Glen Nevis misadventures

While the rain came down in sheets on Sunday we went to Sky Pilot and I completed the sit start to Catch 22 i'd tried before. It went at about Font 7c+. The guys got the FA on film. You can see a sequence of the moves on this with some analysis of the techniques over on the Online Climbing Coach blog.
Joe and John of Heather Hat Productions
The sun comes out at Sky Pilot, just as we have run out of muscle power.
Glen Nevis, one of my favourite places in the world an a fine subject for a climbing film.

It was a productive weekend considering the onset of Autumn and Lochaber horizontal rain. I was invited to repeat one of my new routes in Glen Nevis for a film about the climbing there. Joe French from Heather Hat productions and friends are making the film for the Fort William Mountain Film Festival next Feb. The concept is to showcase the glen's unique atmosphere and appeal by inviting first ascentionists from various eras to return and repeat their own routes. I had the pleasure of meeting Jimmy Ness who reclimbed his route Pinnacle Ridge (severe) at theage of 77, 60 years after he first did it. The film will feature Jimmy's return to Pinnacle Ridge and several other important contributions in 20 year intervals. It will have Terry Sullivan repeating his route Storm (HVS, 1959), Ed Grindley repeating Edgehog (E3, 1982) and finally myself repeating my route Misadventure (E8, 2004).

It was the first time I've re-lead a really hard route for a film and it was a scary experience. After watching the footage of Jimmy repeating Pinnacle (in vibrams rather than the Tricounis he used for the first ascent), he seemed to take it rather more in his stride than I did. If I can still climb E8 at 77 I'll be a happy man thats for sure. I managed not to fall off thankfully and survived to go bouldering under the natural shelter of Sky Pilot on Sunday.

I managed the SS to Catch 22 at Font 7c+. I'd failed on it on a previous visit so it was cool to feel stronger on it this time. The autumn cool is getting me really fired up for whatever climbing I can do in the coming weeks.

Heather Hat dont have their website live yet but I'll keep you posted about the Glen Nevis film on here.