In reply to C Witter:
Thanks for your observations and raising an important issue, namely consistency between sources of information. The listing on FRCC website is definitive and I have cross checked against the RAD and sent the necessary corrections to BMC. I hope these notes address your concerns.
> Can I just note that working out the restrictions is much more difficult than it needs to be, as RAD and the FRCC give very little information, some of which is confusing.
Looking at the FRCC listing I am uncertain why you think it is difficult to work out a restriction when there is a column headed Restricted with only two options Y or N, followed by a column showing any relevant dates and a final column with any additional notes such as "Once again the birds are using the N facing LH wall (left of Spinup) & successfully reared 2 chicks in 2016. Please avoid all the rock left of Spinup plus the N end descent slope". What else does a climber need to know?
"Also, information requiring local knowledge or interpretation is not necessarily helpful (e.g. access banned; birds nesting; but access from the shore is fine - so... is climbing allowed or not?)."
Fair point, I have clarified the situation at Humphrey Head where some local centres take groups scrambling/traversing along the bottom - this is OK but climbing the routes is not.
"Some comments on the FRCC guidance are just unhelpful, e.g. "only the mentally unstable climb here"".
It sounds like you haven't been to Meathop Quarry which is described as "a tottering pile of choss" with nothing worth a visit (S Lakes Limestone Guide) - my flippant comment is not wide of the mark.
"There are also crags where RAD and the FRCC 2017 guidance disagree. When you look, you find, e.g., that RAD hasn't been updated since Feb 2016, but clearly states "banned", whilst the FRCC says "go ahead, birds haven't nested here in two years"".
I presume you are referring to Buckbarrow in Longsleddale where the upwardly mobile birds have moved house to Goat Scar. This is one of the corrections I have sent to BMC.
"Do the BMC and the FRCC take this issue seriously?"
Yes.
"I know it's quite likely that this valuable work is done by volunteers with little or no pay or support"
For my part in the process you are quite correct - I don't get any payment or support. Attending the annual meeting involves me having a round trip drive of about 220 miles.
"but, still, if there isn't clear and usable advice and if things aren't kept things up to date, then even the well-meaning will be at a loss and make mistakes...!"
I can't speak for BMC but with the one exception of Humphrey Head the advice on the FRCC website is up to date and clear. The bottom line is, as always, if you disturb a nesting bird and it is making alarm calls you need to vacate that area asap to let the birds settle. You should then report the bird's presence to BMC, FRCC or the Lake District National Park so records can be updated.
PS. You mentioned signing. Signing of nest sites is a bit of a lottery - there are many unsigned sites, if they don't impact on climbing we don't include them. Signs need to be put up by somebody - usually National Park Rangers and they have many other responsibilities so the signs only tend to go where disturbance is most likely to occur (e.g. Lower Falcon gets signed whereas Eagle Crag Borrowdale does not)
