Faroe Island Sport Climbing

 The islands are famous for lichens 500 or was it 5,000 species?  A symbiotic relationship between algae and fungi. 

Part of the national treasure of the Faroes, some church fittings from the ancient cathedral. 

Vesmanna Hostel

Anna and Elisabeth and I went back to the wild and beautiful crag just past Nordligsdudng. We did not leave until 4:00 and got over there around 5, feeling a little lazy, and we decided not cross over any fences. We took the long way around, which had the added benefit of being drier and slowly went up toward the crag, which was much drier and seemed more warm and friendly than on our last visit. We walked along the little shelfs in the grass that the sheep make, watching the pale white fluffs of a kind of cotton flower in the field. It was the kind of walk I liked, talking about important ideas on the way to the climb.  A dream walk, 

This time we actually got to the top of the climb, where two incredibly rusty quick links were the chains.  It was not an easy climb and I had to use a bit of aid to get up it, also going back to get draws from the lower bolts, but much better than before when the rock was wet. It was a beautiful evening around 8:30 when we walked down as the last bit of sun went below the clouds touching the green peaks above us.

Thurso and Climbing at Scrabster

  

We drove the 4 hours or so to Thurso, through amazing landscapes, over to the east side of the highlands, by the water, finally arriving in Thurso.  I drove with Dan and Fiona, while Dan knitted.  It stopped raining, and then the madness began.  I told everyone they were on their own, gave Amy a cup of tea, and heading out to Scrabster to check out a climb on Holborn Head, past the lighthouse in Scrabster harbor, a beautiful walk over green hills, with lots of sheep ending up in steep rock cliffs over the roaring ocean.  I could not find the descent, and walked around and around, finally decided to set up an anchor just over the edge in a crack and down climb down toward the platforms below, which were covered in ocean. I think I was in the area of the climb, so I down climbed past a baby gull in its nest, down the flaky rock, closer and closer to the ocean, setting pro as directional as I descended so that I would not swing into an area that might be unclimbable.  It was an adventure on black shale like sandstone.  It was impossible for Amy to hear me because of the roar of the water, so she just kept letting rope out until I reached the wet rock.  Then I had to climb back out!  She couldn’t hear me to pull up rope, so every ten feet or so I tied in short, looping the rope below me.