Emma Twyford climbs Trad test piece “Yma O Hyd” E10 7a

"Yma O Hyd" – Welsh for "still here." The line in the Ogwen Valley is currently considered the hardest trad climbing route in North Wales. With her ascent of Yma O Hyd, Twyford became the first British woman to climb an E10 redpoint.

Trad paradise North Wales 

The impressive mountain landscape around Snowdonia, the Ogwen Valley and the Llanberis Pass region offers a unique variety of rock types (slate, limestone, granite, quartzite, dolerite, rhyolite and sandstone) and climbing styles – from classic crack climbs to tough trad routes. 

Mission Impossible and Yma O Hyd

In 2024, James McHaffie made the first ascent of Yma O Hyd—the hardest trad route in North Wales. The route is a direct entry point to "Mission Impossible," an E9 7a first ascented by Neil Carson in 1996. It runs through very steep overhanging terrain with a roughly 7-meter-long runout. 

Yma O Hyd starts off with a difficult 7B boulder crux, which takes you into Mission Impossible with a good pump. The real crux of the line remains the approximately 7-meter-long runout in the upper half of Mission Impossible. 

Twyford's successes 

With her redpoint of Yma O Hyd, Twyford became the first woman to climb an E10 route in Great Britain. After redpointing Mission Impossible in the summer of 2024, Twyford set her sights on Yma O Hyd. Her initial attempts repeatedly failed at the crux of Mission Impossible, as the bouldering entry required considerable effort. 

Emma has established herself as a versatile climber. In 2019, she became the first British woman to climb a 9a. Her ascent of "The Big Ben" on Lower Pen Trwyn in North Wales was captured on film and is considered a historic redpoint. 

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Credits: Cover photo Brad Reed