Misty Mussara...

Originally we were planning to go away this weekend for some more multi-pitch action, but a final check of the weather on Friday afternoon didn't inspire us - lots of cloud around and the possibility of a bit of rain, so we didn't fancy long routes or camping too much! But with summer on the way and the days getting longer there's plenty of time for that in the next few months, so a few days around the local crags this weekend is no real hardship!

Today we decided to have a look at a different sector in La Mussara that neither of us had been to, and with a slightly longer walk-in (meaning it's not as easy to do during the week) it was perfect for a weekend day. The approach to the crag started from the refuge (amazingly positioned on the edge of the plateau with stunning views!) and involved some scrambling, bush whacking and lots of faith in the guidebook description, as it wasn't obvious where the crag was at all. How some of these crags were first discovered is beyond me!

Tash going down the rungs at the end of the approach.

The day started off nice and sunny and really warm so I was quite happy that the crag was shaded in the morning, but it became more and more cloudy throughout the day until we were surrounded by thick mist and it looked like we'd get rained on any minute. Thankfully it stayed dry and we managed to tick most of the crag between us.

I climbed all the good looking routes at the crag, including a 6c, 6c+, four 7a+'s and a 7b and Tash filled in the easier stuff. Most of the routes on the main wall involved climbing into and then out of a nasty blank scoop, which usually made the crux of the route. The first few routes like this were quite interesting but after a while we started to get a bit tired of it!

The most noteworthy routes were Marejadilla (7a+) which climbed an amazing steep wall/arete on some weird tufa-like shark's fins of rock that you had to pinch to make progress! And then the final '7b' that I did. This one had a desperately thin crux involving undercutting a break with really high feet to reach and then pull on a shallow mono, with some more tough and technical climbing to finish. A great route, but a total sandbag at 7b!

The view looking out from the crag through the cloud down to the plains below.

Eating oranges outside the refuge at La Mussara at the end of the day - this morning it was an amazing view from here down to the coast!