Lions Looking On

A cold but clear Friday morning - it is still dark. Julian knocks on my door, waking me up to come along and photograph yet another outing of the dedicated few Cambridge Nightclimbers. Que Sera Sarah and Carol Singer are also there, much to my surprise. Carol claims that because the end of term is near (only one week to go!) she wants to have been on at least one outing.

When we get there, the sun is just starting to rise. It is about seven o'clock, and all is quiet. Only a few cars pass by on the road, and within the grounds of the museum (reached by a small hop over the gate, that even Carol Singer manages without any difficulty) we feel safe and isolated from the world. The lions look on in mild amusement as Julian wedges himself into the chimney and starts his ascent. Que Sera Sarah and Carol Singer huddle behind one of the lions to avoid the effects of the cold as I stand on the wet grass, digital camera at the ready. It only takes Julian a minute to reach the top - I snap a couple of pictures, and he descends. I take another as he walks down the steps towards me to view the result of his efforts. We have bagged another well-known climb (well-known among night climbing circles), and it is off into the centre of town, this time to wait for the Copper Kettle on King's Parade to open for a breakfast roll and warming cup of tea. Then it is off to lectures and the more mundane tasks of the undergraduate lifestyle.

Later in the day, much to my delight, I discover that our Varsity office climbing stunt has paid off - we're on page two, on the left hand side. I spend the rest of the day walking around with a smile as broad as ... as something very broad! As do the rest of the night climbing group I bump into. This is as good as it gets!