Back to climbing last Saturday - several weeks since I'd been out - destination Blue Scar now that the bird ban was over. Of course the weather wasn't having any of it and despite a bright start to the morning it soon turned to heavy showers, so it was lunchtime by the time we headed up Wharfedale.
Kilnsey was packed as we drove by, though there wasn't much actual climbing going on, just the usual hanging on ropes and resting between attempts. Though this being Kilnsey you need those rests. There were a couple of cars parked by the farm buildings below Blue and despite the morning's heavy rain the crag looked dry and there were people climbing.
We hadn't brought the supplement with all the new lines in so it was a case of asking what grade things were and setting off. There was chalk on the first line, 6a+ we were told though it felt a bit hard for that on one section (later found out it was 6b). Then it was my turn to get the clips in on the neighbouring line, again meant to be 6a+, though this time the chalk stopped around halfway. It took several goes to get past the end of the chalk as the line obviously hadn't had an ascent this year and footholds needed cleaning. It didn't give up either and by the time I got to the lower-off I was rather pumped. Simon managed it OK with the clips in. Looking at the supplement later, the route was given 6b+ which is nearing my limit at the moment, no wonder I struggled!
Next up was a retrobolted E3, now give 6a+ , again with just one hard move but otherwise straightforward. Simon then fancied a 6c at the right end which he flashed. I decided just to top-rope it as I was slightly weary, just as well as I needed a tight rope. Despite struggling a bit, I have to say I like Blue Scar, it's just a pity that the season is so short.
Finally after over three weeks we have our water supply back - the mixed weather of the last week has helped replenish the feed. After several attempts to charge the system from our neighbours' borehole we seem to have our normal low pressure flow back - the tank in the field is only around 2 metres above the header tank in the loft. We had charged the system last weekend prior to heading off for a wedding so to find that we were without water again just a couple of days later was perplexing especially when the field tank wasn't empty. I then figured that it must be the cattle trough in the field. Sure enough, the ball on the stop cock wasn't set low enough so it was always running and promptly emptying the tank! A little bit of judicious bending and we are now OK.
No running for over a week now. I went for a short run round home last Wednesday and it wasn't pleasant. My quads had just about recovered but my knees were somewhat painful. They were still sore, enough to cause a limp when walking, four days later. The pain was very similar to that when I tore the meniscus a couple of years ago. A trip to the doctor, the appointment was quick as there'd been a cancellation, and an MRI scan is going to be arranged to check them out. So we'll just have to see what the results indicate. I may try a gentle run this weekend to see if it is going to happen after every run.
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