I want to write a blog!

Me following Rob Giddy up pitch one of Un Poco Loco Direct on Church Door Buttress in Glencoe (My second attempt at this route after a bout of bronchitis and too much psyche had led to an inevitable retreat the prior season)

There is something about reading blogs that I really enjoy. Traditional social media just (to me) feels very shouty and at times perhaps even a little arrogant or untruthful. I find reading in depth accounts of people’s experiences, thoughts, fears a much more interesting and informative insight into both them as a person as well as the routes, places or accounts they are describing. Ultimately, I think the world probably doesn’t need another climbing blog, and perhaps that is what this will become, for now however I seam to enjoy discussing all the things that occur around a life in the mountains that are only discussed in a handful of personal blogs.

I have been extremely hesitant about putting down in words my experiences of routes and events to share widely. Opening up on the internet to a bunch of random people (and no doubt my mum) about pivotal experiences and moments often seems embarrassing and uncomfortable. A multitude of things come through my head in regards to this as some of the best and most memorable experiences aren’t often necessarily on the classic big, hard, or scary routes people want to talk about. They often happen on the quite unsung mountains, crags or carparks around the world. Or, perhaps more poignantly, the battles that play out in your mind whilst you are there about life, relationships, fears, doubts, insecurities and regrets. To me this is the reason I spend my life in the mountains, yes chasing grades and hard intense experiences is “cool” and looks good on the “gram”, but it is really all the emotions and thoughts around it that matter the most.