NO CLIMBING in North Hill Woods

The landowner of the North Hill Woods area of Luxulyan Valley has stated emphatically that climbing and bouldering cannot be permitted. There is a good reason for this which is specific to this relatively small site, so please do not climb at North Hill Wood.

Fortunately there is plenty of good climbing elsewhere in Luxulyan Valley where access is not an issue.

Tom last's PDF guide Luxulyan Woods Bouldering and New Routes 2014 has been temporarily removed from the Cheesewring Climbing webpages until it can be updated to reflect this new information.

There was quite a lot of new route activity in South East Cornwall at the end of last year, full details of which will appear on the Cheesewring Climbing New Routes and Updates page dreckly! 

Devil's Jump access update NO CLIMBING

Since the writing of Cheesewring & South East Cornwall: A Climbers' Guide ownership of Devil's Jump has changed hands. The current landowner has advised that they do not allow public access to this crag. The BMC has been informed and they ask that climbers 'please avoid the crag unless an update is posted' on their Regional Access Database. See Devil's Jump entry on the RAD here.

The BMC is currently attempting to negotiate with the landowner. We will update in due course on any progress.

New guide to Luxulyan by Tom Last

EDIT May 2017: Due to an access issue at one of the venues featured in this PDF guide, the file has been temporarily removed from the Cheesewring Climbing webpages. Please visit the New Routes and Updates section to find out more.

Is Luxulyan Cornwall’s answer to Bovey Woods? Or is it, as Andy Grieve says: “...like Fontainbleu, with a wellington boot walk in!”? Well if you live nearby you have no excuses not to find out, as local photographer and Luxulyan jungle-lover Tom Last has produced a fine PDF guide for you to follow.

Luxulyan Woods Bouldering and New Routes 2014 by Tom Last describes over 120 boulder problems and 16 routes that didn’t quite make it into the main body of the 2012 definitive guidebook. Illustrated with colour photo-topos throughout, it’s certainly an ideal supplement to Cheesewring & South East Cornwall: A Climbers’ Guide and Tom has generously allowed us to host his PDF on our Cheesewring Climbing site.

Due to its 56 pages the file is a hefty 13 MB, but I’m told it looks good on a smart phone. If printing it out ideally it would be best as A4 landscape in colour; however, I suspect that would be a very expensive option.

Luxulyan has seen a burst of development over the last few years but it has huge potential for those with the willingness to explore. Tom deserves full credit for his recent routes and problems, as well as for all the hard work put in to documenting this often overlooked area. Well done Tom and thanks for letting us upload it.

Landslip Cove soon to be accessible once again

Work is taking place this month to repair the coastal path at Talland Bay. As reported in this news post, storm damage forced the closure, in February, of the Coast Path running past Landslip Cove, making access to the routes here impossible without ignoring the diversion. Hopefully once the work is completed this stretch of path will be reopened allowing safe and unhindered access to the climbing once again.

CORMAC’s countryside team is now organising a new diversion around the works, which are due to be completed within four weeks. The diversion is about a mile long and goes away from the coast following roads rather than footpaths; its route can be seen here on the South West Coast Path website.

This section of the South West Coast Path within Talland Bay was affected by last winter’s storms. The storms destroyed the existing coastal defences, which now need to be replaced to ensure the future of this section of the National Trail.

Repair work is taking place at 67 sites around the coast of Cornwall, funded by DEFRA and Cornwall Council. BAM Nuttall & Mott MacDonald will undertake the work at Talland Bay. To protect and improve the resilience of the cliff supporting the road they will be making placements of rock armour, gabion baskets and sprayed concrete.

CORMAC Countryside Officer Dave Wood said “It is great to see the investment in our coastline by DEFRA and Cornwall Council. We hope to keep inconvenience to a minimum during the works and ask that people follow the diversion we have put in place. Although we appreciate that the diversion will be in place for four weeks, it is hoped that this will preserve the route of the SWCP for many years to come.”

Although there are only four mediocre routes of historical interest at Landslip Cove, there are so few crags in this part of Cornwall that loss of access to any of them greatly limits what little climbing is available. Thankfully the temporary closure of this stretch of Coast Path will soon be at an end so climbers in the area can feel free to book a trip to experience the joys of The Circular Climb!

Updates on path closures and route changes can be found here on the South West Coast Path website.

Tom Last makes first ascent of overhanging offwidth crack

Tom Last has continued his campaign of new routing in South East Cornwall with his most recent achievement being the impressive first ascent of an overhanging wide crack on Luxulyan’s rough granite. The Singularity weights in at around E4/5 6a and is located on a natural tor on the rim of Luxulyan Quarry proper – i.e. the massive semi-dormant quarry north of the village.

Tom said: “I first tried this ground up a couple of years ago and got completely shut down after the initial hands section. I came back a few weeks ago and decided to give it a top-rope, not really expecting to get anywhere, but after a couple of tries, I managed to link it. The difficulty of the climb though is in keeping it together for the duration, so I started trying to lead it – climbing it, I think, on my 6th or 7th lead attempt over three sessions.

“The crack goes from hands, through the grim off-width to a wild move that hopefully gets you into the final mad squeeze chimney. The route overhangs for about 25-30 degrees for its full length. It is absolutely brutally hard,” says Tom, “Honestly though, you couldn’t get a better line, or more ridiculous experience.”

The route is well protected with #6 cams and surely must be one of the most challenging wide cracks in Cornwall. The photo below shows Tom’s lower legs and feet struggling with the top-out during the first ascent while belayer Hernan Cardenas Ibanez tries to think of a few excuses not to follow. The picture above is not of the first ascent but gives a better impression of the route.

Full details of this route can be found here on the Cheesewring Climbing New Routes page.

Elsewhere in the Luxulyan area Tom has also contributed Aces High, essentially a highball direct finish to his route Sheela-Na-Gig at Carmears Rocks. There is a video of this route here on Facebook. While on the South Coast he has also discovered a new cliff with climbing potential just west of Dodman Point called Greeb Point. So far the only route here is a fine-looking Diff. From the Delta to the DMZ.

Full details for all Tom’s recent routes can be found on the New Routes page of the Cheesewring Climbing website. Many thanks to Tom for supplying the information and for the use of his photos.

If anyone has new route descriptions or any other news for the area please do send it in.

Penrose Outdoors now stocking Cheesewring and South East Cornwall guide

Amazingly this month marks two years since the publication of the latest edition of Cheesewring & South East Cornwall: A Climbers’ Guide – how time flies! Tempus fugit as they say in Rome, or rather said, but that was a very long time ago indeed, although I’m sure to some also seems like yesterday… anyway I digress…

Only this weekend I received more kind comments about the guide so I’m glad the book is appreciated. It’s now available in even more outlets here in Cornwall, so anyone who has not yet bought their copy need not find it hard to get. Penrose Outdoors now stock it in their shop in Truro, thanks to Jeremy Dyke at Penrose for putting in a good word for us.

The guidebook has also been spotted in Cotswolds in Truro and Nevisports on the A30 at Kingsley Village, Fraddon. It’s always available to buy in the shops in Minions village (by Cheesewring Quarry) and at The Barn Climbing Wall in Milton Abbot, Devon, too.

Local bookshops can order it in if they haven’t got it in stock, just quote ISBN 978-0-948385-57-5, and it can, of course, be obtained direct from the publisher here on-line at www.stivesworldwide.co.uk.

South West Climbs Volume 2 review

The last weekend in May saw the launch of South West Climbs Volume 2 covering selected climbs in Devon, Cornwall and the granite isles (Lundy and Jersey). The book is the latest in the successful series by Pat Littlejohn, but is also a product of a more recent collaboration with publishers The Climbers’ Club.

The first incarnation of Littlejohn’s South West Climbs was published by Diadem in 1979 and proved so popular that it was reprinted in 1989 with a second edition being published in 1991; this second edition itself has been reprinted and revised numerous times, most recently in 2008. When the Climbers’ Club took on the title it was decided to split the coverage over two volumes and Volume 1, covering Gloucester, Somerset and Dorset, duly appeared in 2012.

The involvement of the Climbers’ Club has certainly added a new impetus to South West Climbs and their experience is evident throughout the book’s 412 pages. Authoring duties are shared with outstanding Bristol-based climber Martin Crocker and the artwork for this nicely-designed full-colour tome was done by Mark Davies and Don Sargeant.

Although a selected guide it’s worth noting that the book has the best coverage of the Exmoor Coast climbing currently available in print, while climbers in South East Cornwall might be interested to know that 20 routes from this area – at Cheesewring Quarry as well as Hawk’s, Trewortha, Kilmar and Helman Tors – are detailed in full.

South West Climbs Volume 2 by Pat Littlejohn, ISBN 978-0-901601-98-8, is published by The Climbers’ Club, priced £25.00, and can be purchased through their website, as well as through bookshops and outdoor retailers.

More route descriptions

A few more route descriptions for Kilmar Tor and St Clether Crags have just been added to the Cheesewring Climbing New Routes page. Thanks to Rich Hudson for providing the information.

Recent new routes and bouldering in South East Cornwall

Tom Last has been in touch to let us know about some recent stuff he has been doing in the area. Amongst various new bouldering and micro-routes at Roche Rock and in Luxulyan Valley he has also recorded a solo ascent of the slab which is found in the back of Luxulyan Valley Quarry. This gave the route The Downward Spiral, a bold protectionless E1 5a on dubious rock. (See photo and description here).

Tom, in the company of Todd Berryman, also added what sounds like a very pleasant easy route at Gell Point which is located between Dodman Point and Hemmick Beach. This must have the best name of any of the recent new additions in South East Cornwall - The Future Sound of Grampound - and just goes to show what quality new lower-grade climbing potential there is on the South Coast. The photo below, courtesy of Tom Last, is of Todd Berryman making the second ascent of this route.

Full descriptions of these routes and others can be found on the New Routes section of the Cheesewring Climbing webpages. Our thanks to Tom for the details and use of his photos.

Also of note, Andy Steinberg has done a sit start to Backlash on the Split Boulder at Bearah Tor (page 116 of the current guidebook), which goes at roughly the same grade. Andy also added two new problems here: Hacienda (Font. F6C+ or V5), which links the Backlash sitter into Driller Thriller; and Lashback (Font. 6A+ / V3) up the right arête of this face.

Cheesewring proposal on BMC meeting agenda

It may well be quite short notice but climbers in the area might be interested to note that the agenda for the next BMC South West Area Gathering has just been published. The meeting is to be held on 13th March at 7.00 p.m. at The Nova Scotia Inn, Bristol (see notice on BMC site here). On the agenda is a proposed extension to the existing bolting at Cheesewring Quarry - PDF here. I've been sent assurances by BMC South West Area Secretary Philip Wilson that this won't be decided at the Bristol meeting and there'll be a chance for discussion of the matter 'locally' (West Penwith).

I'd very much like to hear other people's opinions on these proposals and more generally the suggestion of extending bolting at Cheesewring Quarry. Please add your comments here or on this thread on UKClimbing.

- Barney Carver.

Storm damage causes coast path diversion

With the recent spell of storms many agencies are warning people to take care when out an about on Cornwall's coast. Although no rockfalls or storm damage have as yet been reported on the climbing cliffs of South East Cornwall there are one or two diversions to the South West Coast path that affect access to some venues. Firstly anyone wishing to visit Talland Bay needs to be aware that as of February 2014 the South West Coast path has been diverted so cannot be followed past Landslip Cove. See information here. Also at Downderry one of the paths to the beach passing the school has been closed, however, a number of alternatives are available and this isn't the access described in the current Cheesewring & South East Cornwall guide - so there is no need to cancel any planned trips as it should still be easily possible to get to the bouldering.

Hopefully these paths should reopen soon but it's worth noting that path closures and route changes can be checked here on the South West Coast Path website.

Latest website update

For anyone who missed them first time round the two climbing magazine reviews of the 2012 Cheesewring & South East Cornwall guide have just been added to the Articles section on the Cheesewring Climbing webpages. I'm very grateful to Dave Henderson and Iain Peters for giving permission to republish their reviews on the site. Thanks also to Climb editor Dave Pickford and commissioning editor Ian Smith at Climber for publishing the reviews originally. 

Route description added

There has been little reason to update the Cheesewring Climbing webpages of late as not much seems to have been happening in the area (must be something to do with the bad weather). However, I've just added a description of an easy new route that Rob Bogue and Katie Hammond climbed at Kit Hill Quarry last summer. See here.

My thanks to Rob for sending this in. If anyone out there does have any news or new route descriptions for the South East Cornwall area please do contact us through the website as it will help us keep the information up to date.

Hopefully I will put a few more things on the site in the next few weeks or so.

Rusty Peg gets new look

Tom Bunn has recently updated his website http://www.rustypeg.co.uk/ giving it a smart new look. Rusty Peg aims to provide the best free guides and media for the local climbing community in Devon and Cornwall. Of interest to climbers in South East Cornwall will be a number of photos from Tom's recent Cheesewring Quarry first ascents as well as videos by Tom and Mikey Cleverdon of boulder problems on Bodmin Moor.

So check it out here or visit the Rusty Peg Facebook page.

Cheesewring climbing guide in today's Western Morning News!

There is a two page spread featuring the Cheesewring & South East Cornwall guidebook in the Living Cornwall section of today's Western Morning News (Tuesday 20th August 2013). The article - Rock climbing guide pays homage to beauty and art of the 'mother granite' - can be read online here on the Western Morning News website. The feature, written by Des Hannigan, has a number of photos from the guide. Des's original piece can also be found amongst the articles on the Cheesewring Climbing website.

New F7c by Tom Bunn

Tom Bunn has successfully redpointed a hard new extension to Wring the Changes (F7b+) in Cheesewring Quarry. Although somewhat unimaginatively named Wring the Changes Extension (in deference to the parent route) it weighs in at F7c so constitutes a significant addition to the cannon of Cornish sport routes.

F7c would appear to be the ceiling for hard sport climbing in Cornwall at the moment - at least where commonly acceptable venues are concerned - with the number of routes at the grade currently standing at 6. I'm sure it won't be too long before the bar gets pushed higher.

Tom has also repeated Wring the Changes, which may only be the third ascent of this recently re-equipped test piece.

The full description of the Wring the Changes Extension can be found here. 

Why does Sean climb?

Sean Hawken has climbed a tough new micro-route on the wall left of An Arête (pictured above) at Kilmar Tor. Wye I Climb, E2 6b, was climbed by Sean in the beginning of June - the full description can be found here. Commenting on the route's grade Sean says: "For some reason [Rich] Hudson gave it E3, but it's not. He will say that's what I told him, however I think E2 or even E1 tops. Let's face it, you could solo it safely with mats." He adds: "I took my last chance, for the foreseeable future, to climb at Kilmar Tor and climbed this line in the rain just before leaving for Wales to live, and therefore the top seemed absolutely desperate, however on a dry day with a cool breeze?"

Sean's been an active developer of South East Cornwall's climbing for over twenty years as well as authoring the ground-breaking 1998 guide and providing co-authorship help, over the years, for other guides to the area - including the most recent one. But now he and his family have relocated from Devon to the Wye Valley. A great loss to the local scene and I'm sure his enthusiasm and humour will be missed. However Sean still intends to compile information relating to the bouldering on Bodmin Moor with the intention of producing a guide. If you have anything to add please contact him via his Bodmin Bouldering Facebook page.

Best wishes Sean and I'm sure we'll still see you back on the Moor from time to time!

Also now added to the New Routes section of the Cheesewring Climbing webpages are details of a new bouldering spot in Luxulyan Valley which has been developed by Tom Last.     

 

Climbing guidebook gains nomination in prestigious Cornish publishing awards

After receiving positive reviews in the climbing press, wider recognition was given to Cheesewring & South East Cornwall: A Climbers’ Guide as it secured a Nomination and the praise of judges at the 2013 Holyer an Gof publishing awards (often called the 'Cornish Bookers') which were presented at Waterstones, Truro on July 18th. A full report of the presentation evening has been added to the Articles section of the Cheesewring Climbing webpages. The full list of all the winning publications in the Holyer an Gof Publishers’ Awards for 2013, as well as photos of the presentation evening, can be found at www.holyerangofawards.org.uk.

Martin Crocker climbs new South Coast E5 and E4

It continues to be a busy summer on Cornwall's South Coast and things stepped up a gear last week with a visit from Martin Crocker. In the company of his son Jonathan, Martin added five new climbs to various seaside venues. Perhaps the most noteworthy being Unzip Real Slow E5 5c, at Dodman Point, which sounds like a really frightening lead protected mostly by skyhook runners and 'feather-weight' gear. Also here Martin climbed Deadman's Chest, E1 5a, which he says is worth a star and offers excellent climbing on good rock.

The pair also paid a visit to Lantic Bay resulting in two further additions to Great Lantic Beach Rock. This must surely be the most pleasant and amenable of South East Cornwall's coastal climbing spots and Martin seems to be a fan, describing it as 'a stunningly beautiful place'. Any climbers living or holidaying in the area should take note: Lantic Bay is well worth the trip.

At Pencarrow Head - in addition to climbing all the existing deep water solos - Martin also soloed Totally Out of My Skull, F6a+ (S3.5!) in preference to using the 'gnarly' ridge descent to access the Grim Reefer Wall. While the ridge descent isn't quite as bad as it looks care does need to be taken and it is probably worth roping up for it on first acquaintance.

Previously in February Martin also climbed a new route on the remarkably good Western Gear Pinnacle at Rame Head. Keep On Lovin, E4 6a, is described as a fine pitch on great rock and takes the wall to the left of Pete O'Sullivan's 1984 route Framed. It has emerged that the two routes to the right, Retrieved and Revived, are both in fact yet to receive a lead ascent (see note on the New Route page). If anyone does lead these please get in touch and you'll get all the first ascent glory!

Full descriptions of these routes can be found here. Many thanks to Martin Crocker for providing the details and useful feedback on other things from the area.

Heaps of adventure and delightful coffee on the South Coast

The last weekend of June was a busy one for new routes on the South Coast. First up an experienced team of South West pioneers descended on Nare Head to climb a three pitch ridge-line which had been on Pat Littlejohn's 'to do list' for quite sometime. For this adventure Pat assembled a crack team of veteran climbers which included Dave Garner, Dave Hope and Des Hannigan. The resultant rock climb, named Finger Ridge (pictured above), turned out to be 200 feet of VS fun. Des Hannigan commented on the route's greatest attributes: "The coffee at Nare Hotel was a delight," he said. I dare not hazard a guess at the combined age of the route's first ascent party!

The following day just along the coast at Dodman Point, the slightly more youthful pair of Tom Bunn and Alex Orr put up a clean aid route that sounds truly terrifying. The Pioneer takes a crackline up the overhanging wall between The Jolly Farmer and Horrorshow and was climbed without recourse, of course, to hammered or drilled protection.

Unbeknownst to Tom and Alex the Littlejohn and Garner team responsible for The Jolly Farmer were just a few hundred metres away on the Prince Heathen Cliff adding more climbs to their Dodman stomping ground. A VS named Pretender, and two E2s called Quartzophenia (pictured below) and Handsome Prince were the result of a good day's work for the greatest devotees of Dodman's adventure climbing. According to Pat: "We had a great day at last finding some solid rock to climb on Dodman!"

Full descriptions of all these routes and more photos can be found on the New Routes page of the Cheesewring Climbing Website. I'd be grateful to anyone with information on new routes or other climbing news in South East Cornwall if they could get in touch to let us know. Finally many thanks to Pat Littlejohn, Dave Garner, Dave Hope, Des Hannigan and Tom Bunn for providing details of these new routes and permission to use the first ascent photos.