Tuesday 17 July - Castle Rock

Watchtower - E2 5a 5b **. With William Sim.

Met Will in Keswick after a fairly sucessful hitch and after descding that we betwen us we'd practically 'cleaned out' borrowdale plumbed for Castle Rock as a good bet. Unfortuantley North Crag was a bit wet, but that was nothing to deter the Sim-Ripley duo. I set of up the wet, minging, horrid 5a pitch which fortuanatley had half reasonable kit on it. Arrive at an awkward stopper 5a move, which i descide I can't do and shamefully loweroff. The pitch sucumes to awsome Simster effortlessly.

Now the wild 5b pitch which Will lead without problem. My turn. I arrive at the bottom of the finger width layback crag, "This looks impossible", luckily although strenous you could fsink your fingers deep into the crack (ooerr misus!) and layback it to the ledge on OHB. From there you climb strenously up steep ground, on good but hollowe hold. Glad he lead it not me.

Triemain Eliminate - E2 5a (yeah right) 5b. With William Sim.

Yet another Brown and Whillans route that I can't even second! I'm conviced those two wern't human. Will Jinxed me by saying, "I bet you have to lower off this 5a pitch too", just after I left the ground. Bastard. Sure enough I got to the stopper move, which when seconding felt much more like 5b to me, and lowered off. Will lead and I followed. The next pitch was a steep wet overhanging corner, throughally unpleasant looking if you ask me, but nothing deters the Sim mister. He cruises it. My turn. Steep climbing is not my fortee. Pull up, gibber, "tight", gibber pull up, flick a runner out, "take!". This countinued until I got the stuck cam, which I got well and truly pumped attempting to remove and eventually rested on the rope. "Fuck it, I'll get it on the way down, Just having a rest Will." Pull up, gibber, "tight", gibber, sags on rope. At which ponit Will announce that he can't hold on much longer and my great weight is hirting him, so I sucumb and he lowers me off. From the ground I am four metre out from the foot of the crag, Castle Rock is desceptivley overhanging. I'll need to get very strong before I lead that one.