[iain]

A triple YYFY;

1. Back climbing this week after a break, I'm rubbish but I don't care.
2. We're moving closer to home soon and will be able to visit family/old friends more than a couple of times a year, there are new nephews to see.
3. The place we're moving to is Sheffield, apparently it's a great city and there might be climbing nearby.

Good times 

[andybfreeman]

A triple YYFY;

1. Back climbing this week after a break, I'm rubbish but I don't care.
2. We're moving closer to home soon and will be able to visit family/old friends more than a couple of times a year, there are new nephews to see.
3. The place we're moving to is Sheffield, apparently it's a great city and there might be climbing nearby.

Good times 

Nice; a big bucket of win!

[andy popp]

Beautiful day, at the crag for 8.20, FA done by 9, in work before 10. That's what I call a start to the day!

[andy_e]

Good work! I'll be doing the evening shift at Goldsborough later, hooray for summer. No FAs though...

[Nibile]

Beautiful day indeed. Invited my girl over for breakfast at 8, in work by 9:30. Lunchbreak session planned at 13, then back to work in Florence until 20.
First sunny day in weeks.

[tommytwotone]

Beautiful day, at the crag for 8.20, FA done by 9, in work before 10. That's what I call a start to the day!

Nice one!

Been considering the potential for dawn sessions to get a bit of good nick on the grit lately - reckon I could get up unfeasibly early, get a quick session and still make it home for the 8am bus to work. Anyone got any experience of this? Had been worried about potential for dampness/ dew wrecking things.

[Bonham18]

Been considering the potential for dawn sessions to get a bit of good nick on the grit lately - reckon I could get up unfeasibly early, get a quick session and still make it home for the 8am bus to work. Anyone got any experience of this? Had been worried about potential for dampness/ dew wrecking things.
[/quote]

Was at plantation for 5am on Monday and there was no dampness at all, although conditions were still warmer than you'd like. By 7am everything was getting warm, but it was brilliant to sneak a couple of hours on the grit in despite day time temps of 20 degrees

[tommytwotone]

Interesting - might have to psych myself up for a very early start one morning...sadly all my projects are at Brimham, which is a good 45 mins from the house...

[andy_e]

Choose a slightly breezy morning, that should have kept the humidity down overnight and therefore should be less damp in the morning.

[SA Chris]

Been considering the potential for dawn sessions to get a bit of good nick on the grit lately - reckon I could get up unfeasibly early, get a quick session and still make it home for the 8am bus to work. Anyone got any experience of this? Had been worried about potential for dampness/ dew wrecking things.

Do it. A bit like pre-work surfing, even if conditions aren't brilliant it sets you up for the whole day. If it's been warm and clear for a few days in a row there shouldn't be a bot of moisture in the air to drop out as it cools overnight, and somewhere that gets a breeze (almscliff basically) should be fine. Just don't leave getting back into Leeds too late and get caught in commuter traffic!

edit - more or less what Andy said, but more words.

[tommytwotone]

Been considering the potential for dawn sessions to get a bit of good nick on the grit lately - reckon I could get up unfeasibly early, get a quick session and still make it home for the 8am bus to work. Anyone got any experience of this? Had been worried about potential for dampness/ dew wrecking things.

Do it. A bit like pre-work surfing, even if conditions aren't brilliant it sets you up for the whole day. If it's been warm and clear for a few days in a row there shouldn't be a bot of moisture in the air to drop out as it cools overnight, and somewhere that gets a breeze (almscliff basically) should be fine. Just don't leave getting back into Leeds too late and get caught in commuter traffic!

edit - more or less what Andy said, but more words.

Cheers - that was what I was planning, shame my Cliff bouldering ticklist is pretty short at the moment.

On the traffic front I did consider dropping the car in Huby and getting the train as my office is right in town.

[andy_e]

Do it. I'll try and think up some good 7Bs which would be suitable for a morning solo raid to the 'Cliff...

[SA Chris]

On the traffic front I did consider dropping the car in Huby and getting the train as my office is right in town.

That would mean having to go to the cliff again after work - such a hardship.

[moose]

Fieldside Traverse and the eliminate but good traverse across Si's Arete are both decent 7b's for the solitary dawn boulderer. 

The problem on the front of the Virgin using the crack is a quality 7b.  But possibly a bad choice safety-wise; if you slip with the heel-toe in you might be found dangling head-down by the post-work crowd!

[catbreath]

A pretty small YYFY but this weekend I bouldered outside on real rock for the first time and had an awesome time! Had a tiny climb late in the evening at Harrisons Rocks when it was getting dark and then spent the next day at High Rocks. I was totally shit and only managed a few little traverses (everything was pretty damp and dusty tbh) but after being into climbing for a little over a year it felt good finally getting out and doing it properly on real rock.

[SA Chris]

Nice one for getting out, but if the rock is damp (from rain) you shouldn't really climb on it as it is considerably weaker and prone to wearing away or breaking. If by dusty you mean sandy - that's southern sandstone, it's often like that.

[nai]

if you slip with the heel-toe in you might be found dangling head-down by the post-work crowd!

3t has experienced this previously although for only as long as it took his spotters to wake up.

Do it, Tom, it's a wonderful experience, life just seems so much stiller at that time of day and the chirp of the dawn chorus being the only sound but silence is something else.  So many visits to your home ground blend into one another but being up there alone at dawn with only nature and silence won't.

[tomtom]

+1 Give it a go. For Almscliff reference - sun does not get around to DWR face until c.10/10:30am So most things (Egg aside) will be in the shade until at least then.

When I was working DWR ages ago, I used to get there for 8AM (meaning a 6:30/7 departure from Hull) and its great at that time as well... nice to be leaving as the keen chuffers turn up a bit later on..

[andy_e]

I once went to Almscliff at 6am with a mate who had to drive back to Sussex a little later. Unfortunately our plan backfired as it was really very cold and we only managed a few laps of Fluted Columns before retreating to the warmth of a greasy spoon in Hyde Park somewhere. Kind of surreal to see the sun rising as I'm used to seeing it set when I'm at the cliff...

[andyd]

I like dawn climbing. In many respects I prefer it, but it's difficult to get hydrated if you manage to get out of bed

[tommytwotone]

well we're going for it tomorrow - looking at ludicrously early start tomorrow (to be honest I should go to bed in a bit...) but will see how we go.

I was thinking that bouldering would be the way to go but my mate is thinking he might take the opportunity to have a bash at Wall Of Horrors as, and I quote "...I'll be too tired to be scared"!

[andy popp]

I'm not sure why but routing at that hour just seems like a really bad idea.

[kelvin]

yawn...

did someone mention alpine?

[tommytwotone]

I can report that is was good - if a bit spooky being somewhere that's usually so busy when it was deserted.

Andy's right - routing did feel weird, don't think I'd do it again given the choice, felt pretty fuzzy in the head. Did find myself checking my knot, checking it, checking it once more for good measure.

Kept well within my grade but did have some fun offwidthing the top of Hobgoblin as a warmup, definitely the weirdest thing I've ever done at 5:15am!

[SA Chris]

Glad your moring was better than mine. At Aberdeen beach at 5:30, waves mid calf height Tried to go climbing, but spot I went to has had some major seaweed growth over winter; unclimbable. Needs attack with brush.