Jim Pope has made the first ascent of Cloud Gate (f?), a new gritstone 8B+ at Cratcliffe Tor.

Jim first encountered the boulder five years ago, and spent multiple days getting it into a state where it was 'remotely climbable'.

In the subsequent years, he put in attempts on the boulder whilst visiting Cratcliffe, but - finding himself unable to get off the floor - had written it off as 'maybe being impossible'.

Cloud Gate is Jim's third FA at 8B and above in the last nine months, having climbed Kindred (f8B+) in July of last year, and Lupin (f8B) in January this year.

We got in touch with Jim to find out more:

Jim, congratulations on making the first ascent of Cloud Gate! It looks like a beautiful boulder, one that offers very little in the way of handholds... Can you talk us through the climbing?

The climbing is pretty unique, it's more like climbing a feature or one big hold, you start on one hold and finish stood on top of it!

The underside of it is really steep so your legs get stuck, but toe hooks in the roof allow you to keep your weight under the poor slopers. As you get your weight over the lip you then have to rock into the scoop without getting your trailing leg stuck or your foot or hand blowing.

How long did it take to work out a sequence that you felt would go, and which was the hardest bit to work out?

Physically the bottom part is the hardest part I'd say, but the mantle took me the longest to figure out. It's so subtle, and because there aren't any obvious holds you're constantly trying ever so slight adjustments of where your foot or hand are positioned, and when something works its hard to replicate what you did.

I thought I could work the mantle on a rope, but from sat on the rope I could never transition my weight onto the rock, the holds need to be fully weighted or they pop straight away. So, figuring the subtleties of the mantle - after all the physical climbing below - was the hardest part for me

It doesn't look like a style of climbing that lends itself particularly well to training, were you able to do any 'off the boulder' training for this boulder, or was it a case of having to keep coming back to the boulder itself?

I think I got a lot from just trying the boulder regularly and building strength on the moves, but being flexible would help, as well as being strong in the shoulders/legs.

I did quite a lot of muscle ups on the rings to strengthen my shoulders and wrists through a full range of motion, from compressed to fully extended. Ultimately, I think it's more about being technically good at climbing rather than just physically strong, which also made it quite hard to grade.

I threw a pretty big grade on it because I think generally we undervalue technique. 'Technical' boulders tend to feel easy when they go, as is the case with a lot of climbing on the grit, but it takes years getting better at climbing for it to feel like that. I'm off to New Zealand this summer for a bouldering trip, so maybe my mantle gradar will alter after that trip when I realise its V6.

You mentioned on Instagram that Cloud Gate was your 100th First Ascent, and your most enjoyable so far, what was it about the process of developing Could Gate that made it so enjoyable?

Initially it just looked so improbable, and for a long time I wrote it off as maybe being impossible, but it's a beautiful place and there's lots of climbing around there, so I often had a look and short try if I was in the area.

It was really exciting when I finally got through to that mantle section, because then I knew it would be possible, it was just about figuring it out, and the progress was quite linear and visible. Small things like managing to flip a hand to a palm, get my leg over the lip, or have my knee rocked over my foot all became milestones towards climbing it.

What are some other boulders you've established that you're particularly proud of, or that you'd like to see get some traffic?

I think another of my favourites is Applied Imagination (f8A+), at Doll Tor. It's similarly great rock in a beautiful setting, and a fun physical/technical puzzle. I think only Ned has repeated the sit, but that one deserves more attention.

Bloodhound (f8A+) is another one up at Howshaw Tor which has some really nice moves and rock, and takes you away from the crowds.

Any other projects you've currently working on, or trips you've got on the horizon?

Not got any projects on the go on the grit, which is quite nice as it's starting to warm up a bit now. I'm off to Morocco for some multipitching in a few weeks, and then five weeks in New Zealand in the summer!