Old Games, New Diversions

Perfect snow-shoeing conditions in Andorra

We have been back in the Ariège a little over the week - winter has started to bite a little, with a good depth of snow on the mountains though the colder days have been interspersed with warmer spells. This has meant we have been able to snow-shoe and rock climb within days of each other, both in near-perfect "Goldilocks" conditions. One especially memorable day in Andorra was probably the best conditions we have ever come across - and only a short tramp from the ski crowds and we were in a pristine white wilderness with just animal tracks and the silence for company.

Poets - sample screen shot from the Rockfax Kalymnos App

 
The big new is that next week should see the release of the Rockfax App for smart-phones and tablets to sport climbing on Kalymnos. I have been working on this for four years and it includes a massive 2600 routes - which is a couple of hundred more than the recent 'definitive' guide to the area. It will be interesting to see the reception the App gets - as ever there will doubtless be a few folks that moan and a lot that enjoy the work we have put into it.

Catalunya Cruising

Casa Mauri - really out in the wilderness

We had to move house at Chez Arran due to a long-standing booking so we thought we would take a trip over the mountains and into Spain to visit Colin Binks who is stopping at Casa Mauri - Jane Newman's place above Tremp. It is something we have been meaning to do for a long time.
The 1st attempt failed because of an epic snow-fall the morning we due to travel - we turned back just above Ax-les-Thermes, but the 2nd attempt went better and we drove though spectacular scenery and along quiet roads to arrive at Jane's place which has the most amazing setting.

Climbing in the Collegats Gorge

We have had a few days reacquainting ourselves with this great area, we spent a lot of time around here more than 10 years ago, before other destinations and projects got in the way. I have been climbing with Colin on some very varied rock-types, it has to be admitted the grades are a little on the tough side even compared to the Ariège cliffs, which have always been regarded as a bit stiff.
I have been photographing all of the cliffs as we have gone along - old habits die hard, and the shots may come in useful down the line.
Colin appears to have got himself semi-permanent a job here helping with the reconstruction of one of the buildings/garden areas so I am sure we will be back sooner rather than later.

2015 - A Retrospective

It has been a busy year:

Ariège
Narbonne
Kalymnos
Peleponnese

Corsica
Ireland
Arctic Sweden
Lofoten
Briançon
Orpièrre

Buis les Baronnais

back to Kalymnos
and back to Ariège - for the full circle.

 And not forgetting the odd day in the UK

530+ routes climbed, a best-selling book published, some great places visited and times spent with good friends - lets try and do it all again next year.

* ALL THE BEST FOR 2016 *

The year turns - All the Best to Everyone

Winter - Kind Of!

Babis Bar, Myrties - there are worse places to spend December

 Almost three weeks back at Babis Bar - winters spent in Greece never pale. The place was still a teeny bit busy when we arrived, but for the past 10 days it has been almost completely deserted - we have had cliffs to ourselves that are normally packed in the high season.
I have continued to work on a Rockfax App for smart-phones to the climbing on Kalymnos - it has been a long running project - several years so far and counting.
We hired a boat and took a ride out to get some photos of the South Face of Telendos - a very pleasant way to spend an early December day.

Fresh fish and Greens/Reds courtesy of Babis

I'll be pleased to get the App finished and get on with a 'proper' book - Lofoten is next in line. I am looking forward to getting stuck into it and there is little doubt where we will have to spend next summer - but that is no real hardship.
A couple more weeks in the Greek sunshine then back to Ariège and the mountains of the Pyrenees - it is  such a great place to work as it is so quiet, and of course the weather and scenery are pretty good too!

Back To Basics

White Cat's rather sad ears after surgery

The week in Ariège was very pleasant, and (as ever) very quiet, we did a bit of climbing a bit of walking and a lot of taking it easy. Our long-term 'pet', White Cat had a nasty growth on her ear which we had noticed last time and assumed it was scab from fighting - but it was actually a tumour due to sun exposure. We showed photos to the vet on Saturday, and she was booked in for 8:30 Monday morning. For a couple of days she was in a sorry state but by the time left - five days later - she was well on the way to recovery. By the time her hair grows back she will be as good as new (-ish). Interestingly the number tattooed into her ear told the vet 'she' was 10 years old and actually a 'he'!

Kalymnos Sunset - same as it ever was

Then is was a quick flight to Stansted, a too short night in the Raddison, then onwards to Athens - for £20 each). We caught the late boat over to Kalymnos, and were in Babis Bar in time for a beer and chill. Unusually the Bar is still pretty full - perhaps we should have kept quiet about how good Kalymnos is in November!!!!!
Day One: four easy routes on Sea Breeze - in the breeze - and a perfect Kalymnos sunset, it is great to be back.

Round the Circle

Festival of Ancient Fruits - Orpierre

We left Orpierre after the camp-site closed for the season - last day of October - and headed to Buis les Barronies, two and a half years since we were last there. Orpierre was an 'interesting' experience, we will probably go there again but only at a quieter time of the year - it was so busy it really detracted from what is a lovely part of the world. One of the highlights was the last weekend when 'The Festival of Ancient Fruits" took place, a celebration of ancient crops and skills - it was nice that the whole thing wasn't filled with people sell tat.  There was barrel-making, knife-sharpening, apple pressing, wine, nuts, lavender, fungi, and a real sense of history - most enjoyable.

Sikarate, Baume Rousse, 5c, 37m, 16 clips 

We only had a short spell at Buis this time around and the weather was a little mixed though I got three days climbing done, including a glorious day on Baume Rousse. Then it was on the road again and back Ariége a couple of months after we last left.
Chez Arran was deserted - well apart form the cats of course. White Cat's ear had deteriorate markedly since we were last here - we took a photo the vets and she confirmed it is a kind of cancer common in white cats and triggered by sunshine so she is booked in first thing Monday morning for a bit of cosmetic surgery!