In reply to planetmarshall:
> > My point is that there are probably half a dozen dry tooling venues in the UK, if that. They either live happily side by side with sport routes like Newtyle, or have been developed by enthusiasts from rock no one else wanted, like White Goods
I agree with you on the two crags you mention, maybe Clogwyn Manod and the Works are a bit more of a grey area...
> For all the worry that Gritstone edges would be crawling with toolers each Winter, there have been a grand total of two high profile incidents in the last decade, and by and large, with a few vocal exceptions, climbers live and let live and understand the ethical nuances pretty well.
I've always thought that argument was a bit of red herring as well.
> Overall, I think statements like...
> ...is being pretty melodramatic.
I disagree, maybe it's my age but there was a time when a single chipped hold in the slate quarries would create an outcry (Chippadeedooda) never mind a whole route (the Cruel Sea) so to get all chippy about a throw away remark regarding the wholesale drilling of pick placements on crags seems a bit precious.