Peak District Climbing Guidebook Sample

peak district : climbingover 850 classic routes and boulder problemsJohn Coefield and Jon Barton

733e Peak District Climbing Cover 14/02/2008 19:02 Page OFC1

area map

PEAK DISTRICTNATIONAL PARK

M1

M67

M60

23

24

22

37

35a

BARNSLEY

CHESTERFIELD

STOCKPORT

BAKEWELL

LEEK

ASHBOURNE

GLOSSOP

BUXTON

CASTLETON

HATHERSAGE

STONEYMIDDLETON

CALVER

STOCKSBRIDGE

SHEFFIELD

A57

A62

4

A57

A628

A60

24

A635

A629

A628

A616

A61

A616

A6102

A625

A62

1

A6103

A6187A

625

A61

A61

A6102

B505

7A63

2

A619

A623

A619

B600

1

B5055

A6

A6

A6

A615

A5012

A5012

A5056

A515

MATLOCK

A517

A523

A52A52

A52

A53

A53

A537

A6

A6

CHAPELEN LEFRITH

A52

3

A523

A52

0

A505

3

B50

53

B5054

A54

A5004

B50

53

B5412

A522

BASLOW

OAKAMOOR

OLDHAM

CROMFORD

MACCLESFIELD

Motorway

Major Road/A Road

Minor Road/B Road

0 miles

0 km

5

5

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BMC Participation Statement — Climbing, hill walking and mountaineering are activitieswith a danger of personal injury or death. Participants in these activities should be aware ofand accept these risks and be responsible for their own actions and involvement.

CRAG CODE

Access Check the Regional AccessDatabase (RAD) onwww.thebmc.co.uk for the latest access information

Parking Park carefully – avoid gatewaysand driveways

Footpaths Keep to established paths – leavegates as you find them

Risk Climbing can be dangerous –accept the risks and be awareof other people around you

Respect Groups and individuals – respectthe rock, local climbing ethicsand other people

Wildlife Do not disturb livestock, wildlifeor cliff vegetation; respectseasonal bird nesting restrictions

Dogs Keep dogs under control at alltimes; don’t let your dog chasesheep or disturb wildlife

Litter ‘Leave no trace’ – take all litterhome with you

Toilets Don’t make a mess – bury yourwaste

Economy Do everything you can to supportthe rural economy – shop locally

www.thebmc.co.uk

Eastern Crags

Birchen Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Burbage North . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Burbage South . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Cratcliffe Tor &

Robin Hood’s Stride . . . . . . 42

Curbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Froggatt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Lawrencefield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Millstone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Rivelin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Stanage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Western Crags

Castle Naze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Hen Cloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Kinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

The Roaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Wimberry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Windgather . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Limestone Crags

Cheedale:

Blackwell Halt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Harborough Rocks . . . . . . . 256

Harpur Hill Quarry . . . . . . . 262

Horseshoe Quarry . . . . . . . 272

Staden Quarry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Stoney Middleton . . . . . . . . 284

Wildcat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298

area map xxix

733E Peak District Climbing 14/02/2008 16:37 Page xxix

stanage// North

// Plantation

// Popular End

// Apparent North

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Stanage. Stanage. Stanage.

From one end to the other it is over 5 miles long, brokenonly in sections, with almost every inch offering up asmörgåsbord of unique experiences just waiting to besavoured. It is the complete crag: thousands of routes andhundreds of boulder problems spread across the entiregrade spectrum, and catering for every and all styles. It isevery bit the superlative’s superlative.

The edge stands proud, overlooking the Hope andDerwent Valleys and it is composed of the finest gritstonethroughout its length. It is rarely green, although it can getpretty blowy at times. The Popular End and Plantation canbe very warm in the summer, but that does little to dinttheir popularity.

stanage

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0 miles

0 km

1

1

HATH

ERSA

GE

STANEDGE POLE

HIGH NEB

The BuckstoneThe BuckstoneThe Buckstone

TheTheThePlantationPlantationPlantation

Apparent NorthApparent NorthApparent North

HA

THER

SAG

E

Popular EndPopular EndPopular End

Hook’sHook’sHook’sCarCarCar

Denis KnollDenis KnollDenis Knoll

EndEndEndSlabSlabSlab

MarbleMarbleMarbleWallWallWall

Crow ChinCrow ChinCrow Chin

RedmiresRedmiresRedmiresReservoirReservoirReservoir

SHEFFIELD

SHEFFIELD

MANCHESTER

A57


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0 miles

0 km

1

1

HIGH NEB

The BuckstoneThe BuckstoneThe Buckstone

Denis KnollDenis KnollDenis Knoll

EndEndEndSlabSlabSlab

MarbleMarbleMarbleWallWallWall

Crow ChinCrow ChinCrow Chin

RedmiresRedmiresRedmiresReservoirReservoirReservoir

TO A

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In contrast to the crowds that gather at the aptly named PopularEnd, the northern stretch of Stanage can provide blissful soli-tude, tremendous views across the Derwent Valley out towardsKinder and Manchester and, of course, excellent rock climbing.Combined with a visit to End Slab, Marble Wall and Crow Chinwill provide just the right dose of solitude, adventure and sump-tuous rolling vistas – not your regular Stanage experience.

These buttresses are exposed and will tend to get any and allweather going. That said, the breeze may be welcome on a warmday; similarly, the sun may be a welcome sight on a chilly autumn/winter/spring day. The rock is good quality millstone grit and israrely dirty, although End Slab can be green due to the direction itfaces. End Slab offers pleasant slab climbs, while Marble Wall, bigand brooding, is home to many classic testpieces. Don’t fear, in andamong the angles and fissures, there is also a fine selection of mid-grade routes for all abilities, of no less quality than their famous,more trying neighbours. In contrast, Crow Chin is a mecca for themid-grade leader, with a great selection of approachable routes,particularly in the Diff to VS range.

AccessEnd Slab can be approachedfrom either the small parkingarea on the A57 Moscar, orfrom the Denis Knoll/High Nebcar park further south. It willtake slightly longer from DenisKnoll, while Marble Wall andCrow Chin are approximatelyhalf way between the twoparking spots. Whicheverapproach is used, it makeseminent sense to pay a visitto all three areas on the sameday for maximum value (andof course come back forHigh Neb, clearly visiblewhen approaching fromthe Denis Knoll car park).

stanage north


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End SlabThe area around the disembodied hangingblock of End Slab offers a wonderful selectionof low-grade routes, fantastic views out over theDerwent Valley and a peaceful environment inwhich to enjoy both.

1» The Pinion VDiff // 12m // ✪✪

Start just right of the arête and climb directly,before striding right past a hole and onto thebizarre small triangular ledge known as the‘Corbel’. From here, head up to a break andmove right for three metres, before heading upagain to finish on the large ledge.

2» The Green Streak HVS 4c // 14m // ✪✪

Climb the slab directly, just left of the cutaway,with wonderful, delicate moves on small pockets.

The next two routes are on the cracked, slabbywall immediately behind End Slab.

3» Prospero’s Climb VDiff // 12m // ✪✪

Start in the centre of the slab at a crack andfollow this to the first ledge. Head left to gain thechunky flake line and romp up this in fine style.

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4» The Crab Crawl S // 11m // ✪✪

Start below the left edge of an overlap at3 metres. Climb up to and past it, continuingdirectly up the slab above.

Surgeon’s Saunter AreaThe next route is found on the large buttress100m to the right.

5» Doctor’s Chimney S 4a // 18m // ✪✪

Access the chimney by first conquering thethree metre high pillar that guards entry to it.Once inside, continue directly.

6» Surgeon’s Saunter VS 4c // 20m // ✪✪

The route after which the area is named. Startup the crack right of Doctor’s Chimney andtraverse the first horizontal break rightwards toaccess the foot of the upper twin cracks. Jam upthese and finish via the left-hand crack.

Surgeon’s Saunter Direct (HVS 5b) is a threestar alternative that approaches the twincracks with difficulty from directly below.

stanage north surgeon’s saunter area 119

surgeon’s saunter area stanage north

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marble wall

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Marble WallThe angles of Marble Wall almost feel outof place on this quiet, moorland stretch ofStanage, but that’s not to say we aren’t gladthey’re here. Without them we wouldn’t havethe jamming testpiece of Terrazza Crack.

7» Marble Tower Flake S 4c // 11m // ✪

Gain the ledge on the arête (jump?) andtraverse left. Exit via the huge flake.

8» Marble Arête VS 4c // 11m // ✪✪

Start as for the previous route, but continuedirectly up the arête with satisfying exposure.

9» Terrazza Crack HVS 5b // 11m // ✪✪✪

A jamming testpiece straight up the crack in thecentre of the wall.

The next series of climbs is on the right-handbuttresses, over the jumble of boulders.

10» Left-Hand Tower VS 4c // 18m // ✪

Ascend the crack on the left of the wall to thetip of the large boulder on the left. Traverse thewide break rightwards around the right arête tofinish up the gully wall.

11» Right-Hand Tower HVS 5a // 16m // ✪✪✪

The mind boggles. Not a good introduction togrit, as there is nothing here that resembleswhat might traditionally be defined as a ‘hold’.Start at a short crack on the left-hand side of thearête and continue directly up the left-hand wall,before traversing the last break right around thearête to a final tricky sequence.

12» First Sister VS 4c // 12m // ✪✪

The thin crack in the sidewall widens as you nearthe top, and permits good jams.

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stanage north crow chin 123

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Crow ChinA great wall when it comes to ticking off abunch of low-grade climbs in a friendly andpeaceful environment.

13» Perforation HVS 5b // 9m // ✪

From a flat block pull through the centre of anoverlap and make difficult moves to gain astanding position in the horizontal break. Thewall and slab above are much easier.

14» Feathered Friends VS 4b // 10m // ✪

From the blunt rib, veer left before teeteringstraight up the slab past a thought-provokingflake at half height.

15» Kelly’s Crack VDiff // 10m // ✪✪

The well-protected gash dishes out a side saladof crux at half height, but it’s low calorie soshouldn’t be an issue. The upper crack is stilldigesting the loose chockstone, which hasresisted years of attempted regurgitations.

16» Kelly’s Eliminate HS 4a // 10m // ✪✪

A direct line up the centre of the wall to theright. Initially steep, the route eases in angle inthe upper half.

17» October Crack Diff // 10m // ✪✪

The wide crack in the centre of the buttress isan excellent introductory route, with goodclimbing, good gear and sustained interest.

18» October Slab HS 4b // 10m // ✪✪

Climb the right arête of the cutaway beforecontinuing directly up a thin seam in the slab topass the overlap at its right-hand side.

19» Bent Crack VDiff // 10m // ✪

To the right is a left-facing corner crack. Climbthis and the upper groove before trending leftaround the small overhang to finish.

crow chin

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Peak District Climbing Guidebook Sample

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