Petestack Blog

Today I climbed Styx Right Wall (V Diff), Resurrection (VS) and Three Pines (Severe) at Polldubh with Angus, 50 years to the day after Resurrection’s first ascent by Clough and Lakin. Have already posted an account to the UKC Forums (under the title of The Polldubh 50th Anniversary Game), so quoting that here:

Something I’d noted last autumn and kept in mind for some motivation to get back onto rock when the ice starts to melt (as it’s being doing for the past week) is the number of Polldubh routes from the great days of Ian Clough and Terry Sullivan coming up for their 50th birthdays this spring. So the first one I had in my diary (yes, really!) was the beautiful slabby ramp of Resurrection, but never expected to get it today after yesterday’s rain and a miserable forecast. However, we woke to something (sunshine!) far more attractive than expected, checked another couple of forecasts, thought a drying Polldubh more enticing than melting ice or pulling plastic and headed up. Got there about 11:00, had to wait an hour or two for a 10ft weep down the crux narrows to dry up, so popped up Styx Right Wall and grabbed a quick bite to pass the time before deciding things looked good enough. And they were, with just a few damp spots at the narrows and some more obstinate wetness to make the chimney fault above a little more awkward than usual, and we did it…

A very special ascent of one of my favourite climbs by a climber whose story continues to interest me, and all the more satisfying for being accompanied by my brother on what I think might be his first VS. Have uploaded a photo here and will be back to link it in or link to same on my site if I get today blogged before the photo gets approved.

So what of the ’50th Anniversary Game’? Don’t have all the dates to hand because (shock, horror!) I don’t have ‘Highland Outcrops’, but know we’re looking at:

Iche, Fidelity, Enigma and Kinloss Grooves on 11 April (this Saturday)
Pandora on 20 April
Vampire and Secretaries’ Direct on 21 April
Wanderlust on 22 April
Storm, Flying Dutchman and Phantom Slab on 3 May (a Sunday)
Heatwave on 22 May
Spike Wall on 28 June

(NB Three Pines and Crag Lough Grooves were both 50 this March, so too late to include in the ‘game’.)

So did anyone else do Resurrection today and, weather permitting, who wants to play? Haven’t ever done Iche, but took a look today and think 11 April looks like a good day out if it’s dry! :-)

Might add that I never used my chalk bag because it wasn’t warm enough to need it before we left, but did make use of modern rock shoes and protection! Also have to say I found the final groove of Three Pines (which I last did in 1990) polished to ******* (supply your own adjective!), but it’s still a fine little climb.