Page 17 - 2012 AMA Summer

The Orange House, Finestrat
tals. Adam gave us a very worthwhile day of coaching at the inter- nationally renowned set of crags at Sella, with some clean leads at 6a/6a+ being achieved. It is hard to believe how much limestone is within easy reach of The Orange House, and Sella (with over 500 routes) is only 20 minutes away. Adam had something for everyone regardless of how hard they were climbing, and everyone picked up invaluable tips. We also all reaffirmed in the Bouldering Room back at The Orange House that unlike Adam we could not do one armed pull ups never mind ones using only 2 finger tips.
The progression throughout the week now put us in a position where it was time to get some multi-pitch climbing and some lead- ing tuition done. To get the most out of the day we headed for Toix Oeste where we could combine some amenably graded multi-pitch routes with a great single pitch crag that was ideal for getting them on the sharp end. The crag is on the coast at the end of the Bernia Ridge and has great views. The main wall of Toix Oeste can get quite busy as it is such a good teaching crag but there is plenty more on offer within minutes of there. Toix Far Oeste has some very nice multi-pitch routes beginning with the gentle 2 pitch 4+, Espolon Gris.
Sgt Maria King on the Ponoch Via Ferrata
For trad climbing we chose the Castillo-Wasp area of Echo Valley (again, only about 20 minutes from The Orange House). The crag has a good range of easier graded single pitch climbs and eats gear so it was perfect for our needs. It also has a number of slightly harder multi-pitch routes, and it was of great satisfaction to me to alternate lead a 4 pitch VS 4c with Ryan, who made his first outdoor lead earlier that week, and just shows what a concentrated period of good weather and tons of rock can do in terms of progression.
So the verdict – as many of you know the Costa Blanca is difficult to beat as a location for sport and trad climbing in the winter sun. The combination of seemingly limitless limestone, easy access from the UK, cheap living costs in country and dependable weather make it a superb destination for winter adventurous training. We com- bined serious scrambling, spectacular Via Ferrata, limitless sport routes and trad on single and multi-pitch venues, got 2 students through their RCF in the process, ate really well and squeezed in a few sociables. Not a bad week or so in work, and our thanks to the AMA for helping to finance it.
WO1 (FofS) Ryan Lang belays Maj Angie Tarlton on Espolon Gris, 60m, 4+, Toix Oeste
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