Adventures in Rock Climbing and mountaineering
By the traditional standards of rock climbing in Wales, given that it has been at the forefront of the development of climbing since the 1800s, Tremadog is a relatively new kid on the block. As it was mainly developed from the 1950’s onwards, making it very much a post-war climbing area. The story goes that is was discovered during a snowy easter back in 1951, climbers in search of some climbable rock headed out of…
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Whilst fairly small on the scale of mountain ranges, Snowdonia packs a lot into its size. In part due to its history, whereby the ground was folded upwards many hundreds of thousands of years ago to give a massive upland region. The subsequent ice age and glacial erosion have given the area much of its shape and with it some of the best scrambling in the UK. Certainly some of the easiest to access scrambles….
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Whilst many crags in Llanberis Pass are strafed with quality routes and stunning lines, none quite match the beauty of the open book corner of Dinas Cromlech, home a selection of best routes across the grades in this Valley, if not the UK. Spiral Stair For Beginners there is both Spiral Stairs and Flying Buttress, both outstanding outings at the VDiff grade. Flying Buttress was first ascended by Menlove Edwards, a notable homosexual and pioneer…
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A couple of years ago I was lucky enough to climb the Old Man of Hoy, via the classic route. I wrote an article that was butchered in Gravity magazine as well as made a short video. If any of you read the gravity article you might not have realised they inadvertently cut out half the text from the middle, I also have a topo, video and pictures. Stacked Up Years ago I saw an…
Read MoreWell I feel that I am getting carried away with this best crag in the world idea, as North Wales seems to have way more than its fair share of these iconic and classic crags. I find it hard to see any gritstone crags that ‘stand out’ whilst there seem to be many crags that do in North Wales. I have been suffering from George Smithitus, in that I have failed to travel abroad or…
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I have to admit that there was no way I could have gotten away with describing Dinas Mot as one of the best crags in the world, However it is a classic venue for rock climbing, although probably not this time of year, as it rarely gets the sun during the summer let alone the winter. However I took a crag shot the other day, and threw together this topo. Basically Dinas Mot is a…
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Stanage and the gritstone in general is an amazing place to climb. With short often intense pitches of climbing it is a beginner and experts playground alike. In this video I repeated the first routes ever climbed there. Stanage Grit Trips and UK Trad Course Although the author and maker of the video content on this site is based in North Wales he offer course across the UK and the world. In particular he offers…
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Historic and Classic Mountains walks are two a penny in the Wales, Scotland and the Lake District. On this walk I recount how the mountain was used to weigh the earth. If you’d like help to discover these remote and beautiful places then maybe we can help. Guided Mountain Walks across the UK We offer guided walks and mountain scrambles across the UK. Whether it be to climb a historically famous peak like Schehallion in…
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The first real rock climb in the UK. Was climbed solo by Walter Haskett-Smith in the 1890’s. The photo of him stood on the summit would be the first dramatic image of this new sport. It was to set the Lake District and other mountainous places alight. I headed up to climb the route in the same style as the first ascentionist, and on a overcast and lonely day I made my ascent. Following in…
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For most people the word Gogarth strikes the fear of god into them, loose intimidating sea cliffs that will destroy the sternest of resolves. The cliffs reputation is fairly well earn, however there is a shallow end to the pool and that place is Holyhead Mountain. A mere stones throw away from the main cliff but a million miles in terms of the types of climbing you are likely to find and the number…
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