Couch potato

Saturday morning I was up at 5:30, not for climbing well not entirely.  Elseya had a course in Perth that was due to start at 9am, so we were on the road early to make sure we got there on time.  After dropping her off I headed out to the Adrenaline Vault to while away a few hours.  It’s one of the bouldering gyms that have been popping up in Perth over the last few years, and the good news is that for bouldering you can go solo.  It was fun but I think I went a bit hard and fast, climbing up and down all the easy stuff and a fair few of the next level ones before hitting the red routes.  The place was just about all overhung and some of it seriously so, it was a real workout:

When I hit the red routes I teamed up with some guy from Brisbane, who had been stranded in Perth due to the gas works in the north being shut down because of the looming cyclone Veronica.  He was tall, too tall.  For every move he did I had to make two or at times three, but that pushed me and I was willing to the point that my fingertips were raw and the calluses on my soft office worker hands started to pop off.  I was glad I only had just shy of 2 hours to climb before picking Elseya up!  The next morning I was sore, so very sore, but I had committed to go out for a “real” climb.  Craig and I plumped or Moses Rocks for a bit of ocean views and fun lines:

It was a low neap tide but the swell would be coming in rough, that with a seaward breeze made for great conditions.  The rock was dry, none of that greasy salt spray feeling, and the friction was perfect.  So we started on a little line I had been keeping an eye on to hit one day, sandwiched between two lines that Craig and I put up way back in 2009.  Craig belayed from round the corner where the rock was dry and the water was hopefully not going to get him.  Despite his belay perch looking dry he anchored in just in case, as I traversed in and headed up the narrow pillar:

I’m a bit of a slow starter and need a warm up climb or two, today was different I think I needed the whole day to warm up.  That’s not true I was suffering so much from the day before that I never really got into the flow.  Moses however, has an ability to make ever visit fun and this first climb did just that.  Originally it looked like it may get a bit tricky and nervous in the second half but it never presented any great problems, just satisfying rounded friction holds in a great position.  We reckon it may get a 12 at a push, so yet another one to add to the bucket of climbs we have done here that we have not bothered to write up:

Craig’s last trip out was on his birthday in August so he was happy for me to take the lead, what joy!  So next up was an old favourite for some but not others.  Hathersage just had to be climbed, I’ve probably said it before but this is the first route I ever climbed in WA… well attempted to climb, as I was soloing.  I got as far as Craig is now before I decided it was better to back off.  In today’s dry conditions this route was a gem, and Craig was looking comfortable and smooth.  Making me think that maybe he should have a pop on the floppy end as well:

There was one line that was drawing him in, I certainly didn’t fancy leading it but he was comfortable that he could get to the carrot bolt and have enough strength left to then pull through.  While I set myself up an anchor, off to one side with a directional piece below the climb, he prepared himself.  I had to giggle as he popped a bolt plate in his mouth before setting off on this Shane Richardson route, a name that implies it wasn’t likely to be easy.  I’d never been on Spoilt Bastard, yet another line named after a politically incorrect Viz comic character, so we were about to find out if the theory was right:

With a good position I managed to get some great images of Craig on lead, but decided to use this one of me giving it all.  I had to yoyo a few times, with each attempt going from the deck up.  It’s a proper roof that has some horizontal stances.  All that steep jugging the day before would have set me up for this route, if there had been a few more recover day in-between.  My muscles screamed out, but I finally pulled off the long reach up to rounded but surprisingly satisfying hold above the bolt.  From there it became less horizontal and more relaxed, but that doesn’t take away the impressive lead for someone who hasn’t climbed for over half a year:

Being satisfied with his lead the rope was handed back to me.  We were working our way rightwards along this broken set of small walls and buttresses, so I decided on a little number on Red Wall call Pickup.  Kym put up this variation on the original route call Hickup and it is worthy line.  I have to admit to once again struggling to hang on and probably climbed the route three or four times before I linked it all and topped out.  Craig in his casual manner took his time and looked comfortable all the way.  Too comfortable so I handed him the rope to pick the next line:

It wasn’t a hard decision, over to Hands Up Wall to hit the crag classic.  The wind was swinging round and starting to come from the south, there was a distinct drop in the temperature and we wrapped up again.  Wheely Things is all style, and while Craig climbed the route I ran round checking out multiple angles to get the best images.  He never once looked on edge, however after following him up he said he didn’t really wanting to look down.  Confessing that seeing me dancing round and checking out angles or anything else that catches my eye was at times a little disconcerting:

I love Wheely Things a great jamming route and one if you get right never feels too hard.  Today it felt surprisingly good, in fact the most comfortable route all day.  Maybe not needing to hold onto the rock with the palms of my ripped up hands helped.  After enjoying that so much we decided one more route was in order, I had been ambitiously looking at the harder lines but ended up deciding to dial it back and cruise up Hands Up.  While I set myself up to watch Craig follow me I spent most of the time watching the waves crashing in and out of the zawn.  Moses has to be the best crag for watching waves:

We were both pretty shattered but felt there was time for one last play a little slab that always looks appealing.  I’m sure I’ve played on this before and found a couple of lines that were not too bad.  However, today it felt thin and technical.  We worked a few vertical problems and then this last long rising traverse to sap the last of our mental strength, shred the last remnants of skin from the tips of our fingers and make our toes screaming out to be released from our shoes.  It was another top day out at Moses Rocks, but I have to admit I was so very glad to flop onto the sofa when I got home: