Members: Clay Conlon, Fiona Dixon, Emily Pitts, Dave Wylie, Andy Stratford, Duncan Zerafa, James Meakin, Mark Ashley,

Guests: Elliot Brown, Emily Thompson, Isobel Prause, Pati Xariklia, James Duthie, John Smallwood, Alaistair Philp, Jack Buzkco

Sixteen members and guests on a very hot, muggy late summers evening – so warm that the midges couldn’t really be bothered. Clay arrived before 3pm with Fiona and climbed a fine series of leads: Stacked Deck, Loose Living and Pillar Cracks with eventual success on the notorious sandbag of Sounder (HVS 5a). The rest of us drifted in after 5pm, anticipating that Dave would show up with the new guide in the hope that we might discover new hidden gems.....but no such luck....still plenty of the classics to go at.

Clay continued his evenings fine haul by following Fiona up Right Siamese twin then Andy up Cracked Wall (VS c) then finishing off with a lead of Mucky Pups (HVS 5a). Also leading Mucky Pups was Duncan – reaching a personal goal of climbing HVS in his first season of trad –well done fella! He was swiftly brought back to earth (not quite literally, fortunately), with an interesting looking (and sounding!) fall from the well travelled VS 5a Rapunzle which involved a painful straddling of the rope in just the wrong part of the anatomy. Jack failed to extract Duncan’s most wedged nut from deep in the crack, resulting in abseil time for the benighted pair – good job there was a full moon.

Pati and James Duthie made a formidable team ticking off several of the harder classics including Questionable Stability, Mucky Pups and Grane Wall.  James Meakin led One way Street, Left siamese twin and followed Elliot up Stacked Deck

Right Siamese twin was also led by Andy, Emily and Elliot with Isobel, John, Emily Tink, Mark and Alaistair all following plus various other seconds on the other routes.

About twelve of us made the pub where there was much scepticism and mistrust of motive about the Presidents proposal of New Mills Torrs after the midge fest at Den Lane which he proposed and then failed to attend.  An excellent sales pitch by the ever hungry (for food, not climbing) Emily Pitts led to Hobsons choice.