Poor casting

Rongy has been dropping hints about getting back to Smiths Beach for a long time now, the last time I had been here with him is close to three year now.  So today we finally got there, and it had been a long time since I have climbed here.  A top rope solo mission in March 2019 and the last person to want to climb here was Howsie in December 2018.  So you may ask why, with such a great selection of routes, this place been absent from our climbing destinations for so long:

The answer is simple, it has a bit of a reputation and I liken it to the big brother of Moses Rocks.  Being all trad climbs and having a serious feel to the place with rounded holds, bold leads at the grade, and at times crashing waves to create a fantastic atmosphere.  I’m not aware of any local of visiting climbers who come here, and there is no activity recorded on The Crag.  It is a shame as there is so much on offer.  Today neither Rongy or I were feeling particularly bold so we decided to start easy and see where things ended up:

In view that he had been busting to get back here I offered up the floppy end to him, which he gratefully accepted before jumping on Photographic Belayer, above.  He promptly started to run it out after placing the first piece making me redundant and allowing me to take some more images.  It was not intentionally and as he placed a few bits higher up I could hear him say to himself “welcome back to Smiths Beach”:

I took a much more leisurely stroll up Side Walk.  A line that never gets serious and allows plenty of opportunity to lace it up, which I did.  There was no risk of a ground fall on my watch.  Now while the day had started somewhat uncertainly with the first leads I did mention a route that as far as I am aware has never been repeated.  Doubtful Casting is a short but feisty leaning crack line in an exposed position.  He eyed it up and was keen, but first we had to get the small gear:

That meant a return to the main crag.  After picking up the small gear we decided that while we were here I should jump on my second lead.  I was thinking maybe to jump on Lady of the Lake but after getting to where that branched off I chickened out and continued up Excalibur.  The route was still awesome with plenty of gear so it is never too scary and being direct, sustained and with great moves.  The only issue for me was the sun was in my eyes, this being the one downfall of Smiths.  The sun creeps round to blind you and heat you up from early on:

We then hoicked back round to Doubtful Casting, a line that sits away from all the other areas.  Rongy started strong working the gear in and having to fiddle about with it a fair bit.  The line leans ferociously to the right and is very steep, so there are no real rests.  The next sequence was on the steepest territory and required commitment to run it out to the next gear and hopefully better holds.  Commitment that just wasn’t in his tank:

I laughed (inside) when Rongy offered me the sharp end to finish the route off.  I too only got to the last piece of gear and bottled the next sequence.  My arms or was it my head, like Rongy, was not up for the challenge.  So we cleaned the route and headed back to the smaller of the two zawns.  Here I sat with a stunning view, laid back against a rock armchair that would make my wife Lisa envious:

While I soaked in the magnificent sight in front of me Rongy set off up the Bellowing Sails.  Personally I feel this route has the best exposure of any at this place, following up the arête high above the water.  It takes in some steep territory with hidden holds that you have to find to make it work.  While I laid back Rongy was making his way up the line making very satisfying sounds, as he slowly unlocked this gem of a puzzle:

We were both pretty happy with the leads we had bagged today, and were not feeling the need to push things anymore.  The lines had created that satisfying feeling in our arms to tell us we had worked enough.  There was also another reason for wanting to head off, and that was the conditions in the bay behind us were looking very good for a snorkel.  We had come prepared for this so we packed up and headed back to the car for part two of our morning out:

As we walked out Rongy admitted that he was glad I hadn’t finished Doubtful Casting off, as it would allow him to try again with no prior knowledge of what lay above his highest point.  Maybe next time his casting will be more successful…