UKC

Based in Leeds, looking for a change from grit/friction/cracks. Been to a couple of quarries lately and quite like the style although locations seem to feel a bit grimy compared to grit outcrops.

So where's a nice venue for some face climbing? Somewhere a bit grassy without too much broken glass would be nice! Malham, Kilnsey etc look lovely but I'm not climbing that hard...

Trad (HS to E1) and/or sport (6s) would be ideal, within an hour and half drive or so from Leeds.

Cheers

Pot Scar is a decent little crag. Had the place to ourselves yesterday and good in that grade range.

Robin Proctor's Scar is a decent crag for wall climbs in the 6s. Don't expect too much and you won't be too disappointed. Pleasant setting, usual bolted limestone. Better than  Giggleswick North. 

Trow Gill.

Trowbarrow could be worth a visit. It is an old quarry but a very pleasant spot these days, trees and orchids not broken glass and beer cans. Its a nature reserve and local beauty spot.

Jean Jeannie and Harijan are two of the best single pitch VS's you will find anywhere and Assagai Wall has some great HVS's on amazing natural flutings. Coral Sea (VS) offers some lovely crimpy face climbing.

To be fair, though, Jean Jeanie and Harijan are pretty much the quintessential crack climbs of the grade ! 

Some nice face climbs on the prow, and various other bits of Wilton 1.

Doesn't anyone care that the rock is vile? You've got grit down the road, and rhyolite up the road - unless it's dodging the weather I can't see why anyone would choose to climb on that appalling polished choss. 

I quite like Trowbarrow in its own way but then i usually climb there as alternative to rain in the lskes.

Jon Stewart has it spot on, Trowbarrow routes at your grade are super polished and no longer pleasant .

Trowbarrow ticks all the boxes for me

That's complete nonsense, if you think that rock is apalling choss you need to get out more. Yes, its polished but it makes surprisingly little difference unlike say Stoney which is like ice climbing in rock shoes. You just need to learn how on climb on it, its not apalling its just different from what you're used to.

Anyway, look at the votes

Jean Jeanie (VS 4c)

170 out of 200 votes give it 3 stars and 22 give it 2 stars. Only 8 people out of 200 don't think its worth at least 2 stars. How many other routes on "vile apalling choss" can claim that sort of recomendation?

Then there's the routes on Assagai Wall, which is quite different rock.

Assagai (HVS 5a)

108 out of 110 votes give it 2 or 3 stars (86 of them 3 stars).

That's the kind of satisfaction rating normally reserved for classics on Stanage.

Anyway, regarding the polish, the OP did say he wanted to avoid friction

They are, but if you want to avoid grit/friction/cracks altogether as the OP asked you're going to struggle in Yorkshire and Lancsashire at below E1. There'll always be the odd route at most crags but not many crags full of them.

The other routes at Trowbarrow aren't so crack dependant.

I really don't. In the last couple of weeks I've climbed on the probably best rock in the world, Pabbay's gneiss, Carrock's brilliant gabbro, top-notch rhyolite on Dow...and that shite at Trowbarrow.

UKC votes are just anchored to the guidebook grades and stars. Classic VS cracks are OK routes in their own way, and in accessible popular limestone quarries the good ones are horribly polished. For me, quite a big factor in my enjoyment of climbing is good rock. And Trowbarrow does not deliver - like all polished limestone it's vile.

Unfortunately non of those rocks apart from Trowbarrow are in Yorkshire or Lancashire.

If the OP wants to avoid grit in Yorks/Lancs the choice is limestone or limestone and anything worth doing at sub E1 is going to be polished. As polished limestone goes, it makes less difference on Trowbarrow than most places. Its not vile at all. It might be an aquired taste you haven't aquired but that's not the same as vile.

And anyway, he did say he wanted to avoid friction

The voting shows that the vast majority of people climbing those routes had a very enjoyable experience. Perhaps people climbing on Pabbay had a better time but it's not really relevant to this thread.

Great stuff, thanks for some good pointers folks – none of these were on my radar so I'll check them out for sure! Will also report back once I've been to Trowbarrow

Also, for anyone else who might have suggestions – I'm not totally against any friction climbing! It's all friction in some sense I guess, I'm just looking for a change of scene/style from Almscliffe and Caley. Been to Hobson Moor and Moughton Nab recently and wondered if there were any similar (but perhaps more idyllic) spots out there. 

Thanks again

Crummackdale

Twistleton Scar? Giggleswick South? I've enjoyed both recently.