Thursday - Apremont

Still no rain, so went to Apremont with the team again. Left my stuff in the car, to enforce the rest day and hopefully just help Scott climb well. He had a good warm up on a few yellows and then the others arrived and we moved over to a new area. Scott, Laura, Sarah and Fi were doing the blues and other stuff to warm up. Scott's ankle seemed to be holding up under all the strapping. Wandered under a problem that Laurie was trying. Cligne de l'oeil, or Wink as it's translated. Font 7a of loveliness; RH high layaway, step up to get good LH dish / crimp. RH crimpy layway, LF into starting (staring!) pocket and then RF heel-hooking on starting layaway. Go for top, match, shuffle right to the good bit and sort the feet out before pressing out the top. Scott got it fourth go or something, very good effort. That's his trip basically, Font 7a in Font. Fair play. Laurie left it for later.

Mooched off to join the others over at Delta Roc, up the route de la solitude. Didn't remember / realise that Apremont is so big. Delta Roc again is 7a, didn't quite look like my sort of thing (slabby arete) but again, quality problem. Scott wasn't quite trusting his ankle on that one, understandable. Again, hero effort from Laurie, getting it seventh go or something stupid, on his fifth day on. Dutch got it with a more obvious hooking method, as did Dave or Hoggie, can't remember which. Barson was close too.

Over finally to Science Friction and la Lune (6c), which was Fi's demon for the day. Couldn't quite get on the top hold enough to pull onto it. Looked good; Scott thought that the first move was too powerful the way she was doing it, but then he'd had a long day. La fleur de rhum (7a+) a bit further up looked flashable; Emma was making progress on it, and then a lovely wall to the right of it, on chickenhead weirdness above a nasty landing (6c/7a?). Coefield said it's not too bad though - he did it last Christmas and exited left rather than right due to snow on top! (Like a Baboon trying to open a Kinder egg!)

Again, Laurie went back to Cligne de l'oeil and got it with the new sequence. Respect.