The development of new routes in the Costa Blanca continues. Rock & Sun’s directors as well as main climbing instructors, Trevor and Desiree, share a passion for route development, so when they have a few days off, it is likely that they will be putting new routes up somewhere in the Jalon valley. They both love the creative process of spotting a new line of unclimbed rock. Often hidden behind trees and bushes – which Desiree takes care of. Then Trevor will set up a trad anchor from which they will toprope the newly exposed rock to see if there are any worthwhile climbs to be put up. If there are, then we have several trial runs on where best to place the bolts, after which Trevor gets the drill out to bolt the route. For more info on this process, read our earlier blog.
So far in 2023 this has led to 6 more sport climbing routes. So there are more and more climbs for you to have a go at, and there is something new every time you come back to the Costa Blanca for another climbing holiday.
We have kept the new route development quiet for a while, allowing us the time to climb these new lines with our clients, to get a better idea of the grades. But now we are ready to share with you the list of new climbs at Pena Roja in LLiber:
Route 1. and 2. are at the furthest left side of the ‘old side’ of the crag, in the guidebook called Lliber, Pena Roja ‘Antiguo’. The routes are immediately left of the existing route ‘Problema Izquierda’. Shade from 15.30pm onwards. They each have their own anchor. From left to right:
1. The Demands of Thor, F4, donated and named by Hannah and Ben Morgan-Gray
2. El Regalo, F4+, donated and named by Marta Kodin
The other 4 new routes are in ‘the tree sector’ at Pena Roja, in the guidebook called Alejandria-Izquierda. All 4 routes are left of Barney Rubble F6C. These climbs are in the shade until 12, and again after 16pm. From left to right:
3. La Jirafa, F4. Named by Rock & Sun (look around to see why we named it as such).
4. Rebecca, F5+, donated and named by Stuart Jamieson
5. Roger, F6A, donated and named by Daniel Graham
6. Bogota 2600, F6B+, donated and named by Mark Weenink
(all bolted by Rock & Sun: Trevor Massiah and Desiree Verbeek-Massiah)
Bogota 2600, 6B+
We have our eyes on a few other lines in the Jalon Valley and nearer the coast. So when we have another gap in our calendar, we will get started on those. Keep an eye out for more news. And get in touch if you would like to donate into the Rock & Sun bolt fund. If you donate £75 or more, you can name the route!
Well-known and respected within the climbing and coaching community, Trevor Massiah has been a stalwart of the sport since he was ‘thrown in’ at the deep end as part of a then YTS programme in the mid-80s. Having travelled and climbed widely, Trevor’s CV includes trad E6s, sport F8as as well as developing numerous new routes around the world. As a co-director of Rock & Sun, he now shares his love and knowledge of climbing with others as they find their own path in the sport.
Early Years
Arriving in Britain as part of ‘Windrush generation’, your parents met and settled in Bristol; your birth followed in 1965. What was it like for you growing up in Bristol at that time?
I grew up on, as it turns out, a not so typical working class housing estate in south Bristol called Hartcliffe. It has a reputation of being a very tough place to live. Mum and dad, by choosing to live near where they worked rather than commute from the more ethnically diverse inner-city areas, were brave and smart enough to jump into the deep end of integration. We were the first black family to move into this area in the early 60’s so you can imagine this came with some obvious challenges. Dealing with regular racial abuse was commonplace for immigrants at that time.
As a family we dealt very well with any hardship that come our way. Usually with a good amount of humour. When you grow up in a working-class environment you learn not to moan too much. Because in general everyone’s got a hard life.
We were fortunate enough with where we lived in Hartcliffe. The fields behind our house ran onto the Mendip hills. We could literally hop over our garden fence and walk for miles in open countryside. We would regularly have bonfires, camp out in the woods in the summer, go hunting for rabbits and wood pigeons. It was a challenging but varied, enjoyable and almost countryside way of growing up.
I definitely feel that I benefited from growing up in a white as opposed to a multicultural neighbourhood. I felt much more comfortable surrounded by white people than those who grew up in inner-city areas. Especially when I discovered climbing and went to Wales to train as an outdoor activity instructor, although I might have been a bit of an oddity to the people in the towns and villages, I felt very comfortable in that environment. If I had grown up in a multicultural area I would have found going off to Pembrokeshire a lot more intimidating.
Leaving school in 1983 you spent some time on a Government training programme building and maintaining kayaks before starting on an outdoor industry work experience placement in Pembroke in 1984. It was on this course that you had your first taste of climbing when you were thrown in, almost literally, at the deep-end on a HVS at Porthclais. Was that the life-changing experience that it sounds like?
It definitely was. I had very few aspirations when I left school and was more than a little underwhelmed at the prospect of working on a building site or something similar which was the norm if further education wasn’t your thing. At the start of this YTS in Pembroke I had my first climbing experience. To be honest I didn’t really think much of it other than that it was a bit scary, cold and unpleasant in the rain, with a big swell and waves crashing on the rocks below. It didn’t take too long though to fall in love with climbing. Things changed as soon as I was introduced to leading, sea-level traversing, cliff jumping and DWS (which wasn’t called that then though). I can still remember when it finally dawned on me that it was possible to get paid to play for a living.
You quickly went on to develop your climbing concentrating mainly on trad routes. What was it that appealed to you in climbing and trad climbing in particular? Was any one route particularly demanding that you recall?
There is that geekish attraction to trad climbing with all this fiddly gear to play with, but mostly I think it’s the adventure of it all. Getting off route, getting scared when you’ve realised all your kit has come out and slid down the rope to the belayer. Eventually feeling like you’d figured the gear out well enough to start leading things harder than VS, and then waking up on a Saturday morning after too many beers wishing that you hadn’t said you were going to lead your first HVS. I had too much of an 18-year-old ego to bottle out. Everything just seemed like one great adventure after another.
Probably the most memorable routes for me is: The land that time forgot. It’s in range West on a crag called Mount Zion Central. It’s a 200m 5 pitch route that I did with Ian Parnell in ’98. We thought it deserved E6 at the time but I think the grade may have settled down to E5 6a. It’s a traverse along an obvious central break below an impending steep wall above. It starts up an E3 (Red Zawn) then continues with 4 long pitches traversing the crag in it’s entirety. The route was, as usual, attempted ground up swinging leads. I randomly got what turned out to be the crux pitch. This pitch, as did a few others, involved cleaning out a horizontal crack of a damp clayish red mud as you climbed. On the crux section of pitch 4, where the break thinned to around first joint tips, the crack would remain damp after cleaning enough space for gear and fingers with a nut tool. On the first attempt I fell, ripped a small wire and took a huge maybe 40ft or more pendulum fall onto a small blue Alien. The crag is so steep at this point that there’s no chance at all of avoiding a lower into the sea. As it was getting close to sunset I asked Ian to lower me to sea level where, much to the amusement of several other parties, I attempt to paddle with my hands just above sea level trying to create enough swing to avoid getting completely wet, that predictably failed and the swim was taken. We returned the next day and jugged up the ropes to the start of the pitch, the cracks were still damp and I fell again but this time prusiked back up and climbed through. Those few years climbing and exploring with friends on the Pembrokeshire cliffs were definitely some of the best climbing experiences I’ve ever had.
Travelling, New-Routing and the Great Outdoors
Pretty soon you started traveling widely climbing in numerous countries including Australia, South East Asia, China, New Zealand and the US. What are your stand-out memories from that time?
In ‘92 I bought a round the world ticket and headed off with a backpack for a big adventure. It was amazing to fly into Delhi and experience being in Asia for the first time. I hooked up with a bunch of local Indian climbers and got taken out to some of the new places being developed in India like Bangalore and Hampi.
Thailand also stands out of course. I travelled through Thailand on my way to Australia and had unfortunately left my climbing gear in Malaysia – which I immediately regretted. I was very impressed with the beautiful multi-coloured limestone crags with stalactite systems hanging off them. And with the karsts, the weird limestone lumps of rock sticking out of the sea. After spending close to a year in Australia I therefore decided to head back to Thailand. This time wíth climbing gear ánd with more experience. Because during my time in Australia one of the top South/Western Australian climbers (Shane Richardson) had introduced me to the idea of putting up sport routes. We teamed up and did a lot of new routing in Western Australia. After that experience I was pretty sold on the idea of going back to Thailand to get involved with developing sport routes there. I have been back to Thailand almost every winter since then, to climb, to run climbing holidays with Rock & Sun, and to develop new routes and climbing areas.
What, if any, variances did you see in climbing and the sport ethos across the places you visited at that time?
In Australia it was the first time I came across trad and sport routes coexisting next to each other, and routes that were a mix of sport and trad. You could be climbing trad and if there was a runout there could be a carrot bolt and then it might be trad again. It would otherwise be an E6 or E7, excluding the masses from being able to climb. That mix of sport and trad seemed to work really well in Australia.
Up until this summer, rebolting on the Orm, I had never actually placed a bolt in the UK. I have only ever put sport routes up in other countries. The trad climbing in the UK is so amazing that when I am in the UK I just want to go trad climbing.
Another observation is that redpointing wasn’t a thing. I hadn’t redpointed a route until I started bolting routes in the early 90s. When I would go sport climbing, in the Verdon or the Costa Blanca, I may fall off a move and try again, but certainly wouldn’t do repeated attempts until I could do it clean. But when I started developing sport routes it meant that I then actually had to climb them. Because when you put the bolts in you don’t want to walk away not having climbed the route. So that led me into redpointing.
Where was your favourite place to climb and why and is that still the case today?
My favourite place without a doubt would still be trad climbing in the UK. The Pembrokeshire sea cliffs are definitely one of my all time favourite places to climb. My Top other destinations would be Thailand, El Cap/Yosemite, Taipan Wall, and the Needles in California.
Along the way you got hooked on developing new routes on your travels – something which you still do to this day. Of the hundreds of new routes you’ve developed are there some which were particularly memorable and if so why?
Humanality is a 6 pitch route in Thailand, above Ton Sai beach. It’s not particular hard, but the whole experience of putting it up with Greg Collum, over a period of 10 days or so was incredible. I think it may have been my first multipitch trad lead in Thailand. Starting on the beach, zigzagging through these massive tufa/stalactite systems, we got all the way to the top of the route without placing a single bolt. Back then it was hard to know how the tufa would hold up to nuts and cams as tufas tend to be so much softer than actual rock. We placed as many slings/threads as possible and placed jammed knots if the rock felt or looked particularly soft. The route turned out to be a mega classic. One of the most popular multipitch routes in Thailand. The 5th pitch goes up a gradually steepening wall on good holds until it blanks out completely. Exactly at this point there’s this huge stalactite at shoulder level behind you, you look across thinking maybe it’s possible to lean across and reach it. It takes a little bit of convincing but it goes. You transfer onto it, do a few meters of climbing on the tufa then step back onto the wall where the holds reappear.
I really enjoy the whole process of finding a crag or line getting to the top ideally via a trad lead then creating a fun sport route. The grade is not important to me at all. It’s definitely about the process and creating something that’s fun and safe to climb.
Coaching, Health and Safety Advisor and TV Work
You’ve worked in the outdoor industry since the 1980’s; much of that time as a full member of the Association of Mountaineering Instructors. What are the main changes have you seen whilst working in the industry?
The standard of instruction and especially coaching has come a long way since then. Mountain training and AMI have done amazing work to put an award system in place, achieving high quality and consistent instruction. Running Rock & Sun we travel a lot around Europe and further afield and recognise that in general the quality of British instructors is so much higher.
In 2012 you met Desirée Verbeek whilst climbing in Thailand; then, in 2013, you joined Rock and Sun – a company which specialises in delivering rock climbing holidays and coaching for outdoor climbing – as a director. Desirée, joined as a director the year after. How satisfying do you find it working alongside your partner whilst running your own business and introducing others to climbing?
We feel it is a real privilege to make a living out of living your dream and having the freedom to design things the way we want them to be. Running Rock and Sun allows us to travel and climb all over Europe but also Africa and south East Asia. We are very lucky that we can work together so well at the crag as well as in the office, and then also enjoy climbing together when we’re not working. We simply love what we do – probably because we designed it the way we wanted it to be.
Do you find coaching others has impacted your own climbing at all? Do you, for example, apply some of the development techniques you show to others to your own climbing?
Coaching has definitely impacted my own climbing in a positive way. I regularly say when I am coaching that my technique was pretty rubbish before I started coaching but I was a lot stronger. Coaching allows you to identify inefficiencies in others people’s climbing and come up with ways of practicing climbing in a way that creates a more efficient movement pattern. It’s almost impossible then not to apply the same approach to your own climbing.
Black Lives Matter
Following the conviction for George Floyd’s murder and the continuing growth of the Black Lives Matter Movement you’ve joined the debate talking about your experience as a person of colour. You’re on-the-record as saying “Racism within climbing isn’t something I’ve experienced”. That is a great endorsement for the sport – right?
It’s true that climbing is not particularly ethnically diverse. Of course this is something that is changing quickly and has been doing so from the early 90’s when climbing walls began to spring up in the major cities around the country. Having climbed and travelled a huge amount during the past four decades I have never directly experienced any racism within or from anyone within the climbing community. I’m not saying that there aren’t racist climbers, racism exists in all walks of life and in all communities but in my experience the climbing community stands out as being an open minded, and welcoming community full of odd, weird and wonderful characters.
Most climbers are open-minded; do you think that is fuelling the increase in diversity in the climbing community which is evident today?
Through our work with Rock & Sun we notice that a lot of people only really went into the gym to climb because they thought it was just more fun than going to the mainstream gym, pushing weights, rowing machine or running on the tread mill. As more climbing/bouldering facilities are built in inner-city areas it is naturally going to attract a greater diversity of individuals.
Is there anything else you would like to add to the conversation about equality and representation within the sport?
Future
Is there anything specific within the sport and or coaching you still want to achieve?
I very much feel that I’m improving as a coach year by year. Both Dees and I enjoy figuring out new ways to explain, teach and practice techniques. We also hope to create more time for our own climbing which the pandemic has made incredibly challenging. I have so far managed to improve my climbing grade in each decade and still have 3 or 4 years to try and climb harder in my 50s than I climbed in my 40s. Climbing harder in my 60’s may be more of a challenge but I do enjoy setting myself random targets as a way of motivating myself.
If you follow Rock & Sun on Facebook, Instagram or via our Newsletter, you would have seen a few posts this year about the new routes we developed in the Costa Blanca during the Corona pandemic. Here we will describe what it entails to make them, what we love about new-routing, plus we’ll give the overview of all the new routes as most of them were developed just after the new Costa Blanca guidebook by Roberto Lopez was published. We also aim to answer the questions you’ve been asking us about developing new routes. If you have more questions after reading this blog, please send us a message and we will add it to this blog.
New-routing during Covid-19
International borders being closed for tourists for most of the time between March 2020 and May 2021 meant that we had a lot of time on our hands in the last year or so. Once the initial and very strict lockdown in Spain ended and we were slowly gaining more freedom again, we at first felt it could be considered too ‘frivolent’ to start climbing for fun again. But we considered going to the crag to create new climbs a justified reason to go to the crag. The first routes we started to work on were the 4 routes ‘in the trees’ in sector Alejandria of Pena Roja (see the full overview of new routes at the bottom of this blog). Trev had his eye on this sector mainly because of the easy angled rock and the fact that it is protected from the sun by the trees. If we could create some routes here, that would allow us to climb at Pena Roja all day; starting in Alejandria-riverbed in the morning, then move into the trees, and finish the day at the original wall of Pena Roja.
What is your motivation for developing routes?
A question we get asked quite regularly, as most climbers ‘just’ climb and never put up a route in their whole life. Routesetters can be quite invisible, and unless you get to see someone developing a route, you may never really think about how and why those bolts got there.
There are several reasons why we like to get involved in bolting routes. One is because we are well aware of the fact that as Rock & Sun we use the Costa Blanca for our Sport Climbing Holidays and Performance Coaching Courses. We climb routes that have been equipped by others, we bring more climbers to this area. We therefore find it important to do something back. Not only by maintaining existing routes or sectors (we for instance replaced 10 anchors at Sierra de Toix Oeste with titanium glue in anchors), but also by creating more routes. This will give the locals something new to climb, and it will give climbers from other areas something to come back to the Costa Blanca for, and it means that on busy days at popular crags, people can spread over a greater number of routes without having to wait for one another.
Another important reason to develop new routes is so that when we are working with our groups, we can organise our climbing days in a different way and thereby offer our clients better climbing experiences. By for instance creating routes that are in the shade around midday, it means that when it’s hot we can climb in the shade all day, moving from one sector to the next, instead of having to go back to the villa for a two or three hour break before heading out to the crag again. And it also means our regular clients will have something new to try on their next trip. Finally, the routes we set tend to lend themselves really well for climbing coaching; they are good routes to practice route-finding and/or work on technical movement patterns.
The whole creative process from spotting to bolting new lines is our third motivation. We all have a different creative outlet; some of us sing, make music, love cooking, painting or making furniture. For us, it is new routing that ‘ticks us’. Trevor is naturally looking for new route potential at any crag we go to, even at any crag or piece of rock we drive past. He is always spotting natural lines or striking features that would be amazing to climb. Those of which that are on shady crags, with a potential grade range from 4s to 6s are the top of our list to have a closer look at and decide to start working on. What Desiree loves most about this creative process, are first, the uniqueness of climbing an unclimbed piece of rock and the freedom to decide where it climbs best, and second, the removing of loose rock, vegetation and mud, behind which you often find beautiful handholds.
These cleaning activities naturally lead us to our final motivation of new-routing: it is a great way to get fit. After 2,5 months in total lockdown, having drunk and eaten more than we could burn off, we had some kilos to lose and muscles to regain. Hanging in the harness all day, jumarring up the fixed line, using a crow-bar to get body-size blocks of rock off, hammering other loose rock off, drilling and brushing provides a quite intense full-body workout.
The rock scars as well as rocks at base of the crag show the amount of rock we removed (sector Estado de Alarma, Cuarentena, Corona)
Do you need permission or a qualification to make new routes?
There is no qualification for route-setting. It is a skill that is often passed on from an experienced route-setter to an ‘assistant’ to learn all the ins and outs involved with doing a good job at it.
Whether permission is needed completely depends on where we want to develop new routes. If the land is privately owned then of course we’d need permission from the land owner. As it happens though, on more than once occasion it has been the other way around, and Trevor has been asked if he would please come to have a look at a limestone wall and develop routes there. These instances were in Thailand, where the owners see the potential of building bungalows and a restaurant to accommodate the climbers, once the routes have been developed. A win-win situation.
If the crag is on public land, we ask around among local climbers to see if permission would be needed from the forestry commission and/or from the municipality. For the past year we have wanted to start developing this untouched, north-facing crag, not far from where we live. We explored it on a few occasions and see great potential, but after talking to some local climbers we decided that now is not the right time to ask permission from the local government. So we will save that crag for another time in the future.
On existing crags, we use the following logic. If it is an established crag where there haven’t been new additions for a while, then we assume that the original route developers have finished the lines that they want to put up. And that they would not be against us developing more routes. Most local developers are, A: not interested in removing tons of loose rock or vegetation, and are B: not interested in bolting low 6s, 5s or 4s. Whereas those grades are of great interest to us. The routes at the Alejandria sector in the trees for example, from Estado de Alarma till Distanciamiento Social, took a lot of effort to get cleaned. We spent multiple days up there with a crowbar and lump hammer to make this area safe for climbing. And possibly more surprisingly, the sector at Alcalali from Artmosphere till The Baker was never developed before because the rock was invisible behind the trees and bushes that were growing on its ledges. Once we cut those down, a beautiful compact slab appeared with four striking lines. We opened this sector in November 2020, and with Alcalali being the perfect winter crag in the Costa Blanca, these routes were popular right from the start.
Finally, if the crag we have spotted a line on is still in development, which was the case for Murlali, we ask the people who are bolting there whether they are planning to bolt the line that we have seen. For “Cuando termine el cierre” we were given permission to go ahead and develop that route. The last thing you want of course when you are aiming to contribute to a climbing area is to upset the other developers and climbers in that area.
Selfies (5) was donated and named by Ross and Ness Self
How much does a route cost?
This depends on the materials used. Titanium bolts that need to be glued in with a special waterproof glue (Hilti RE500, see our blog on placing titanium bolts) are more expensive than 12mm expansion bolts, which are more expensive than 10mm expansion bolts. And expansion bolts come in different alloys that vary in cost and durability. It also depends on the length of the route, or more precisely, how many bolts are needed to protect the route. Besides the material going into the route itself, there are the associated costs of the tools and protective equipment: a cordless battery-powered hammer drill (we use the Hilti Te4-A22), drill bits, ropes, saws, brushes, etc.
We estimate that on average a route costs £75.
Is there a bolt fund? How can I contribute?
In the Costa Blanca there is no bolt fund. We feel it is our obligation to contribute to the maintenance and development of this area and have been investing in it using our own funds. We do of course welcome contributions and have set up a donation page in the Rock & Sun Shop. For a £75 donation you get to name the route. Climbers visiting us in the Costa Blanca can contribute by buying a Rock & Sun t-shirt or renting our climbing shoes, harnesses, or helmets; all this income goes towards route development and route maintenance in the Costa Blanca.
How many days does it take to make a route?
On average it takes 2 days to develop a route. This however completely depends on whether it is the first route on a sector and we need to get access to the top of the crag, or whether we are creating a new route next to an existing one, in which case we can simply traverse across from the existing anchor. Besides the ease or difficulty of getting access to the top, the time it takes to make a new line also depends on the amount of vegetation and loose rock that needs to be removed.
Trevor on the first ascent of Tiger Balm (6A+)
What is the process of making a new route?
First we need access to the top of the crag. Sometimes it is possible to walk to the top of crag and set up a temporary anchor there, using trees and or trad gear. When that is not possible and it is also not possible to traverse across from an existing anchor, then Trevor will trad climb up a route from the ground and make a trad anchor at the top. This anchor is not necessarily in the spot where the final anchor will be but can be used during the routesetting process. Once a line is fixed, we can haul the drill up and drill 12mm holes to place Petzl removable bolts and take out the trad gear.
Using the temporary anchor, we set up a toprope. Both of us climb the ‘line’ at least twice. Do we choose similar ways to climb this unclimbed piece of rock? Does it go where we thought it would when we were looking at it from the ground? Is it a worthwhile route that we can make safe and fun to climb?
Once agreed on where the route goes (more or less) we climb it again to mark where the bolts go. This is a very interactive process between climber and belayer, and a lot of thought goes into it. Ultimately we want the bolts to 1) be in solid rock, 2) protect the climbing, 3) be in comfortable clipping positions for short and tall people, 4) allow the rope to run more or less in a straight line. Other considerations are that the bolt should not interfere with hand-or footholds, that the quickdraw should be hanging ‘free’ in the bolt (not pressed against or over the rock below the bolt). We both climb it several times, marking, erasing and re-marking bolts until we are happy that the bolts are marked where we would like them to be.
Depending on the amount of vegetation and loose rock, the route is either being cleaned before marking the bolts – if there is a lot of cleaning to be done, or afterwards – if the cleaning is more or less ‘cosmetic’. Desiree usually does the cleaning jumarring up a fixed line, instead of a toprope, so we can both work at the same time. Trevor can for instance be on a fixed line next to it and drill the bolts on the next route.
Trevor sometimes starts with the first bolt from the ground, working his way up to the anchor. Other times he starts at the top and works his way down. Before drilling the hole, the quality of the rock is assessed once again with the hammer to make sure it is in good quality rock. It is not always possible to put the bolt exactly where you would like it to be.
Once the bolts have been placed, we do a final clean of the route: blow off the drill dust, brushing the holds. Sometimes we reinforce holds with glue, to make the route safer (we did this for Cuarentena and Corona), or to make sure that the crux hold won’t break off (we did this on Tiger Balm).
Then one of us gets the privilege of the official “first ascent”. Climbing the route on lead for the first time, helps us to get a better idea of what the grade might be.
Trevor on the first ascent of Golden Jugs (6A)
Final Words
The good thing the Pandemic has brought us, is time. It has been great to invest in the climbing in the Costa Blanca by developing new lines. We love the process from spotting a line on the rock, to cleaning the vegetation and loose rock, to deciding where the bolts should be, and having the first ascent.
That is when the next bit of the fun starts – introducing the route to other climbers and watching them climb it. Do they go ‘the right’ way? Do they more or less get the difficulty they were expecting based on the grade we gave it? And most of all, are they enjoying it?
As the Pandemic is nearing its end, and international travel being allowed again, we are very much looking forward to our clients returning and allowing them to have a variety of new climbing experiences.
Full Overview of routes bolted by Trevor and Desiree during the Covid-19 Pandemic[i]
Crag
Route Name
Grade
Donated and named by (if applicable)
Finished around
1
Alejandria (in the trees) – Pena Roja, LLiber
Barney Rubble
6c
Aug 2020
2
Yabba Dabba Doo !!!
6c
April 2021
3
The Flintstones
6c
Aug 2020
4
Estado de Alarma
6b
June 2020
5
Cuarentena
4-5+
June 2020
6
Corona
4+
June 2020
7
Distanciamiento Social
6a+
June 2020
8
Alejandria (riverbed) – Pena Roja, LLiber
Denise Denise
4
June 2020
9
Awesome
5+
June 2020
10
Rainbow Feet
6b+
Feb 2021
11
Golden Jugs
6a
Alan Britton
Feb 2021
12
Voltarol
6c
March 2021
13
Tiger Balm
6a+
Feb 2021
14
Selfies
5
Ross and Vanessa Self
Feb 2021
15
Take is not a safe word
6b+
Blanka Nori
March 2021
16
Alcalali
Epidemiology
5
Paul Cooke
Jan 2021
17
Viva Colombia
5+
Mark Weenink
Jan 2021
18
Artmosphere
6a+
Rianne Verbeek
Nov 2020
19
Rocky
6a
Steve Cox
Nov 2020
20
Gene
6b+
Nov 2020
21
The Baker
6a+
Nov 2020
22
Murlali
Ben & Jerry’s
6c
Mark Haworth
Feb 2021
23
Cuando Termine el Cierre
6c/+
Stewart Robertson
Feb 2021
[i] Multiple routes at the same crag are described from left to right when facing the crag
*Alcalali and Murlali are temporarily closed for climbing due to a discovery of ancient cave paintings. Once these have been analysed and protected by the researchers of Alicante University we expect these crags to be opened up to climbers again.*
In the previous issue I looked at the lessons learned over the years from bolt placements and the advantages of titanium bolts over stainless steel glue-in bolts. Glue-in anchors that flex or deform can crack the resin, thus creating a crevice. Corrosion loves a crevice and this is therefore likely to shorten the working life of a plated steel or stainless steel anchor.
Here is some guidance for placing titanium bolts, gained from placing thousands over the years. At the time of writing the certified 8mm Eterna bolt (from Titan Climbing) appears to me to provide the best and most permanent solution, but the same placement principles apply to other ring bolts.
How to place titanium bolts – step 1
Before drilling, check that the intended bolt position is in good rock by listening for a solid ringing sound when it’s hit with a hammer. Choose a position that is a good distance away from cracks and edges. It is also worth considering how the gate on the bottom and top of the quick draw will sit against the rock.
How to place titanium bolts – step 2
To place the Eterna bolt, use a 14mm drill bit to drill a 10mm deep hole where you want the top shaft of the bolt to be. Then drill a series of holes as close as possible to each other, directly below. Each hole should be drilled a few mm less deep than the previous hole. A total of three pilot holes should be sufficient with a 14mm bit to spread along a 45mm line. Return to the original pilot hole and angle the drill bit onto the bottom lip of the hole then drill down at an angle, drilling out the gap between each hole until you are left with one vertical trench. The angle of the trench should suit the curve on the eye of the bolt. Trenching/recessing the vertical back bar of the eye of the bolt can greatly increase both strength and performance. Martin Roberts of Titan carried out tests on trenched and non-trenched bolts. The results showed that the yield strength (load at which the bolt permanently deforms) increased by around 50% for bolts that were trenched i.e. from around 10~11kN to 15~16kN. The bolts deformed elastically (flexed under load and sprung back to their original shape when the load was relieved) at a low load around 4kN when not recessed but when recessed this load increased greatly to around 12~13kN. The typical service load is below those figures, so this greatly reduces the potential problem of fatigue.
How to place titanium bolts – step 3
Once the trench is finished, drill your hole for the shaft of the bolt at the top (where your original pilot hole was). The hole should be drilled at a 90 degree angle to the rock face. In normal circumstances this hole can be over-drilled by about 5 to 10mm.
On steep rock, over drilling can be problematic as the bolt can slide out of the hole. The Eterna bolt has a special design feature that allows for easier installation on steep rock: Tape the drill bit at 9.5cm and stop drilling when the tape is flush with the edge of the trench, flush with the rock. When placing the bolt gently tap it with a suitable hammer for the last 15mm for a tight interference fit. The last 15mm of the bolt is slightly over 15mm in diameter but will squeeze down then try to spring back once tapped into the 14mm hole, improving the grip. Do not use a normal steel hammer as it will leave iron deposits on the titanium bolt and the iron will rust, which may cause corrosion issues with the titanium anchor itself. Either use a proper stainless steel climbing hammer, or a rubber or wooden mallet.
How to place titanium bolts – step 4
Check that the bolt fits easily into the hole: the vertical shoulder of the bolt should fit neatly into the trench. If any extra length is necessary, this can be achieved by drilling down on the bottom lip of the trench. The reason for the slot is to semi-recess the eye of the bolt to help ensure the strongest possible bolt installation for the given position. It also greatly reduces the effects of fatigue during normal use due to the increased stiffness. I always carry three bolts with me and check each one to allow for any slight variation in size.
How to place titanium bolts – step 5
It is vitally important that the hole and trench are clean, and free of any rock dust before proceeding any further. I use a Hilti wire hole brush (a Metolius brush or a shaved down hard tooth brush with the bristles cut short can also work well) and a manual Hilti blow pump for alternate brushing and blowing. Alternate between brushing and blowing until dust is no longer visible.
How to place titanium bolts – step 6
Use the epoxy resin as per the manufacturer’s instructions. I recommend the tried and tested Hilti HIT RE-500. Pure epoxy resin is often as hard if not harder than the rock it is being placed in, so the more glue you use the better. It will also provide a greater chance of a good seal from the rock and increased adhesion to the bolt.
It is important to express and discard three full trigger pumps as a precaution before gluing your first bolt. I usually express the three full-trigger pulls into a plastic bag on the ground and then make three test beads somewhere on the ground or on the rock. This allows you to check how the glue has cured when you return the next day. If the beads are soft there was a problem with the mix. (If starting a new tube high up, one pull of the trigger for each bead.) The guns have an automated puncture system and one of the tubes is usually punctured slightly before the other leading to an uneven mix at the start. There is a balance between speed of curing vs. “going-off” within the nozzle, and times vary depending on temperature. In hot climates, you should have a good 20mins prior to the resin going off in the nozzle.
How to place titanium bolts – step 7
Insert the nozzle fully into the hole. Almost fill the hole with resin by pulling on the trigger gently while slowly withdrawing. Try to avoid creating any air pockets by only withdrawing the nozzle while resin is being expressed. Insert the bolt, slowly rotating it as you do so. If you feel any resistance it will be an air pocket, this is best solved by withdrawing the bolt 1-2cm and inserting again, you may hear a small popping sound when the airlock is broken.
How to place titanium bolts – step 8
Continue inserting the bolt until it sits neatly in the trench. Having an ice-lolly-type stick is useful for dealing with any glue that oozes from the hole (a good excuse for a Magnum!). This can be used to backfill the trench and tidy up at the end. You can also use them to scrape excess glue from the nozzle.
How to place titanium bolts – step 9
It is important that the bolt is not recessed so far that larger snapgates do not fit. I test this while drilling with a solid gate on the bolt before gluing. The inside of the bolt eye should be flush with the rock surface.
How to place titanium bolts – step 10
You should leave at least 24 hours before loading even in a hot climate, although the glue should be cured within 12hrs, this is also where the test beads you made before gluing are helpful. Hit them with a hammer; if they’re completely dry, hard and brittle, then the bolts will be good.
Trevor Massiah is a Mountaineering Instructor based in Spain and is the owner operator of Rock and Sun which runs climbing and bouldering courses and holidays in many parts of the world. He has been working in the outdoors for 33 years and has climbed extensively around the world. His favourite crags are Pembroke, Taipan wall and the Needles California. He has put up many routes – both trad and sport – in the UK, Thailand, Australia, China and India, and is currently involved in rebolting existing routes and developing new routes in Thailand and the Costa Blanca.
This article will look at why the use of resin bolts and anchors might be the best choice for sport climbing. It will also look at what might be the best materials to use and hope to share greater understanding of how they work and the choices available. Much of this has been learned through trial and error in addition to extensive research.
What are the advantages of resin anchors over expansion bolts?
No Spinning hangers.
No stress on rock due to expansion.
Better performance in softer rock types.
Less stress on bolt during installation. This reduces risk of stress corrosion cracking (SCC).
Expansion bolts are easy to over torque, which can result in premature failure. This can happen during installation or when a well-meaning climber attempts to tighten a loose or spinning hanger without a torque wrench.
Single component: this greatly reduces the risk of crevice and galvanic corrosion.
Reduces risk of hanger theft.
In the building industry, expansion bolt anchors are regarded as temporary fixings, with resin anchor bolts being used where a permanent fixing is required.
Having been involved in new routeing in Thailand since 1993 I’ve seen it go through some major changes, from rapid development into one of the world’s most popular sport climbing destinations in the early 90’s, to a dramatic slowdown as bolts started failing catastrophically. What were thought to be the best marine grade stainless steel expansion bolts would sometimes break under body weight less than a year after being placed!
A great deal has been written already about the tropical or marine environment and bolt corrosion. I do not intend to go into this in any great detail here but have included some links for those that are interested in gaining a better understanding of why and how certain rock types and environments can have a more aggressive corrosive effect on stainless steel, alloys and other metals than others than would be considered normal.
The tropical paradise of Thailand can be seen as a testing ground for climbing anchors. There does not seem to be a harsher environment for bolts than this one: if bolts can last in Thailand then they’ll work pretty much anywhere!
Once it had become apparent that even marine grade stainless steel expansion bolts would not work in Thailand, new route developers turned to glue-in bolts hoping that isolating the bolt from the rock and the greater surface area of the bolts versus that of a hanger would solve the problem. The results were mixed. A large variety of stainless steel glue-in bolts were used to rebolt existing routes and create new ones. It would take much longer for them to show signs of corrosion but in time even the best quality stainless glue-in bolts started to show worrying signs of corrosion and then failures started to occur. Unfortunately, the first round of rebolting was carried out with Hilti’s recommended RE-100 glue epoxy, but unbeknown to Hilti the cliffs in most Tropical locations suffer from a great deal of seepage during the monsoon season. RE-100epoxy is porous and not flexible enough. The ensuing cracking and shrinkage allowed water seeping through the rock to come into contact with the bolt. By the time we realised that the glue was a problematic weak link, hundreds of bolts had already been placed. When made aware of the problem, Hilti suggested using the RE-500. It is waterproof, can be used under water so also in wet conditions with minimal shrinkage, it is incredibly strong and should be good for 50 years or more. It is by far the best resin I’ve ever used.
At about the same time, an affordable source for titanium bolts had been discovered. Now there is much debate about other metals being as suitable for tropical or marine environments and it is not for me to suggest that anything other than titanium would be irresponsible but titanium bolts have been used in the Grand Cayman for more than 16 years and Thailand for a little over 13 years and are showing no signs of corrosion. The UIAA recently carried out some extensive research that led to the UIAA Safety commission recommending only the use of Titanium and high end ‘HRC’ alloys (6% Molybdenum stainless steel such as 1.4529, 254SMO) in these environments. They have also suggested that the expected life time of fixed protection in any environment should be a minimum of 50 years. It seems that the titanium bolts in combination with the RE-500 have the best chance of lasting a lifetime.
So where does this information leave us?
We have whole crags in places like Kalymnos being rebolted with stainless steel glue-in bolts less than 10 years after being developed. There is a reasonable chance that these routes will need rebolting again in 10 or 15 years. We have seen recent stainless steel glue-in bolt failures in Sardinia, multiple bodyweight failures in Taiwan of Petzl Collinox glued using RE-500 after less than 10 years, and Fixe anchor chain failures in the Costa Blanca. Some anchor failures and weld cracking have occurred at indoor and outdoor walls in both Germany and the UK. Perhaps we should take a longer term approach to equipping sport routes?
Maybe the pace of new route development will be slower due to increased cost, but the savings in rebolting could be enormous. Certified titanium bolts are now available from around £6.50 to £9 from Titan climbing, a Sheffield based company. This is not cheap when compared to expansion bolts, but they will probably last a lifetime if placed properly and with the correct glue. Pure epoxy resin can be purchased direct from Hilti or Titan climbing at a cost of around £16 per tube, which is enough to place about 25 bolts. A single pitch would cost approximately £75-£100 – even ignoring the safety advantages, surely at £2/year for a route anything else is a false economy?
In the next installment, I will share some of the lessons we have learned from placing thousands of bolts.
Trevor Massiah is a Mountaineering Instructor based in Spain and is the owner operator of Rock and Sun which runs climbing and bouldering courses and holidays in many parts of the world. He has been working in the outdoors for 33 years and has climbed extensively around the world. His favourite crags are Pembroke, Taipan wall and the Needles California. He has put up many routes – both trad and sport – in the UK, Thailand, Australia, China and India, and is currently involved in rebolting existing routes and developing new routes in Thailand and the Costa Blanca.
Further information
The UIAA has recently changed its advice on bolting in marine and tropical environments:
