 Yorkshire
News - Winter 2010
With the snow now thick on the ground and no sign of a thaw much before
Christmas it seems like a good opportunity to take stock of the autumn’s
rock climbing additions.
Gritstone
Firstly, I now have more details of the Calderdale crag ’X’ that I
hinted at in my last report. The newly cleaned up quarry has been called
The Roost and is located between Hebden Bridge and Todmorden. Full
approach and access details can be found on the UKC logbooks page so I won’t
repeat them here and an excellent article giving an overview, topo and
several impressive action shots can be found on the UKC articles pages.
This is a hardcore venue with the seven original routes, from left to
right named as follows. One Over Eight, E5 6b: Con dem nation,
E6 6b; Coalition Crack, E5 6b (A big diagonal crack – classic!); The
Cartel, E7 6c; Fascination Street, E7 6c (A desperate pitch and
the hardest so far); Sleepy Hollow, E6 6b; and The Senate,
E6 6b. All have now been repeated and the grades confirmed. I also
understand that Jordan Buys has added another two hard routes more
recently.
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Adi Gill climbing Live and Let Pie E6 6b at
Baildon Bank |
| Baildon Bank has continued to provide sport for
the guidebook team and long time regular Adi Gill. Following on from
Adi’s Podge’s Wall E3 5c reported last time, area co-ordinator
Stuart Lancaster and guidebook editor Robin Nicholson went to check
things out and came away with Smile E5 6a up the ‘wrong’
side of a bold slabby arete. Not to be out-done Adi, along with Dave
Sutcliffe hit back with Live and let Pie E6 6b up the huge
wall and arete right of Mandy Fly Me. Adi Gill also took time
out to help with a bit of guidebook checking at Ilkley and spotted a
gap left of Piton Wall which he promptly filled with Transparency,
E4 6a.
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Above: Adi Gill on Transparency E4 6a at Ilkley
Left: Robin Nicholson tackles the arete of
Smile E5 6a at Baildon Bank |
Other gritstone offerings are relatively minor by comparison although
Ben Hirst’s Collyhirst, E3 6b on the Cubic Block at Brimham
obviously has a tough move or two. It was first climbed at night by head
torch! I wonder if its any easier in daylight? Tony Marr and Mike Took
have recorded a few more minor variants at Brimham but they added 4
slightly more significant lines at Simon’s Seat including Mosaic
and Brief Encounter both VS 4c on the wall right of Arete Direct.
The former is a 2 star 20m traverse taking in lots of the best moves on
this fine wall.
On the bouldering front Rob Fenton has reported an excellent isolated
block in Middleton Woods above Ilkley Lido. His problem there is called
J10 and graded Font 7a however its a bit of a highball arete and might be
worth an E grade.
John Hunt has documented a previously unrecorded bouldering spot on Ilkley
Moor near Lanshaw reservoir with about 20 problems up to V2. He and his
wife Racheal have also documented the climbing potential of Little
Almscliff for the first time since it appeared in the Climbers Club
Journal of 1901. Both venues are child friendly non-serious locations
ideal for family picnics with a bit of climbing thrown in. The hardest
problem here is Font 6a+. The Lanshaw mini-guide has been added to our downloads
page.
Limestone
On the Limestone that prolific explorer Barry Clarke has been at it
again with around 50 new micro routes on several crags. At Beggar’s
stile he has added lots of new lines mainly to the left of the existing
routes and also developed a new sector, Thieves’ Moss up at a higher
level about 350 metres beyond the original scarp. He has climbed several
short routes in the vicinity of Jubilee Cave at Attermire and several more
to the right hand end of Giggleswick South’s upper tier. In Foredale
Quarry he has added 5 routes to the short walls on the right of the
quarry. All the above are short trad solos generally up to VS in grade
however, accompanied by John Buckland he did break the mould somewhat by
adding Hotel Paradiso (F5+) a bolt protected traverse across the
Warm-up Walls at the same crag.
New sport routes have been in short supply although at Giggleswick North
Sam Watt cleaned up part of the Hollywood Bowl during the dry spell
earlier in the year and created 2 excellent links both starting up
Hollywood Bowl itself before traversing wildly left along the break to
finish up Illywhaker and Whitelock Witchery respectively.
The longer and harder one is Jorjas Connection and the shorter Anieshas
Connection both are in the F7b/c grade range.
At Giggleswick South Paul Clarke has added 3 of lines to Sector Laughter Rock
and Droll is a rather contrived traverse from the foot of the Joker
to the top of Silent Laughter at F6b/c depending on the level you
choose. However, Bring Me Sunshine (F7a/+) is a fairly direct line
up the wall left of Arnold Palmer but the tempting option of
stepping into that route at the crux gives the dual grade. Paul also added
a direct variation to Nige Baker’s old route First Footing (F7a+)
which now climbs the whole rib direct. Further left Bob Larkin added Morris
Dancer (F5+) to the open groove right of Sgt Bilko. On Sector
Swans the warning I included in the guidebook about the poor stability of
the rock around The Third Man and Sun Sessions finally
proved to be valid when the huge flake collapsed a couple of months ago.
Nigel Baker and Paul Farrish did sterling work cleaning up the debris and
rebuilding the path. It’s Alright Mama and She’s Not Yew
have been restored and are now sound, probably safer than before, with a
joint belay on the left. The other two routes are gone for good and its
probably not worth adding anymore in their place. Whilst cleaning up this
area the bolt-fund team, along with ‘apprentice’ Geoff Goddard added
several new bolts to the starts of most of the existing routes on the ever
popular but always friable, Sector Swans wall.
Access
On the Access front recent problems at Great Close Scar should be
resolved from next Spring. The National Park have informed the National
Trust that their old spring-time bird ban notice is no longer valid and
should be removed. Any new bird nesting restrictions would need to be
agreed via the Access Forum or the National Park/BMC joint liaison
officers. The National Park are also attempting to set up a meeting with
the landowner and farmer at Blue Scar with a view to resolving the parking
problems there which became rather acute this summer.
Dave Musgrove
December 2010
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