This week's Friday Night Video takes us to the Culm Coast. We're midway through a series focusing on the Devon and Cornish sea cliffs and this video looks at the first ascent of Wrecker's Slab at Cornakey Cliff.
I always struggle with the name Cornakey. Is it pronounced CORN uh kee, or Corn AKE y? Or perhaps something else entirely?
Lovely! That warms you up from a chilly night in early March in locked-down Sheffield.
Well done to all involved!
Thanks very much. Am pleased you enjoyed. It is in some ways the spark that set the flame for all climbing on the Culm. A really enjoyable day out where climbing wasn’t spoiled by filming or vice versa.
James
I really enjoyed that, it was a fine evocation of an outstanding route in a fantastic landscape, and a lovely story about a fascinating sounding man. It brought back some personal memories for me too of doing Wreckers many years ago, and the friend I did it with.
Yeah classic Cornwall. God knows, I always thought it was Corn-ICKY
> I always struggle with the name Cornakey. Is it pronounced CORN uh kee, or Corn AKE y? Or perhaps something else entirely?
I'm not a local, so probably wrong, but I always thought it was pronounced Corn achy! As in...
Don't break my heart. Corn-achy breaky heart. I just don't think he'd understand...
Cheers
Dave
Heartwarming video, looking forward to getting back down to the Culm!
As someone who hasn't tied on to a rope in over ten years and who more or less assumed his climbing days were over, I'd like to thank you for producing such a beautiful and inspirational piece of film. If there's any life left in this particular old dog, you have made an excellent job of awakening it
As a Moostow Local we all pronounce is Corn-ICKY - but to be fair we could all be wrong!
Great film!
Enjoyed, thanks. Stayed in a holiday home in the next bay North a few years ago and must have jogged over the top of this with no idea it was there. Amazing wild bit of coast.
What a superb film that brought back some very happy memories of climbing Wreckers with my wife. Lovely to here Iain talk so fondly of the times he spent with his grandfather, that’s what climbing is all about, making memories with friends and loved ones.
> As a Moostow Local we all pronounce is Corn-ICKY - but to be fair we could all be wrong!
So while we’re on the subject, am I the only one who says BoSIgran, or is it really BOSigran?
Wonderful. Well done to everyone involved. This Culm series is bringing so many good feelings back.
Such a great vid, and a great climb. Ever since getting the SW Rockfax many years ago, it was the one route I wanted to do for the sheer height of it. Probably not VS imho, but the fact you walk through the Morwenstow graveyard as the first intro, then a fairly sketchy descent on loose rock to even get to the start, ups the grade. Been back twice since when one of my travelling climbing friends wants an 'adventure'.
Highly recommended, and not as loose as the guidebook (or UKC comments) would lead you to believe.
I've always said Corn AYE key fwiw.
Brought back some very good memories - Thanks!
Would just like to say how pleased I am that people have enjoyed the film. One never knows how things will be received or indeed whether it will have any appeal whatsoever. It is a terrible rock climb in many respects but an absolutely there star experience especially when enjoyed with great friends.
Cheers
James
Great film and really enjoyed it - brought back lots of great memories. Well done and thanks to all involved.
There's something a bit magical about Wreckers Slab - a cream tea in the Rectory Tea Rooms waiting for the tide, wandering through the Churchyard and a look in at Hawker's hut. The climb itself and a with all its history (three long pitches with enough gear and solid holds to remain fun), and pint in the Bush afterward to round off a perfect culm day.
Looks like the, long awaited, CC Culm and Baggy guide has now been put back for a June release?
Cheers
Beautifully put together
> There's something a bit magical about Wreckers Slab - a cream tea in the Rectory Tea Rooms waiting for the tide, wandering through the Churchyard and a look in at Hawker's hut. The climb itself and a with all its history (three long pitches with enough gear and solid holds to remain fun), and pint in the Bush afterward to round off a perfect culm day.
Stop it, you’ll have me in tears!
Great little film and good to meet the great Iain Peters, who I never quite ran into in the flesh even though we must have narrowly missed each other several times. He was an inspiration when I climbed there a lot, even if he has, rather belatedly, claimed one of my routes!
We had a bit of a job finding Wreckers' Slab back in the day. Walking along the edge of a field, a chap appeared over the cliff-edge and through the bracken on the 'wong' side of the barbed wire fence - "thank God you have arrived" says he.
Turns out he and his wife and kid had got stuck halfway up the steep bank trying to escape the rising tide and with the ropes around our shoulders he had assumed we were Mountain Rescue. I abbed in and escorted them up the final few hundred feet, it was just steep scrambling and they were fine with a rope on. The guy thanked us and then said "what about the dog?" - it was just visible right down on the beach. So down I go again - all the way to the bottom this time and carry the dog back up the bank.
Later that day we found the route and did it, even got a front cover shot for Climber and Rambler out of it!
Chris
A great little film, thanks - a good balance between climbing shots and narrative. By the way, the Irish tunes aren't "Jig of Slurs". They're a couple of fine reels called "The Banshee" (also known as "McMahon's") and "Julia Delaney's."
> So while we’re on the subject, am I the only one who says BoSIgran, or is it really BOSigran?
That's spot on Rog, insofar as most climbers down here pronounces it. Again as Joel says, we could all be wrong too. I'm not Cornish, but correct pronunciations of some places do seem to be a bit obscure and to vary for those locals that are; see names like Kenidjack, Luxulyan etc.
> That's spot on Rog, insofar as most climbers down here pronounces it. Again as Joel says, we could all be wrong too. I'm not Cornish, but correct pronunciations of some places do seem to be a bit obscure and to vary for those locals that are; see names like Kenidjack, Luxulyan etc.
I need to hear them, not see them, Tom😀. From what I’ve heard locals say, many Cornish names seem to have the stress on the second syllable.
Fair point! Yeah that's certainly the case with the second syllable in these examples.
I think most people would pronounce Kenidjack as KEN-ee-jack, whereas it's actually more like kn-IDJ-ack, with both the KEN and IDJ sounds sort of making glottal stops.
Luxulyan looks like it should be pronounced LUX-ulee-an whereas the local telling is lux-ILLEE-n with U sounds changed to hard I sounds apparently at random!
So basically everything is massively confusing and the cause of some mirth locally in the summer months when asked for directions to places like TINT-agool, MARAZZ-ian, Fow-EE, and MOUSE-Hole (you may recognise these?), but in truth on the face of it all of these seem like perfectly reasonable interpretations and I don't think anybody really knows some of the more obscure ones - or I certainly don't anyway.
> So while we’re on the subject, am I the only one who says BoSIgran, or is it really BOSigran?
Also, it's BoZEEgran, but I think that's as you implied.
Anyway, ace film James, hard at work as ever mate
> As a Moostow Local
Is that really how Morwenstow is pronounced locally?
When we first started exploring the area I clearly remember spending ages try to find Woolfardisworthy (as marked on the map) but only finding signposts to Woolsery...
We're now pretty used to the local pronunciations here in the Staffordshire Moorlands (Biddle, Oncut, Eyelam) and being directed upbank or downbank, but still occasionally get caught out. Despite my best efforts I'm still known as an obviously posh southerner (from Coventry) but I put that down to living in Bristol for three years!
> Is that really how Morwenstow is pronounced locally?
Yes! The locals do call it Moostow, but I think it's in much the same way as I'd refer to my home town, Wolverhampton as "Wolvo". Morwenstow is equally acceptable I think. (Joel may well correct me.) Did you know that similarly Holsworthy is often called "Ollery"!
And Launceston, Laansen 😂
> And Launceston, Laansen 😂
Yes, although not the Tasmanian one, as I discovered!
> Yes, although not the Tasmanian one, as I discovered!
I was just going to say that! At least they don’t call it Launo. As far as I know.
Wonderful film making. A story, endearing characters, incredible drone footage, sympathetic music and the star of it all the evening light on the N coast.
I have watched this upwards of four times now and enjoy it thoroughly every time.
Well done to all of you.