The rain fell as we walked down towards the main cliffs of Wilyabrup, not that it has ever put me off heading out for a climb before. However, today I was joined by a work colleague, Sam, who had never climbed before, neither indoors or outdoors. So it didn’t feel like it was the best conditions for his first introduction. We’ve been attempting to organise a trip for well over a year, but he foolishly dabbled in mountain biking some time back. This resulted in him coming a cropper and breaking bones, dashing our plans. Today however was the day, and the weather had been looked pretty good until we walked in:
We also picked a friend of Ash’s up on the drive down. Claudia has climbed before but not for a long time. I was happy when neither of them batted an eyelid as the rain set in, and we continued onwards. With one complete newbie and one with only distant memories of climbing, we spent a good length of time just talking through the basics. This also allowed the weather pattern to run its course, with the shower passing over and the promise of better condition’s rolled in behind the clouds:
We spent so much time talking about the basics that before we even started climbing Ash appeared, indicating it was at least nine o’clock already. He’d been out for a trail run this morning, which I was aware about, explaining his slightly tardy arrival time. I also found out that there had been a bit of karaoke going on at his house last night. So while it may look like he is in pain above he is in fact blasting out the songs that were lingering in his mind from the night before. Whenever I have introduced anyone to rock, I’ve started sensibly to allow me to gauge how they are going:
Everyone got up the first route of Fairy Floss (grade 12). It’s not a hard climb, but has a tricky mid-section where some delicate footwork is required. A good test before we wandered round the corner to a slightly longer wall. Here Ash was happy to lead Setting Sun (grade 15), which he did as Sam, Claudia and I watched a whale frolicking in the bay. There was a bit of flipper action, but no breaching. The slightly broader and less elongated flipper indicated to Claudia and Sam that it was likely to be a Southern Right Whale, and much to our delight it stuck about for several hours:
Ash intended to set up a top rope to allow others to jump on the climb. But while he was sorting things out on top I asked Sam which of the climbs on this wall most appealed, purely from a visual inspection. He reckoned Tom Thumb (grade 11), a fun looking chimney on the arête. So after a quick bit of instruction I quite literally put my life in his hands, as he got to have his first go at belaying. Next to us when Ash had set up the top rope Claudia didn’t like the look of the line he had led. Instead she fancied the crack immediately to the right, which the top rope allowed her to try:
Below Ash was getting the last of the songs out of his head, as Claudia maybe started to regret picking Tom Thumb direct (grade 15). Sam was however very happy with his choice and was making easy work of the line. That was until I told him he also had to take the gear out, and I then made him down climb the route to the first bit of gear and start over. Even this didn’t break his stride, or enthusiasm. Beaming from ear to ear as he made his way back up to where he was and then all the way until he got to the top:
Seeing Claudia hadn’t cleaned the gear off Setting Sun, by going up the route to the right, Sam and I sorted that, which could only be done by us both climbing it. And after that Claudia had to head off, so her and Ash departed just as the sun started to come out and bathe the crag and us in warmth. Sam was keen for more, showing no signs of tiring despite three successful climbs. So we shed some layers and cracked on, picking an even longer line and one that I thought may be a bit tough:
But I was mistaken, his footwork, body movement, and cool and steady approach belied the fact that he had never climbed before. And while the crux of Hope (grade 14), which was the thinnest bit of climbing we had done yet, did make him stop and have to have a think. It didn’t take him long to work out a sequence that suited him. I was still not keen to keep bumping the grade, just to prove a point. So when he was keen for more, for the next route I picked Thunder Thighs (grade 11). Because like Tom Thumb the aesthetic of the line stand out:
Sam was still chomping at the bit, and this time we really did increase the difficulty. We had looked at Waterfall Second Folly Direct Start (grade 17) earlier, and the upper flake is an imposing but very striking feature. It just begs to be climbed, and had immediately drawn Sam’s attention. At the time I felt it was dumb idea, but so far he had not only managed every route with a clean ascent, but done so with style and composure. So we went for it, and finally he had to admit his forearms were pumped and a climb had been a real challenge:
Despite this he still managed to get up without a slip or rest on the rope, and was also up for one more route. Not even put off when I suggested climbing with packs to we didn’t have to walk out afterwards. We did however pick a more reasonable route to do this, First Climb (grade 11). It was of course another clean climb, making it seven out of seven, which I have to say I am pretty impressed about. Better still I reckon Sam may have caught the bug. You could argue that it was beginners luck, but with climbing I really don’t think that argument holds an weight:
Sandbagged 