(by Gerry Moss, December 2008)
Some shots from the Barnbawn session (courtesy of Pádraic) to bring a little sunshine at the darkest time of the year.
This is Martina eyeing up the crux on one of her many leads:
Here we have Margaret sussing out the sequence of moves:
And Paddy, just soaking up the sun:
Brian bustling up Bonsai:
Diarmuid just doing it:
Padraic pushing his limits:
Finally, John demonstrating his Tai Chi technique:
(by Gerry Moss, November 2008)
Climbing in winter at the sun-kissed Wicklow crag.
Wasn’t last Tuesday a lovely day – an ideal opportunity to introduce Steve (recently retired) to Barnbawn’s micro-mediterranean climate. Blue skies, sun-kissed rock, and a breeze sighing through the pines overhead. Here’s Steve and Herbert soaking up the sunshine:
Belated congratulations to Terry on the 2 new routes he established here some weeks ago. Himself and myself had a look at the line of The Edge HVS 5a a few years ago, he almost cracked it then, but decided to leave it for another day and it has been waiting for him ever since. The two routes are a worthwhile addition to the collection, and I suspect most climbers will consider The Edge to be a bit nearer to 5b than 5a.
In the interim we have not been standing idly by, and below you will find details of two routes we added during last winter. The description for the second one, Traverse of the Bods, is a bit lengthy, but it is far and away the longest climb on the crag and provides some entertaining moments (the name is a nod to my two companions on the day).
This shot shows Sidewinders (in red) and the first pitch of the traverse (in blue):
The climbs described:
Sidewinders HS
Short, delicate and difficult to protect in the upper section. It can be greasy after a few days rain and is best tackled when dry. Best, too, in the morning as, like the others climbs on this side, it faces east and catches the sun early.
Start at the extreme R of the crag, as for Offside, below the R-hand end of the deep, sloping crack. Pull up to stand in the crack. Make a long, awkward step down and around to the R onto a good foothold. Traverse R using undercuts to gain the edge of the flake. Continue R on an intermittent crack and, when this fades, move up the face to a gap and tree belay. (G.Moss, H. Hertzmann, Winter 2007)
Traverse of the Bods HVS (4c, 5a)
A right-to-left girdle of the crag, best done in 2 pitches, to avoid rope drag.
Pitch 1, 4c.
Start as for Offside, at the extreme R of the crag, below the R-hand end of the deep, sloping crack. Pull up to stand in the crack and traverse L to its end. Step across L and continue with the foot traverse on Cascarino. When this ends move L above the overhang on Damp Start Crack to reach the arete. Step down L onto the upper part of the ramp on Eye of the Needle and move across onto the hanging slab on Swing Lowe. Up this to belay above the exit on Eye of the Needle.
Pitch 2, 5a.
Move down into the gorse-filled gully and across to the stance below the crux of Buachaillí Bána. Make a delicate diagonal descent across the short slab of Scud Guys (crux) and move around the nose to the stance below the crux of Bonsai. A short fingery traverse across the steep wall gains the narrow ramp on Saw Doctors. Step down onto the main slab and traverse pleasantly L below the crux of Lineker to just below the top of OOh! AAh! Backclimb down this to belay on the ground.
(G. Moss, H. Hertzmann, L. Convery, Winter 2007)
This shot shows the second pitch of the traverse, and Terry’s route, The Edge (in red):
(by Gerry Moss, from IMC Newsletter Winter 2002)
A climbing guide to the little Co. Wicklow crag
The current edition of the Wicklow guidebook was published in 1993, almost ten years ago. Since then there has been only a trickle of new routes in the Wicklow area – attention has moved on to other, less developed, areas. For this reason it is unlikely that we will see a new edition of the guidebook for some years to come. Carrick crag was developed by the Club too late to be included in the 1993 edition and, although details were published in our own Newsletter, all this happened some years ago and members who have joined the Club in recent years would be unaware of its existence. Under the circumstances we thought it might be opportune to highlight the crag again.
GR T236940. This little crag, lying on the eastern slopes of Carrick mountain, was previously hidden by the trees growing around its foot. Recent clearing of the forest has revealed all, allowing it to receive the full benefit of its Southerly aspect. Being at a relatively low altitude and in the same beneficial weather zone as Barnbawn, it can offer a day’s climbing when Glendaloch and Luggala are too wet or too cold for consideration. It does, however, suffer from seepage, and takes some time to dry after heavy rain, so bear this in mind. For a small crag it offers a wide range of climbing: routes so far include gentle slabs, a classic chimney, steep, delicate face-climbing, and a strenuous overhanging crack. There are still some natural lines awaiting a first ascent.
Head south from Dublin on the N11 (the main Dublin/Wexford road) as far as the village of Ashford. Just before leaving the village, and immediately after passing the Texaco filling station, take the road slanting up right, which leads, after about 7km, to the village of Glenealy. Just before you cross the bridge to enter this village a narrow road leads off right, by the side of the community hall. Follow this to where it ends, after one kilometre, at a forest entrance (this road is quite narrow and parking is very restricted, but there is a good car park in the village, opposite the pub).
Cross the barrier, keep right and follow the forest road as it curves up and back left to another junction. Turn right here and, after a short distance, take the narrow pony-track striking up left. Follow this pleasantly as it heads uphill through deciduous trees, crossing another forest road en route, to emerge at a wide, complex junction of roads and tracks (less than 30 minutes). Take the road slanting up right and the crag comes into view, up on the left, after about five minutes. Since the trees were felled the undergrowth on the hillside has flourished, so the best approach to the crag is to continue on the road beyond the crag to the edge of the trees and slant back left, about forty-five minutes in all.
All the climbs are single-pitch, varying from 8 to 18 metres in length, and the routes are described from left to right. The descent route is at the extreme left of the crag.
1 Warming-up VD
G.Moss 2/6/92
Start at the left-hand end of the left-facing wall. Climb a short ramp and move left to finish.
2 Running Before the Wind HS
G.Moss, B.Hannon 23/11/92
Start halfway along the left-hand wall at the foot of a shallow groove that runs up to a small tree on a ledge. Climb the groove on small holds to the ledge. Finish up the short wall above the tree. The difficulties are short but unprotected.
Moving around to the right, there is an unclimbed crack and groove above a spike at the left-hand edge of the overhanging face. The crack splitting the roof at its widest point has yet to be done.
3 NRG E2(5b/5c)
T. O’Neill, G. Moss 5/10/96
Start at the bottom left of the wide obvious chimney, beneath a small overhang, which is split by two cracks. Climb a shallow groove and the crack through the overhang. A strenuous but well-protected test-piece.
4 Sorchas HS(4b)
G.Moss, B.Norton 19/9/92
Start at the bottom of the chimney. Bridge up between the right-hand edge of the chimney and the left wall, keeping outside the chockstone. Overcoming the narrows provides an airy crux.
5 Dorchas D
G.Moss 2/6/92
Start as for Sorchas. Move up the floor of the chimney to a step halfway along. Bridge up to finish behind the chockstone.
The shallow corner behind the ash tree about two metres right of the chimney has been tried, but is still unclimbed.
6 Carrick Crack VS(4c)
B.Norton, G.Moss 19/9/92
Start at the right-hand edge of the face, just left of a grassy gully, below a crack. Make a difficult move to gain a sloping ledge. Climb the crack, which gives strenuous, but well-protected climbing.
7 Carrick On Climbing VD
B.Norton, G.Moss 19/9/92
Start just right of the narrow grassy gully, at the foot of a short, right-trending ramp. Climb the ramp and finish up the centre of the slab on small holds.
8 Garvaghy Road VS(4c)
G.Moss, T.O’Neill 13/7/96
Start around to the right from Carrick On Climbing, behind the holly tree, below a narrow jammed flake at 2m. Climb to a ledge and gain the top of the flake. Difficult moves off the flake provide the crux.
9 Queen’s Highway E1(5b)
T. O’Neill, G. Moss 13/7/96
Start 2m right of Garvaghy Road below the left edge of the 20m slab. Climb a bulge to the foot of the slab and follow an incipient crack line 1m in from a grass-filled crack. Thin moves, poorly protected, lead to a good finish.
10 Glorious Twelfth VS(4c)
G. Moss, L. Convery 12/8/95
Start 2m right of Queen’s Highway. Climb a bulge to a ledge and good nut placement below the centre of the slab. Delicate moves lead to better holds.
11 Apprentice Boys MS
L. Convery, G. Moss 12/8/95
Start at a block, 2m. right of Glorious Twelfth. Good in-cut holds lead to a small bracket. Gain this crux, and continue pleasantly to the top.
(by Chris Clarke, from IMC Newsletter Spring 2004)
A winter camp in the Mournes.
| Mountain Range: | Mourne Mountains |
| Date: | 21/22 February 04 |
| Meet Organiser: | Chris Clarke |
| Group: | Stephen Peel, Allister Gerrard, Kieran Kelly |
There were 3 main elements to the camp: climbing on the Bearnagh Slabs, night navigation, and a 6-hour walk on Sunday to cap it off; if this meet was a sandwich you could not get much more into it.
The weather forecast for the weekend was dry with northeasterly winds; temperatures “BLUDDY FREEZING”.
Having reached the campsite, which was the col between Slieve Meelmore and Slieve Bearnagh, we crossed over the Mourne Wall to take advantage of the shelter from the wind. Rather than pitching the tents we went climbing as time was moving on. Chris and Allister decided on Grand Central, (Grade VD 70m); Stephen and Kieran went for Directissima (Grade Severe 80m). The rock surface was very cold to the touch so gloves were kept at the ready when there was a rest or belay break. The friction on the Bearnagh slab is excellent but not as good as in the hot weather when the shoe rubber is softer; nevertheless we ascended the routes in good style and in good time.
Allister wrote of his first multi pitch route:
| Great! I was nervous at first prior to arriving for the weekend fearing the worst of what may lie ahead in terms of difficulty. However, when Chris told me I would be climbing with him and I saw the Bearnagh Slabs, I thought yes, this could be achievable and I was well on for giving it a bash. The first half was relatively straightforward, although I thought I was suffering from what might be frostbite at this point when my toes were going numb. Which turned out to be more from having very tight shoes and thick socks (poor circulation) combined with the bitter northeast wind. The second part of the climb was very challenging and enjoyable; there were some tricky moves to be negotiated high up on the crag. Overall, very enjoyable and made all the more so thanks to Chris’s guidance. I’d recommend the weekend to everyone for next time; you don’t know what you’re missing. Bring on the next one! |
After returning from the crag the tents were erected; three one-man tents and a bivy bag would shelter us from the elements. Dinner was next on the agenda; after that was downed we headed into the darkness to do night navigation. It was a clear night; for the stargazers it was perfect.
On Sunday morning there was frost on the tents and for a brief minute or two we had a shower of light hailstones and the cold northerly wind persisted.
All of the gear was packed away into one tent for shelter and security. The plan today was a walk. From the campsite we headed up to Slieve Bearnagh; from there we dropped down to Hare’s Gap where we crossed paths with other walkers who had come up the Trassey track.
From Hare’s Gap we headed for Slievenaglogh then on to Slieve Corragh, and finally the gigantic granite pinnacles on Slieve Commedagh; the date on the pinnacle 1913. The sign notifies that trespassers will be prosecuted. From there we dropped down to the col between Slieve Commedagh and Slieve Donard. The walk back along the Brandy Pad was very pleasant; the weather was good as it had been for the entire weekend. Before long we were back at the campsite and an hour or so later we were at the car park.
We finished off the weekend in the coffee shop beside the car park. The fruit scones, homemade, were scrumptious. The final act was a photo shoot with the kind assistance of the shop assistant.
(Information from www.goireland.com)
The building of the Mourne Wall around the Mourne Catchment provided seasonal but very welcome local employment between the years 1904 and 1922. The wall stands up to 8 feet high and on average it is 3 feet wide. Twenty-two miles in length it connects the summits of no less than 15 mountains, and is a monument to the skill of the men who built it.
In 1933 the successful damming of the Kilkeel River valley was the culmination of 30 years work initiated by Belfast City and District Water Commissioners (responsible by an Act of Parliament to supply water to the city of Belfast) This set in place first the Mourne Wall and then the immense reservoir in a renamed "silent valley". Built to gather waters from a mountain catchment extending over most of the High Mournes, the Silent Valley and Ben Crom reservoirs supply most of Co. Down and a large part of Belfast for domestic and industrial use.
(by Kevin Byrne, from IMC Newsletter Spring 2004)
Chasing the elusive Irish winter ice.
The cold snap at the end of Feb was probably the final throw in yet another year of poor winter conditions on the Irish hills. These days the west coast may get more snow than the east but nowhere seems to get any more ice than you could shake a shiny new Charlet Moser Quasar at – a steal by the way at €500 the pair, excluding the leashes! Even Scotland has been having a lean time of it. But if you’re an optimist and still have spare cash after forking out for the Quasars, the Rambo crampons, a rack full of Black Diamond Express Ice Screws (excellent value at only €75 a pop…oops) and of course the fully insulated Goretex-Titanium-Fibre-Optic-Ergo-Metric-Fully Branded Babygro for that all-over snugly feeling, there are some good deals available right now on slightly used ski-lifts in the Highlands – one careful owner, fully serviced, stored in a garage etc – guaranteed to whiz you skywards to your very own winter playground!
A few miserly millimetres of snow, barely enough to dust the rounded tops of our beloved Wicklow – that seems to be all we can expect. But then, just when you think there isn’t an icicle’s chance in hell, you arrive down one day, no axes of course, to find the whole place plastered in ice. Every water course, every boghole, every bit of oozing slime, frozen to a perfect consistency. Frustrating or wha?.
Much more often though, you find the exact opposite. You know the scenario… Minus 10 in the city for six days running, high expectations, plans made, a struggle out of the scratcher hours before dawn, blindly intent on being first to attack the bulging ice that has surely been building all week in the North Prisons. Ah yes, the thrill of the chase, how satisfying to conquer the virgin ice hours before the hordes … except that as you peer through the swirling mist you find only wet miserable bog, the water gurgling away happily and the slime oozing with its usual consistency. In short, full summer conditions. Even more frustration…and embarrassment to boot as you sidle past the walkers on the summit, afraid they’ll spot the gleaming Quasars and the other mouth-watering technology.
Why is this? Why can’t we seem to predict the ice conditions if it’s cold enough in the city to freeze …. well, your water tank, say?
In my experience of searching for the exclusive and elusive Wicklow ice there are a few things that need to be factored in to reduce the guess-work. One critical item is whether or not the hills have a blanket of cloud while the surrounding country-side does not – especially at night time. Of course ‘blanket’ is the operative word here because if the hills are cloud-covered they simply won’t freeze. Meteorologists sitting in Dublin may be able tell whether Lug has a blanket of cloud when the stars are bright in the suburbs but so far I haven’t got in on the secret. More than once I have been disappointed with the amount of freeze and can only put it down to cloud cover.
Something else to watch out for is wind. In perfectly still conditions it takes a deep cold to penetrate flowing water. But … with a strong wind and cold air the wind chill can be enough to create sprays of water that will freeze and build up to considerable thicknesses. Sitting at home it’s a bit easier to know what the wind has been doing as well as the temperature so next time keep an eye on wind speeds when the temperatures are looking promising.
A third thing to keep an eye on is how wet or dry the weather has been in the previous week. The best ice is often found where there is continuous slow seepage. But seepage dries up if the rainfall amount has been low, though, on the plus side low rainfall will mean that streams will be low and may freeze up where otherwise they might just thunder on.
In general the best conditions for ice in the British Isles are created by freeze/thaw conditions. Continuous sub-zero conditions over a week or so, while seeming to promise a lot, might actually create very little ice. Good freeze/thaws don’t often happen here – the thaws are often too strong. So there is a fourth ingredient … fluctuating temperatures, cold at night but above zero during the day works best.
A fifth ingredient might be snowfall. We tend to associate snow with ice but this is not always the case. In fact sometimes the best ice is to be found when there is no snow. A light fall of snow followed by a rapid melt can create surface water, which will freeze. But a significant snow fall can insulate the ground and prevent the turf and seepage from freezing as well as hiding the best lines. Good ice does not require good snow … and good snow does not usually result in good ice.
So there you have it … well some of it anyway if my experience is anything to go by. I’m sure there are other subtle factors at play but in conclusion I’d just say that if you’re searching out the elusive winter ice, be prepared to analyse a bit more deeply and you’ll be disappointed less often. Maybe you’ll even be pleasantly surprised from time to time.
Oh, and by the way those Quasars are last year’s toys. You know it! Deep down you know you really should trade up to the latest model. Go on and do it! If you don’t you’re only fooling yourself…and you won’t be ready for the Big Freeze in 2005.
