UKC

"Climbed alone, and as an elderly gent of my advanced age (72), I found some of the moves very difficult and the exposure considerable. But it amused me and might amuse a few others of my vintage"

I know nothing about the above except that he went to Cambridge, was presumably born in 1905, made the first ascent of a few routes in the Ogwen area, and the above quote, but it seems to reveal rather an attractive personality.

Does anyone know any more about him?

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

He is mentioned in here somewhere http://climbers-club.co.uk/journal/original/1953%20Journal_nc.pdf but I cannot seem to search it. He does not seem to be in the Obits and it is later that the Uni thing that lists him doing routes in 1943?
Interestingly this Journal lists the FA`s of Mur Y Nuwl and Cenotaph Corner, flaming hell it must have been good then with all those superb lines to do.

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:
Craig Nant Peris§ (627574)
This name, "crag of Nant Peris" (i.e. of St. Peris's brook, or
valley), was invented by C. H. S. R. Palmer*.

http://www.climbers-club.co.uk/journal/original/1965%20Journal-p259-276.pdf

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

jcm: I think you might find more references in the CC archives currently held at Bangor Uni. There's something about him niggling at the back of my mind; if it comes to me I'll post again!

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:
He made the first ascent of Belle Vue Bastion with Ivan Waller. I had the good fortune to meet him while staying at Ynys in the late '70s. He was on his own, and said he was investigating some of the climbs in Cwm Glas which he said he'd climbed in his youth and had not been recorded in the Pass guidebook. This may well be what is referred to in the above quote. He was a very pleasant chap, good company and happy to spend the evenings chatting with us youngsters. His introduced himself in a way that seemed very formal to us at the time, but completely in keeping with his character and vintage - "Palmer, C H S R Palmer" followed by a handshake - he never told us his first name (although I believe it was Christopher). Among his stories, the one I remember is him saying how he had found the line of Belle Vue Bastion and pointed Waller at it. This would seem to fit in with Waller's comments in the chronology of the current Ogwen guide, but not with the route description in Edward's Tryfan Guide - "The edge was often attempted in early days and was well known before the route was actually led."

I'm sure I read Palmers obituary in a CC journal, but I've just had a quick look and have not been able to find it.

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

More info via CC facebook page from Frank Cannings - http://cumc.soc.srcf.net/about/new_routes/ and his obituary is in the '83 CC journal (which I don't have).

In reply to Mark Kemball:
There is an extensive obituary for him, via the CC website archive access but I`m not sure about copyright and stuff. It`s all there though, perhaps someone wiser than me can help, a photo to. The 83 Journal Page 122 in the actual journal or 33 on the PDF

In reply to Mark Kemball:

Mark and jcm. You've jogged my memory: not a direct link, but I got to know Ivan in the 70s when the Culm was being developed. He lived in a house towards the end of the parking lane at Compass Point and often would come and watch us struggling on the likes of Crimtyphon and Caravanserai. After climbing we would be invited in for tea and naturally the conversation would turn to N Wales, BVB, Cloggy and The Ruwenzori. His sight began to fail but his mind and his memory was spot on. Palmer featured often but being such a modest man he always gave most of the credit for BVB to Palmer and said how much they would have both enjoyed exploring the Culm Coast. I think Al Evans may well have met him around that time. Somewhere I have some photos he took of the Ruwenzori, but sadly for the purposes of this thread none of BVB.

In reply to Mark Kemball:

The quote referred to a route in the Ogwen guide called The Overhangs, I think. I'm not sure exactly where it is. Thanks for the reminiscence; sounds, as you say, very much the way an 'elderly gent' of his vintage would proceed.

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

I've just been checking the latest Ogwen guide, The Overhangs is on Gallt yr Ogof, it's VS. There's a photo and a paragraph about Palmer in the chronology.

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

I met him on top of Glyder Fawr in 1977 on a mucky day. He was really interesting about climbing there in the 1930s and we headed down blethering away and walked off the path despite it being a motorway and both knowing it well (I lived there at the time and he'd been wandering around it for half a century. We failed to find it again, decided "oh bugger it, just head down", ended up above Gwastadnant and had to climb back over by Llyn Y Cwn. I remember he thought our incompetence pretty funny.