UKC

what are the lower off like at stanage???????

In reply to spudonrocks:

Fairly underdeveloped. Probably best to bring a big drill and a bagful of bolts to make more. Possibly the best day to do this is a bank holiday, as there will be a higher number of appreciative climbers around.

In reply to spudonrocks:


Like Victorian Urchins they are - always on the scrounge for gear...

In reply to spudonrocks:
Almost non exist.

In reply to james oswald:

Don't be silly, have you not heard that Gary Gibson has been up there recently and installed about 300 of them...

In reply to spudonrocks:
Just in case this was a serious question I will answer....You do not need to lower off or absail, the cliff is no more than 20m high at its highest point and you can easily walk (or at hardest scramble) off from a number of points.

In reply to spudonrocks:

Lots of helpful comments as usual. As you're quite new to the sport and ethics surrounding gritstone climbing I'll briefly explain.

Stanage and all the other peak gritstone crags are without any lower-offs. In fact virtually all the rock is free of fixed gear except the odd pinnacle where walking off is impossible. The best way to retrieve your gear is to set up a belay at the top of the crag, then bring your second up, who will strip all the gear. If your second can't climb the route, then you'll have to abseil back down using, then walk back up to strip your belay.

When I first started climbing, I was distraught when I turned up to Stanage to find now lower off like in climbing centres or sport climbing crags. If you're unsure about effectively setting up safe belays then read up in it before going. We only had 10 wires and 3 friends when we started climbing so we scouted the top of the routes before hand to make sure we could construct a decent belay. If you're short on gear, and new to grit climbing, you may wanna try Birchen edge as the routes are small and quite easy generally.

Hope this helps.

In reply to Tez29: birchen is a good beginner crag, but if you are short on gear, its maybe not the best place for easy belays, as there are few large boulders at the top for sling or rope belays.

In reply to Tez29:



10 wires and 3 friends !!! - you were lucky!

we 'ad to mek do wi old bones and a tin o' rice puddin'..

In reply to Fredt: tin? You don't know your born. We used to eat ours out of a clenched fist.

In reply to Fredt:

When I say wires, I mean thin pieces of metal twine use as threads, and the three friends from the workers club to help carry us back to the car when we fell off!

When I say car, I mean mule and cart.

In reply to Tez29:

Cart? cart?

tha was lucky, we had to crawl home on broken legs!

In reply to popebenedictus:

At least you 'ad an 'ome to go to, all we had we an 'ole in t' road

In reply to popebenedictus: You HAD legs?????!!!!

In reply to spudonrocks:
This read has just made soup come out of my nose.

Due to laughing so much.

In reply to smallclimber:
Totally!!

In reply to spudonrocks:
You don't need to lower off from Stanage, just jump. Experienced jumpers will tell you that it is the last couple of feet that are the tricky bit, but thankfully as they are close to the floor at this point you shouldn't have much trouble. Avoid gentle slopes and soft foliage as these make judging the jump difficult, it is best to aim for well defined landing zones or 'rocks'.

If you require more information on the best spots for jumping you should contact the BMC representative; Mr Frank 'Pancake' Smith, C/O Sheffield General Hospital.

In reply to spudonrocks: haha i ment what are the lower offs like at sport climbing areas around stanage

In reply to Tez29: okok i know i miss typed it!

In reply to spudonrocks:

Actually there are no sports climbing areas around Stanage, unless you are taking a wide arc to include the rest of the Peak in which case the sports limestone crags I have climbed on seem pretty solid to me

In reply to spudonrocks: There are as many lower offs as there are modern bolts on the crag. There is a very nice guide book to Stanage which will tell you all sbout the ethics on gritstone.

In reply to Andrew Lewis:

Soup! Soup! I suppose you can also ask for more!

In reply to spudonrocks: Do you mean sWanage????

I hate descents and even I have no problems with the routes down off Stannage - there are two VERY easy ways down and a few more tricker ones which you dont have to use.

While there is a great range of climbing grades and plenty are fine for beginners, some of the belaying can be a bit tricky as it is often necessary to go a few metres back from the edge to usually do one of two things - put some nuts (sometime ingeniously placed) or cams in cracks on the edge or else use the rope or large slings to go around some of the car sized boulders.

People are very friendly and if you get stuck or aren't sure, there will be tons of more experienced climbers around who you can ask - dont be shy to approach people, if you are not sure on something with your belay the definitely ask rather than take a chance as there are usually climbers belaying to every side of you at this time of year.

Oh and if you haven't got it, Eastern Grit is worth getting (although a bit pricey, a very user friendly guide and covers all that side of the peak district).

Dave