UKC

Beyond the lure of the Cuillin, and along the A855 past Portree, lies a truly Jurassic coastline with a lifetime of climbing potential, both in established climbs and new routes.

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Great article Nathan.  I'm sure we can expect crowds at Rubha Huinnish now!  The list of all the skye crags is hilarious and totally superflous to the article in my opinion.

Nice one Nathan.

Grey Panther and Staffin (Kilt) Classic were originally given a split grade of HVS/E1. I was surprised when Staffin Classic went up to E2 as it didn’t seem as sustained as some of the other routes at Staffin.

Edit. most of the other routes at Staffin.

Grey Panther I’d say was HVS, but that would probably break a lot of people’s hearts as it’s great easy E1 tick.

I found Staffin Classic quite a bit harder but probably still only E1, but upper end for the physicality of it all. 

" ...in which to test your skills unlike anywhere else in the UK."  

Nathan, thank you for an inspiring article. I didn't get to Scotland this year however Skye will be high on my list when I do. I did have 11 days of continuous sunshine at Fairhead so I'm not complaining! Fairhead features Dolerite crack climbing that sounds similar to that on Skye (and Northern Ireland is currently part of the UK...). How do the two compare?

I think it’s fair to say there’s not much comparison. That’s not to say that Kilt Rock and co. aren’t delightful - they’re on Skye, after all - and very well worth visiting, but they’re no Fair Head.

jcm

Whut? The rock and climbing style at Staffin and Kilt is pretty much identical to the columnar routes on the Prow at Fair Head.

The Trotternish crags might not have quite the scale or variety of Fair Head, but collectively they are definitely worthy of comparison.

But how do they compare to Annot?! Which is not much further to drive to from London than Portree, and with obviously better weather and croissants.

Dunno! I've not been. Though from what I've gathered I think there's quite a lot more in the grades that your average keen climber climbs on Trotternish.

Though as you indicate, distance from the rest of the country is obviously the main reason they aren't more popular.