Best of 2024
What a weird fucking year. In general it felt extraordinarily mediocre but looking back on it I did quite a bit of decent bouldering. Maybe I am finally a UKBoulderer on UKBouldering??
Top Spankings
Worst overall climbing year YET AGAIN - Not much to say about this. 2021 was good until it started coming apart at the end. 2022 was bad. 2023 was worse. For 2024 I'd simultaneously assumed that it couldn't possibly get worse again, yet was totally unsurprised when it did.
Worst trad year ever. - No confidence. No try hard.
Worst sport year ever. - No strength. No fitness. No try hard.
In no fit state for desired trips away - My confidence has been in my arse and my organisation has been in my arse. A few weekends in Pen Llyn was all I could get around to.
Failing to get to grips with Pen Llyn - I set myself a very simple goal - get lots of E2 mileage on Pen Llyn (which I was capable of) and work up to several inspiring E3s on Pen Llyn. An attainable goal with genuine inspiration, that fell to pieces with logistics, lack of confidence, lack of partners, and everything.
Failing to get integrated with Pen Llyn climbing community - I got very excited that there was a dedicated community of locals getting out a lot. It turns out the "local" bit is crucial as although they're friendly once you're out there, it's very hard to be involved when you're 2.5 hours away.
Swapping left arm golfer's elbow for right arm golfer's elbow - It's shit and has made the last 3 months of 2024 and the start of 2025 shit - pushing me further and further away from strength, fitness, and therefore confidence.
Generally gammy shoulders - On and off throughout the year. Not as bad as the GE, but definitely not helping at all. Maybe another decade of rehab and mobility will help??
Top 3 Boulder Problems North Wales Coastal (in the first half of the year)
Epoxy Roxy, 7A, Huslan - One of many great problems on a couple of good days at Huslan. I did the satisfying cranking of Longbow under the watchful eye of Y Bos Maffia and Sprout, but Epoxy Roxy was the one that really sucked me in. A fascinating technique-twister where a lone borehole is both the problem and the solution. So far 3 different methods exist for the crucial handswap, including one of my own.
Tidy Boys, 6C+, Porth Ty Mawr - One of many great problems on a very rare "I Feel Like An Actual Climber" day. I could have picked a few problems here but Tide Boys was the well-named highlight. I rushed to get pad coverage over the rocky boulders with the sea swirling just inches below, powered through a line of good edges and committing top-out in a few goes, moved base camp and 10 minutes later it was a shallow water solo.
Hats Off, 7A, Porth Haeleth - A reassuring surprise at a time when everything was going to shit. A week before I'd been strugging to do the moves on an F7a+, and it turned out the depression from that was simultaenously cause and effect, for when I got back to simple bouldering focus, I did okay. This was fairly inimical to me as it has a straight up power-to-weight lock-off off the deck, making it all the more satisfying, along with the pure high quality.
Top 3 Boulder Problems Lake District (in the first half of the year)
In The Ghetto, 7A, Miterdale - An exceptionally shapely and satisfying boulder in a lovely forest spot - even the walk-in isn't so bad. Tried on a Lancs Lads Lakes trip in the eye of a storm where we had good dry gales both days. The Lancs 7B-8B lot pissed it, I had to come back as an extreme day trip. As good as this problem was, the highlight of the day was finishing by meeting an incredibly cute and fearless mouse, I even got to boop his rump.
The Face, 6C+, Coppermines - One of many great problems on a perfect conditions day at Coppermines - it turns out that bone dry, cold, crisp conditions are good for mountain rock too

. This took me the most effort for a mere two moves, but those two moves felt as good as ratting gets.
Plumbline, 7A, Warton Pinnacle - An all round nice experience. It felt a slog up to Warton Pinnacle, I can't remember how weak I felt, but I assume it was "weak". A strong chap turned up with a dog and after some retience we bonded over throwing sticks for her, and his psyche helped get me up this very cool problem - my own entertainment was increased by seeing a video showing unspeakably bad beta from an 8A boulderer, hopefully I've corrected that in mine below.
Top 3 Boulder Problems Aretes South East Peak (in the first half of the year)
The Big Push, 6C, Bradley Edge - Three visits in two weeks to one of the best 6B-C mini circuits in the Peak (when in condition) is no hardship. I flashed the irresistable Big Push by the skin of my baws on my first visit - an superb problem even if Goodbye To All that is technically more interesting - but Ogs was there and I was too timid to be a social media slag and video it in front of him. It took me two visits to repeat it to get a wee video. But no hardship....
No Bull, 6C+, Andle Stone - A king line permanently in the shadow of the tick-baggers' Andle Stone Wall - not even Bolehillbilly had done it. After a previous fearful visit, I recced conditions in the morning, found a small plastic dinosaur on top of the boulder, so we came back in the afternoon with all the pads we could muster (mostly small and shitty, but a lot). Mark20 pissed it on the flash, BHB cruised it in a couple of goes with a bit more of a wobble, I grovelled over the top in a state of panicked disbelief. The plastic dinosaur has stayed in my bouldering bag ever since.
Church Left Hand, 6C, Stanton In The Woods - Like Bradley Edge, SITW was a "3 visits / 2 weeks" venue, and with good reason. Brave the hordes queuing to fail on Bumlog and there's a horde of gems in the woods. Eyes To The Skies with Hacker's excellent new 6C beta was a strong contender, but I got sucked into CLH more - and for me it's got a one-handed bump up the arete which is enough for inclusion!
Top 3 Boulder Problems Other Grit (in the first half of the year)
Bonkers Conkers, 7A, Pule Hill - an R-man special. There are many things I liked about this problem - heading up there a day with lovely winter weather and shitty queasy digestion and finding enough psyche to do the stand, returning in equally lovely weather for the SDS, the rock quality, the exposed position that still only needs a single small pad... But the highlight is that having watched Robin's video, we use all the same holds and do almost every move differently - a technical treasure.
Hump Bumps, 6C+, Nought Bank - As off-piste as it gets for a craglet with one of Yorkshire's most desired ticks 50m away. This problem with it's gritty rock and fickle conditions requires some stoicism but the sheer presence of the boulder and the combination of consistent cranking in the first half and committing cruising in the second made it worth it.
Gypus, 6C+, Almscliffe - If the padstack beneath No Bull was bad enough, this was downright shameful. It's very rare that I'm one of the send-train-bellends, let alone at Almscliffe, but the day was freezing, the bog was frozen, the crag was quiet, and I had a great time. Yet another one unlocked with Hacker beta (a simple thumb squeeze) but the joy of this was holding the tension after the crux with the whole boulder tipping away beneath you.