21 / 01 / 2024
As winter approached and slowly set in, my excursions into the more central areas of North York Moors were stopped by wet, damp rock. Being tipped off about Roseberry Toppings temporarily saved me though. This is on the very outskirts of the Moors and is very exposed to wind. It therefore seems to suffer less from the rain and to dry very fast. The only draw back is that the rock is a bit softer than the good stuff higher up and so requires a careful approach. I was originally told that there were only six problems worth doing here; but as with so many of the venues when you look around, you find more, a lot more. I ended up enjoying two sessions here exploring, cleaning and climbing. I didn't climb anything that is earth shatteringly hard, but there are some great 7bish problems. By far the best is The Edge of Glory 7b+. Its an arete up on the end of the main cliff and is certainly a contender for the best of its grade in the area. It has great and unusual sloppy, slappy moves and is certainly a future classic.
Above: Mike Adams on The Edge of Glory 7b+ (Video still).
Also very good are the three sit start problems I did on the large 'Shield Boulder'. The best, simply for the great sloppy lip pinches and slab finish, is Odin's Grace which is again about 7b+. All these plus the other first ascents I did can be seen in the video below:
http://vimeo.com/30932979
The last place I visited before it all got really too wet and I ran out of petrol money, was Ravensdale Quarry or Stoup Brow. I had actually been here before in the summer whilst on a family holiday on the coast. I didn't get much climbing done that day but I couldn't help but notice Tom Newman's line Requiem for a Dream. It's a highball proud arête that is the first thing you see. I knew I wanted to climb this but noticed it had a nasty looking mono, so I think I had been putting off a visit. It was however the other 8a ish line in the Moors so I knew had to try eventually. Consequently on a dry forecast I committed to the long drive over dragging a good friend along. It was well worth it as I managed to get the second ascent of Requiem, which climbed as good as it looked. This was not without a fight though as the mono move turned out to be even more brutal than it looks and left my finger numb for days. The top was no gift either, as it feels high and far from secure. It certainly felt its original reported grade of 8a to me.
Above: MIke Adams on the second ascent of Requiem For a Dream 8a (Video Still).
I also managed to add a great sit start to a 7b+ called Dark Angel. This I felt was 7c+ as it had an incredibly tough first move pulling off the floor on a thin right undercut to slap for a sloppy jug. Then, into the great sloppy moves of the stand up; a very worthwhile addition. All in all with the other climbs that are established here it is another venue that is definitely worth a visit! A video I made from that session including the above two climbs can be seen below:
http://vimeo.com/31702014
Above: Mike Adams adding the new sit start to Dark Angel Sit start 7c+ (video still).
Above: Mike Adams on The Edge of Glory 7b+ (Video still).
Also very good are the three sit start problems I did on the large 'Shield Boulder'. The best, simply for the great sloppy lip pinches and slab finish, is Odin's Grace which is again about 7b+. All these plus the other first ascents I did can be seen in the video below:
http://vimeo.com/30932979
The last place I visited before it all got really too wet and I ran out of petrol money, was Ravensdale Quarry or Stoup Brow. I had actually been here before in the summer whilst on a family holiday on the coast. I didn't get much climbing done that day but I couldn't help but notice Tom Newman's line Requiem for a Dream. It's a highball proud arête that is the first thing you see. I knew I wanted to climb this but noticed it had a nasty looking mono, so I think I had been putting off a visit. It was however the other 8a ish line in the Moors so I knew had to try eventually. Consequently on a dry forecast I committed to the long drive over dragging a good friend along. It was well worth it as I managed to get the second ascent of Requiem, which climbed as good as it looked. This was not without a fight though as the mono move turned out to be even more brutal than it looks and left my finger numb for days. The top was no gift either, as it feels high and far from secure. It certainly felt its original reported grade of 8a to me.
Above: MIke Adams on the second ascent of Requiem For a Dream 8a (Video Still).
I also managed to add a great sit start to a 7b+ called Dark Angel. This I felt was 7c+ as it had an incredibly tough first move pulling off the floor on a thin right undercut to slap for a sloppy jug. Then, into the great sloppy moves of the stand up; a very worthwhile addition. All in all with the other climbs that are established here it is another venue that is definitely worth a visit! A video I made from that session including the above two climbs can be seen below:
http://vimeo.com/31702014
Above: Mike Adams adding the new sit start to Dark Angel Sit start 7c+ (video still).