Neil Mawson makes first ascent of Choronzon E10 7a in Wales

Last Sunday English climber Neil Mawson finally succeeded in freeing his long term project at Stack Rocks, Pembroke, Wales. Pembroke is rightly considered one of the best areas for trad climbing in the entire United Kingdom and its broken coastline is marked by enormous, imposing sea cliffs, stacks and arches, such as the famous Green Bridge, one of the most photographed formations in the South of Wales. The new route takes a steeply overhanging line not far from this arch, in a sinister and serious section of the Welsh coast called the Cauldron.

Mawson had begun attempting the project in 2011 but only now, after numerous attempts (at times even alone) despite the 5-hour drive from his home in Sheffield, did he manage to free the line. The route starts with an intense section, with difficulties somewhere in the region of 7c+/8a that finishes with a run-out at circa 15m height from which a fall is certainly not recommended. At this point a cluster of pro, slightly better than that below, can be placed and this leads to the crux, a powerful dynamic move that leads to more poor gear, more hard moves and then finally easier ground.

In short, a mix of extremely bold climbing, above distant and poor pro, combined with intense sequences – so much so that the route would warrant a grade somewhere in the region of 8b+ were it to be protected with bolts. This is why the new route is being hailed as one of the hardest of its kind in the UK, and has been compared by James McHaffie, who certainly knows a thing or two about hard routes, to Rhapsody and Echo Wall, the two super routes put up by Dave MacLeod.

The new route is called Choronzon and as Mawson explained to McHaffie, the name represents "a mythical demon that lives in the abyss of one’s mind. It tries to reinforce the negative thoughts going through ones mind”" Evidently Mawson has now got rid of this one!

Neil Mawson trad repeats
Pathian Shot (E9) (2014, 2nd ascent after crucial flake broke off), Burbage South, England
Muy Caliente! (E9), Pembroke, Wales
Chupacabra (E8/9), Pembroke, Wales
San Simeon (E8), Pembroke, Wales
Do You Know Where Your Children Are? (E8), Pembroke, Wales
The Brothers Karamazov (E8), Pembroke, Wales
Impact Day (E8), Pavey Ark, Lake District, England
Gaia (E8), Black Rocks, England
Une Jeune Fille Quatre Vindt Dix Ans (E8), Nesscliffe, England


17/09/2009 - Huntsman's Leap, rock climbing in Wales
With almost 60 routes on its East and West Walls, Huntsman's Leap is one of the most popular sea cliffs in Pembroke, Wales.


Neil Mawson thanks: Marmot, Petzl, Beal, La Sportiva, Nourish Me Now, & The Climbing Works.
For a report by James McHaffie check out www.jamesmchaffie.com