Feel like I packed about as much as I possibly could into this day! Clare was on a course today, but wanted to make the most of the good weather before spending the day indoors, so at 7am we set out together on a run.

From the front door of The Cottage, we went up and around our closest mountain – Moel y Ci. A not insignificant 8.4km adventure with plenty of ascent on a beautifully quiet and warm morning.

The having arrived home, a quick cool off in the river seemed like the right thing to do!

I’d arranged to meet John at 09:30 to go climbing at Carreg Alltrem, so amazingly, we managed to achieve all this and get a quick breakfast in me before he arrived.

With it being the last weekend of the summer holiday, the main valleys were packed with cars, but we ended up with an entire valley and cliff to ourselves! Not a soul to be seen!

John was on top form and itching to climb as many steep routes as possible! We set a target of climbing as many ‘starred’ routes as possible during the day.

The crag gets the sun after midday, but climbing in the shade was still plenty warm enough – especially as it is steep, so certainly keeps the muscles warm! I led a few pitches but was happy to let John get up first and fix the ropes on some of the steeper ones. The Falconer, which we did last was sensational! So steep, but good hold (no photos I’m afraid). This is John at the top crux of ‘Greenpeace’.

Incredibly, we had the place to ourselves. There is an abseil point at the top right hand side of the cliff, so we were able to get down quickly after each climb.

I got home just before 18:00, in time to meet our friend Beth who was staying with us. After a hearty meal, we took a post dinner stroll along the track while chatting, catching up on each others news and watching the clouds change colour. Sleep came easily!…

Carreg Alltrem Climbs:

• Laverado, VS (5a)***
• Greenpeace, E1 (5b)** – in one pitch
• Fratricide Wall, HVS (5a)** – in one pitch
• Lightning Visit, VS (4c)*** – in one pitch
• The Falconer, E1 (5b)** – top pitch