UKC

Two of us are planning on climbing Grooved Arete this weekend but the forecast is freezing temperatures, rain and snow.

Will this peak still be doable/fun for a pair of climbers who usually climb at about S/HS 4b - shall we bring ice axes and crampons?

Interested to hear your experiences - thanks.

In reply to jhw: Doable? Probably, though it would be a stretch in the snow. Advisible or fun? Probably not. Axe/crampons? Very likely to be more hindrance than help, and you'll not make many friends scratching up a classic rock climb anyway.

In reply to jhw:
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/wl/betws-y-coed_forecast_weather.htm...

In reply to Bulls Crack: Looks balmy. I take it all back.

In reply to jhw:

I've tried it in big boots in the wet before and bailed as it was horrendously slippy. I reckon it's doable, but I'd use rock shoes for some of the bits...

In reply to Dan Bailey - UKHillwalking.com:

The forecast for Snowdonia 'aint quite so good:

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/loutdoor/mountainsafety/snowdonia/snowdonia_lat...

Morning shows and a freezing level of 500m.

In reply to jonnie3430: Climbed it in the dry in B2s in February along with a friend who had never climbed before (and was also in walking boots). Bit of an effort but still quite fun!

In reply to jhw:

If Grooved Arete feels a bit much in the conditions, some of the other routes could be great fun - maybe South Butress (Mod) or Second Pinnacle Rib (Diff).

In reply to Monk:

Ditto North Buttress. Has a kind of charm of its own, particularly the bit where you wander across the top of Belle Vue Terrace. Doable in all conditions.

In reply to jhw: unless you are an exceptional climber and do e3s "in big boots in the rain" i wouldnt go anywhere near grooved arrette when its wet.there are a few pitches which resemble a scramble but also pitches of proper climbing too.its a big day out and best done in glorious sunshine.a great route though and well worth doing imo,leave it till next month when its hopefully hotter.
plenty of great days climbing ahead ,just be patient !

In reply to jhw:

If you're asking this question then I think you know the answer...

Plenty of fun to be had in other areas locally though and the routes not going anywhere.

In reply to jhw:

It obviously doable but I think people should think twice before doing this. Such VD/S megaclassics classics could do without the considerable extra polish they get when done with wet muddy shoes.

In reply to jhw: Save it for a nice day; it's worth savouring.

I've been on Heather Terrace shivering my nuts off in unseasonal snow whilst failing to recognise, let alone climb, stuff before. Learn from my experience and if you must climb, do it somewhere much closer to a warm pub!

T.

In reply to jhw:

Wouldn't go as far as recommending that you do it in the wet but it is probably doable with care (having said that it started snowing lightly on me as I led the crux pitch). Most of the holds are positive edges but there is a fair bit of polish.

In reply to jhw:

I can't climb for toffee, but one of the best days out that I ever had was a late start on Grooved Arete in late October in crap conditions with a mate who'd never climbed before. We ended up doing most of it in pissing rain (obviously, not by preference) and finished it in pitch dark.

If anything, trying to find our way back down the north ridge back to the car was the crux. We got lost and ended up abseiling somewhere in the vicinity of Milestone Buttress, at one point... And then there was the drive back home to Manchester to contend with too. My 'second' fell asleep for that bit. Ultimately, I crashed out on his living room floor at 5am-ish. Utterly knackered.

A great adventure though. Loved it.. Rose-tinted glasses and all that.

In reply to Clauso:

That's all well and good but how do you expect an owl to drive a car anyway?

In reply to jhw:

I've done it in quite cold conditions early season with snow flurries and, to be honest, it was a little too cold to be enjoyable. I think that's just because it's a long route. I've done stuff on the Milestone Buttress in the p*ssing rain but that was genuinely good fun and over fairly quickly. Unless the forecast is looking good and you can wrap up warm, I'd leave it.

In reply to jhw:
When I did the route (at a time when my normal maximum grade was HS), it poured with rain from the Knights Move pitch onwards and we all coped fine. That was 15 years ago, so there's probably a bit more polish than there was then

In reply to jhw: Popped up to Tryfan East face for a look one March. Headed up Pinnacle Rib which was lovely. 15 minutes later I was on the summit of Tryfan eating me sarnies rather jubilant, but stuck for something to do. I therefore decided to have a shot at Grooved Arete (solo) as "it's only HVDiff". Famous last words.

First pitches up to the main ledge were excellent and nice and dry. I had a mild panic attack up the pitch that leads to the ledge below knights move due to the ground above looking very steep. However following the polish proved to be my rescue in this case.

When I arrived on the knights move, the smeary, slopy crux move foothold was wet, as were many of the hand holds. Holding my breath I made it but was a bit of a gibbering wreck by the time I arrived at the penultimate belay ledge which is conveniently located on the edge of the world. The last pitch was sopping wet and although the climbing is easy, unroped and mentally tired it was a testing time. The route however is totally worthy of its 3 stars.

Grooved Arete is definitely doable in less than ideal conditions but the top half is totally committing with no easy get out of jail cards.

In reply to EeeByGum: lol... add your experince to those who route find incorrectly on the Knights Move Slab and do a more direct finish instead (VS?).

In reply to Offwidth:
I did that, but luckily realised the mistake before I'd committed and down climbed the slab to take the correct line instead

In reply to jhw:

I wouldn't advise it unless you're well practiced in long welsh climbs in the cold and wet, and would definitely not advise climbing it in the snow!

I've got up to the knights move without much fuss in the wet in boots, but once I was there I took a stupid sliding fall - this was my fault due to trying to rush as it was getting darker and wetter, but its not easy in boots up there, and I can't imagine rock shoes being amazing on some bits in the wet.

As mentioned before if you take the wrong route up high, to the right of knights move, you end up on the super direct or the direct route and if you go left on knights move then thats just the wrong route. All are harder - (VS, S etc) and I know people have been rescued from some of them!

Like I said before though if you're used to this sort of situation then you shouldn't have too many problems, though I'd still say snow = bad on GA.

In reply to Stuart Hurworth:

One final call for thinking a little more about the ethical position. Grooved Arete is one of the best rock climbs of its grade in the UK and it would be nice to keep it as good a condition as we can for future generations. If you want to climb something up there in muddy big boots on a wet day consider something less classic as there are plenty of climbs on the East Face. There are also plenty of climbs that are more fun in the wet (Idwall ordinary, Slanting Buttress, being two well known ones).