has been a bit of a false start, my first trip coincided with nice warm weather and stripped crags. I made the trip across to the Lakes, to sample the dry tooling at The Works. I had never done any dry tooling before, and only just started getting the hang of mixed climbing last season.
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| Winter must be coming, the snowflakes there. |
I’d seen lots of pictures of the routes at The Works and read through Paddy Cave’s Blog (Mountain Circles) which provided more info and topo guides. Great work Paddy and Co sorting the place out! On first appearance the routes look pretty logical and with a few of the starting routes only being 9 metres in length, how hard could they be? I was to be proved so wrong!
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| Piers stretched out on Time and a Half |
We set up a top rope on the first route, Time and a Half, which in my opinoin provided the crux within the first few metres, using slots to gain a natural crack to reach the lower off. After a bit of a false start getting of the deck, I managed to scrape and hook my way to the lower off first go. The steep undercut beginnings needed high feet near head moves, for me anyway, with a dead weights of boots and crampons a bit of a change from rock boots. It was so much more intense than I could have imagined it to be, it looked so easy. Left axe, right axe, foot up, left axe....It was a complete all body workout, I felt knackered after one lap.
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| After the start moves on Double Time |
After a good lead on Time and a Half, we moved onto the the next route along, Double Time. Once again the start felt really hard, match an axe, pull up and foot on and reach the next hook which felt miles. The hooks all felt shallower and more precarious, and after sorting the start, I became stuck at match followed by a long reach. Each time I reached up, I became to high on the hook and pop! It kept popping, time and time again. I managed to sort a bit of a plan by matching the axe and griping it over the head, like I was daggering it, meaning the pressure was straight through the pick. Until it popped like that as well, but I was sure that was the best way for me.
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| Moving high on the match and... |
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| POP! |
I talked through the route, where each axe would go to work it out so the hammer was in the popping slot, no way I wanted an adze popping towards the face! I lead went really good, well as well as it could of, there was a bit of foot slipping, stalling at the popping move and absolutely desperate top moves with completely boxed arms. I was so tired, after 9m, but its all good training ey? Bring on the white stuff now, I’ll certainly be back to the works though, beats the wall any day.
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| Lead time on Double Time |
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| Past the popping move, Double Time to the top! |
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