UKC

Far, far away on the rugged coastline of Western Lewis stand some of the wildest sea cliffs in Britain. Lifetimes worth of new routing opportunities lie just waiting to be discovered in one of the most unspoiled locations in Scotland.

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In reply to UKC Articles:

A nice lunchtime read. Maybe my browser (Firefox) but  single quotation marks have become ?€? ( eg as in   isn?€?t ) & I think I spotted one or two other similar hiccups.

In reply to UKC Articles:

Quite timely given the release of the Outer Hebrides guide, which is due to hit the shops the middle of next month. There's a pre-order deal on it here too: https://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/publications/guidebooks/scottish_mountainee...

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

I was just about to say!

You'll find many of Mike's stunning shots featured in the guide. The best way to find the classics, and the unclimbed lines, will be with the SMCs new guide to the Outer Hebrides. As someone said as we were sailing over the Mingulay earlier this year for our first trip to the islands 'now we know where the UK's quota of rock was put' ...

In reply to UKC Articles:

Despite nothing in the lower grades being mentioned other than a couple of VSs, it's also a fantastic place for punters like me, we only had one day but barely scratched the surface. And not just the sea cliffs - Islivig Direct (VS 4c) is one of the best climbs I've ever done.

In reply to UKC Articles:

Fab article and stunning photos. One small point of accuracy though. If you're travelling North from Tarbert to Lewis and find yourself on the Golden Road, you're seriously off route. The Golden Road runs South from Tarbert down the East coast of South Harris.

In reply to UKC Articles:

Brilliant photos!

I just hope that the new guide and this article don't mean that there will be other climbers around on my next trip

Oh, and please, please could these "digital features" also be available in the normal format as well - I find them all but unreadable, though I might make an exception and persevere with this one.........

In reply to robertmichaellovell:

A couple of summers ago I spent several days walking the most likely looking bits of coastline with a draft of the new guide and actually found disappointingly few unexplored quality looking bits of rock. I suspect "Lifetimes worth of new routing opportunities" is somewhat optimistic, though there are no doubt some gems out there.

In reply to Robert Durran:

Having worked on the diagrams for the existing cliffs, as soon as you start looking, the gaps start appearing...

In reply to robertmichaellovell:

Gaps between routes on existing crags, or new crags between existing crags (which is what I was looking for)? Rab seemed to agree with me that there was probably not much in the way of quality new places to explore. Of course he, I or both might just be bluffing.........*

*I'm not though!

 

In reply to Robert Durran:

I suspect, cynically, that "Lifetimes worth of new routing opportunities" is levelled at the Peak-centric UK scene, which isn't used to there being any unclimbed rock around that isn't either desperate or choss.

I've climbed a couple of new routes on Lewis literally by accident, so relatively speaking there must be a fair bit of scope.

In reply to UKC Articles:

What's the route on the title page? Have I missed the caption?

In reply to UKC Articles:

Inspiring article.

Have to say it looks a lot better in the photos than it does in real life! I had a good trip a few years ago but in all honesty I did leave a bit disappointed - perhaps my expectation of Pabbay with infrastructure just wasn't realistic.

The article does inspire me go back in future. I guess in really good weather much of the stuff that looked very damp and unappealing would look different than it did on a showery week.

But the real question is: when will we see a feature on Windmore End? Well, it's better than Ilkley at any rate.

 

In reply to Jon Stewart:

Interesting perspective. I think of it as Pabbay quality climbing with the convenience of not having to plan a trip in advance (and therefore gamble with the weather) and the convenience of mostly easy access single pitch routes. Just a bit different really. So still the best rock in the UK and the best coastal scenery and ambience of any UK sea cliff area.

Edit: As I found out last week, even Pabbay is a somewhat depressing in crap weather........ But now sitting in sunny Orkney having made a last minute decision against Pembroke

 

In reply to jon:

Hi Jon,

It's Wish You Were Here (VS 4b), at Eilean Geo, on Lewis. New routes, like this one, and others mentioned on the feature can be found in the new guide coming out at the end of this week from the SMC.

Rob

In reply to robertmichaellovell:

Thanks.

In reply to Jon Stewart:

I can see what you're getting at, as I felt a slight tinge of what you're describing too; however, I think this is mostly because of just how good Pabbay + Mingulay are. The difficulty comes from comparing what are - at least in my eyes - one of the best best climbing destinations in the world to virtually any other crag/area. The islands (and by that I mean Pabbay/Mingulay) are brimming with quality, have an almost unmatchable ambience, and are outright one of the most magical places I've ever climbed.

Lewis, by comparison, was amazing, but lacked the same charm for a variety of reasons. Uig Sands is an amazing spot to camp, but it's not a beach on a remote island you've got all to yourself (and 60 seals). Mangestra, Dalbeg, and Painted Walls are all good (amazing in fact!), but they're not Pink Walls, Grey Walls, or the Painted Walls.  Finally, due to the size of Lewis it's only natural that there's some scrappier cliffs in between the beautiful ones - Pabbay/Mingulay have an almost unprecedented ratio of quality in comparison.

Still, the bottom line is that they're both amazing

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

A large proportion of the rock on Mingulay is complete choss! But, just like the choss on Lewis there is no need to climb it because there is so much immaculate stuff too.

I think the problem is that people understandably tend to compare Lewis with the Barra Isles and it does come off second best on most counts. However, that is still second best in the UK (admittedly arguably) not just in the Outer Hebrides. Fairer comparison would be with other conventional sea cliff areas like Cornwall or Pembroke where it wins hands down on atmosphere and scenery and holds its own for climbing quality - I wouldn't swap it for either!

 

 

In reply to Jon Stewart:

Yes you can't really compare the two destinations but the ease of logistics for Lewis compensates for the lesser quantity and quality. But in my opinion still world class, I mean Sron of Ulladale is pretty amazing and I thought more inspiring the Don Mingulay. 

In reply to Robert Durran:

I didn't think the rock was anything like as good as Shiegra. I was expecting overhanging juggy walls of splendour and didn't really get them.

To be specific, the trip went something like this:

 - Rocked up at comms mast near Painted Wall, looked at the Flannan cliffs (probably in/after rain) and didn't see any routes we wanted to do. All looked scrappy and grim. Saw Painted Wall which looked amazing. Slept up at the mast, creepy atmosphere. The rest of the time we were at Uig, which is beautiful but there's something a bit odd about all the caravans in a line. Perhaps I'm being over-critical here.

 - Dalbeg. Did the classic Neptune and Limpet Crack, which were great routes but not that memorable being straight-up easy access single pitch things. Couldn't identify any routes on the other crags, all looked damp/obviously going to be epic new-routing experiences

 - Aird Uig. Puffing Crack amazing (I fell off all the way up on second - really hard). Everything else useless.

 - Craig Liam. The Prow was very easy but fun, everything else was useless. A lot of effort to climb a 10m hvs. 

 - Crulvig shower-dodging. Couldn't get up the E2. 

 - Screaming Geo. Looking at the place, not disappointing in any way. Probably the most impressive sea cliff I've ever seen. Due to showers and no confidence in the grades in the book, failed to commit to doing Prozac Link (this probably ruined the trip tbh). Did some E2 that was scenically fantastic, but was a chossy HVS 4c. Great belaying, shame about the climbing. Nowt else there to do due to tides I think.

 - Painted Wall. Brilliant (but the routes are quite short).

So, by no means a disastrous trip as we did tick off quite a few classic routes and visit a good few crags. Next time I'd probably prefer to go back with someone who knows the place (but who doesn't mind repeating classics in the E1-4 range). Miles and miles of Sheigra it was not.

 

In reply to Jon Stewart:

It's not Sheigra or Pabbay. It's it's own thing! To be fair, I've had access to a draft of the new guide and there's a lot of really good stuff in it you wouldn't have known about.

Anyway, sounds like you need another trip with me and the new guide!

Edit: Are you sure about the campsite? The line of caravans is at Cnip, not Uig.

 

 

In reply to Robert Durran:

For sure! For something to do on a rainy day we tried to find a crag using Latter's guide which had no map or picture, and for which the approach description used "short cropped grass" as a landmark. Lo and behold, we did not find the crag. Fuxake Gary. 

You're correct.

 

In reply to jon:

Looks like a fine photo, it would be good if the writing over it was less obtrusive.

Hi all,

I'm an Australian climber who will be passing though the Outer Hebrides for a few days in late Sept 2018. It's a family trip and we'll only be around for 4-5 days (1 day Barra, 1 day Uists, 3 days Harris/Lewis) before we head down to Skye for 3 nights.

I'm a super-solid trad leader up to E2 and much harder when I'm in the groove, happy to second up to E5, LOVE my sea cliffs. Balls pyramid was a favourite.

QUESTION: I know this is a long shot, but seeing as I'll have my gear with me (nor rack or ropes tho) how might I go about looking to find a climbing partner when I am there? (Yes, I know the weather is a big factor here).

Suggestions?

Cheers

P.

 

In reply to Spiersy:

Can't help with partners I'm afraid, but just to say, you'll want to return, and for a longer trip - 5 days is quite short! An amazing place.