Dan Varian

About

Carlisle, United Kingdom

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Dan is a prolific first ascensionist based out of Carlisle. He has developed many grade 8 problems in The Peak District, The Lakes, Yorkshire, Northumberland, and Scotland. He is well known for his hard highball bouldering and is a Director of Beastmaker.

Some of his highlights include 150+ grade 8 problems, including The Rail (8B+), Dandelion Mind (8B+), Bewilderness (8B+) and several repeats of hard trad routes in a ground-up style.

Read our interview with Dan here.

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Latest News & Articles

News posts and Articles featuring Dan

News Second ascent of Bombadil by Niky Ceria

Niccolò Ceria has made the second ascent of Dan Varian's 8B+ highball testpiece Bombadil at Christianbury Crag.

4 25 Jul, 2023

Interview Dan Varian on The Magna Strata, 8B+

We got in touch with Dan to get some more details about The Magna Strata, to see how it compares to some of his other hard boulders, and to ask what else he's been up to recently.

5 21 Mar, 2023

News Third ascent of Transcendence E8 6c by Dan Varian

Dan Varian recently made the third ascent of Transcendence E8 6c, one of Northumberland's proudest and most fearsome routes, which has resisted attempts by some of the country's finest climbers for twenty five years.

12 25 Mar, 2019

News First Ascents for Dan Varian in Yorkshire and Northumberland

As usual, Dan Varian has had a prolific few months in Northumberland, Yorkshire and Scotland, combining...

3 21 Feb, 2019

Skills #RespectTheRock: Chalk Use

There is a basic rule in all forms of rock climbing: leave it as you found it. These days I'd go a little further: leave things better...

35 8 Dec, 2017

News Moonrise Kingdom: New E9 Multipitch by McHaffie and Varian

Making the most of Scotland's summer last week, James McHaffie and Dan Varian established a new 130m...

10 15 May, 2017

News Hobbie Noble, Highball 8B First Ascent for Varian

Top British boulderer, Dan Varian has just made the first ascent of a highball 8B boulder problem at...

6 7 Jul, 2014

News Hard Boulders in Font & Ireland for Dan Varian

2 8 Apr, 2014

Video Series Stone Kingdom Ep. 2: The Rail

4 23 Dec, 2013

News Dan Varian Adds New 8B+ to Bowden

18 11 Oct, 2013

News Dan Varian Adds Northumberland's Hardest

12 5 Apr, 2012

News Dan Varian Ground-Ups E9 7b - The Dark Side

21 20 Dec, 2011

Video Dan Varian Climbs Dandelion Mind (Font 8B+)

8 30 Apr, 2011

Interview Ryan Pasquill and Dan Varian Go Ground Up

19 23 Mar, 2011

News Dan Varian Repeats Northumberland E2

14 23 Jul, 2010

News INTERVIEW & VIDEO: Dan Varian on Arc Royal

8 24 Apr, 2009

Review Beastmaker 2000: Back two - the future?

21 2 Mar, 2009

Latest Reviews for Dan's Sponsors

Reviews from the UKC editorial team

Scarpa Mescalito TRK Pro GTX Men's and Women's Boots

"This feels like a nice 3-season walking boot that Scarpa have tried to winterise, without actually making it properly crampon compatible..." say Graham Uney and Sharon Kennedy. But for largely non-snowy use, and assuming the lack of half sizes...

5 26 Feb

Scarpa Veloce Lace - Intermediate Performance Meets Beginner Comfort

On paper, perhaps the Veloce Lace shouldn't work, says Tim Hill; and yet it really does. This new wave super-soft beginner-to-intermediate indoor shoe has torn up the rule book.

15 15 Dec, 2023

Gear of the Year 2023

Our reviewers see a lot of gear, and while most is pretty good there will always be a few real stand-outs. Looking back over the last 12 months of rigorous in-the-field use, the review team have picked their personal highlights. Here it is, our Gear of the Year...

6 Dec, 2023

Recycled Gear - Reducing Our Impact

With a growing awareness of environmental issues, and the urgent need for greater sustainability, many outdoor brands...

3 3 Oct, 2023

Scarpa Generator and Generator Mid - The Ultimate Trad Shoe?

These days rock shoes seem to be getting softer and softer, making the quest to find a supportive...

21 5 Sep, 2023

Scarpa Vapour S - Something Truly Special?

Rob Greenwood and Penny Orr are mighty impressed by Scarpa's latest slipper. Combining all-day comfort with a...

13 6 Jun, 2023

Scarpa Golden Gate Kima RT - brilliant, apart from the bad bits

A mountain running shoe with a carbon plate - an idea that's crossed over from road running -...

8 24 May, 2023

Latest News from Dan's Sponsors

Announcements direct from manufacturers

CWIF 16-17th March 2024 - Registration now open!

Join us on Saturday 16th - Sunday 17th March, climb alongside some of the best climbers in the world on problems set by some of the world's best routesetters.

8 Mar

Scarpa Mescalito Mids - Save 35%

Save 35% and pick up a pair of comfortable, lightweight, three-season hiking boots for just £149! Get ready for summer trekking, hiking and walking adventures.

17 May, 2023

SCARPA steps forward to sponsor mountain running events

SCARPA has signed up as title sponsor of the Great Lakeland 3Day for the next three editions of the event. In addition, the brand will become the exclusive footwear sponsor of the Montane Dragon's Back Race. Both are organised by...

31 Oct, 2022