The arrival of spring has prompted a surge of impressive new route activity in and around Llanberis.

Up in the Dinorwig Slate Quarries, James McHaffie completed a breathtaking and exceptionally hard route in Australia Quarry. The Serpent Vein F8b had been an old project partially equipped, but subsequently abandoned by Kristian Clemmow. The route is best approached from the viewing point looking into Australia Quarry, where a five metre abseil leads down to a belay below the cliff edge, then a further thirty metre abseil to a bolt belay on a small ledge. The route overhangs gently all the way (approximately three metres in thirty) and connects two snaking dolerite veins.

Caff’s comments speak volumes about the importance of this line: “One of the best routes of its type in Britain; an awesome line with some awesome climbing, and as hard as Bungle’s Arete.”

Again in Australia, but up on the third from top level, Jon Ratcliffe climbed a stunning new route up the blunt layback flake running up the centre of the attractive clean wall. Wish You Were Here F7c/+ is a serious contender for the best of its grade in the whole of the quarries. The start is guarded by a hard boulder problem (say, V5/Font 6c+). Above, the flake is grappled with via a series of funky manoeuvres, until it eases at two-thirds height. The route received rapid repeats from Pete Robins and James McHaffie; Pete thought hard F7c, Caff thought perhaps F7c+.

In California Pete Robins styled his way up the utterly desperate and blank-as-hell corner line left of Shtimuli. Tamborine Man (F8a) is a mesmerizing and overwhelming technical affair. Twelve metres of sustained and intense shape-throwing leads to an easing, and a relative romp to the belay.

Finally, George Smith struck a blow for the old guard when he made a 'first go' ascent of a radically steep project line on the Diffws Ddu/Cyrn Las headwall, up in the Llanberis Pass. The Undercut E5 6b takes the wildly overhanging groove system breaking out right from The Overhanging Arete starting corner. Having previously cleaned and equipped (with some pegs) the line, George was expecting quite a battle. As the appointed belayer I settled in for a long session with a bag full of goodies on the belay, but he just kept going all the way to the top of the crag in one push. I kept expecting him to fall off, but he never did.

“That’s got to be one of the finest and most exposed new routes I’ve ever done!” enthused George post ascent.

Report by Simon Panton

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