Sea stacks in Donegal, Ireland, climbed by Will Gadd and Iain Miller

Last summer Canada’s Will Gadd teamed up with Irish sea stack guru Iain Miller to make a series of first ascents close to the tiny village of Glencolmcille in Donegal, in the North West of the Ireland. On the first day the two made their way to Chaos Stack, a tower that lives in the northern shadow of the Dare to Be Stack, and pulled off the first ascent of the 45m high stack via its south face. After the climb Gadd explained "The sea, the southern exposure, and the exciting finish all combine to make this one of the coolest routes I’ve done."

Two days later the duo visited what has been described as "another contender for the most remote location on the mainland of Ireland" namely Pyramid Stack, first ascended by Miller in 2010. The new Above and Beyond tackles the seaward face of the stack via two pitches and was described in no uncertain terms by Gadd as being "ridiculously fun, and the descent is casual off the backside. If you don’t enjoy yourself climbing this then you’re probably ready to be retired and turned into fertilizer. Seriously, this is an awesome climb at an accessible grade in a magic location with caves, surging sea, birds flying, it’s just unlike any other place I’ve ever climbed."

After two more first ascents on Cruit Island (The Monster Direct E3 6a, 20m, Hipsters at Play E4 6b, 20m), during their last day they visited Arramore Island, Donegal’s largest and most populated island where they climbed the obvious 50m groove up the stack’s south face. Gadd picks up the story "My superlatives keys are well-worn, but again this is really really fun climbing in a setting that’s so Irish they film car commercials there. Sheep, a lighthouse, surly youth, and a big-ass sea stack and raging ocean all combine with good stone and a fresh breeze that should have you smiling until you remember you have to get back home. We approached by fixing a 60m and 20m static to gain a rock bridge you could just hop across, then swam back at higher tide. This was one of the best climbing days I’ve had in years!"

After his Irish holiday Gadd concluded "A huge thanks to Iain of Unique Ascents for the groundwork, psyche and explanations of Irish History, which is long and very definitely relevant to the whole experience of Ireland. If you’re looking for a guide he’s very reasonable on price and a massively good value, generous with fun, and super solid both as a climber and an expert on the watery bits surrounding many of the climbs."

Link: willgadd.com, FB Will Gadd, Arcteryx, S.C.A.R.P.A.