Colmcille Climbers

Having had several excellent days of vertical pleasure in the truly diverse climbing world of the far West. Including a day at "The Ends of the Earth crag" with Sister Caoimhe, a bare bottom spanking in The Poison Glen with Brother Tees whilst collectively holding a knight of the realm's left nut, a days urban stacking with Eddy "the Eagle" Wallace and Brother Bonner, a day at Cruit with a mob and a day in the Bluestacks with another mob. All excellent adventures in glorious sunshine, alas it was time to return to the spiritual home of An Port.

 6am and Brothers Martin Bonner and Jock Read sorted the toys at the An Port road end. Jock making a rare appearance above ground and as such was sporting several monster lengths of static rope and a huge smile.

 And once more we headed North!

 The object of our desires was the spectacular and mildly terrifying North Tower of An Bhuideal. This skinny 50 metre tower is a satellite peak of the An Bhuideal main stack. 

 From our previous encounter with the beast, Martin and I were perhaps a bit reserved on the walk in, whilst Brother Read was AVIN IT LARGE, he was above ground and having fun!

 And thus was descended to the lonely wee beach facing the stack.

 Neptune was in attendance as the boat, bodies and toys took a nautical kicking as the atmospheric sea passage was made in 2 legs to the base of the beast. Safe and sound on the stack we romped up the first pitch to an excellent wee stance on the landward Arete. The second pitch took a steep and exposed rising traverse to a platform "suspended in mid air over the abyss" high on the north face. This was not the straight forward V Diff that had been advertised.The final pitch was super scary, exposed and took us to a summit the size of a snooker table. (a snooker table 50 metres high and overhanging on three sides) It is safe to say the exposure was sickening. A descent was made in two abseils back to the mighty vessel.

 Alas the mighy vessel was no longer mighty as the journey to the stack had all been a bit much for it. So a waterlogged return was made to terra firma. Neptune had wandered off so the return sea passage was across a mill pond. HURRA!

 Within a couple of minutes of being back to the safety of the lonely wee beach our blue skies and sunshine turned black and the heavens open and there we stood in various states of undress surrounded by the toys and laughing like fools in the lashing rain. It occurred to me at this juncture, it's been a long, long time since I met a sane person?