We might have missed the blue sky day, but the cold weather and icefalls remain. The cycle up the valley was certainly more brutal than the ice climbing! The wind literally stopped me dead in my tracks a few times as we battled up into the dawn head wind. I had to wear a full windproof facemask, balaclava and ski goggles to stave off the windchill, which the mountain forecast was estimating at -20 degrees! On the plus side, we got to witness a beautiful sunrise and golden glow on the mountain tops - I was too busy hanging on to the handlebars (and it was way too cold to expose my fingers), to take photos though! The battle paid off though, as we pretty much had the entire mountain range to ourselves and pick of the routes!
The best looking like was Idwal Stream. We put crampons on by the bridge and hacked our way 300m or so frozen cascade!
On the easier sections we moved together, then pitched the steep bits. It just kept going...
It was an odd scene - there is barely any snow - just ice.
At the top of the route, we had to take off our crampons and walk back down the path! All very convenient. Next we had a look at 'The Screen', which is much steeper. John went up the first pitch.
After this, we decided to use the 'escape ledge' rather than carry on up the dripping ice. As the drips landed on us, they froze instantly. If we didn't climb fast enough, we might have frozen to the icefall!
Here's a few other pics that John took...
Back at the bike, we loaded up and this time, with the wind on our backs, shot back home in about 13 minutes! A record for sure!
Cwm Idwal:
- Idwal Stream, II/III*** (300m)
- The Screen (pitch 1) IV**
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