Pant Ifan climbing

Crag: Craig Bwlch y Moch/Craig Pant Ifan, Tremadog
Routes: Striptease (VS 5a:sec), Great Western/The Quakerman (VS+ 4b,5a,4a,4b:led p.1,3), Scratch (VS 4b,4c:led p.1)
Woke up to steady drizzle in Porthmadog: very annoying. So we put our Pant Ifan plans on hold and went off to do the classic wet weather option of Striptease, which takes a gently overhanging deep chimney/corner and therefore stays dry. I've done this at least three times now, and always find it strenuous for the grade, so Vic led. As always, it provided a good workout: with three tricky sections to fight past the overlaps. The second is the hardest, giving awkward moves with little for the feet. We then headed back to the cafe for a drink and respite from the midges, waiting for the weather to clear. It did, so we headed up the screes to Pant Ifan, where I wanted to do Great Western: one of the few VS gaps for me left at Tremadog. I led a rather damp first pitch (drying rapidly) up dirty rock from the trees to a groove before heading up the little arete to the right. One tricky move up this, involving a pinched hold, regains the groove and tree belay. Vic then led through up a variant direct second pitch: the 5a twin cracks taken by The Quakerman, a nearby eliminate at E2. This was a tad vegetated, but excellent: technical rather than strenuous, and very enjoyable on finger locks and toe jams. Easier ground then leads to the crux of Great Western: a deceptively awkward slanting chimney/crack, which continually pushes you off balance towards a tricky slab on the left. I then led the vegetated third, now in warm sunshine, which goes up cracks directly above the belay to a stance in a niche further left (Borchgrevink?). The last pitch follows broken and vegetated ground up to a very steep and quite sustained final groove: felt harder than 4b, so possibly not the final pitch of Great Western. We abbed down Barbarian and started immediately up Scratch in warm, almost hot, sunshine. I led the delightful first pitch (for the second time) which traverses gently across the face up slabby rock and small positive holds: lovely stuff. I followed Vic up the final pitch, with merciful shade for the initial crack, which is easier than it looks. The traverse across to the final crack is an atmospheric finale, great position, and leads to good jams.