I came back from Rotterdam on the ferry this morning. Left Hull docks at 7:30 am and eventually got back home tto Sheffield at 2:30 this afternoon having sat for a few hours on the M18 because of a jack-knifed wagon on the M1, as far as I can tell. I'm sure it was harrowing for the driver but surely if he had left enough space in front of him he would have had time to react and all the hours of disruption could all have been avoided. Why can't folk just drive more carefully in the snow? I had a number of cars tailgating me on the M62. It's madness. One chap in a sports car overtook me, then had to brake quickly when he hit deeper snow in the outside lane, causing the snow on his roof to cover his windscreen, so he had to stop completely while he got out and cleared it. Then he overtook me a scond time.
Unlike the halloween misadventure, I set off on this trip prepared with food, water, sleeping bag and warm clothes in the car. I also had a boot full of duty free wine and chocolate, which would have help the night pass, had it come to that - not that I'm suggesting I would have consumed alcohol on the Queens highway!
When the traffic eventually started to move again, I pulled off at junction 3 and stopped at the retail park just outside Doncaster. Everywhere was shut except for MacDonalds but xmas music was playing over the speakers and there were just three other people walking around. It was quite surreal. A bit like being in Second Life (that's a virtual world on the internet, for all you non-geeky types)
Anyway, this was all quite a bit of a contrast to yesterday afternoon, when I spent a couple of hours in the Mauritshuis, in the centre of The Hague and home to the Girl with a Pearl Earring. She's quite nice looking but must have dry skin as it's very cracked!
Mauritshuis, The Hague
The Girl with the Pearl - in need of some expensive skin care product for xmas. (This image scanned from a postcard I bought at Mauritshuis but probably subject to some copyright law)
Drove up to Burbage with Joe and one of his mates this morning. Ringinglow Road was gritted up to the boundary with Derbyshire whereupon the driving became quite exciting. Fewer people out than one might have expected when we set off - we were passed by a group of fell runners - but busier by the time we got back to the car, including quite a few climbers out with bouldering mats.
Here are a few pictures from our walk.
Looking back towards Burbage Brook and Ringinglow Road
I'd planned to go to the climbing wall with my son on Saturday but he'd had a late night with his mates (teenagers, what are they like?), which left me at a loose end. Realising I needed to fight the urge to tick off a few jobs on the 'to do' list and make the most of such a fine autumn day, I quickly pumped the tyres up on the bike and cycled out to Hathersage.
The run up to Stanage Pole from the house is easy enough and then the track follows the causeway parallel to the edge before plunging down below High Neb. I only cycle this section every few years. Well I say cycle but it's more of a walk - the large cobbles and big drops are too technical for me - and each time I go this way, I vow not to do it again. Apart from that, it's a fab ride with a fast, level off-road section before hitting the road and hurtling down into Hathersage. I stopped for a brew at Longlands before heading back. Of course all that downhill fun comes at a cost and the way back home is somewhat more of a grunt - 1450' of it, in fact. I forgot to take the camera but I did get this view of Stanage with the phone
17 miles, 2200' ascent
On Sunday I spent some time at the Climbing Works. I really like this place. It's a big shed full of bouldering walls and crash mats, good coffee, music and people with big arms. After my first visit a few months ago, I had so little strength left in my arms, I couldn't grip the knife to slice an onion when I got back home. Now I just come away with sore elbows and shoulders. Many of the problems are stupidly difficult but there is so much on offer, it's easy to while away an hour or two and come away on an endorphin high and feeling you've had some exercise.
I went back again later for the Free Rock Tour 2010 film evening, featuring some inspiring big wall climbing, seemingly pointless bouldering routes comprising a handful of stupidly difficult moves and an American called Dean Potters who has pioneered the new sport of base climbing, where you solo something hard and steep until you fall off and then rely on your parachute to save you. Of course it only works if you're good enough to get high enough before you fall off. Here's the trailer.
In this one, Dean Potters doesn't fall off El Cap but it's still impressive to watch.
The final film of the evening was about Ueli Steck, who solo'd the Eiger North Wall in 2hrs 47 minutes, knocking more than an hour off his previous record.
