Shauna Coxsey has just returned from a fruitful trip to La Pedriza (Anterior), Spain, where she climbed two 8B boulders and an 8B+ in the space of just four climbing days.
© Talo Martin
In adding her second boulder at 8B+, Shauna becomes just the fifteenth woman to have climbed two boulders at the grade, having made the first female ascent of New Base Line (f8B+) in 2014. Each of her three La Pedriza ascents were first female ascents.
Shauna climbed the first of the boulders, Wild Wild West (f8B), on her very first day in La Pedriza. The overhanging boulder is a test of both crimping and endurance, with more than fifteen hand moves, and a shouldery middle section.
© Talo Martin
© Talo Martin
Second came Pin Y Pon (f8B). Typically climbed in two big dynamic moves, Shauna had to find an alternative method for both moves, first matching a poor crimp to reduce the distance between holds, and then using an intermediate often skipped by others prior to the second dyno to a large sloper.
Finally, on the very last day of her trip, Shauna made her hardest La Pedriza ascent, Fotofobia sit (f8B+), which she climbed in just a single session.
© Talo Martin
© Talo Martin
'I was so excited to try Fotofobia!', Shauna told UKC, 'Big moves on tiny crimps on and over hanging wall… yes! It is such an amazing piece of rock and the moves did not disappoint!'
'I tried to climb the original line from Nacho. It seems there are a few new bigger holds at the end to the right that have been cleaned up. I decided to avoid those and stay left of the obvious seam'.
'As for the grade, I really don't know. It's been a while since I have climbed this grade so don't feel I am in a position to fully comment just yet. It went down pretty quickly so I am tempted to say it may be closer to 8B but I also don't think I could design a climb to suit me more than this'.
'La Pedriza is totally wild. With some of the best lines I have seen and seemingly endless potential, this place is a must-visit destination. Though the rock sure does bite!'
Shauna was shown around be La Pedriza local, slab-wizard, and guidebook author Talo Martin, who said:
'It's been great having Shauna climbing around here. It was really cool that she reached out to me through a mutual friend and we quickly hit it off. We went to some of the toughest boulders in La Pedriza and she completely crushed them together with Ned'.
© Talo Martin
'La Pedriza is a climbing area, technically similar climbing to Fontainebleau, and the holds are generally small and tricky, so the potential for hard boulders is endless. I can't wait to take her to some projects next time and I'll also take her to some of my slabs'.
Since turning her attention to outdoor climbing in 2023, Shauna has climbed five boulders at 8B and above.
Comments
Really impressive stuff. I know male ascents at this grade are less newsworthy now but it would be good if the article mentioned whether Ned did them too and how he found them, almost like a team trip report. You've done this on some previous articles and as we've invested in the family vibe of these trips (which I love), it would be nice to see how the whole 'team' did. I don't think this would take anything away from Shauna's achievements.
Dom, you can just message me 😂.
Ned did pretty well on this trip, doing most of the problems listed above as well as Zarzafar which is an excellent looking 8B+ over at Zarzalejo. As always, some suited Shauna better, some were easier for Ned but they are both pretty flippin' good so got business done.
Cheers Matt, hope you're well. All your climbers seem to be doing well at the moment. Or maybe they always were and you're just doing a good job of making sure we hear about it!
Incredible stuff.
Also exciting to see she's started working on Voyager