UKBouldering.com
the shizzle => chuffing => Topic started by: shark on November 19, 2021, 07:15:00 pm
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An American asked me this tonight and I was a bit stumped. Weather-wise when is best to sample the best that the UK has to offer? I said June/July but I’m doubting myself now
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For all round climbing, traditionally May/June or September. Often more settled weather, better conditions, less summer storms, less midges, less of those sporadic but annoying heatwaves, and less school holiday bollox making national parks and any form of countryside accomodation a no go zone.
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Yes May/June is probably a better call. September can be a bit sketchy
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An American asked me this tonight and I was a bit stumped. Weather-wise when is best to sample the best that the UK has to offer? I said June/July but I’m doubting myself now
Difficult to answer because of the high variability of weather at any time of the year, but on average I would say that May/June has best mix of slightly lower rainfall, decent temps but lowish humidity and decent chance of dry crags.
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When I lived in Japan, I quite often got the question "when is the rainy season" (in Europe). "Year round," I usually replied.
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Depends really what type of climbing you want to do, but I guess "best that the UK has to offer" would start with bouldering at Hartland Quay. You'd then head North to boulder at The Roaches, Burbage South Edge, Caley, Earl and Crookrise, stop off for sport at Malham, and then head to Wales for a bit of trad and bouldering in Llanberis pass. Next you'd hop across the channel for more of the same at Fairhead. You'd then nip back over, have a session at Harter Fell and the Bowderstone, then make a minor detour via Queens Crag and Hepburn on your way up to Scotland. There you'd do a spot of trad in Glen Nevis before finishing with bouldering in Torridon.
Start in late March, finish sometime in early May. You'd have a great time :)
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Yep, April/ May.
You can view statistically dry or wet periods here:
https://www.metcheck.com/WEATHER/singularities.asp
I remember when the Petzl rock trip arrived on the wettest week of the year....
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Another vote for April - June.
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I'd add that for grit Feb is the best month. Statistically the driest period of the year is Feb-April.
But the landscape looks best in early Nov and mid-May. Depending on latitude.
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:agree: with virtually everything above. April-June depending on what type of climbing you want to do. As well as less rainfall you’ve also got the sunlight to dry it and more options for if it does rain. My mates certainly didn’t find it too hot in June and were extremely taken with daylight lasting ‘til 10PM.
I think the sober consensus here is partly down to it being late autumn right now. I once got sucked into a debate on a Facebook partners group where most posters were advising the protagonist that he should use his meagre annual leave entitlement to visit the Peak in November. For trad. Crucially said discussion took place in the dog days of summer when you wistfully imagine the colder months as being endless crisp blue sky days of perfect conditions rather than the reality of those days being the reward for fortnights of clag and 4PM twilight.