Sarah Rixham

So as a British person I am always talking about and thinking about the weather, obsessively refreshing the weather forecast while sitting at my desk at work hoping that the little pictures of clouds and raindrops will turn into suns. The weather is definitely a big part of my life and tries to define my happiness. I have tried to get accustomed to the windy, rainy weather and not let it stop me highling, so I have spent a good amount of time highlining in sub-optimal condition but still having a great time. I'm trying to condition myself to love the rain and it does make me fight harder to show the rain it can't stop me! But.....its not always bad. The forecast for North Wales had turned to full sun and with a lift on offer I could not resist the temptation. 

 

So the sun is out but the wind is also trying to have a good time, blowing in from the west directly on to the sea cliff we want to climb on. My second time climbing at Gogarth and we go to climb the classic 'Dream of White Horses' with the idea that maybe the cove of Wen Zawn is slightly sheltered from the wind? The zawn is full of spray and as I ab down I can see that the face is pretty damp. I belay on the ledge getting soaked as the wind blows the sea up towards me, the white horses are out in force today. Jimmy leads up the wet crack of Wen to try and reach dry rock. My lips taste of salt and as soon as I can, I climb quickly away from the sea hoping the wind will relent higher up. I lead the next pitch glad to be moving. My hands start to warm up after initially freezing as they first touched the rock. The climbing is really nice and the involvement of placing gear and moving upwards lets me forget about the weather for a moment. Until I'm sat on the next belay being battered by the wind again, which seems to only be stronger up here. Jimmy follows quickly then sets off on the final traverse pitch of Dream. The ropes loop away from me flying in the air at every gust of wind creating a colourful sight as the quickdraws wave and bob in the wind, the wind trying to pull him back the way he came. Despite the stunning view and exposure with a blue sky above and sun on the rock only 20m away I am frozen, unable to get out of the wind, being blown around on my stance. My stomach churns as I licked my salty lips, it feels like I have been forced to drink salty water then punched in the stomach. I really want the get off this belay and out of the wind and collect the brains that may have been blown out of my ears somewhere below. It feels like I am being trampled by white horses in a horrible dream. I set off climbing tying to get off the cliff as quickly as I can but I get caught up in the beautiful moves and amazingly exposed position and start to enjoy myself. A few nervous moves with space beneath my feet and I enter the sun soaked rock and over the edge of the cliff with a grin on my face. The weather created a good adventure for us this time.

 

Next plan is to rig a highline over the zawn but first we retreat out of the wind to recover. As we rig the line in the evening the wind has settled and as the sun sets it promises a beautiful next day. A calm morning with sun and no wind greets us. In fact maybe a bit too much sun, I feel a bit dehydrated and sunburnt by the end of the day (some people are never happy!). But this is a perfect spot for a highline over the sea, and the line really feels amazing. Its a totally different experience to climbing the day before, although the conditions are calmer it still feels intense inside as I use all my concentration to keep the line under control and stay relaxed. I walk in balance feeling euphoric, the grin returns to my face again as I step into the sun on the edge of the cliff. I have to thank Jimmy for helping rig the line, Carwyn for taking photos and Tom for the beta on the set up. It was nice to see a lot of people trying the line even though it was a massive challenge for them. I can't complain about anything when I get a weekend like that!