Page 20 - 2003 AMA Summer

THE MADONNA E
By Mai Bich Baker
It had seemed a fantastic idea 9 months ago. 2 weeks in Spain, climbing near Barcelona. The prospect of the sun, the Spanish mountain scenery and of course the climbing, filled us all with anticipation and enthusiasm during the depths of the 1998 British winter. We had asked the
CO for three weeks, he offered one. we settled for two, the deal had been done. Allwehadtodonowwasto get fit. plan the expedition in detail and write those polite letters, begging for funds.
11EOD Regt RLC is an unusual unit within the
Corps, not being based in one single location and with its substantial sprinkling of other cap badges. The team venturing on Exercise Madonna Tiger was therefore to consist of 4 persons from the RLC. 2 from the R Signals and 2 from the AGC. All the participants had an interest in climbing; half climbed regularly, half
wanted to learn to climb, all volunteered. Having been inspired by an article in a climbing magazine, the area of Montserrat was chosen as
the expedition destination. The Montserrat Mountain overlooks the valleys of Catalonia from its command­ ing position, 40 km NE of Barcelona. Precariously built on the side of the mountain is the Monastery housing the Sanctuary of the Mother of God of Montserrat, patron Saint of Catalonia. The monastery has been a centre of pilgrimage since ancient times and is still one of the most famous within the Catholic world. Every year, thousands of coach loads of worshippers visit the monastery to pay homage to the image of Saint Mary, placed in the Basilica. Our place of worship however
was in a far more inhospitable place, far above the tourist circus below. In addition to the religious attractions, Montserrat is also a premier climbing area, renowned for its unique towers and intimi­ dating climbs.
After being transported to Spain by Easyjet, we collected our pre-booked hire cars in Barcelona and began our journey away from the night clubs and bars of the city, much to the dismay of
On a multi pitch route.
Sgt Dave Clark and Capt
Simon Fyfe. The view of the mountain as we drew close was far beyond any of our wildest dreams. From the valleys of Catalonia, Montserrat rose thrusting its massive spires to the heavens. Not a word was spoken in either car. The impressiveness of the situation did not relent even at the campsite that was sur­ prisingly built into the side of the mountain, looking down upon the monastery.
The first morning can only be described as shocking. We had forgotten the monastery
bells and the fact that monks enjoy ringing their bells at 5am in the morning. That morning we made ourselves believe that we could endure such torture for the next 13 days. The climbing turned out to be equally soul destroying initially. In the
UK, climbing can be made relatively safe using the latest protection equipment. In France, fixed protection is pre-placed to ensure the safety of the lead climber. In Montserrat the situation was far different. The rock is conglomerate and thus resembles course, reinforced concrete, and to our surprise
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