"Moon Bridge"

Nearly 8a… I’ve now managed my first 7c+ redpoint. Unsurprisingly, it was no gift! It took about 8 attempts over four days, but was worth the effort.

The route is a 15 degree overhanging wall on small crimps and sloping holds. The crux section lasted four bolts (8m) and comprised many technical, balancy moves. The crux sequence ended with the two hardest and most tenuous moves involving a very balancy sequence on a sloping crimp and another bad hold. These two moves alone took me an hour to find a solution. It was a bit like two hard boulder problems strung together. The top half of the climb compromised better holds, but some long, dynamic and pumpy moves. Clipping the chain was also tough and I nearly fell off right at the end.

It did feel very hard, but then if it didn’t there wouldn’t be the same sense of achievement. 8a is the next step, but unlikely to happen this trip as time is running short and I think it would require a lot of time and effort!