Seasoned campaigner, Chris Davies has added yet another hard first ascent to an already impressive roster of desperate problems at the newly developed Moel y Gest quarry boulders, near Porthmadog. A Life Aesthetic V13/8B is hidden in the pine trees in the left hand corner of the main bouldering bay. At the base of the quarry wall there is an obvious jutting prow – this is it.

The problem starts from a sitting position with left hand on a pinch on the arete and right hand taking an awkward two finger crimp on the face. There is precious little for the feet (right toe on a smear, left clamping) and the first move is a ridiculously powerful lurch up right for a finger rail. With that in the bag, and feet replaced on the rock, a technical V9/7C sequence leads to the top of the boulder. The last move is quite tricky to catch, but the top out is steady.

Just after the ascent Chris explained what the new problem meant to him:

“I think A Life Aesthetic to me is quite a milestone. With work and family commitments, I had pretty much decided to walk away from bouldering as it was becoming more of a chore to keep on top of rather than something that I lived and breathed.”

“I spent a long time trying to make a decision on where I wanted to go with it all, and after a fair while away from the sport, I realized bouldering for me was way more than just climbing bits of rock – it’s who I have been for over 16 years, and thus got back on the horse.”

“Moel y Gest was a great place to enter back into the arena – the landscape up there is pretty special. It’s only half an hour’s walk from the road, but you really do feel isolated – it’s definitely a strange place to be.”

“The problem took me 6 sessions, and the first move didn’t go until the day I sent the line. Compared to other problems of its nature, A Life Aesthetic stands up there as one of the harder moves that I’ve done, along with a beautiful sequence, this really is a modern classic. So I guess this means just one thing – lock up your projects boys and girls, CJD is back for the attack!”

Would be repeaters should not that although the landing is quite flat, there are a couple of rocks which need covering; four pads would be ideal for a redpoint, although a couple will suffice for someone just working it.

Relevant links: