So its taken me a while to get around to writing this but thought id get something up before I go to Cornwall. Beginning of this month my friend Ben and I headed to France to get some scary, exposed sport climbing in at Verdon Gorge in Southern France. This is what happened…

So the day we arrived was a write off because of the rain, so we relaxed after the long day’s drive and got a rack sorted for the next day. Unlike most people that go to Verdon we where not going to do a warm-up route, but instead go straight to do the classic Chimney/Off-width thing known as ‘La Demande’ 6a. We were told that the bolting was a little sparse, but weren’t really prepared for what we found. Parking in the bottom car park we walked in, in full sun wearing t-shirts, deciding to only take wind-proofs and a snack as the weather was nice and its ‘only 6a’. Eventually we found the bottom of the route after walking around aimlessly for a while, but at this point it was 2pm. I voiced my opinion that it was maybe a little late to be getting on a 13pitch route but Ben set off up the easy first pitch.
First few pitches were quite nice, bolting a little sparse, but managed to fill in the gaps with a few totem cams. About halfway up though the climbing changed from nice friendly climbing, to off widths with massively spaced bolts… At this point it was getting on 6pm. Slowly making progress up the top pitches we came to the Chimney pitches at the top around 10pm to find them sodden, shiny and hold less needing friction to climb up. To add to the misery of climbing in the dark with head torches where you can either see feet or hands at once, never both, it had started to get a bit chilly and the one apple and half an energy bar each hadn’t really been enough food since breakfast. Ben being the best at this sort of climbing managed to get us to within the last pitch through the super slippery, minimal bolted chimneys.

We toped out at 12:30am in the cold and dark with one of the head-torches dying, not realising that the car was nearly 3 hour walk away! Ended up walking back to campsite, (only 2hr away), and retrieving car in the morning..
After this mega day where neither of us got to bed till 3am, the next was a rest day. Following day though i chose the route, a nice friendly 6a that was well bolted. Not taking any chances this time I made sure we started climbing before 9am. The climbing was really nice and defiantly would suggest ‘Cocoluche’ as a good warm-up route! 
Getting off the route at around 1pm this time had a casual lunch in the sun then got on Wide Is Love 6a. This is probably the most exposed belay both of us have ever been on, you abb off the top and sit a couple of hundred metres up on a blank, pocketed wall. The route is really nice, like super scary indoor jug pulling with a run-out top and polished feet.
The next day we climbed a nice route further up the gorge, before heading to Sainte Victoire to climb a big multi-pitch route i’d had my eyes on.

The route that id found is called Le Grand Parcours and with 17 pitches started at 5am to finish at a sensible time after learning our lesson. The route is awesome with slabby, fingery climbing on the first few pitches, changing into fast scrambling for the middle, then a few off-width pitches at the top before some nice face climbing at the end. It’s well bolted compared to Verdon, however we took a few cams, coming in at uk HVS/E1 it’s a must do if your in the area.
The last few days of our French trip we spent sport climbing in Orpierre. The extremely generous bolting made a refreshing change from the last few days. Dodging the showers we played around on some of the harder stuff before heading home.

After a few days at work headed for a quick farther and son trip to Isle of Mull with the puppy for a bit of walking and wild camping. So much of Mull is unspoilt with some rocky coastline and steep rolling hills, with 2 Ben’s. 2 of the nights we were there we spent wild camping, one was on a beach on the west side of a small island called Erraid which is only accessible at low tide. A cool little wild camp, on a grassy verge at the back of the beach looking out to sea.
Second night we spent over by Ben Moore so we would be in the right place for a quick trip up in the morning before heading back. Luckily the clouds cleared just as we arrived at the top to have a view over the whole island and down the sound all the way to Jura.

Last week I went to go see the Ocean Film Festival in Wimborne, just outside Poole with a friend. Ive always loved the sea and spent a long time in and on it as a child, with scuba diving being one of my favourite water sports. The Festival is all about water sports, this year the films covered kayaking, diving and surfing, amongst other things. I thought i'd share a quick overview of my favourite films with you and hopefully encourage you to go see it!


Kayaking the Aleutians
This film is about Justine Curgenven and Sarah Outen and their quest to be the first to paddle the chain of islands in Alaska. The journey takes them 101 days in some of the most unpredictable waters in the world, with strong currents, big swell and the occasional encounter with a bear, while having a shower in a river… If this film won’t get you to go on a kayak journey, nothing will. They encounter lots of wildlife along the way and see some magnificent islands and scenery.


Gold of Bengal
Corentin de Chatelperron aims to prove that boats don’t have to be made out of plastic and fibre glass, but instead they can be made from natural products such as jute, a strong natural fibre. To do so he makes a small sailing boat, with a greenhouse, some chickens and lots of low-tech solutions to try and be completely self sufficient in a 6 month journey around the islands in the golf of Bengal. With a few mishaps and damage along the way, he and the boat make it, although the chickens have to be replaced. Corentin try to prove that everything does not have to be done in a complicated way, but instead can be done with some ingenuity and some bits that others would class as rubbish.


Other films featured are The Right, The Accord, India’s First Surfer Girl, (all surfing films), One Voice, (success story of the Humpback Whales’) and Ocean Stories: The Halls, (IMAX underwater videographers).


Head over to their website and check out the other films, dates and locations. 
oceanfilmfestival.co.uk

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What have I been up to:
Work has kicked back into full swing so quite busy, doing lots of watersports and working with kids and adult groups. I have had a few days off, been out climbing as much as possible, did a bit of drone filming, (keep eyes on instagram) and route set for a wall near Southampton. Ive also managed to fit in the last of my holiday to go to font for a few days next month which I’m psyched about and hopefully a cornwall trip next week!

So coasteering is an activity where the purpose usually is to explore the coastline and have fun! This involves entering caves, playing in moving water and jumping off rocks, (sometimes a bit of sea-level traversing too). Awesome activity that can be done when its too rainy for land-based sports as you're getting wet anyway!
​The UK's coastline is brilliant for this as its not just one long flat beach, instead is covered by rocky features. Depending on where in the UK you go will change whats involved ever so slightly.

​In Dorset the main sites used by every outdoor centre in the area are Dancing Ledge and Hedbury. Both disused quarries on the sea front. Dancing ledge being a slightly more progressive introduction to coasteering and Hedbury being less so.
Both sites have massive caves, one of them having a duck under joining two caves together,  (if the sea conditions are right).
If its jumps you enjoy, both have their equal share, boasting high jumps of about 6-7m at both sites, with hedbury having a jump over a cave which when standing on the edge seem much higher than it actually is!
My favourite features, (specific parts of a site), though are ones where you stand/sit and let the water move you around. The best I think being the big gauntlet at dancing ledge, which is a corner in the rock, with a ledge under the water that you can stand on. This underwater ledge makes the waves break, releasing their power on you standing there. (Its a lot more fun than it sounds!)

​Another of my personal favourite features is the aptly named ‘washing machine’ also at dancing ledge. This is a cave with a ledge that just sits under the water, which is undercut. This makes the water enter the cave, raising the water and you towards the ceiling, then drops again! However for this feature to work you have to go on just the right sea conditions for it to be fun and safe.

​With loads of sites around the UK and quite a few providers of this fun activity, nows the best time to get out there and give it a go. Best to get a group of friends together and go as one so there is a bit of rivalry. However coasteering is a dangerous activity and you should go out with a organisation/individual that operates under the national coasteering charter.
A full list of providers can be found here:
http://www.nationalcoasteeringcharter.org.uk/download/dorset-providers-2/?wpdmdl=1014