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OS Sheet: 94 Map Reference: SE684960 Aspect: West Altitude: 270m Approach Time: 20 minutes
Situation and CharacterThe crag is situated on the east side of Farndale, on the 270m contour, overlooking Oak Cragg House on the road rocks below. They are in a fine isolated position and in clear weather catch the sun in the afternoon and late evening, but during the autumn and winter months the area is prone to localised fog and mist, in which conditions the rocks tend to be greasy and unpleasant. The North Buttress is steep, clean and compact and dries rapidly after rain. It has some excellent routes, which make even a short visit worthwhile. Belay stakes are currently in position on both the North and Blakey Buttresses but it is strongly recommended that these be thoroughly checked before use.
HistoryThe first ten routes were climbed between 1956 and 1961 and were the work of J. Jackson, H. Piercy, T. Sullivan, W.J. Dell and J. Tilly. Unfortunately the early history is sparse and it has proved impossible to attribute individual routes to their first ascentionists. By the time of the1985 guide only one more route had been added, the delicate line of Captain Birdseye on the North Buttress, climbed by Andy Buckley in 1978. That remained the position until the preparation of this guide in October 2000 when a number of routes were climbed by Alan Taylor, Tony Marr, Mike Tooke and Frank Fitzgerald. The hardest of these is the fine line of Hungry Heart climbed by Taylor and Marr.
Access and ApproachesThe best approach is from the Castleton to Hutton le Hole road about two and a half miles beyond The Lion Inn at a point where a line of shooting butts crosses the road. As one approaches this point a cairn is clearly visible across the moor on the left and there is a sign marking a path crossing the road. There is ample roadside parking. The crag is easily reached in 10 to 15 minutes by walking down the moor, keeping the shooting butts on the left. After rain an easier and drier approach is to follow the path linking the shooting butts which first turns south away from the rocks before joining the path below the crag; 15 to 20 minutes from the road to North Buttress
The ClimbsThe climbs are on three buttresses. North Buttress This buttress faces south west, it is the cleanest and has the best climbs. The central buttress, Blakey Ridge, is at the moment heavily vegetated but if cleaned would offer possibilities and the southernmost, Oak Buttress, has the easier climbs but on closer inspection appears to be somewhat unstable.
North ButtressUpdate: North Buttress currently has one (very loose) belay stake, above Digimon. Routes at the left and right hand ends of the crag have no belay - but there's a depression a few metres back from the top of the crag which at least gives something to brace against! The climbs are described starting from the extreme left side of the buttress.
1. Blue Peter 5m S Climb the broken wall below the Rowan tree and pass it on the left, using carefully the friable holds on the top block. F Fitzgerald, M Tooke. 29th October 2000
2. Motley Crew 5m S * Start about 2m to the right of the last climb. Climb the thin crack in the wall just right of the groove to escape up the corner. A. Marr, A Taylor, F Fitzgerald, M Tooke. 29th October 2000
3. Pugwash 5m HVS 5a * To the right of the last climb is a thin vertical crack in the steep wall, climb it and the wall above.A Marr, A Taylor, M Tooke. 17th December 2000.
4. Pokémon 6m HVS 5c * Start from an embedded block 2m right of the last route. Pull over the undercut onto the wall with difficulty then climb directly to the top. Problematic and enjoyable! A Taylor, A Marr. 29th October 2000
Franco's Traverse E1 5c The next route starts 5m further right at the end of the impressive leaning wall where a thin crack runs down the overhang.
5. Digimon 7m E1 5c ** Ascend direct the magnificent finger crack which cuts the overhang then leads directly to the top. A technical start leads to easier climbing. Superb well protected climbing. A Taylor, A Marr. 29th October 2000.
6. Captain Birdseye 7m HVS 5b ** Climb the right-hand thin crack up the steep and delicate slab. Another excellent route but poorly protected. Andy Buckley [Solo] 7 April 1978.
7. Popeye 7m VD Climb the crack in the corner right of Captain Birdseye F Fitzgerald, M Tooke. 19th November 2000
8. Hello Sailor 9m VD ** Climb the crack in the corner for 5m until it is possible to traverse left to the finishing cracks of Digimon. A delightful line. F Fitzgerald, M Tooke. 14th November 2000
The following climb is an extension to Hello Sailor.
9. Legover 14m VD Continue the traverse of Hello Sailor passing the finishing crack of Digimon, step down and around the nose into a scoop to finish to the left of a protruding block. F Fitzgerald, M Tooke. 7th January 2001.
10. Playtex 20m HVD (maybe HS 4a) * A girdle from left to right of the main part of the buttress. Climb Blue Peter until at about half height step right below the tree to the ledge and continue across the wall by the easiest line, round the corner and finish up Popeye. F Fitzgerald, M Tooke, 20th February 2001 Update: “I might not have found the easiest line, but whichever line you take, the crux is completely unprotected. Not a huge distance to the ground, but directly above a couple of pointy boulders. (It's possible that a gear placement has come off, there was what might have been a recently broken bit of rock). I'd give it HS 4a, and a star.” Simon Caldwell November 2006
11. Centre Route 8m D Start from the foot of the buttress, which protrudes from the face, and climb straight up. Pre 1960
12. Get Yer Coat 7m HVS 5b Climbs the slab to the left of Cote Crack. The rib leads to pockets and then the top. Steve Crowe, Karin Magog 3rd April 2005
13. Cote Crack 7m VS 4b * Starts from a recess 3m right of Centre Route. Surmount the overhang following the crack to the top. Distinctly awkward but worth the effort. Pre 1960
14. Rigg Slab 7m D Starts near the right end of the buttress and climbs the slab. Pre 1960
About 50m to the right of North Buttress is:
BLAKEY BUTTRESS
15. Mountain Master 9m HS 4b The wide crack left of Stump Crack is more awkward than it looks! Steve Crowe, Karin Magog 3rd April 2005
16. Stump Crack 10m VS 4b Start directly below the mature birch tree sprouting from the top of the crag. Climb a short crack choked by a tree stump onto a recessed ledge, follow the crack past a tree to the top. (The crack is still dirty at the moment but the climbing is worthwhile). A Marr, M Tooke, F Fitzgerald. 7th January 2001.
17. Heather Crack 12m VS 5a Climb the central heather filled crack. Steve Crowe, Karin Magog 3rd April 2005
17a. Roger the Cabin Boy 13m HVS 4c Climb the wall to the left of Wall And Crack. The initial difficult moves are followed by a bold finish. Franco Cookson, Nick Warburton, Dave Warburton All Solo 15th April 2008
18. Wall and Crack 14m HS Starts from the cave. Climb the strenuous crack leaving the cave to gain the wall, continue by following the wide chimney crack to the top. Pre 1960
19. Blakey Traverse 11m VD Start just around the corner to the right of the last climb. Cross the short wall to gain the arête then follow the rising shelf to finish up the short chimney of Wall and Crack. Pre 1960
The next route climbs the impressive arête and is one of the best outings on the crag.
20. Hungry Heart 11m E2 5b ** Either tackle the arête direct or as for the previous route and climb to gain the obvious rising shelf about 4m up the arête. Climb the left hand side of steep upper arête with increasing difficulty. Excellent climbing with adequate protection. A Taylor, A Marr. 17th December 2000.
21. Twin Cracks 8m HVS 5a Climbs the corner cracks to the left of Hungry Heart. Avoiding the booming flakes being the crux, belayer be warned! Steve Crowe, Karin Magog 3rd April 2005
A further 30m to the south is:
OAK BUTTRESSAreas of rock on this section of the crag are of a shattered and potentially unstable nature, therefore caution should be exercised.
22. Ash Groove 8m D Start about 2m in from the left-hand side of the buttress. Climb the obvious groove choked by a tree. Pre 1960
23. Ash Tree Wall 10m HD Start just right of the last climb in a cleft then climb the wall direct. Pre 1960
24. Oak Traverse 13m D Climb from the cleft then across the wall behind the oak to finish up the short chimney. Pre 1960
25. Oak Wall 12m D Start below and to the right of the oak. Easy rocks lead to a shared finish with the last climb. Pre 1960
26. Daffodil Slab 11m S Start 5m to the right of Oak Wall. Climb straight up the slab to a ledge, finish up the difficult wall above. Pre 1960
GRADED LIST
E2 Hungry Heart 5b **
E1 Digimon 5c *
HVS Pokémon 5c * Captain Birdseye 5b * Seaman Stains 5b Pugwash 5a Twin Cracks 5a
VS Heather Crack 5a Cote Crack 4b * Stump Crack 4b
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