Lines Of Lust

Inspiration + desire + challenge + exploration + variety...

Lewis:
Dalbeg:
Tweetie Pie Slalom  E5 6a ***
Limpet Crack  E3 5c ***
Neptune  E2 5c ***
Blessed Are The Weak  E5 6a ***
Various routes

Mangestra:
The Prozac Link  E4 5c ***
Various routes

Skye:
Neist:
Supercharger  E3 5c **
Wish You Were Here  E2 5b ***
Have A Nice Day  E3 6a **
Golden Shower  E4 5c ***
American Vampire  E4 6a ***
Fight Club  E3 6a ***

Rubha Hunish:
Whispering Crack E3 5c ***
Northern Exposure E2 5b ***

Elgol:
Digitalis E3 5c ***
Mother's Pride E4 5c ***

Staffin Slip:
Various routes.

Caithness:
Sarclet:
Occam's Razor E4 6a ***
A Paddler's Tale E3/4 5c ***

Reiff:
Headstrong E4 5c **
Wyatt Earp E3 6a ***
Crack Of Desire E3 6a ***
Various routes

Wester Ross:
Tollie Crags:
Each Uisge Direct  E4 6a ***
Murray's Arete  E3/4 5c *
The Shimmer  E4 6a **

Loch Tollaidh Crags:
Flag Iris  E4 5c **
Various routes.

Stone Valley Crags:
Demon Razor  E3 5c *
Flashing Blade  E3 6a **

Gruinard Crags:
How The West Was Won  E3 5c **
Stand And Deliver  E4 6a **

Diabeg:
Edgewood Whimper  E4 5c **
Porpoise Pun  E3 5c **
Wall Of Flame  E4 6a ***
Instant Muscle  E4 6a **
Rough Justice  E2 5c *

Glen Nevis:
On Some Beach  E5 6a ***
Freddie Across The Mersey  E5 6a **
Crackattack  E3 5c ***
Mutant  E4 5c **
Triode  E5 6a **
Risque Grapefruit  E4 5c **
Fingertip Finale  E4 5c *
Precious Cargo  E5 6a *

Creag Dubh:
Colder Than A Hooker's Heart  E5 5c **
Harder Than Your Husband  E5 6a **
The Final Solution  E5 6a **
Acapulco  E4 5c ***
Bratach Uaine  E4 6a ***
Case Dismissed  E3 6a ***
Ayatollah  E4 6a ***

North East:
Moray Coast:
The Prow  E5 6a **
The Essential  E3 5c ***
Senakot Rose  E4 6a **
Old Fashioned Waltz  E3 5c *

Aberdeen Coast:
Red Army Blues  E4 6a **
Downies' Syndrome E4 6a **
Sair Fecht  E3 6a **
The Pugilist  E4 6a ***
Johnsheugh routes
Various other routes

Pass Of Ballater:
Peel's Wall  E4 6a ***
Smith's Arete  E5 6a ***

Central Highlands:
Glen Lednock:
No Place For A Wendy  E2 5b ***
Pole-Axed  E4 6a **
Gabrielle  E4 6a *
Diamond Cutter  E3 6a ***

Glen Croe:
Edge Of Insanity  E4 5c **
Short Sharp Shock  E4 6a **

 ...so much of it, and so little dry weather.

This is is partly to remind myself and partly to keep aware what I need to train for.

Radical Changes.

Or, radical reversion to what is right.

In the latter part of 2011 I realised my life has gone off track. See over to the left where it says "Aiming to live a lifestyle of climbing and travelling"?? A matter of necessity as well as inspiration - I think it's pretty good and harmonious that necessity and inspiration align. But I have partly been working indirectly to that path, partly tried to stick to it in difficult circumstances, and partly strayed from it. So I need to realign those straying parts to that path, for my own sanity as well as pleasure. To this aim, I have some Scottish plans...

1. Steadily up my levels of general activity and fitness training until they become habitual.

2. Keep in touch with partners and keep organised AND try to be part of an active positive scene, not just climbing but general fitness.

3. Get to somewhere interesting in late Jan (Morocco? Gibraltar?) and early April (Pfalz? Annot?).

4. Week long trip to Lewis, several days sea-cliffing in Skye, long weekend in Ardnamurchan.

5. Explore more bouldering over winter, esp: Glen Nevis, Torridon/Reiff, Skye, Carrock Fell, Queen's Crag, Shaftoe, Rothley, Simonside

6. Climb a few E5s and maybe a few F7a+s if I get my fitness back

7. Keep fit at gym, pool, and wall.

8. Lose 1 stone via the above.


...and the same general climbing lifestyle guidelines as last year...


1. Keep in touch with climbing partners regularly, promptly, and positively.

2. Prioritise plans for the most inspiring areas with like-minded partners.

3. Plan more proactively but flexibly in advance rather and last minute.

4. Get started on days out earlier to make best use of time.

5. Keep fitness training and make it a regular habit.

6. Keep eating a decent diet with small portions, less junk, more water.

7. Train stamina, finger strength, finger power, dynamism and endurance at walls.

8. Falling practise, falling practise, falling practise, falling practise.

9. Work on route reading and gear placing outdoors.

10. Stack odds in my favour with suitable weather conditions.


...the main but slight change being focusing on habits and lifestyle as much as specific factors / plans. I have a path, I need to follow it.

Annus Demi-Horribilis.

Or should that be Anus Demi-Horribilis??

This year has been a year of two halves for me:

Part 1:

Malta - great
Later winter bouldering at Ruthven Boulder, Loch Sloy, Clashfarquar etc - very nice and satisfying
Pedriza - great
Long weekend in Mull - superb, best Scottish trip all year
Long weekend in Gairloch - very good
Long weekends in Caithness and Stranraer - good
Sweden - super-awesome
Brief trip to Creag Dubh and Camel - good
Generally maintaining an enjoyable E3 standard every trip out - pleasing
Losing a few pounds in Sweden - reassuring

Part 2:

Terrible weather all summer - suckage
No trips to Lewis / Skye / Ardnamurchan / Glen Nevis - suckage
No Indian Summer respite - suckage
A couple of decent trips to Aberdeen and local crags - pretty good
2 weeks of dry weather in November - some respite for bouldering
Increasing weight gain - very demoralising
Decreasing fitness - very demoralising
TCA opening - great training and a useful mercy
Exploring the County bouldering - good
Hard work changing medication to reduce weight gain - just plain hard
Persistent man-flu / throat/chest infection - suckage

It's pretty simple:
Good weather and trips away = good health and good spirits = right.
Terrible weather and less climbing = bad health and bad spirits = wrong.

Incidentally, my other interests have been pretty fun this year - have painted some cool figures, listened to some great drum'n'bass / hardcore / metal, and played a lot of good PC games - all of which is nice and passes the time during the incessant rain / rest days, but as fun as all those things are, they play supporting roles, not the main performance.

I've realised that the regular climbing lifestyle is not just important to me as it's the biggest inspiration to me, it's essential to me as an active lifestyle that balances out my mental and physical health issues. I am who I am and that is what's right for me.