161 - Back to the right order 161 - R/H
Juliette Nash
Jolly exciting pushing trip, we thought. Got up 6.30 am (aagh!) & ate continuously for an hour or so. Good march to camp 1, feeling very enthusiastic, just as we got there a lovely big white cloud rolled over us & goodbye nice sunshine & hello shit. Struggled up in the mist/rain & changed in the same - yuck. Juliette first trip down Rabbithole. We abbed down after a fairly small traffic jam on pitch one, very spectacular. Fell thru the squeeze + stomped down a Great North Road-like rift but at an angle & much looser. Didn't have enough time to do much at pushing face. Put in second bolt to improve traverse-line over 'big' drop (which we thought probably links up to chamber at bottom of pitch) & another bolt at pitch-lip. Mark couldn't see anything over the pitch with his light - only blackness so no idea of what lies beyond.
Its getting to be a long way to the pushing faces, we're running out of time (& energy !) at pushing faces. Long way out, especially as Juliette tried to make the squeeze more sporting by squeezing through where the ladder is, not the wide bit ! Got f---ing _soaked_ to the skin on the way out, all perfectly rigged in the new waterfalls ! Not too bad a change in camp 2 & then got down to camp 1 without too many problems but even with 2 people who were supposed to know it, it's a difficult route. Don't talk to me about the night at camp 1 - either the winds were strong or an awful lot of flying saucers landed on the Brauning Wall !
'Pushing' T/U 8 hrs