Queen Kong, Red Dragon, The Magician, The Stell, The Slot, Born Lippy... and a stormtrooper.

So, March was the driest for 60 years and now it's raining constantly again, but luckily I managed to get out a few times and grab some snaps.
Last time, I said I'd have more pictures of Dan on his uber-route at Back Bowden, but those photos have gone to the mags, so it's not really fair to post them here. However, I do have another bailing photo that I'll share with you:

You'll believe a man can fly... Dan falling off 'The Bones'.

Dan's been busy, as ever, but more on that next time.

I also said I'd have some photos of Michele at Queens and here they are.
It was nice to catch up with him again, especially in Northumberland. I think he's ticked everything in the Peak. Anyway, he was loving the perfect rock at Queen's. It's fairly clean up there, considering the time of year. It's not a winter venue at all, and like Ravensheugh and Wanney it needs a bit of traffic to see it into the new season.

Michele Caminati on 'Worldline' 7b, Queens Crag

Queen Kong needed a bit of a clean, but was dispatched fairly quickly.

Michele Caminati eyes up Queen Kong, Queens Crag

Michele Caminati on 'Queen Kong' 8a, Queens Crag

Michele Caminati on 'Queen Kong' 8a, Queens Crag

Michele Caminati on 'The Magician's Nephew' 6b+, Queens Crag

Red Dragon proved to be a bit harder. It's better if you're slightly taller and have a bit of reach.

Michele Caminati on 'Red Dragon' 8a, Queens Crag

The plan was to walk out while it was still light, but Michele couldn't stop trying it. We had just about packed up, but then he said "One more go!". Shoes back on, mats out, chalked hands, but it was too dark. The footholds had disappeared...

Michele Caminati on 'Red Dragon' 8a, Queens Crag

Michele Caminati on 'Red Dragon' 8a, Queens Crag

Michele wasn't the only one pulling hard. Katie was busy working on the classic Worldline, while Dan put his feet up and relaxed with his camping chair and flask. I've got that photo filed away in the blackmail folder.

Katie Mundy on 'Worldline' 7b

The amazing prow of 'Worldline'

Katie and I have been working on a new design for a headcam. Now it's patented, we can reveal it here.

The Katie Cam

I had another trip up there with Chris Graham who was in the mood for The Slot. It's a one move wonder, but at 7c+, it's quite a move.

Chris Graham on 'The Slot' 7c+, Queens

Chris Graham on 'The Slot' 7c+, Queens

Another Queen's session that ended in the dark.

Chris Graham on 'The Slot' 7c+, Queens

Dave and Mina have only recently discovered the delights of The County and straight away they're in at the deep end with a trip up to Ravensheugh. After warming up on Reiver and The Duergar which everyone loved it was onto The Magician. Mina was taking it easy as she was recovering from the previous day's team training session, but Dave and Andy Jennings  got stuck in and both of them got up it.
I'm sure it hasn't had many ascents (four or five, partly due to the walk-in as well as the difficulty) and it was exactly five years ago (April 2007) that it was first climbed by Andy Earl, so it was a bit of an anniversary celebration. Sort of.

Dave Mason on 'The Magician' 8a, Ravensheugh

Andy Jennings on 'The Magician' 8a, Ravensheugh

Dave Mason on 'The Duergar' 7a+, Ravensheugh.

Then we wandered into the trees with our headtorches to have a look at Awooga. Dave's keen on getting that ticked next time.
Next morning we went to Back Bowden so Mina could get County Ethics nailed, but it was too early in the day for highballing, especially after a curry. She was on the problem for a while though. I don't think I've seen anyone hang onto those holds for that long!

Mina Leslie-Wujastyk on 'County Ethics' 7c+, Back Bowden

I had yet another enjoyable afternoon over at The Stell with Stu Campbell and Martin Waugh. Martin is part of the team who recently developed this great little venue, so I was very keen to get some photos of him there. I still don't know the names of any of these problems though.

Martin Waugh at The Stell

Martin Waugh at The Stell

Martin Waugh at The Stell

What an amazing move this is:

Stu Campbell at The Stell

I had a night-time session at Bowden with four well known, strong County boulderers. Andy Cowley, Nic Ward, Adam Young and Speedy. They were all keen to get some good conditions and climb when it was cold. Every time I see Speedy, I pester him for photos, so it was good to hook up with him. He's very strong and unassuming.

Speedy warming up on 'Captain Haddock' 7a+, Bowden

Nic warming up on 'V Crimps' 7c, Bowden

They had a lot of fun climbing Born Lippy in the dark and we had a great night.

Adam Young on 'Born Lippy' 8a, Bowden

Andy 'legend' Cowley on 'Born Lippy' 8a, Bowden

Nic Ward on 'Born Lippy' 8a, Bowden

I also thought I'd share this photo I took a couple of weeks ago. There have been a couple of times when I've been climbing at Bowden and just as I've been topping out, a jet has screamed overhead. It's like the whole world's exploding. Adds to the spice.

This was LOUD!

A heads-up that Climb Newcastle have their annual ASBO (Annual Spring Boulder Open) coming up on 4th May. Click this link for details.

May the 4th be with you. The amazing Star Wars volumes! Oh, and a stormtrooper...

Here are a few northumberland landscapes.

The Cheviots from Bowden

The Drake Stone

The Drake Stone

I've been spending a few nights on the beach.

Dunstanburgh

Bamburgh

Bamburgh

More soon!

Interview with Dan Varian over at Climb Magazine.

Just to let you know there's an interview with Dan Varian about his recent ascents at Back Bowden on the Climb Magazine website.

Don't forget Life On Hold is showing tonight at Climb Newcastle.

Oh, and when I was talking about films I was looking forward to, I can't believe I forgot to include The Raid. What was I thinking?

Photos coming up next time include Varian at Back Bowden and Caminati at Queens.
Nice...

The County has a new hardest route. Back Bowden has a new hardest boulder problem.

I'm going to make this quick and add the details when I have time.

Yesterday was the day Dan Varian described as 'probably my best climbing day ever'. Northumberland got a new hardest route and Back Bowden got a new hardest boulder problem.

Empty The Bones Of You goes up the north wall between The Dark Side and Mordreth on very poor holds. Even the holds that look ok from the ground are bad.
I'm sure Dan will go into detail on the Beastmaker blog, but he reckons highball 8a+, or F8c if it was bolted. Although he intended to lead it, he actually ended up soloing it.
Considering the time and effort he put in, and his fearsome ability (he's currently 'on form'), I would tentatively suggest that 8a+ might be a little soft.

How does it compare to The Dark Side E9 7b? Dan had quite a few sessions on the new route, and many attempts to lead it. He also left it alone for a while as he got frustrated at the difficulty.
If you've read my previous blog post, you'll know Dan did The Dark Side in about 15 minutes, which really puts things in perspective.

Here are a few photos of Dan working the new line:

Dan Varian attempting the route

Dan Varian attempting the route

Dan Varian attempting the route

Taking the fall

 I'll have the photos for you very soon.

Ok, that's not all. That was just the morning!
Another project that he's been trying is the right hand finish to The Bitch, Andy Earl's classic 8a+. It was a little too warm and he was getting frustrated, but after the sun dropped behind the trees and the temperature started falling, it was game on. Conditions got better and better and it got nailed. Grade? Solid 8b.

Dan Varian on his new 8b at Back Bowden

Dan Varian on his new 8b at Back Bowden

Dan Varian on his new 8b at Back Bowden

Then I went and slept on the beach.
As I said, I'll update soon and I have lots of new County photos to share.

Here we go. Eventually.

As you might have noticed, I've had a bit of a break from the blog, but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy. I'm pretty psyched at the moment. It seems as though there's a lot happening in Northumberland. Projects are on the verge of getting ticked, top-end routes are getting cleaned, everyone's climbing hard and for once I seem to be in the middle of it all with a camera. Perfect! I'm sure that some of the 'big' routes will get done this year, and hopefully before it starts warming up too much. A few people have even mentioned 'A.K.A. Mr Vegas', and I definately want to be there for that...

Since Dan climbed 'The Dark Side', the blog's page views have vastly increased. It's not really my intention for this page to be a source of news, but I guess sometimes you're in the right place at the right time. I'm just plugging away at the book and keeping anyone who's interested up to date with what I've been up to. It's definately happening. It just takes forever.

Saying that, however, I've written a Northumberland 'round-up' in Climb magazine. If you haven't seen it, there isn't much time left as the new issue comes out at the end of this week.
Go and buy a copy now!

Mr. D. Varian. Photo by Mr. M. Savage

Here are a couple more photos of The Dark Side:

Now it gets hard. Dan Varian on The Dark Side E9 7b, Back Bowden

Dan Varian on The Dark Side E9 7b, Back Bowden

Seems like I've spent a lot of time at Back Bowden recently. I love the fact that you can go to Bowden and if it's busy, you can head up the road and have the place to yourself. 

Is there a finer collection of hard routes anywhere?

Speaking of small holds, I had a good session with the uber-strong Nigel Callender. You want strength? Power? Well, be quick and sign up to one of these free workshops. Nigel belongs to the very exclusive 'Monk Life' club, so who better to inspire you?

 

Nigel Callender on Black Triage 8a, Back Bowden

More from Backers...

Paul Carruthers on The Bitch 8a+, Back Bowden

Bobby Gowdy on Hard Reign Direct 7b, Back Bowden

The Move. Bobby Gowdy on Hard Reign Direct 7b, Back Bowden

I'm VERY excited about seeing Life On Hold by Nick Brown which premieres at SHAFF this coming weekend. I haven't been this excited about a film since waiting for Terminator 2 to come out. Ok, maybe Prometheus comes close, but I suspect Life On Hold might feature a couple of aliens somewhere, or at least a facehugger... Nick, pretty soon you'll be able to sit back, relax and enjoy the ride!

Nick Brown filming The Champ at Back Bowden

I got a few photos from over the road as well when Dave and Mina came up for a weekend blitz of all the classics. Wow - Mina is strong. She was showing the boys how it's done on Honeycomb Wall, as well as making Staggered look pretty easy. The weather wasn't kind to us though, so I'm looking forward to round 2. Dave was very psyched. So much to do!

Mina Leslie-Wujastyk on Staggered 7b, Bowden Doors

Dave Mason on Dog Eat Dog 7a, Bowden Doors

Dave Mason on Honeycomb Wall 7c+, Bowden Doors

Dave Mason on Staggered 7b, Bowden Doors

Also up that weekend from Yorkshire was strongman Mark Katz, pictured during a rare appearance by the sun.

Mark Katz on Honeycomb Wall 7c+, Bowden Doors

 It's not very often that you see Graeme Read on a crag that's close to the road, but here he is. Graeme is a hero for all the cleaning and climbing of hard County routes that he does, so be nice to him at all times. Tell him his biceps look massive.

Graeme Read on Klondyke Wall E2 5c, Bowden Doors

Jamie Mantle on Klondyke Wall E2 5c, Bowden Doors

Easy. Nigel Callender on The Crack 8a, Bowden Doors

Nigel Callender on The Crack 8a, Bowden Doors

Ben Davison on Y-Front 6a+, Bowden Doors

Dave Rudge has also made a rare appearance on the rock. Despite dealing with his own business, being a dad and looking after various dogs and chickens, he still rocks up and does things like The Emperor 7b first go as a warm up. That's what happens when you live ten minutes from Kyloe-In
There was a bit of a Temptation session going on. If you're looking for a first 7b+ to do, look elsewhere. This is desperate.

Dave Rudge on Temptation 7b+, Bowden Doors

Speaking of people who make rare appearances, here's Chris Graham (sorry Chris) at The Stell, near Rothbury.

Chris Graham on Constant Sorrow SS 7b+, The Stell

Recently developed by Steve Blake and 'The Gang', The Stell is one of those places that'll be fantastic on a summer's evening. Clean, good quality rock, great views and mostly easy to moderate problems.

Don't park next to the gate. Park in the obvious bay and walk the extra two minutes.

 

Katie Mundy at The Stell

Caller was wet, so we had a trip up to Redheugh. It mainly consisted of everyone getting frightened on the well renowned 6b+ behind the block. I don't think I know anyone who's topped out! One after another, the guys backed off, which only made it worse. Well 'ard.

Andy Wilson on the 'easy' bit.

Stu Campbell on the 6b+ horrorshow.

Stu coping with the barndoor move.

Andy Rutter on The Arete 4+, Redheugh

Just last week I went out to meet Stu and Andy having an evening bouldering session at Seaton Sluice, 'The New Rocklands'... *coughs*

Stu Campbell bearing down at Seaton Sluice, North Tyneside's premier bouldering destination.

I'll finish with a photo I took of the Duddo Stones in the far north of The County. I got there for a sunrise that never happened, if you get my drift, but I prefer moody skies anyway, and there are plenty of those around here.

Duddo Stones

Darth V turns to The Dark Side

Dan Varian repeats The Dark Side, E9 7b

It was perfect conditions at Back Bowden yesterday. The road was icy, there was snow on the ground, but the sun was shining and the friction was as good as it gets.
The only thing spoiling it was my hangover.
When I got there, I expected to find a few cars parked up. Maybe everyone else felt the same way as me, or had decided to go indoors, but Dan, Katie and I had the place to ourselves. A rare treat on such a good day.

After warming up by climbing a new problem in The Bat Cave (more on that later), we headed over to the North Wall where Dan was going to attempt to ground-up The Dark Side.

Andy Earl made the first ascent of 'The Dark Side' in October 2003 when he was at the peak of his powers. Not only is it Northumberland's hardest route, it is a contender for one of the gnarliest routes in the country. Much talked about and revered, but never attempted.

Andy Earl setting off up 'The Dark Side', E9 7b

It's steep, committing, sustained and requires proper, hardcore bouldering strength. It goes without saying that the holds are small! There's one 'sort-of-ok' hold and it's a temperature-dependent sloper high off the ground.

Dan had been halfway up the wall the day before and was psyched to give it a go. I abbed down it with a brush and found that the holds were surprisingly clean.
Dan was itching to get on it, and after minimal preparation he was off.
He cruised the bottom section through the shield and got to the halfway point, touching the next holds before bailing.
A couple of minutes later on the next attempt, he got the higher holds, but a foot popped and he was in the air a worryingly long time.
Slightly shaken by the fall and after a bit of a longer rest (maybe five minutes) he set off again, fully psyched and committed.
As there was just Katie and myself spotting, I only had time to take one photo, then run back over to help move mats, and put him on belay as he reached the break.
I could tell he was worried, and he shouted down "This cam's shit. Watch me", before launching up from the break. Katie and I exchanged a couple of concerned glances as there was no way we'd be able to help if he came off from there, but then he was up and we could breathe again.

Dan Varian on the second ascent of 'The Dark Side' E9 7b

It was fantastic to witness Dan's ground-up ascent. Not only was it a bit of climbing history, but he gave it everything he had. Completely inspiring.
He is one of the strongest boulderers in the country, and I can pretty much say without any doubt that he is the king of highballing. I've never seen anyone so unconcerned with falling off hard moves high above poor landings.
He recently made the second ascent of 'The Prow', and now, with the second ascent of 'The Dark Side', Dan has proved he is up there with the top trad climbers, although he'll be laughing his head off when he reads this. Trad climbing! Who'd have thought it, eh?

I wont pre-empt Dan's ramblings on the Beastmaker blog, but we had an interesting discussion about the difficulty and seriousness of 'The Dark Side' when compared to 'The Prow' and 'The Young', all hard-as-nails Earl problems.
He was a bit spaced afterwards, which is always a good sign of a near-death experience...

Darth V...

Continuing the assault on the North Wall, Dan also made the first ascent of 'Little Piggies', 7c which takes a line to the right of 'Little Pixies' on very small, sharp crimps.

Dan Varian on 'Little Piggies', 7c

Ooooh y'bugger, that hurts.

As I mentioned earlier, Dan also put up a problem in The Bat Cave called 'Brokeback Bowden' (between 'Barbastelle' and 'Bechstein') which is also 7c, but took a bit more effort. The sequence is quite complicated for a short problem and a couple of the holds are horrible. It goes from a painful footlock, out to a rounded pinch/boss kind of hold, using a small, but crucial undercut in the roof.

Dan Varian on 'Brokeback Bowden', 7c

Dan Varian on 'Brokeback Bowden', 7c

Dan Varian on 'Brokeback Bowden', 7c

What?

Nice...

And here's Katie, climbing hard as ever, on Four Mats Wall with a lovely bit of snow:

Katie Mundy, 'Four Mats Wall' 7b+

A couple of weeks ago, I was at Back Bowden when Chris Morrish made an almost night-time ascent of Peak Technique. He used the least number of footholds I've ever seen anyone use. I think he went from the break to the top in about five massive moves.

Chris Morrish on 'Peak Technique' E6 6b

This photo isn't quite up to the usual standard as it was so dark and the lead happened unexpectedly so I didn't have time to get ready for photos, but it was certainly exciting!
You can see he's wearing a headtorch to spot the footholds. Takes me back to the old days...
He hasn't been climbing much due to an injured shoulder, so jumping on an E6 is particularly impressive.



Niall Grimes' new book Boulder Britain is out now. You should buy this select guide to bouldering in the UK for at least three reasons:

1. Niall is a diamond.
2. Photos by yours truly.
3. It's brilliant.