Paul and Andy were free for a few days and keen to explore some uncharted (for them) territory – would I be up for some guiding duties on the Llŷn Peninsula (guiding as in Rough Guess rather than Kenton Cool!) With my crocked ankle still excusing me from sharp-end duties, at least I could try to contribute by finding the way to the crag! Having spent a thoroughly enjoyable fortnight in the company of the real cognoscenti last year…
… I thought I could make a reasonable stab at a three-day itinerary. However, just to be on the safe side I messaged Eilir, the Oracle of local knowledge:
I should have had the courage of my convictions and sealed my answer in an envelope – that’s exactly what I’d been thinking!
Three contrasting crags with three different rock types, scattered to the three corners of the peninsula:
We based ourselves at the simple but scenic camping on top of Cilan Head (red pointer on the map) which also has the merit of being in walking distance of…
Trwyn Melyn
This sandstone / mudstone crag (much better quality rock than it sounds!) is home to the outstanding Mercury, E1 5b. Well worth it’s 3* rating, and still pretty tricky despite being dry as a bone.
We worked our way through the same “playlist” that Helen, Eilir and I had followed the previous summer, also ticking off the adjacent couple of E1s – Life on Mars and Evening Star (agreeing with my recollection that the former was stiff for the grade).
After a siesta…
… rather than declaring “beer o’clock”, the boys were up for more, so we shifted attention to the improbable wall left of the corner of Mercury, home to Moonshot, E2 5c.
Meanwhile, Eilir and Emyr had come along to say “Hi” and make sure I was fulfilling my stand-in hosting duties. Here’s Emyr on The Water Boys, VS.
Moonshot starts with a powerful grit-esque layback to break through the initial overhangs…
… and a stiff pull, some way above gear, to get established on the wall.
You’ve already done enough to earn the grade, but things get even trickier, as the route zags left to avoid the evil-looking overhanging offwidth slot of Blue Planet, E4. Heading back right requires some faith in friction and a wobbly inverted “tooth”, followed by more amenable climbing to the top. We were greeted by the first ascent team Emyr and Eilir at the top, and had no hesitation in suggesting they award their efforts an extra star and an extra E-point. E3 5c *** seems fair.
Pen y Cil
This is the westmost extent of the peninsula and home to a very impressive crag of featured red quartz-strewn dolerite (I think). We spent a while finding the ab point – the What Three Words coordinates in the guide and Llyn FB download are accurate, but the photo in the guidebook had us scratching our heads to make it fit. Hopefully the photo below will serve to reassure you you’re in the right place.
Take care, the gully is quite loose, but the rap does land you on a great series of ledges which give access at most states of tide to the routes on the RHS.
It’s quite an impressive crag!
Prodigal’s Return, E2 5c, is the centrepiece of the crag, in terms of both position and quality. Another route we awarded a star boost to ***.
Great rock and great movement, gradually increasing in difficulty…
… to a truly perplexing finale through the final overhanging corner.
The top out pitch is of the mildly harrowing Gogarth variety – a Jenga block scramble!
Before Andy and I could set off following the route, he had a minor calamity…
Faced with the prospect of climbing in one rock boot and a Croc, he was soon stripped off and speeding after the miscreant shoe as it made off towards Bardsey Island.
Returning triumphant…
… with the shoe between his teeth! Chapeau!
Fully dried out in the glorious sunshine, we headed back down for the other E2 – Imposter. This takes the huge corner bounding the right hand side of the crag. The photo in the FB download is much more clear than the guidebook topo.
Very photogenic!
Sustained climbing, with a particularly tricky move around one-third height, though the gear isn’t as poor as advertised.
Well worth seeking out.
Yr Eifl
It was a trip to the north coast granite of Yr Eifl that kindled my Llyn Liaisons at last year’s BMC International Meet, when we sampled some of the excellent single pitch offerings on The Bastion. Hilarious, type-2 fun reports from the Irish contingent, of an ascent of one of the longer routes, Vale of Tiers, later that week, had me in tears. They left no doubt that it was an adventurous undertaking, with tales of bushwhacking between wild, contrasting pitches on good rock. “Class!”
A cheeky 4×4 jaunt takes 20mins of sweat out of the approach, and then once again the WhatThreeWords coordinates from the FB download are a great help as you head first for the top of Great Gully (in common with the approach to The Bastion) and then for the Vale of Tiers ab point, following a good climbers trod that skirts the clifftop.
An 8m piece of rigging tat (or half a dozen slings in our case) around a substantial bollard makes for a solid belay.
Time to head down…
Reassuring to know you’re in the right spot before heading down into the unknown. A 70m rap just reaches the foot of the second pitch. We skipped the first pitch.
Fab views down to passing kayakers, and a strong feeling that dropping in from the top is probably preferable to slogging up from the beach.
The description in the guidebook is spot on, but the line on the topo is misleading – the topo in the FB download is much clearer. Here’s Andy setting off up the rib at the start of the crux P2.
…and tackling the offwidth that is the meat of the pitch. No doubt it would feel less perilous with a 4 and 5 Camalot, but Andy had to make do with a single Blue, some tiny wires, and a large helping of chutzpa.
Here’s the view of Paul from above…
The next pitch does involve a bit of a battle with some bushiness, but you’ll be glad to wrap a sling around one of the more substantial twigs.
There’s an obvious traverse line of fragile flakes across the lower slab, which do take tenuous gear but probably best not to test it!
The crack provides a sanctuary of bomber gear, but the climbing gets more physical and the pitch as a whole is well worth E2 5b.
Here’s a view down to the admiring crowd…
Three days into being a top-rope tough guy, I thought it was about time I chipped in with a token lead. The next pitch was supposed to be only 5a, although the initial pull onto the arete looked pretty wild!
We gathered on another verdant belay for the final assault to the top of the crag.
Another striking arete, but a much sterner test. Top tip – keep one rope free for gear on the left.
Despatched with aplomb by Andy. A proper adventure and worthy of its 3* (and kudos to Pat for the original ground-up ascent!)
Three days of adventure, with contrasting routes on three different rock types. A chippy tea and a pint in Conwy rounded off a perfect trip. Until next time!
RockAroundTheWorld 