At last the final volume of the La Pedriza is finished!
After a month in Albarracin we returned to Pedriza and discovered many more spectacular lines. The local crew had been busy and discovered more awesome boulder problems.
On the crux of Martina Dry
Claire returned to Los Guerreros and quickly dispatched her project - I think the steeper climbing of Albarracin had improved our fitness a little. I was still plagued by my elbow/shoulder injury so unfortunately my projects were off the agenda. However, I still climbed some beautiful lines and had a great time climbing with the local crew again.
Claire on Los Guerreros
Rob and Sam (the English guys we'd met in Albarracin) joined us too. They really liked Pedriza too, but needed a week for their skin to toughen up... Al and Jen (the Scottish couple we'd met in Albarracin) joined us also. They were a great crowd to climb with and we tried to show them the sights of the area.
It was great to catch up with all of the local guys again. They showed us a new area near El Boalo and we climbed a stunning arete called El Pajillero (shown on video thumbnail above). I won't tell you what the name means since its not such a beautiful name...! It was very sad to leave Pedriza and we will really miss the local crew. It was great to meet such warm, friendly, kind and generous people - THANK YOU GUYS, WE WILL MISS YOU....!
I'm sure you're all wondering where we've been for the last 6 weeks... Well, we've been in the beautiful National Park of La Pedriza. Situated 30 miles North of Madrid, La Pedriza is one of the lesser known bouldering areas in Spain. We'd seen some awesome photos of the area in the Bouldering Guide and had to check it out for ourselves. We had heard stories of the sharp granite, so were slightly nervous about how our skin would fair...
Read on or go straight to La Pedriza Bouldering Volume I:
On day one we visited Canto Cochino - one of the more classic areas. The area gives a great introduction to the style of climbing in La Pedriza - technical, slopey and requiring good footwork. It feels similar to Fontainebleau, but on a medium grained granite. The boulders range from low to pretty damn high and scary - something for everyone! On our first day we were fortunate enough to bump into the local climbing crew. A fantastic group of Spanish climbers (their Blog), who gave us an extremely warm welcome. They instantly took us under their wing and pointed me at a load of highball classics. My skin took a bit of a pounding (nothing too serious though), however, it was a great introduction to area.
Groucho
We have spent many days with the local crew and been guided to many great new areas not in the guide. Although the guide includes nearly 2000 problems, the local climbers are developing new boulders at an astounding rate, their motivation and commitment to expanding the area is incredible. The potential is still vast - there are currently many projects and second ascents just waiting to be climbed. Its not all hard either, first ascents are available at all grades.
Lomo on Garrapata
The local crew have been pointing me at various lines waiting for a first or second ascent. Some of the lines are breathtaking, and I've been fortunate enough to get second ascents on some beautiful problems. The details of these will be in Volume III of the videos. I've not managed any first ascents yet, but have been trying a few tough lines in the 7C-8A region...
