We’ve had a clear run of sunny weather and Saturday (today!) was going to stay dry so Kym and I headed out. Unlike others Kym doesn’t mind getting out a bit earlier so I left home soon after six. Every day at this time during the week I have been greeted with a clear blue sky and daylight. But today the mist was thick and visibility was low:
Kym loves the Northern Blocks at Willyabrup and so we plumped for that location. It was warm and I wore shorts but kept a long sleeve top on, a good sign that spring is definitely moving in. That said as we approached the sky out to sea was looking ominous and the humidity was definitely up there. Not the best for Willyabrup a compact rock that doesn’t forgive sweaty fingers that result in any friction soon slipping away:
I jumped on first lead and plumped for the obvious warm up classic of Banana Slipt, a mega classic that has exposure and variety in the climbing styles. It is never too hard but it seemed like it had been a long time since I had put on a full rack and climbed anything long so I felt weighed down, maybe the humidity hanging heavy in the air didn’t help. That didn’t hold me back and the climb was as good as it has been every other time I’ve been on it:
Most of the routes at the Northern Blocks are steep and sustained, we knew before we got here that it would be a hard day. But Kym did say he wasn’t feeling that good so he only had one hard line in mind and that was Green Stone, which goes up the black streaked wall. He told me the other routes would all just be for fun. I’ve led Green Stone twice before and both time quivered and fell at the crux:
It was a battle and one that he eventually won once he figured out the crux, well crux sequence that goes on for a fair length. It’s a tough one where you layback off a rounded crack on a very steep wall and the only way to get gear in is to put it in blind and hope it is good (which is how I led it). However, we are all different and when Kym really went for it he kept going, and going running it out beyond the ground fall limit. Fortunately he didn’t fall from way above his gear, and I was super pleased myself as I cleaned the route on second:
The dark clouds seemed to be moving to the north and south of us but we were in a pocket where despite a couple of small drops we stayed dry and the rock seemed to improve as the morning wore on. The Northern Blocks don’t see the traffic of the other areas at Willyabrup so if you come here you are nearly always guaranteed a quiet day. Over on the main areas we could see a few groups milling about:
Now Kym lied, after his lead he encouraged a quick rap into the Terrace to try a line neither of us had ever been on and one that was 3 grades harder than the one he just led. Grunge Metal is a sport line and looks very steep and it was my lead. We rapped in and Kym looked up at the damp/wet rock and said we could bail and do something else. I was not convinced of his suggestion as while the line looked wicked and steep there were jugs all the way up, or so it looked. So up I went:
Damn it was great I took a rest or two pumping out and being nervous on wet holds but I managed all the sequences pretty easily and felt really good. In fact it was so good that I said to Kym to lower me so he could lead it too, and he did a better job than I did. It required lots of body movement and tension shifting this way and that, a top line. Mark you’ll be pleased to know this made me feel better about my ability before our up-coming trip:
Eager for more trad we went back down to the main walls, maybe a tad too hastily as I slipped on loose blocks and ended up giving a blood offering to the rock goddess. The tracks at the base of the cliff are scrappy and overgrown, evidence that few people come here. I wasn’t being quite so careful as I was still on high after the last route, which I had got to climb twice as I also seconded Kym up it:
My next lead was Corpus Delecti a great full trad line that has a spooky finish. Kym isn’t so keen on this one reckoning that it is a tad too run out. I could feel my arms pumping but lapped up the moves and then set up a top rope. We had both taken on a few climbs that were not quite beyond us, but coming out of winter and not being fully fit plus having our families to get back to we decided to finish off by top roping two climbs adjacent to the one I just led:
So we enjoyed Use No S.L.C.D.’s and finally Digital Delecti with the safety of a rope above us. I climbed with the full rack just as a bit of extra training, or was it that I was too slow to think about leaving it on top after my lead. The last climb felt way too hard for the grade, a sure sign that it was time to head out:
Sandbagged 