Wales: Join the Dots, 8A, Pantymwyn

Tom Williams has climbed an obvious harder finish into Be Ruthless, at the limestone venue of Pantymwyn in North Wales.

“It’s a nice little addition to the crag. Maybe weighs in at around 8A but I'm sure future repeats could tell me how wrong I am." 

Said Tom.

Photo: Courtesy of northwalesbouldering.com

Video: Join the Dots (8A)

Source: northwalesbouldering.com

South West: Pipeline, 8A+, Silery Point

Tom Newberry has climbed a new problem, which he has called Pipeline (8A+), at Silery/Foreland point, the beach just east of the better known coastal destination of Lynmouth in North Devon.

Pipeline climbs what was well-known as the Silery Wall Project - an immaculate highball wall that overhangs by around 5 degrees. The section of crag where this new problem is located hosts several other three star problems, all of which are among some of the best on the North Devon coast. It is found via a 30+ minute walk-in, and a rather epic 350m descent at the far eastern end of the second bay reached.

Tom gives the beta:

"The problem goes straight up the middle of the wall starting with left hand on the low arête and right in a slot. The beach height frequently varies by upto ½ a meter, so this can sometimes be a sit and sometimes be a stretch from standing. Success comes from linking huge throws between bad holds to top out on the ledge were the rock changes colour. The groove to the right is out of bounds but you would have to be a giant to use this anyway. I feel it could be the hardest straight up in the south west and is one of the best wall climbs I’ve done, despite its awkward/frustrating (yet superbly set) location".

Wales: Madame Allure, 8B, Ogwen

Pete Robins has continued his North Wales and more specifically Ogwen winter bouldering onslaught with the first ascent of an impressive and extremely hard new sitter to Mike Adams’ problem, Danny LaRue (7C+/8A) on the left side of the Lilly Savage Roof.

Right: Pete Robins on Madame Allure (8B)
© Si Panton

Mike’s original start to the line pulled on from a crouched position halfway along the jutting left arête of the roof, however Pete noticed a much longer and more involved problem could be done by starting at the base of the arête/roof lip, and over the winter months he set about piecing together the intense sequence. Pete has named his new line Madame Allure and has graded it 8B.

Full details and a more in depth analysis of the line and Pete’s ascent can be found at the source of this story:

Source: Northwalesbouldering.com

Scotland: Helicoidal Flow, 8A+, Reiff

Dan Varian has climbed, amongst a haul of other excellent (slightly) lower graded problems, a fabulous hard new wall climb above the picturesque sandstone platforms of Reiff, on the North West coast of Scotland.

Helicoidal Flow (8A+) climbs an obvious and eye-catching seam feature to the right of the classic 7B/E7 (depending on whether you top out or not), Undertow on the 'Bouldering Cliff' described on page 168 of the newest edition on the 'Bouldering in Scotland' guidebook. The problem starts from sitting and makes a series of difficult moves and snatches direct up the deceptively steep wall to a horizontal fin-edge, before veering left to an obvious scooping pocket to finish. Dan rated this and the other problems here as "world class", going on to say "my day at Reiff ranks as one of my fave days out ever". High praise indeed.

Image: Dan on Helicoidal Flow. © Katie Mundy.

Video: There is a video featuring this and Dan's other new problems available to view on the Beastmaker Vimeo page: click here.

Peak District: In the Flick of Time, 8A, Burbage North

Neil Travers has climbed a new problem just left of the 'The Grogan' buttress at Burbage North, in the Peak District.

In the Flick of Time (8Aish) starts just left of another recent and quality addition, Mr. Sheen (7B). Neil gives the exact beta: "sit start on an obvious good diagonal rail, before flicking up right handed to the obvious sloper pinch and continuing directly up past a still very difficult press. The meat of the problem is in latching the sloper and moving your left foot onto the rail to then move upwards to the good break."

Source: UKBouldering.com

Yorkshire: PaTina Turner, 8B, Earl Crag

After a protracted siege Tom Peckitt has reaped dividends with the recent spell of good weather and climbed the obvious sitting start project to Handy Andy's at Earl Crag, in West Yorkshire.

Starting down to the left of the original line, PaTina Turner (8B), as Tom has named the line, tackles some precision movements between gnarly crimps, which look to be heftily moral and skin sapping when unsuccessfully executed. Tom explains:

"It involves a hard move from sitting to a pretty small, crimpy and painful pinch with the right hand. The foothold is pretty terrible and it took a while to figure out 'micro-beta' to help it stick. On so many occasions I thought it was secure only for it to pop on the next move. Then you have to place your left heel by your left hand and pull through to a foothold used on Handy Andy's. A couple of tricky moves and tough cut lose and you're joining the stand up. 

 As usual, it always feels easier on the send than first envisaged but I'll stick my neck out and go with the 8B grade."

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