One week has passed since my last post, and my recovery stage of this trip has well and truly begun. I planned this so that I can plunge myself back into a training program as soon as I'm back down under.
The last few days in Magic wood were both fruitful and sometimes painfully frustrating. Trading in my goal of doing 35 climbs harder than or equal to 7A, I began to look for harder mid range problems, upping it by doing 30 climbs harder than or equal to 7B. My favourite 7B in the forest was Fliegen Erlaubt, a semi-highball with a low dyno crux. This problem is in the highest sector of the forest, and as such is pretty much in an undisturbed surrounding, barring the few established boulders here.
Fliegen Erlaubt (Flash)
The aforementioned painful frustration directly relates at my still standing project Master of the Cow 7C+. The stand start is Man of a Cow and goes at what I believe to be a soft 7C. The hanging low start adds a grade and 4 moves of straight up burl. The shoulder crux of Man becomes more of an endurance crux in Master and, when you've passed that, there's the tree. I discovered the close proximity of this tree on my flash burn of Man, the high probability of a careless dab also affecting 2 good attempts on Master. Passing both of these dangers only once, I pumped out going for the 2nd last hold. This is benchmark 7C+ of a medium length and a Magical classic.
Master of the Cow, move before crux
The penultimate days of the trip were surprisingly amazing for me. The severe flooding of the river in the last 2 weeks had washed a great deal of silt and small stones underneath the Bruno Bloc. This caused the usually wet and unsafe landing to be filled in and the river to move its bank about 2m to the right, thus enabling the line I called Hydromancer 7C to be climbed. It starts in a super jug and follows the fin to the right of The Neverending story around until joining up with Part two, after its crux. I checked with the locals, guestbooks and on the net and this seems to be my line. PSYCHED!
Cleaning Hydromancer
Final crux of Hydromancer
The day after Hydromancer went up I had a miserable climbing day. That was, until about 5pm when I decided to play on a line I had spied on the La Dance boulder. This boulder is font-esque in its shape, and the original is very much of a similar style to your harder than average font mantle (L'aerodynamite), only granite. Beginning low and right, La Dance tops out directly via a slopey shelf. This new line, which we named La Dance Gauche, climbs as for La Dance but heads left at the lip on bad slopers and good crimps, to exit on jugs. It went 3rd shot after sussing out the end and climbs much better than expected, and much better than the original. I also gave it a grade of 7C, slightly harder than the original. The proper sit-start to LDG remains open, a desperate, tensiony pull-on which should make this a higher end 7C+.
La Dance Gauche
Right now I am psyched to be relaxing and preparing for more exploration and development in sydney in two months time.
I got here on the night of the 29th and was quickly shown around the Forest by Fred. The furthest blocs lie within 15minutes walking distance, so needless to say the quantity in such a small space was 2nd only to the quality. Because of the limited time here I'm not really projecting anything. If I don't think it'll go that day I'm leaving it for next trip
Scoping out the boulders
Magic Wood is Magic Good, the first day was encouraging, Flashing Flown Away 7B after ticking off the entire Höhen Boulder 2nd shot (7A, 7B+, 7C). We then went down to the river bloc for the Grit delux, a no hands mantle to crimps with smears. Total anti style. Fred flashed it. Rene and I rode the send train.
The weather here hasn't been the best. To my knowledge the river hasn't flooded this bad in 2 years. In the last 2 weeks it has flooded twice. Before Bruno Bloc (home to the Neverending Story) went under, I did both Supernova 7C and Du Côté du Seshuan 7C+. Both are exceedingly cool although the latter is without a doubt the most amazing line I've ever climbed. Unless you are solely a slab climber, this line has it all; overhanging slopers, crimps, smearing, a kneebar, a mantle, a no hands-rest and a dyno. A total classic from Fred Nicole.
Other lines soon went down including From the Darkness to the Sunshine 7C+ and a flash of Intermezzo 7C. Coupled with a few more 7C's and a small score of 7B's I've got enough under my belt to make the 5 forced rest days of rain bearable.
From the Darkness to the Sunshine
It's been a week and a half since arriving and I've so far managed 34 problems above 7A. I'm one off my goal and an 8A might be a nice trip-ender. But we'll have to wait and see what the week brings.
