Jon suggested I did an update of some of the new stuff I've dug out over the last few years.
I had put loads of this on peakboudering.info. And most stuff has been mentioned in the BMC Peak area newsletters at some point. A lot of this is off the top of my head, so might include some errors. Sorry.
I have included the stuff that people might not know about as it’s new, or stuff that has been around for a while but not seen much/any attention.
As usual, grades are mostly guesswork.
Stanage
I did a few 6s on a boulder down below Victorian Overmantle, in a boggy area. Probably climbed before. I remember an arete sort of thing, a wall sort of thing, a french start sort of thing and lots of scrittle. And having wet feet. Nice quiet spot though.
On the boulder on the uphill side of the path just before (or maybe after) the gate that goes up to the Business Boulder. There is a nice prow/arete on the uphill side of the boulder from a low (not sitting) start. About 7a. I remember this being decent. There are a couple of other easier things on here too. All likely to have been done before.
But I’ve come up with some names in case they’ve not: Not to be Baked in a Tray, Bunfamiliar, Croissant Arete.
The Ireland - ?
The low start to Roy’s Problem.
This has seen some action - quite rightly it’s pretty good. The rock has always been fragile and a bit of the staring hold has now broken off. It’s still possible, but please be careful. It dries slowly. The grade seems to have settled down to somewhere between 7c and 8b+. Glad to have cleared that up!
The DTs boulder
I did a couple of mantles that go straight through the traverse. 7a/7a+ ish for each of them. The one on the left used a pocket feature. Decent problems if you want something a bit different/quiet at stanage.
Stormzy - 7c
A sit start to The Storm, starting matched on the rail down and left.
Stormy Daniels - 7b
Sit start in the same pace but go directly to the top.
Up on the top of the crag, just West of the trig point is a prow/roof feature - you can see it from the road. I did a couple of problems on this, starting at the back on a jugy break and climbing out on nice slopers. One exits up the prow and one more rightwards I think. Both 6c ish. Nice rock.
Grotto Slab
In the cave behind Grotto Slab. I climbed 4 problems, some had probably been climbed before, and some claimed again since. Good spot in the summer as it’s shady and the holds are smooth.
The best one is a 7c which I called Mobius Strip. It starts sitting on the right hand side of the cave (RH pocket thing and LH on the end of the rail), and traverse leftwards to the arete, rocking around the corner to finish standing on Grotto Slab.
The other problems are 6c-7a ish.
Bamford
Jon has written up the latest new stuff, but a couple of people have asked me about this one from a few years ago.
Avoiding the Traybakes - 8a
The wall right of Bookend. Stuff a pad into the gap between the boulder and the blocks below. Use this diving board to tip toe onto the thin break. Now crimp up the wall using poor holds and smeary feet. A bit oddball but it’s a nice clean wall so worth contriving a way of climbing it.
Burbage N
Kepler - 7c+
Bisect the prow of Boyager, finishing up the left hand sidewall. Start standing on the block on the right hand side, lean on and use toe hooks and clamping to cross the prow, then a heel to go up the left sidewall.
Evil Eye - 8a+
Sit start on the Superstition Wall. Eliminating the left arete for hands and feet. Start sitting on a boulder, right hand on positive crimp, left hand on a ghost crimp. Left heel on a decent hold. Do a big move and get established on a couple of crimpy pockets then finish directly above on a juggy break.
Big is Beautiful - 7b
A sit start to Small is Beautiful using the arete and a right heel to get on board.
Overlap thing - 7c+
Above the Terrace is that project stepped roof thing. The vague groove in the right hand side of it can be climbed at about 7b. Maybe Iain Farrah did this? The left hand side of it looks mega but doesn't seem to work as a problem.
I climbed a problem starting left, then going up through the roof and traversing rightwards on some very sloping holds (heel toe in the back) to finish up the groove on the right. You could pull on in the same spot and shuffle along the break under the roof to finish up the groove, but it’s sort of not the point. Not a great problem but worth recording as it’s something else to go at?
Burbage S
Hell for Leather direct start - 7c
Hard to know where the old route actually goes? But this has a great sequence into a nice easy highball romp. With a belay steak at the top which makes life easy. Don’t just traverse left and go up the big holds!
Burbage W
Dreadlock - 7b+
Start up Long’s Lock but finish above via some slopers. Spicey.
Froggat
Jam Bomb - 7a
The left arete of the Hairpin boulder, left of Jelly Bomb. Start with right hand low on a sidepull and left hand high in a break/dish. Climb directly up to a sloping top. A low start would be possible but very dabby.
Gardoms
A bit further along from Sauvito etc…
This area is described in the BMC guide book as having “a small scattering of problems” that “aren’t anything special”.
It turns out Pit Fighter/Dhalsim is one of the best walls in the Peak and has recently been getting some much deserved attention. I have also added:
M. Bison - 7c
A direct finish to Pit Fighter. Avoid the big ledge out left and head straight up via sloping ripples to the top of the boulder. Of course it’s a bit blinkered, but it adds some tricky moves on poor holds and makes the most of the big wall.
N. Bison - 8b
Start as for Dhalsim and finish up M. Bison.
Chun Li - 7c+
On the pathside boulder (just below Pit Fighter). Start matched on the obvious edges under the roof and climb up and leftwards (avoiding the back arete that The Pathologist/Slob climbs) by pinching the life out of the lip. A toe hook out right helps.
This is sort of mentioned in the BMC guidebook too, but I don’t think it had been climbed before?
Bottlenose - 7c+/8a
The left arete of the Sauvito boulder. From a standing start. There are 2 exits. One of them does a few moves then slaps leftwards to the sanctuary of the “eye” pocket. Less good, but less scary and less hard. 7c+ ish.
The direct finish continues up the arete to an airy move to the top of the boulder with your right hand. It’s classy. 8a ish.
The main edge
The Fool - 7c+
The sidewall to the right of 2 Headed Boy. Start matched/sitting on a low break out right and climb the seam up and leftwards to the ledge and easier finish.
Ned and Shoulders - 8a+
The overhang/groove right of A Fearful Orange. Start standing using a left hand gaston. Get on with difficulty (right hand on your own leg seems to help - French starting isn’t really in the spirit of things) and climb up via some poor holds. I did it with a weird palm move, great fun! Reach some poor slopers and finish rightwards up Neutral Milk Hotel. Quite reachy.
Birchen
iPatch - 8a?
An eliminate on Copenhagen Wall. Sit start under the roof (to the left of the flake that you use on Mermaid) and climb straight up on sloping/polished ripples. I eliminated the sidepull flake out right. Would be a grade or so easier using it? I don’t remember loads apart from a big drop knee in a pocket under the roof, then a hard thrutch to get the left foot over the lip for the last move.
Chatsworth
Cherry Lane - 8a
Climb the prow of Honalee using only the right hand side of it for hands and feet. Has a tricky heel on it and a small crimp.
Curbar
Dennis - 7c
An eliminate just left of Hurricane. From a lovely left hand pinch and the Hurricane ramp, pull on and dyno to the top. Named after storm Dennis.
Wharncliffe
Beef Manifold - 8a?
A right hand finish to Kobe. Climb through the main bit of Kobe then traverse right across some edges to finish by rocking around the corner (above a grizzly landing). It does add some decent moves, I promise.
Ben Bransby also figured out how to climb Kobe without the toe hook on the left. This makes it possible for shorter climbers. It’s harder, but probably a better sequence. So don’t be put off by being told this problem is reachy!
Wyming Brook
Heinz Sight - 7c
An eliminate up the middle of the blank wall on Broken Bottle Buttress, avoiding the aretes. It has a very cool thumb sprag/gaston move. There’s a loose/crumbly flake on the right that’s best avoided. I need to go back and fix/remove it. There are solid holds above and below it, but the flake is the most obvious feature. Don’t grab it!
Cratcliffe
Vlogging a Dead Horse - 8a
The scoops in the cave of Picalli’s Pickle.
Start with left hand on a pinch and right hand in a scoop. Use a toe hook and a knee bar to ride the scoops, until you can get some crimps round the lip and slap leftwards to a jug.
It eliminates everything left of the crack, and the floor at the start (the floor and rock sort of blend together, but you’ll know if you’re cheating). It’s a bit blinkered but it’s worth creating some rules so you get to climb on those lovely scoop features.
Stroll the Merry Way - 7c
Behind Sweet Thing is a low prow. Pull on from squatting using a left hand edge and right hand pinch. Heel on and slap up to a lovely ball shaped jug. A bit small but the jug at the top makes it worth it.
Prestmaker 1000/2000 - 7c+/8a
A roof directly above the P crack boulder. Start undercutting the back of the roof and pinching another hold in the roof. Climb out to the front lip, using toe hooks, then finish up either side of the arete.
Priestmaker 1000 finishes on the right hand side - a bit easier but a bit dabby.
Priestmaker 2000 finishes on the left hand side - a harder but less dabby.
The top of this was originally climbed by Jamie Lilleman.
74 - 7c
To the left of 73 on the P crack boulder. Sit start on the fin, and climb the sidewall via a knee bar, a thin slot and a big wallop to the top.
Pinchers Wall low - 7c+/8a ish
Start LH in the lovely scoop and RH on a sidepull. Use a heel in the scoop to climb into the stand start and finish up this. Quite hip intensive.
Ned’s Straight Up - 7c+
Sit start in the middle of Jerry’s Traverse - LH sidepull and RH undercut. Climb up into the slots of Jerry’s via a big yank, and finish along this.
Bradley Edge
Underdog - 8a
A low/standing start to Top Dog. Pull on with 2 poor crimps and snatch into the stand start. Obviously don’t French start!
Mervyn Stutter
Angry Pirate - 7c+
The left arete of Skooter Ram. This isn’t a great problem, as it’s actually easier to climb this feature on the edges between the aretes, but visually it’s an obvious challenge. And I enjoyed doing it last year after first trying it probably 15 years ago. It also dries very fast and is 1 minute from the road.
Start standing, left hand on the arete and right hand on a tilted crimp on the face. Use a bad foothold on the arete to slap up to more right hand edges and top out more easily. Eliminate the right arete for hands and feet throughout. And the left hand side block (or any foot blocks).
Black Garden
Shut Your Noise - 7b+
A low start to Solo Polo Vision, from matched on the rail.
The Watcher - 7c+
Forest Casual low start.
Start with one hand on the arete and one on a flake in the cave. Use a heel on the flake to get established on the arete and finish up FC.
Bosley Cloud
Summit from Nothing - 8a
A standing start to Summit arete, from feet on the ground, not on any rocks. Pull on with a couple of pinches and do a hard slap into the rail and finish up the route. Sam Lawson has added a sit start to this which looks great and adds some hard looking moves.
The Waiting Room - 7c+
The blunt prow/arete feature on the right hand end of the crag from a stand start. At the absolute limit of my span, and felt desperate! Not one for the short.
Tom Newman has added a sit start which is even more reachy, but looks brilliant. Clocks in at 8b.
Churnet
Bock Atrocity - 8a
The project on the far left of the Frankenchurnet wall. I started standing using a RH flake and LH pocket. Do a huge move up to a sloper rail, match and top out. It would be possible to start this lower on some flake holds, but they looked a bit fragile so I just pulled on from higher up.
