Idwal Slabs

A special place in the history & heart of climbing - the magnificent Idwal Slabs.
This was the first place I ever climbed in Wales - and three years ago when I started on this new path it was the first multi-pitch climbing I'd done in a decade.
Today I took my friend Matt so that he could experience his first taste of a big mountain route - the exposure, the technical differences - the need to run the rope out further between protection - we even managed the joys of a (semi) hanging belay - the valley and Llyn Idwal sprawling away beneath us. As an instructor the look on someone's face when they see this stuff for the first time is priceless - it's good to be back out in the mountains and on the rock again.

This shot was taken on the relatively short walk out - pretty sure we'll both be back soon, who knows one day it'll be Matt's turn to introduce someone to the dark arts here.