Colmcille Climbers

The new car park was being unveiled at Fairhead on Saturday 20 Oct, so George, Dave and I decided to head up. There were quite a few climbers that showed up and after the ribbon cutting ceremony and some refreshments provided by farmer Sean and his family, we decided to make our way to the Marconi Cove. The first route we took in was North Star (HVS,5b). Great warmup. Then Caribou (HVS, 5a) and Drimadoon (HVS,5a). This one was easier and more straight forward than the first two. But they were all fairly technical climbs and I found them a bit tricky, but still very enjoyable. Throughout we were plagued by midges and the sun even managed to look in on us at one stage, but on deciding we were doing fine, it went away again.

But the best was saved for last when Dave then fancied leading The Wrestler (E1, 5c). It looked tough, which didn't bode well for me. I wasn't deterred though, so I went for it. It was the hardest climb of my short career so far. A lesson in hand jamming. I honestly didn't think I would make it up, as my strength was starting to fail me, but after a short rest (or two) I found a new lease of life and powered pass the crux. I made it to the top with bloodied hands and ankles to show for my efforts. Wow.

After that we headed into town for some food and drink and then a slide show presentation from Dal Riada members who had been on their travels. Some impressive adventures, even if some of the talk about E6s and E7s made my first E1 achievements seem rather small.