[r-man]

...Near Rochdale. Checked it out a couple of weeks ago with GCW. Nice low to mid-grade bouldering, lots of easy bits and pieces. One or two projects (very few though). We climbed everything in the first area, plus some stuff in other areas, but there was still plenty we didn't manage to get round in one day. I'm not saying there's loads to do - each area contains maybe 20 mostly easy problems, and there are about 4 areas - but there's enough to have a good day, as long as you aren't in search of hard stuff.

Photos taken on my mobile phone. Amazing for such a small lens.



...View of first area. GCW on an excellent ft6b arete. And again:



Easier stuff


burly 6c sitter. / excellent 6b slab


Excellent 6c sitter slap move.


Another sitter to a small wall. 6c/7a ish. / Sitter fridge hugging project

[GCW]

1.  Cheers.  I look like a cock in every single picture there 
2.  Marc C is gonna kill you though 
3.  It's called Blackstone Edge, no s.
4. 

[r-man]

1. This is quite an achievement, especially as you aren't in them all.
2. He seemed nice enough. And assured me the machete was purely ornamental.
3. True, Nik led me astray on the other thread. No "s". No "Edge" either. That bit refers to the edge.

[GCW]

A short video of R-man on a crimpy wall, probably around 6c+.

[nik at work]

Spelling nazis....

Crimpy wall is very generous at 6c+ IMHO, the wall round to the left of this problem is ace (with the sloper/pocket). In fact this block and the 6b slab block both have three or four excellent problems on them. The arete right of the slab is a doozie. All low/mid grade stuff, but great problems.
Where is the fridge hugger? And ll the sitting slapper probs? And is the 6c/7a short wall sitter the same as the one in the video? If not where's that?

Nice place, I'll be back definitely...

[r-man]

What grade did you reckon? I really couldn't tell. Didn't try wall to left. Was it a sitter?

In the clip, you can hear people in the background enjoying the doozie of which you speak. (It is good, you're right.)

Fridge hugger is left of the 6b arete in my first photos. 6c/7a is on very short wall up and left of these blocks. Starts on strangely featured rock. Sloper may feel easy on a cold day (it was boiling when we were there).

6c slap problem is directly above/behind arete boulder.

[GCW]

Nik, PM me your e-mail and I'll help make things clearer.
I plan to be back there sometime soon.  I hope.
Give us a grade on that vid please.

[nik at work]

What grade? You're asking me to grade something? Sheesh some people.... I'd say V4 (6b+).

Wall to left would go from a sitter, but is currently far to green so just a one move wonder off the sloper pocket to the top.

To the right and behind those two blocks on the edge there is a really good arete feature which is also brilliant, also goes from a slightly artificial sitter. Right of this are several easy slabs and right of them is small roof to a slab which is good.

Further right there was a really good looking rib/blunt arete with a sporting landing.

Might go back up this week if we get a few days of good weather....

[r-man]

Further right there was a really good looking rib/blunt arete with a sporting landing.

I saw that - it looked excellent. Such a shame about the disaster lurking beneath.

Other places to check out - up above the 1st area and leftwards over the peat are a couple of good looking overhanging walls, with rounded breaks.

The stuff below the trig point also looks nice, with one or two hard looking highballs that I doubt have been done.

Also, another project - the left end of the anvil block tapers into an undercut nose. Hang this and contrive a skin-searing, knee-shearing, chest-tearing manteling groveling clutching thrutching elegant sequence of moves to surmount the boulder. I predict.

[GCW]

Nik, is there anything much left of the crag?  We didn't really look over that way.

[r-man]

Yes we did. I recall the rocks of which Nik speaks.

[nik at work]

I'm confused now.

All the stuff I'm talking about is to the right of the 'crag'. The leftmost thing I did was the scoopy wave wall just left of the 6b arete in the first set of photos. Everything else I'm talking about is right of that. So I'm not sure why R-man thinks that knowing what I'm talking about means that you did look to the left of the crag. Or am I missing something? If only marc c would pull his finger out and produce this topo he's been promising since the beginning of time....

I didn't look at anything left of the crag, so probably worth a scout around at some point.

[GCW]

No, Nik you're right.  All this is right of the crag, but I thought thereay have been a few blocks further left.
R-man, we did see the block of which Nik speaks.  I too remember.

[nik at work]

I found that scoopy wall left of the 6b arete quite hard, are you both tall?

It was wet which may not have helped...

[r-man]

I'm not sure why R-man thinks that knowing what I'm talking about means that you did look to the left of the crag.

Oh dear. This is the beauty of the internet. 

We saw the blocks to the right. We also looked to the left. This is what I said. 

If only marc c would pull his finger out and produce this topo he's been promising since the beginning of time....

We talked to him. He seems to have gone off the idea.

[nik at work]

See if you'd done the post in list format it would have been clear that you were making two sperate statements. You shouldn't be so averse to lists....

[r-man]

See if you'd done the post in list format it would have been clear that you were making two sperate statements. You shouldn't be so averse to lists....

You're right. Of late I have become listless and feel lost. My mouse is seriously listing. Last and not least, I have listened to your suggestion and I shall henceforth list listing less listlessly lest I list, lost and Liston-like.

I found that scoopy wall left of the 6b arete quite hard, are you both tall?

You mean this?



6b might be right, can't remember. I'm not tall, but as you can see, GCW might be considered so. 
Also did a good dyno from horizontal holds to the right, to the top break at about 6c. This is one of those dynos that might be harder for the tall.

By the way, the fridge hugger is to the right in the background of this one...

[nik at work]

Yeah 6b ish sounds right. Although my sequence was different, and I found it quite balancy and technical. But this may have been becasue of the wet...

[GCW]

Also did a good dyno from horizontal holds to the right, to the top break at about 6c. This is one of those dynos that might be harder for the tall.

Yeah, good spot that one    And it is a couple of grades harder for the tall, honest.

Yeah 6b ish sounds right. Although my sequence was different, and I found it quite balancy and technical. But this may have been becasue of the wet...

That darned wet again.   
I seem to remember that was a bit of a pull on smallish holds and a balance up to the good break.  Good problem that one.

Sequence of R-Man's 6c slap:


That slopey nose thing was hideous that day we went, but it was very hot.  Poor friction I guess..... 

[nik at work]

Did I mention I only have little knees, It's a wonder I can walk let alone climb....

[Petey]

R-Man,

Glad to see people are still exploring the outer Rochdale area. I have done quite a bit of climbing at Blackstone Edge over the years as I used to live in Rochdale. I have done the arete in the first photo, the crimpy wall in the video and all the major lines on the two free standing larger boulders (the 6b slab photo). Plus quite a bit more. There is a good little wall/edge over the back almost directly behind the main crag with a few nice problems - did you get there?

[GCW]

Yeah, we looked at that but didn't do wny problems.  It was more of a scouting mission to see what was available.  I plan to head back and check out the other areas.  It is an excellent lower grade venue, with a few harder (7a and above) problems thrown in.
You will find R-Man and myself explore a lot of Lancs Esoterica.
Nont Sarah's any good?

[Petey]

No I haven't checked out Nont Sarah's - let us know what it is like. Spent most of my time at Cow's Mouth / Blackstone Edge / Tonacliffe...

[butters]

Was there last week with Sloper and Nik - good venue and some great problems there even for the lower grade of punter like myself - Sloper and myself estimate that there is a circuit consisting of 30ish problems up to English 6a there but this figure was arrived at after 4 pints in the Sheaf so it could be wildly inaccurate. One thing that is not wildly inaccurate is the greenness aspect - "Green as Kermits cock" is an understatement!

I will post up some pics as soon as I find the cable for my camera...

bluebrad

[GCW]

I intend to get to Nont Sarah's soon, it's on my list.  And it's a loooong list.
Not a lot of bouldering at Cow's Mouth, is there?  The natural bit is quite good but the quarry ain't too hot for bouldering.  I may be wrong as it's a while since I've been.
Is there any bouldering at Tonacliffe?