UKC

So whilst catching up with my friend he was telling me about this recent trip to Durdle Door. He's not a climber but he was telling me he was swimming around the Door and climbed the arch from the sea, up - over - and down. My guidebook doesn't list this as a route, but I guess it's not a DWS guidebook. Has anyone done this and what sort of grade would you give it?

He definitely wouldn't lie about this, but he wouldn't have had rock shoes or anything - just trainers he says. He is really athletic but it just sounds nuts!

In reply to purplemonkeyelephant:

I've done plenty of climbing up it to jump off, but not all the way from the top... It's not very hard - just gets very exposed very quickly. Lots of water under if you aim correctly though. The top is a bit grassy, but it gets climbed fairly often by bold swimming climber jumpists (which is definitely a real word).

In reply to purplemonkeyelephant:

Lulworth

Isn't it restricted?

In reply to JamButty:

"The climbing on Stair Hole, Dungy Head and Durdle Door all fall within an area of land mapped as Open Access under CRoW. Climbing is a permitted activity under the CRoW legislation so there is a legal right of access to all three areas for climbers, walkers and members of the public."

On the Lulworth crag page?

In reply to purplemonkeyelephant:

Not gone up the Arch, but this Summer I did a traverse from the next bay East (St. Oswald's) around the headland to emerge back through Durdle Door and onto the beach - brilliant fun. St. Oswald's Bay to Durdle Door Traverse (VS 5a)

In reply to purplemonkeyelephant:

I climbed to the top of the arch to jump off (in my youth, it's no harder than S, from memory, I reckon.