UKC

I've just ordered the 2015 update of Martin Crocker's Cheddar Gorge Climbs, just wondered if anyone already has a copy. Interested in any feedback on the new guide, but particularly keen to know how it differs from the 2009 edition:
Has the coverage been extended?
Is the book layout largely the same?
Any improvement on the lamentable binding of the last edition?

In reply to The Ivanator:

No one out there invested in the book yet? I'll report back when my copy arrives, but if anyone has any insights in the meantime I'd love to hear...

In reply to The Ivanator:
Yes

Yes

No

It's a fantastic guidebook and I am extremely grateful to Martin for it. Better binding would be nice but it's no big deal to me

In reply to ericinbristol:

Cheers for that - I reckon I'll Gaffa tape the inside and outside of the spine on first opening this time then!

In reply to The Ivanator:

Didn't realise the new version was out. Whereabouts can you pick out up?

In reply to remus:

A friend of mine got a copy from the Gorge shop the other day.

In reply to remus:

Ordered mine online through Dick's Climbing Bristol.

In reply to The Ivanator:

Martin dropped off a whole load of copies at the Gorge shop during the first weekend of the season. I was led to believe that the binding was improved (not that my old one has fallen apart though).

In reply to The Ivanator:

Oops many apologies for creating confusion: I thought the comparison was between the first two versions of the guide. I have not seen the 2015 one. Sorry

In reply to The Ivanator:

This edition, unlike the last, has been printed and bound by a company with much experience in guidebook production. I am sure it will prove more durable.

In reply to Removed UserJohn Willson:

Good to hear, looking forward to hearing that satisfying guidebook on the doormat thud - one of life's great acoustics!

In reply to The Ivanator:


Could soon be a thing of the past if the App developers get their way.

In reply to The Ivanator:

Okay I have had a good look through, comparing the 2009 and 2015 editions. It is essentially the same. The changes are as far as I can see, and I have probably missed some things:
- Quite a lot of changed photos and the reprinting of all the photos and photo topos nicer
- Some of the recent hard (8a and above) link-ups added and probably a few others
- My Directoonima link on Pride Evans Directoonima (7c) (near consensus *** and mid/high 7c not added - boo hoo!)
- Dada Dada (7a) downgraded from 7a to 6c+ (Oi! I onsighted that! Then again, maybe that's why I onsighted it)
- Binding not obviously different/better than before
- £1 per copy goes to the fixed gear fund (not sure if that is new)

Basically, still the excellent guide that has been hugely successful. Not a lot of point in buying the new one if you are not bothered about a few added listings of hard links.

In reply to ericinbristol:

+ more expensive??

In reply to ericinbristol:

Eric, could you do us a favour and add the direct start to Shock of the New to the UKC database. (I'm assuming it is in the new book).

Several people have asked me and I don't have the info

Ta

In reply to ericinbristol:

You've had a good look through, yes?

Big question, is the cover still attached?

In reply to Paul Robertson:

Willdo when I get home Paul

In reply to Mike Highbury:

Ha, entertaining!

In reply to Urgles:

£20 now. I can't remember how much the 2009 edition was selling for. As far as I know, only the Gorge Outdoors in Cheddar and the excellent Dick's Climbing sell it

In reply to ericinbristol:

2009 version was £15. Mine is disintegrating, so probably needed to invest in the new guide anyway, I did harbour hopes that the coverage might be wider (obviously there has not been much bolting since Martin's Gorge project before the publication of the last guide) but I hoped to see trad routes on Northside areas like Danemark Cliff, the Prospect Tier and the French Pinnacle, along with routes at Blackrock quarry.

In reply to ericinbristol:


Did Ellis' success on Fallingwater at Pride Evans make it in Eric?

In reply to A Longleat Boulderer:

I'll have a look when I get home and post

In reply to A Longleat Boulderer:

Yes Fallingwater is in there.

In reply to Paul Robertson:
It's in the new book, which says
"11a. The Beach 20m F7c+
Fingery ancient mystery bolted project; finish up Shock of the New.
FA Alexis Perry 2015".

It is not marked on the photo topo. I am guessing the way is obvious from the bolts.

I will add it to the database

In reply to The Ivanator:

Yes it seems extremely daft not to add in the other bits and bobs on the North side.

In reply to ericinbristol:

Nice, thanks Eric.

In reply to ericinbristol:

My copy arrived yesterday, and the analysis of the changes provided above is spot on. It remains an excellent user friendly guide to Cheddar climbing. The binding doesn't look very different, but after leafing through a couple of times the cover is still attached, so perhaps a better adhesive has been employed.
Would have been nice to see those extra North Side crags covered - the reverse frontispiece is a great new photo of a route on the French Pinnacle Mariette Route (VD) perhaps, but that crag isn't covered, the views back across to High Rock from the top of that Pinnacle are probably the best in the Gorge.

In reply to The Ivanator:

I can't understand why West Route isn't in either guide. To me it's one of the best E6s in Britain and is criminally neglected. The main pitch is wonderfully sustained face climbing in a sensational position at the top of High Rock. If Coronation Street gets in then why not West Route?

In reply to The Ivanator:

Last I heard you weren't allowed to climb in the gorge anymore ? Danger to pedestrians e,c,t

In reply to solomonkey:

It's easy to find things like these out: https://www.thebmc.co.uk/cheddar

Access is by a calendar. Some areas are climbable all year round, some areas are seasonal due to danger to sightseers, some areas are perma-banned.

In reply to RockSteady:

...And some areas require liability insurance

In reply to GrahamD:

As I thought then

In reply to solomonkey:


Well...no. You can climb there, just under certain conditions.

In reply to remus:

Well...no. I would class perma banned means no Climbing .

In reply to solomonkey:
The majority of the Gorge is available to climb the majority of the time. One side is permanently open. One side has some seasonal restrictions in some areas, and an insurance requirement. A very tiny fraction is permanently banned. I can only hope you are trolling.

In reply to solomonkey: what on earth are you talking about? Yes, you need third party BMC insurance and to adhere to the access agreement. Other than that the gorge has by far the best access it has EVER had. There are very few perma banned areas, and some of the greatest trad and sport multipitch in the country. Maybe rather than bleating about it being banned when its not, you should read the access plan, buy a guide and go.

In reply to andrewmcleod:

So one side is banned , other bits perma banned and you need insurance ! ?¿

In reply to beardy mike:

I've got one and I've been cheers .

In reply to solomonkey:
Well if you've been and you've got one, what are you on about? Its not really that onerous to have third party insurance and work out where you can climb is it? Nearly all of its open at the moment.

In reply to solomonkey:

Neither side is banned. Read the RAD it really is quite straightforward

In reply to ericinbristol:

Shame your 7c not in. Dont see why not! Need to get back on it

In reply to Cheese Monkey:

Yep, you weren't far off sending it. As for me, I have a grotty cold and chest infection (it ain't pretty) so I am stuck inside looking out feebly at the lovely weather.

In reply to solomonkey:

Hi solomonkey: you have seriously got the wrong end of the stick

North side: National Trust, permanently open, no third party insurance needed.

South side: privately owned by Cheddar Caves and Gorge and so they require you to have third party insurance (BMC membership gets you that automatically) in case you drop a rock on a tourist's head. The South side is closed during peak holiday periods: most of it reopens outside of those peak holiday periods and all of it reopens in winter (1 Oct to mid March). So, no perma-banning (I know that was someone else's word, not yours).

In reply to ericinbristol:

Thanks for that eric , I originally asked if it was banned /,last I heard on here anyway ,all I got was arseholes and elbows

In reply to Cheese Monkey:

Ok , I'm sure its straight forward but ,,,, what is RAD , where is it ?

In reply to beardy mike:

Chill the fook out beardy - I got a book ten years ago , I went Climbing , it was great , since then I heard there was access problems ! Hence asking . you say what am I on about its not that onerous to find out where you can climb ,,, I simply asked just that on ukc where I thought would be a good place to ask !

In reply to solomonkey:

Hey sorry if I misread what you were saying - reading it back I took it in a different way to the way it may have been intended? We've just had quite a few threads with people being fairly resistant to the policies which are in place, which is understandable if you are used to just rocking up and climbing but the access is sensitive and the last thing we want is for the permissions to go back the way it was at one time when it was literally ALL banned. We now have some of the best access we have ever had, and bar them banning tourists and cars, it's most likely the best it will be. Having said that, if you on sight the grades you do, there's lots to go at.

When I first got to Bath in 1996 things were a lot worse - the area was pratically deserted, and access was trickier than it is now. In reality the situation as it is now is pretty easy to navigate if you put in the time to understand the lay of the land, and that effort is well worth it if you want to make the most of the gorge. Whilst the roadside sport is all well and good, its up on the harder to reach areas like pinnacle bay and sunset buttress where you'll find the best routes. The roadside stuff is limited in trad (having mostly been retrobolted to change the majority of routes from bold e4-e6 into sport routs) and the sport climbing is generally if I'm honest a little bit monotonous. Its good for a work out, but gets a bit samey. By contrast the upper walls are varied, exposed, interesting climbing in some wild positions and is a great mix of trad and sport - something for everybody.

So the situation re access is pretty simple:

1) third party insurance from the BMC which you get automatically when you join the BMC or if you are in a BMC affiliated club.
2) take your BMC card with you to show that you are a member.
3) download the RAD guide here: http://www.thebmc.co.uk/Download.aspx?id=807 - stick it on you phone so you have it to hand when you need it.
The RAD refers to crags as named in the guidebook. The NT side on the north is much easier in terms of access and you can't go far wrong - the only exception is Prospect tiers where they ask us not to climb during busy weekends like bank holidays. It's the south side which has the restrictions, so familiarise yourself with the access routes to crags like Long Wall and make sure you approach the right way as Longleat views breeches of the access rules very dimly. But its a truely wonderful place to climb. Routes like Stone cold fever, and Sullenberger, are truely fantastic, or the last pitch of Doomwatch which are in outrageous positions and have superb climbing aswell. It's always a little bit more serious than other venues as the routes simply don't see enough traffic to keep them clean, but put up with the vegitation and you'll be rewarded with some great memories. Yeah sure, Corrie is great, but theres so much more to the trad there and Corrie is the trad lite intro to the other climbs...

In reply to solomonkey:

Lots of good advice from beardy mike. If you are climbing in the sport 6s I particularly recommend Burmese Wall and Easter Island. But, really, to get the best out of the sport routes in Cheddar you need to learn to redpoint if you don't know already. You will be truly amazed what you can get up, including in a single session. The classic 'trad climber on a sport route' is trying to on sight, climbing very slowly, getting pumped stupid, falling off a third of the way up, getting back on too soon and repeat until the top then being too wasted to do it clean. Learn how to redpoint properly, get into no harder than sport 7a/+ and Cheddar is a great place

By the way, RAD is Regional Access Database

In reply to John Alcock:

Amen to all that, and it's the best line in the gorge. Not that I'm biased.

Edit: I'm still delighted to see an excellent and up-to-date guide to Cheddar.