On Sunday, Tim, Clemmie and I went rock climbing in the sunshine. Having discovered that the Hawcraig, a sea cliff directly north of Edinburgh, was swamped with water (otherwise known as 'hightide') and mobbed with climbers waiting for the few routes still accessible, we headed for Limekilns. The climbing here is unusual. Many climbing crags have their own little nuances, but the Limekilns' nature is remarkable: two giant limestone cubes atop a wooded hillock to the north of Edinburgh, the rock is made up of numerous, complete fossils. One of the cubes has a Victorian set of stairs off the back which makes for an unusual and simple descent after each climb.
It was a beautiful day and after being taken up a couple of climbs, Clemmie and Tim each 'led' a route. Lead climbing is what some people would say 'it's all about', since this is how climbers traditionally climb: they start at the bottom of the cliff, placing various bits of metal in to cracks in the rock which will hold their fall should they slip. Once they get to the top of the cliff, the lead climber then attaches themself to the rock, pulls up the rope and belays their climbing partner, who removes the equipment that they leader placed. Leading requires experience, fine judgement and understanding and a 'calm head'. They both did really well.
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