UKC

The new FRCC guide Buttermere & St Bees is now available. This is the second guidebook in the FRCC series of guidebooks to Lake District climbing to get a major makeover, the first was Gable & Pillar; although 'makeover' is probably the wrong word to describe the hard work that has gone into this publication by authors Colin Read and Paul Jennings, and the rest of the FRCC guidebook team, in particular Phil Rigby who produced the photodiagrams and Al Phizacklea who created the beautiful 3-D maps.

Read more at http://www.ukclimbing.com/news/older.html?month=05&year=2008#n44264

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com: PS it costs £16 - a bargain price for a plastic covered guide with a marker ribbon!

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com: Looks cool, like the topo style.

In reply to Lemony:

Utterly loath the topo style, but the FRCC have made good guidebooks in the past and I'm sure this'll be another.

What's the cover photo?

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

Have you seen either of the guide books in the flesh? They are superb, ten times more useable and asethetically pleasing than a traditionally FRCC guide.

The FRCC is really leading the feild in mordern guidebooks in my opinon.

Al's coloured in topos that were featured in Lake District Rock are amazing, but photo topos are even better.

The cover Photo is Oxford and Cambridge Direct, Grey Crag Buttermere.

In reply to Stephen Reid:

I agree, that is a good price for a plastic cover with ribbon. Well done.

The guide looks great as well.

Alan

In reply to Alan James - UKC:
Why don't Rockfax make guides that size, they are much more useable. The smaller sized topo doesn't affect its useability either.

A plastic cover, would make RF guides last a lot longer. My PGE which hasn't been used much is look pretty tatty. My Lake District Rock, which get used loads and has been dropped off Gouther, is near perfect.

In reply to Tom Ripley Mountain Guide:

>Have you seen either of the guide books in the flesh? They are superb, ten times more useable and asethetically pleasing than a traditionally FRCC guide.

No, but I doubt I would agree with you. I've never found photo-topoes of the slightest value either functionally or aesthetically.

jcm

In reply to Tom Ripley Mountain Guide:

What, a bit like this?

http://www.rockfax.com/publications/books/item.php?id=137


Chris

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com:

Looks excellent - why oh why cant the CC get it together to produce the guides that would do justice to Wales. FRCC proves it can be done

In reply to The Pylon King: I can't help but get the uneasy feeling that he's just done a really beig wee...

In reply to Stephen Reid:
Stephen,
At risk of being accused of being an arse-licker, here's my opinion of the new "Buttermere and St. Bees" guide:-
Same as I said about the Gable and Pillar guide, it's the dogs bollocks of guidebooks. As usual, the Fell and Rock leads the way. Can't wait for the rest of the guides.
Please do tell the revised dates for the rest.
Cheers,
Ian.

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

It seems John that you loath most things, so that comes as no surprise.

The topo style - colour photodiagrams and route descriptions - is excellent and the FRCC, for the good of climbing and all climbers, have embraced it.

Al Phizacklea's illustrations have got even better.

Mick

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com:

No, but it does come as a surprise to me at least to see I couldn't spell loathe. Ah, well.

jcm

In reply to David Hooper:


Suggest you take a look at the two most recent CC guides, Clogwyn Du'r Arddu and Cwm Silyn & Cwellyn Eifionydd before making such sweeping statements and for an alternative viewpoint check the recent thread about Cloggy where the following opinion appears: 'buy the most recent CC guide for cloggy
best guidebook i own i reckon and will have all the info you need'

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

darn it John and I was following your lead on 'loath'

In reply to S11: Got the new cloggy one - looking foward to using it - but the llanberis, meirionedd, tremadog, so grey and dull - last good llanberis guide was the Paul Williams Blue cover that introduced the masses to slate.

In reply to David Hooper:

Check out samples of

http://www.climbers-club.co.uk/guidebooks/lowerwyevalley.html

http://www.climbers-club.co.uk/sandstone.html

The CC have a very active publication schedule this year.

We will be featuring some at UKClimbing.com.

Mick

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com: aren't Buttermere guides supposed to have a picture of Philistine on the cover?


will be buying it immediately

In reply to S11:

I have them both. Haven't used the Cloggy one yet, but the Cwm Silyn was less than totally helpful in finding anything other than the 'honeypot' routes - no crag diagram, and just an ambiguous description.
They are both fine examples of 'traditional' guidebooks, but so much more can be and has been achieved these days (including by the CC).

In reply to Tom Ripley Mountain Guide:


we should call you butter fingers with all the things you have dropped!! - were your keys attached to it?

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com:


Well if its really in it then they owe me a copy!

In reply to The Pylon King:


It is, but unfortuanatley only the left hand side of the photo.

I supose nothing is perfect...

The guide looks superb, I'm really looking forward to further exsploring that area.

In reply to Removed User:


Well as far as we can tell, the dates are as listed at: http://www.frcc.co.uk/publications/index.htm (bottom of page). For the titles giving a date "not yet known" you can probably just add one year on the title above as we would struggle to get two titles out in a year - there's just too much work involved and if we leave it much more than a year, some of the titles would be out of print for too long.

It's difficult to be certain as there is a massive amount of work involved in producing the photo-topos. When Phil Rigby did the Gable & Pillar ones and the Buttermere & St Bees ones he was on long term sick leave due to an operation on his foot, but he's back at work full time now so that may slow things a bit.

Al Phizacklea's unfortunate accident may set back work on both Scafell, Wasdale & Eskdale and Dow, Duddon & Slate, and of course we may struggle for a stunning cover shot for the Eastern Crags guide with him out of action.

You can't really go to print unless you are completely happy with all the diagrams so if even one isn't right it can delay things for months (given what the weather can do round here) while a new crag photo is obtained and all the lines marked on it. For Pillar & Gable, we weren't really happy with the West Face of High Man photo that we had. Numerous trips to the crag failed to produce a good picture due to poor light. And you have to get the timing right or the bottom half of the buttress is obscured in shadow. We finally got a decent shot right at the last moment but it held things up a bit.

Anyway for Eastern Crags and Outcrops we need lots of action photos - so please, if you have some good ones, contact Phil whose address is on the link above. It's not just Eastern Crags, it will also cover North Lakes Limestone, Eden Valley and South Lakes Limestone, so dig out those shots of Armathwaite, King's Meaburn, Windmore End, Scout Scar and Chapel Head please!!

In reply to Stephen Reid:
Thanks Stephen. The standard of the new guides means I'm getting impatient to see the next one. If I can get any photos anywhere near the current standards I'll send them on, but it's a hard act to follow.
Cheers,
Ian.

In reply to Stephen Reid:



do the photos have to include M Armitage with his t-shirt off??

In reply to Mick Ryan - UKClimbing.com:

All in all it looks a great guide. I'd have to say the St. Bees bouldering section is a bit pointless, either do it properly or don't bother. There's even obvious lines missing from the boulders that are included and a picture of one of the best lines there (Hueco Crack) with no reference to where it is.

In reply to Stephen Reid:

That can't be right - 'everyone' knows all you need to do topos is a digital camera and a 'pooter!


Chris