Climbs 33
Rocktype Sandstone (hard)
Altitude 2m a.s.l
Faces N
The Forss cave. © aln
Crag features
Climbing on the world famous Caithness flagstone. Fantastic rock used all over the world for pavements, plazas and piazzas but it's horizontally banded and friable where it occurs inland, and it's crap for climbing on. But at Forss the relentless northern ocean has weathered it down and the bottom 4m of the rock on this coastline is some of the loveliest you'll find anywhere. The wee walls below the business park are detailed below. As you go west the rock increases in height but it's still the bouldering at the bottom that matters. Eventually you'll reach a promontory with a through cave providing weatherproof bouldering.
Numerous problems have went unrecorded here, including some long traverses on the crags on the way to the cave. Routes have also been led on the bigger bits of rock, mostly following the prominent cracks. There's loads more to do. Some more details are here http://caithnessclimbing.webs.com/
Approach notes
7 miles West of Thurso on the A86, take the turn off for the Forss Business and Technology Park. The Park gates are unlocked between 8am and 8.30pm Monday to Thursday, and 8am to 5pm Friday to Sunday. During these times it is possible to drive to the rear of the Park, keeping to the left, and park adjacent to the high double gates in the fence. Otherwise, park at the mobile phone mast and enter the Park by foot. From the double gates in the fence, aim for a small tower building with external stairs and a mast on top (200m). From the tower, walk NE down stepped, slabby ledges for 30m to a small stack on the wall edge, just beyond which it is possible to scramble down onto the non-tidal ledge. The first wall is immediately NE and the others follow to the NE. Wall 4 is 30m NE from Wall 3.
To reach the cave walk west along the bottom of the cliffs for 10/15 mins.
No Access Issues
| The Wall area is at ND 02295 70117, don't go as far as a gully that drops to the sea, all the climbing is to the W of that. The descent if pretty much directly behind the little building with stairs and a flagpole. kirstypallas - 29/Apr/23 |
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| The updated link for the Forss topo is:
http://caithnessclimbing.webs.com/ Removed User - 31/Jul/12 |
Climbs at this crag
| Name | Grade | Stars | Type | Logs | Partner Ascents |
|---|
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