UKC

I've never climbed at Swanage before but was thinking of heading down for the day tomorrow. Weather forecast looks reasonable other than a bit of a wind. Was wondering if many people climb here over the autumn/winter? I know coastal crags can be a bit exposed but I've head the odd good day in Portland during the colder months and presume Swanage is similar?

In reply to thomaspomfrett:
Swanage main cliff is a real suntrap and often feels much warmer than the temperature would lead you to believe - if its sunny and the wind is either low or coming over the top of the crag.

I'll be a swanage saturday and if its as sunny as forecast and the forecast 9 deg, I can pretty much guarantee I will be climbing in a t shirt all day and too hot at times. However sunday is looking overcast, I'll probably head to one of the quarries sport climbing where I can sip tea and put on my belay jacket and trainers between climbs I'm sure climbing on the main cliff would be OK in these conditions if you are prepared to feel a bit cold at times, but I think much colder than that with no sun would be too cold for me.

Stevo

In reply to CurlyStevo:

Awesome, thanks Stevo. Was thinking of heading to Subliminal as I'm taking the girlfriend so need some easier graded routes. Plan is just for Saturday as the forecast is best, hopefully see you down there!

Tom

In reply to thomaspomfrett:

Just a word of warning but I'm not a big fan of subliminal, its no where near as good as boulder ruckle (but obviously much less committing / serious)

I find the grades are hard, the climbing tricky to protect and the holds not as good as elsewhere.

If you want some recommendations of climbs that are good at subliminal I can advise if you like? What grades are you after?

In reply to CurlyStevo:

Cool, thanks Stevo. A few climbs in the S-VS range would be great.

In reply to thomaspomfrett: I agree with Steve that Subluminal is not a particularly good beginners cliff, one of the problems with Swanage is that there is nothing much between very easy cliffs and the very serious ones. On the whole, Cattle Troughs is more reasonable than Subluminal for beginners as you can scramble down to it rather than having to abseil as you do at Subluminal.

If you are however happy with an abseil approach, in many ways Guillemot Ledge is a better place to be, with routes like Legend or Batt Crack. Still a serious and committing place, but significantly less so than the Boulder Ruckle, with a much less imposing abseil.

Like the Ruckle, however, make sure you carry prussic loops at Guillemot and know how to use them. Also be aware that if the day starts cold but then heats up due to a frosty start, it will get cold rapidly at the end of the day.

In reply to thomaspomfrett:

Face is a nice severe, quite well protected and soft in the grade.

Balcony is borderline VS but pretty good and well protected

First Corner is great but you'll probably want to set up an abseil especially for this climb, borderline HS with good gear, but there is a massive wobbly block near the top (which I don't think is in great danger of falling down but worth mentioning anyway)

Second Corner is also really good (also prob need own abseil), fairer at the grade and well protected.

Isis VS at cattle troughs is really worth while and you can scramble down to it without the need to ab. This route is more like the proper ruckle VS climbs (big holds, good gear and steep), its also quite solid.

I would say if your gf is up to it and you don't mind climbing mostly at VS with one HS guillemot ledge is much better. Aventura West is also worth considering (two HS climbs there and silhouette arete is great). But both are very committing areas with free hanging abseils and the top outs can be looser / harrowing mud bank affairs (this is more of an issue at Aventura West than Guillemot)

Where ever you climb at swanage you should take head torches, prussic cords, helmets and a mobile phone on the routes and always leave an ab rope in place.

Stevo

In reply to CurlyStevo:


It can also be quite a serious undertaking Steve, not to be taken lightly.

In reply to thomaspomfrett:

Thanks for all the advice. My partner is pretty decent (she's seconded me up to E1) but she's not a big fan of intimidating climbs/traverses so I might stick to Subliminal. I'm happy running it out up to VS so we should be fine.

Both of us are comfortable with prussiking a rope (I'll probably take my traxion to make life easier if it comes to that). I'll definitely be back with some of my mates to hit the other areas though. Some of the steep juggy stuff looks fun!

In reply to CurlyStevo: As an addition to the Guillemot suggestions the best HS at Swanage is found a short walk away at Cormorant Ledge (Wall Street) - all the previous warnings about committing abseil/emergency equipment would apply here too, it's a great route that is worth the effort though. Mistaken Identity is a fairly steady and well protected VS with great climbing at Guillemot.

In reply to thomaspomfrett:

If you are set on SublUminal (Sub - under, luminosity - light; because the cliff is below the lighthouse) and happy at VS then do Freda, Sliproad and Spreadeagle. Balcony and the two severe corners are good to warm up on.

In reply to Simon4:

My experience of Isis is that its fine as long as you stay on route. I've lead it twice and its one of the safer VS climbs at Subluminal or Cattle Troughs IMO - having good gear in the main (although the much easier finish does have one slightly bold 4a move) and little loose rock.

It is worth mentioning that the rockfax diagram and description are wrong and can send you in to bold E1 territory.

In reply to CurlyStevo:


Yes, basically don't go too far left, go up as soon as you have made the step across.

Don't get me wrong, Isis is a fine route, it is just not a trivial undertaking and the OP sounded a bit nervous.

In reply to Simon4:

Agree with the man who said Isis is hard. Route finding is paramount, while the steepness puts your decision making under pressure

That said, I've always rated Hangover at CT - good gear and not too hard. Beware many of the easy routes there though, some of the VDiffs/Severes have marginal pro.

Also agree with the above comments that Subluminal is a bit of a naff crag. Can be awkward to protect due to shortness of height. Too many polished/dank corners too. Freda is worth the visit though.

In reply to CurlyStevo:



All good advice, but don't be surprised to pick up roaming charges if you use your mobile below the cliff top at Swanage. When I've left mine on I often receive a "Welcome to France" text within a few minutes! (Might explain why it's a good winter climbing venue of course). Same happens at Gogarth, though it's "Welcome to Ireland" over there. I suspect it's something to do with competing phone companies boosting their cross channel signals to be sure to pick up travelling customers before their competitors. (When will the EU outlaw roaming charges?)

Thanks for the advice all, had a fun day at subluminal today. Nice, easy climbing and absolutely scorching (I thought you were joking about climbing in a T-shirt!). Definitely going on my winter crags list.