[James Malloch]

We’re thinking of going here later today - does anyone know what it’s like with tides?

Low tide isn’t until 18:20 today and with it being north facing I’m wondering what the conditions might be like as we wouldn’t be able to get to the boulders until 2-3 hours before I think (what I’m inferring from the guide).

Also what’s the approach like of we have dogs? Is the gulley sketchy? The guide doesn’t mention it but I found an old post on here talking about in situ hand lines.

[Fiend]

Word from a local guru is:

Rope access for crag no dogs. Boulders one sketch move with dogs but okay. 3hrs before HW fine. Wild braken but dying down now.

[James Malloch]

Word from a local guru is:

Rope access for crag no dogs. Boulders one sketch move with dogs but okay. 3hrs before HW fine. Wild braken but dying down now.

Many thanks for that. Probably one for us to avoid this time then. Keen to go but mainly interested in the crag parts.

Back around to the guide…

[Stabbsy]

Just resurrecting an old topic rather than starting a new one. We've booked a family holiday just north of Benllech in June and I'll be taking the opportunity for a few solo missions to local crags for a bit of bouldering. From a bit of guidebook scanning and UKC trawling, it looks like the options for local stuff are Fedw Fawr, Benllech and Castell Mawr (Red Wharf Bay).

A quick scan of the guide for Fedw Fawr suggests it might not be that suitable for the solo (one-pad) boulder. Is that a fair reflection? Similar for the Main Event roof at Benllech - landing looks a bit "challenging" for a single pad. How about the other local options? Also, how reliable are conditions and will I find that the coastal crags get condensed (or whatever) in the evening as that's likely my best window to get out?

[Fiend]

Fedw Fawr definitely not single pad suitable unless it's a fucking massive pad. Hard rock platform landings, sometimes pitted, some problems quite high. Benllech I expect very similar. Basically if the area has been heavily developed by a combined E8 onsighter / 8B boulderer then it's going to be pretty sketchy for mere mortals, and that is pretty much the whole area. Castle Mawr should be fine on the more traversey stuff but it is just Stoney with less traffic noise. Moelfre (in grimer's Boulder Britain) is more suitable, flat rock landing, mostly mid 6s. Alternatively, message Pantontino and he may have other more suitable gems to reveal.

[teestub]

Yep as Fiend says Main Event roof sketchy rock platform which was not really ok on my own with 2 big pads as lines cover a lot of ground. Despite the guidebook accolades I didn’t think much of it as a venue.

We had a week in Anglesey a similar time last year which was amazing for the beaches, but when I wanted to go climbing I just drove the Orme!

[T_B]

The Ghost Cave at Treaddur Bay is worth checking out (eg Screwball Scramble 7a). It’s a 5 min (awkward with little ones) walk in with pebble beach at the mouth of the cave. Sunny aspect. Rock pools etc. The climbing is nothing special but you could happily spend an hour or so mucking about if it’s dry en famille. You wouldn’t go there on a solo Dad mission - it’s not that good! It does get condensed in the back. Low tide needed. Excellent ice creams at Treaddur Bay.

[tommytwotone]

I went to Anglesey a few years ago and stayed near Red Wharf Bay, but had terrible weather.

The stuff at Moelfre looked good to a limited time window / Dad solo mission. Nothing super-hard, but looked like you could spend a nice evening there and tick the crag.


Nice ice cream place on the beach there too.

[Stabbsy]

Cheers all, sounds like I'd pegged it fairly well. As a closet fan of scruffy shuffles, I'd imagine Castell Mawr might get a visit but the pics on UKC do make it look remarkably underwhelming for the amount of stars thrown at it. Hadn't considered Moelfre, but looks like that's the closest crag to where we're staying so that will also probably get a visit, then Ormes if I get a longer window.

[El Mocho]

I think the info you have on most of the places mentioned is pretty accurate.

Castell Mawr is a bit grotty at the crag (all the other spots are lovely places right by the sea side) but it does benefit from staying pretty dry during rain and being non tidal. There were some stashed pads in a cave when I last went.

Fedw (and general area). This has the highest concentration of problems, some of which are quite good. For a lot of it a couple (or more) pads is better but there are a few problems which are fine with 1. Probably the Monster area (the crag bit, access down the slab with a in situ rope) has the most concentration of problems you can do with 1 pad and although the landing is hard rock it is at least flat. It's tidal but doesn't suffer too much with condensation and is a pretty pleasant venue in the summer time.

White beach itself (the actual pebbly beach, not the sport crag often referred to by the same name) now has 2 little blocks with a bunch of problems on which are fine with 1 pad. This is def a venue where the view is better than the climbing but you can have fun. The swimming is really good. Non tidal (unless massive sea/storm).

If you like shuffles White Beach sport crag has a long trav. If you do the full thing and are strict about avoiding high jugs it is around 8a but there are easier sections and it is completely fine with 1 pad (I don't take any for it). There is a lovely warm up dws trav down the left end of the crag with a few up problems on the far far left. The main crag is non tidal and the dws is better at a mid-high tide but can be done at any state (just less of it). Again the swimming is really good.

These venues are all from the same Fedw car park, which can get full in summer.

There is a bunch more climbing around the area but prob not suited to 1 pad in general.

The conglomerate crag near Penmon point is pretty fine with 1 pad, def fine for some of the problems. It's an ok crag in a lovely spot overlooking the menai straits and Snowdonia hills. There are a few ok up probs and a long shuffle (which might not be fine with 1 pad) It is tidal and you either need to do a 20 min approach from free parking on the road before it heads away from the coast a bit, or continue and park at Penmon which cost something like £5 but the walk is much shorter.

I'm not sure how much info is available on these places but you can dig around and find bits on t'interweb (mostly nwb).

As ever with coastal bouldering on Anglesey if you approach it with the right frame of mind and appreciate the generally lovely locations and have a decent supply of chalk you can have a great time, if you want to find things to complain about and are being a climbing snob then you will think it shit.

[Pantontino]

Agree with most of what has been said, especially the bit about enjoying the overall experience rather than expecting to find world class crags. The write up of Castell Mawr on UKC is nuts, but the main bay on the left of the tower does have some really good stuff, and is way better than Stoney. There's a really nice grain to the rock for a start. The left-to-right trav of the crag is ace, really intense and absorbing.

The two chunks of coarse sandstone on the beach below the Fedw Fawr car park (Traeth Gwyn/White Beach) is a good spot for a lone wolf with a selection of 6 +7s. The right hand block suffers a bit from seepage in the winter but will be nice and dry in June. It's a short walk in so it's easy to carry extra pads down if you want them.

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Bar%20Tender%201%20569_4983.jpg

Si Jones on Bartender 6C, Traeth Gwyn

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Crib%20Siwgr%204%20569%20crop_6385.jpg

Gwion Llewelyn on Crib Siwgr 6C, Traeth Gwyn

[Pantontino]

I'll post some more pics later when i get back in.

[Johnny Brown]

if you want to find things to complain about and are being a climbing snob then you will think it shit.

  Or if you had a free afternoon at Gogarth but your mates refused and insisted you come to them. To be fair some of it does look good but the bit you took me too was as bad a climbing venue as I've ever visited. Even Doyle said 'Fair play for having a go' as I draped my hands on the wet barnacle slopers of the 'warm-up' traverse. And that's before we mention ethics... 

Can't believe you're a wild swimmer now too.

[Fiend]

Oh go on, where was that then?! 

[Pantontino]

He's talking about the roof section at Arfordir Du, where Ben's 8B is.

[Pantontino]

if you want to find things to complain about and are being a climbing snob then you will think it shit.

  Or if you had a free afternoon at Gogarth but your mates refused and insisted you come to them. To be fair some of it does look good but the bit you took me too was as bad a climbing venue as I've ever visited. Even Doyle said 'Fair play for having a go' as I draped my hands on the wet barnacle slopers of the 'warm-up' traverse. And that's before we mention ethics... 

Can't believe you're a wild swimmer now too.

And it seemed like you were having such fun that day! :-)

[Fiend]

He's talking about the roof section at Arfordir Du, where Ben's 8B is.

  that was actually my first guess straight away!

[Pantontino]

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Extreme%20Ways%20%203%20%20569_5010(1).jpg

Dan McManus on Extreme Ways (7A+), Castell Mawr

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Mr%20Tickler%20569_5638.jpg

Jon Ratcliffe on Mr Tickler (7C), Castell Mawr

[northern yob]

Can't believe you're a wild swimmer now too.

More info please…… this is what happens to people if they spend too much time in North wales.

[Pantontino]

This is the bit of Yr Arfordir Du that JB was keener on. Not ideal for lone wolves though.

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Bois%20Lanci%20569%20crop_3851.jpg

Charlie Panton on the FA of Bois Lanci (6C), Yr Arfordir Du

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Hipnotherapy%201%20569_5486.jpg

Tim Blake on Hipnotherapy (7C+), Yr Arfordir Du

[Pantontino]

And a few shots of the sandstone crag near Trwyn Penmon, on the shore of the Menai Strait.

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Superspreader%205%20569_4587.jpg

Pete Robins on Superspreader (7A), Trwyn Penmon

http://www.northwalesbouldering.com/upload/gallery/Margerine%20569_3742.jpg

Matt Perrier on Margerine (7B) Trwyn Penmon

[El Mocho]

if you want to find things to complain about and are being a climbing snob then you will think it shit.

...as bad a climbing venue as I've ever visited.

I nearly put "...climbing snob like JB". Such high standards will only lead to a lifetime of disappointment.

Can't believe you're a wild swimmer now too.

More info please…… this is what happens to people if they spend too much time in North wales.

I'll shut that down right away. I am 100% not a wild swimmer. I occasionally go in the sea when I'm too hot but a) I wear a wet suit except on the hottest days b) I don't enjoy it and am not very good at it (heavy bones) and c) I am terrified that some sea creature is going to drag me to the bottom. That last one is the reason I actually do it as having done zero trad routes this last year it's the only adrenaline rush I get and I actually quite like being scared.

I can appreciate that if you are into swimming it's a really nice place to do it.

ps here is a carefully edited (to show as few moves as possible and as many dogs as possible) vid which shows the quality of that roof, on some slightly drier days:

[Johnny Brown]

I see you’ve got your swimmers on.

[El Mocho]

I see you’ve got your swimmers on.

 

[andy popp]

Diabolical dog dab.