In reply to Cyrees:
> I did London without a car for a while, and we ended up mostly renting or borrowing. Portland is technically doable (train to Weymouth then bus to Portland), as is (as mentioned) Bristol.
> However, I found that the honest best thing to do was to try and meet climbers of similar skill and interest levels - and to hope one has a car. It has multiplied the amount of climbing I do outdoors by 4 or 5x.
I reckon this is the most sensible approach. London life involves an awful lot of faffing about on trains and waiting on platforms as it is, not sure you’d want it every weekend as well. Driving makes the whole climbing from the capital experience that much easier. The exceptions being of course Scotland, perhaps the Lakes, and France. Train from London to Avignon is really easy and opens up a world of climbing. Font is really not that distant. But for the regular trips out to Portland, just get in a car!