Ascents of The Pinch

The carrot at the start of pitch 2 made me sad. Tried protecting the offwidth/chimney with big bros, they didn’t sit well. I’d try it again with a 2x Merlin size 8s.

A classic old-school ramble! A reminder of how good our forebears were.

It definitely follows old school grading, no move is actually hard, you can rest every move, but progress is a challenge.

Chicken wings the whole way for me, though Bonnie managed to chimney it. Protected by a merlin #8, though I should have had a tube to leave. Not that you could fall out of the crack

tried to lead, placed the merlin but bailed when the chimney turned into an offwidth and i didn't really know how to proceed. brutal.

Sandbag. Neither 16 nor 2*

1st pitch is pleasant enough, the second pitch is heinously run out unless you have BIG BOY cams (probably bigger than a #6). Felt harder than a 16, even for a wide crack (18 perhaps?). Fun day out if you wore brown pants

So, I'm pretty sure I've got the 2nd or 3rd ascent and I can see why. It's hilariously run-out, completely unsafe and has rotten bolts inside the wall on the second pitch. It's really obvious why people retreat from the belay. I think that grade 16 is an absolute pisstake. I'd give it a 18-20?OWSD I absolutely adore this sort of climbing.

1st free ascent 1975