Confession.

“Tell me about Rubble Paul.”

A cheeky grin cracked his slim suntanned face. Etched beneath the stubble, chiselled laugh lines grew. Eyes lit like phosphorous. The crows feet-crease lengthened. And he was there then, back in Wen Zawn a place he had made his own… And just for a second I was there with him and in that second I could smell the seaweed and feel the salt. Gulls were fighting and screaming... and fighting – the wind ripped through Wen's hewn cleft. Grey seals circled beneath the turbulent white waves. Crashing rock, crashing sea, greasy rock. A dark and foreboding and intimidating place but one that had been lit by Paul’s legacy – then he was back in the pub standing awkward and off balance…      

“It’s HVS… except for the E7 bits!” Laughing he limped away bumping and then melting into the throng, pint sloshing…

Why Rubble?

Stand on the promontory and look across at Wen Slab. Trace the line of Dream of White Horses …

… But you can’t.

Dream is one of the most celebrated climbs in North Wales and you really can’t see it. Then look down, down into the depths, down into the crashing sea and like a shaft of light, the most striking line forces its way out of the base of the zawn.

Tell me you don’t want to climb it… and I’ll call you a liar.

Tell me you are going to climb it… and I’ll say get on with it.

Tell me, if someday you find yourself in the cave beneath the dike, you are not nervous... I’ll call you a fool and a liar.

As you stand in the cave and look up at the overhanging gravel bulging like a beer belly...

...tell me your respect for Pritchard and McGinley doesn’t increase tenfold and I’d call you a liar or arrogant or both.

Abseiling, my head spins. It happens every time I slide into Wen Zawn, the Cathedral of Gogarth. Drummond and Pearce, Smith and Wainright… Dawes-Holliwell-Rogers… Brown and Boysen… Crew-Dixon-Crain, and of course Pritchard and McGinley – holy men of sacred ground. I hear all of their sermons mingled with the congregation of the sea and the choir of the wind. I kneel at the alter and pray for salvation every time I step from the washed platform in the base of the zawn.

And each time I pull through the wooden doors on the edge of adventure and stand on flat ground, I thank my God for another memory branded into my brain.

 Caff indelably etching another memory on Rubble's first pitch, climbed by Pritchard and McGinley 1991... pic by Ray Wood.

Equestrian Wall New Route Info.

Both of the routes below were climbed with Graham Desroy, AKA Streaky, AKA the old hippy who seconded and patiently belayed. Neither route was climbed on-sight. I would have loved to have attempted them both on-sight but because of the dubious nature of the rock, no-doubt a few tumbles would have occurred. As it was, a hold broke on my first attempt to lead All the Pretty horses which resulted in a twenty-five foot fall. The technical nature of the wall and the lack of obvious gear also made me prefer to work both climbs. I have a whole summer of trad climbing ahead, and after that a very expensive expedition which makes me less in favour of smashing myself up. As both are first ascents I think it is fair for me to climb them by working them and in the end this has probably resulted in both routes being climbed in quite a good style, placing gear on lead. Having done this and given them a grade for the on-sight, and a comprehensive description, it hopefully will open it up now for someone to come along and climb them in better style.

All the Pretty Horses. ** E66B. 30metres.

The old hippy moving into the crozzled crack below the crux of All the Pretty Horses.

This is the line that The Crossing should have been. The Crossing came about because I was about to go on an Expedition and running out of time. I was also with Dan McManus, who would only let me abseil and clean the line once before giving it a go, Dan is a strict member of the ethics police, so the Crossing uses all of the pods including the very large pod to the right of the top pod in the line of three, and then finishes up the George Smith route, Limpet Trip. The Crossing has only slightly been superseded by All the Pretty Horses as I think it is still great fun and is the only route to use all of the funky pods and then finish with the crux of Limpet Trip which is very well protected.

All the pretty Horses is a great direct finish to the Crossing with much new climbing. I think the climbing is worth two stars and the route is only slightly marred by the quality of some of the rock which resembles rotten dead wood and has a similar strength! 

Leave The Crossing at the top of the third pod before the move right into the largest pod of the Crossing. Strenuous moves to exit the pod from its top give good holds. Move left to the base of a light brown crozzled corner/flake. Climb the flake to its top where hard moves lead up and slightly right to a crack with a peg and gear. From the top of the crack climb direct into a very small overlap. Pull direct through the overlap, steady yourself and make hard blind moves right and up with feet on smears until a large pocket/flake is reached. Steady yourself yet again and try not to think how far down beneath you the last gear is. Using a pretty poor hold quite high and left, attempt to reach a good and obvious (and strong) flake left again. A good crimper is then reached high and left of the positive flake and a couple of more blind undercut moves lead right to the bigger holds and the top.

Cities of the Plain. *** E66B 30metres

The old hippy straining a tad, cant be helped, he is old, on the final moves of Cities of the Plain.

A longer more technically sustained climb on slightly better rock, apart from two very notable exceptions! Good gear throughout with one notable exception! Worth three stars in any ones money. (Even if I am biased)

Start as for Captain Mark Phillips. Follow this for about 5 metres until the obvious small crack running from the left side of C.M.P. Follow this small crack left using a variety of techniques until near its end and beneath a quartz patch/seam/horn above. Climb direct to the quartz horn and then up and slightly right to a crack beneath the overlap. Climb the overlap in its middle, (hard) and make technical moves right using hidden undercuts and face holds. Crux. With kid gloves use a small positive expanding flake and make more hard moves up and then right to get your feet on the large, very dubious expanding flake. Think very light thoughts and a rock over left puts you back into the safety zone although the gear now becomes a tad poor. More technical foot shuffling to the right and then back left to a nice brown crozzled flake gives a rest before the final moves up and then hard right reach better hidden undercut holds and the top.