Another year and another birthday…

… and the now-traditional personalised T-shirt from Helen…

… harks back exactly 30 years to an ascent of Snake Dike with Jim.

I’ve tried to celebrate each passing year with a similarly memorable tick, though that gets trickier each time as the list of eligible worthy routes evaporates (though thankfully not quite yet my ability to get up them!) Anyway, the options open up with the rope-gun on the team, and Jake and I hatched a plan to head to The Pass to snatch the end of the dry spell.

A leisurely start, after a birthday lie in, sees us parked beneath the Grochan around 1pm, with a few teams enjoying the sun on the classics. We’re heading up the other side of the hill, with The Skull on Cyrn Las in our sights.

… but not before trying to dissuade a woman from taking her two sons up the hillside in search of the famed “Infinity Pool”. Trying to be helpful I pointed out it was just a catchment for drinking water and she might be disappointed. “I’ve seen it on Instagram – it’s an infinity pool – you’re just trying to put us off!”

There’s no telling some people… Anyway, we trundled up past another couple on the same mission, past the “pool” and were soon striding up the hill without a soul in view.

The Skull, E4 6a, features in Extreme Rock and had been on my to-do list for ages but I’d somehow never got around to it – its imposing countenance, shady aspect and off-putting name probably hadn’t helped. The first two pitches are common with Subsidiary Grooves and can be run together in a rope-stretching 60m VS.

Gaining height fast on the initial pitches…

The meat of the route starts with pitch 3, and I was entirely happy to hand over the sharp end to Jake. Entry to the obvious groove is much harder-won than appearances suggest, with unconvincing gear. Once established the gear is impeccable, but the climbing remains awkward over a bulge.

Jake ran this 5c pitch into the following 6a pitch, making for tidier ropework. The obvious crux over the overlap is fierce but safe.

This lands you on another comfortable stance…

… beneath the BIG pitch. 40m or so of involved climbing, with the grand finale saved for the last 15m up a precarious overhanging corner, out of sight of your second and with nothing but space beneath your feet for the best part of 100m down to the deck. Atmospheric, and utterly brilliant!

Here’s Jake on the subtle slabby traverse under the initial slanting roof…

… before disappearing around into the bottomless corner.

Time for a summit selfie…

… before trundling down for a birthday supper in The Spice of Llanberis.

Not quite cracking the flags the next day, so Cloggy was off the agenda, and we decided to head to Scimitar Ridge. I’d visited with Paul a couple of years ago and been really impressed with the couple of routes within my pay grade: https://rockaroundtheworld.co.uk/2019/07/27/breaking-new-ground-in-the-pass/… and resolved to return with a rope gun.

The south-easterly aspect makes for a perfect suntrap on this tucked-away wall, and the steeply rearing face composed of huge sliced-off hexagonal crystals provide a unique climbing experience.

Troy is the obvious warm up and it certainly does the trick – good value for its solitary E-point and well worth its couple of stars.

The handy rap point takes you down Killerkranky, a 3* E5 6b, and Jake was very restrained in not fondling the holds on the way down. The crux is pulling through the small roof to get established on the wall above, but it never really eases up until the top.

Engrossing moves and fiddly but highly satisfying gear placements.

Back down for The Roc-Nest Monster, on the left hand side. E4 6a and no giveaway at that, and whilst it’s protected by 4 pegs there’s plenty of climbing between them – it’s definitely not a sport route. The holds are generally fairly generous, but all point sideways or upside down, so it’s a continuous feast of side-pulls and under-clings for another stupendous line.

The only disappointment from the day was that the other mega line of the crag, King Wad, which takes the arete immediately above Jake in the shot above, has a crucial peg missing – one to come back for!

Meanwhile, back in The Pass The Cromlech is empty but the boulders are buzzing (and no doubt the Infinity Pool is rammed!)