New Limestone guidebook to support North Wales Bolt Fund
Gav Foster on the crux of the superb Hole of Creation E3 6a, Little Orme Photo: Si Panton
A group of North Wales activists are collaborating on the production of a new guidebook to the Ormes Limestone area in North Wales. This publication is dedicated to supporting the North Wales Bolt Fund which has played a crucial role in the vast amount of re-equipping work undertaken to-date. There has been a need for a new guide since Rockfax’s 1997 North Wales Limestone became out of print.
The book will be in the shops in March 2011 in time for the spring season. It will provide up-to-date route information with colour topos and a range of top quality action photos. There will also be an historical section, a graded list, access and conservation information, plus unique contributions from climbers past and present who have helped to define and develop the climbing in this area. Two sample pages which give a feel for how the finished work will look are available to download here and here.
The guidebook team is made up of experienced and active local climbers, who between them have an extensive pool of knowledge of all the crags in the guidebook area throughout the grade range. The team consists of Pete Harrison, Andy Boorman and Jon Ratcliffe with contributions from a host of other keen locals including Lee Roberts, Chris Doyle, Pete Robins and Simon Panton.
“We’re really excited about the new book, and it has been great to see all the locals coming forward to support the project. The financial boost to the bolt fund is going to be very welcome and, really, it was the obvious thing to do. Even if you only climb on the Ormes occasionally, please buy a copy as it will help us to keep the bolts and belays in good condition.”
Enthused Pete Harrison.
It is important to note that this guidebook is being researched and written by a group of volunteers who are passionate about climbing in the area – none of the volunteers will be drawing a wage or making any profit from the proceeds of the book sales; all proceeds from the sale of the guide will go to the North Wales Bolt Fund. These contributions will go directly towards the cost of continuing the equipping work of installing marine-grade bolts in place of old expansion bolts which are slowly rotting away in the aggressive salt-water environment.
Last year Lower Pen Trwyn received an extensive re-equipping with resin bolts supplied by the bolt fund, and access to major cliffs such as The Diamond would not be possible without the efforts of the NWBF. Access to Upper Pen Trwyn would also be under serious threat were it not for the work of a small team of volunteers who have been checking and replacing lower-off anchors on over 150 routes including trad, sport and mixed. This work is essential to aid the BMC efforts to maintain access to routes above the Marine Drive.
(NB. If you wish to make a donation to the NWBF there is a clickable donate link on the front page of the North Wales Limestone wiki.)
North Wales Winter Climbing interim guide coming soon!
Cover of the forthcoming interim guide
The first dusting of snow landed on the Carneddau this week and thoughts of winter climbing were stirred up once again. To further add to the rising levels of psyche, all you fanatical winter climbers might like to know about a forthcoming publication, North Wales Winter Climbing, an interim guide which is sure to set the scene on fire.
Also, if we had a penny for every time someone asked when the new Llanberis Slate guide was due out we’d probably have quite a few pennies, enough say, to retire for the rest of our lives. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but the point remains, there is much anticipation of this new guide.
And then there is Gogarth South, and the North Wales Bouldering guide has just sold out…so just what exactly is happening over at the Ground Up office in Brynrefail?
Well, now we know as Ground Up head honcho, Si Panton has just posted a news item on the Ground Up site giving the low down on all the forthcoming titles for North Wales.
New V12 shop opens in Stockport
The back half of the newly opened V12 shop at the Awesome Walls climbing wall in Stockport. Photo: Gareth Aston
The V12 partnership with Awesome Walls continues to flourish. Following on from the success of the recently opened V12 shops in the Liverpool and Stoke climbing walls, we are thrilled to declare the opening of a very special V12 shop in the Awesome Walls climbing wall in Stockport.
Gareth Aston, V12 managing director, explains the set up:
“This is more than just a ‘climbing wall shop’; it has the largest selection of rock climbing shoes available and will soon have even more. We are doing crag clothing and hardware with great deals all the time. Plus there are DMM 2nds – we are the only shop in the country that has them. Also you have the full backup of the Llanberis, Liverpool and Stoke stores, so if it’s not in Stockport we can get it there quickly, and as ever do check out our stuff online.”
Before adding:
“We remain committed to the concept of the independent climbing shop; that means more choice, better deals and experienced staff you can trust. Come and check us out, you won’t be disappointed.”
New Tremadog guide arrives
Front cover showing Don Sargeant's shot of Jonathan Croxford on The Fang HVS 5b, Craig Bwlch y Moch
Eric’s Café may be up for sale, but the recent run of Tremadog clean up sessions (organised by Mike Raine) have shown just how much affection people feel towards crags such as Bwlch y Moch, or indeed any of the other wonderful dolerite crags in the area. Riding on the back of this renewed wave of enthusiasm is the brand new Climbers’ Club Tremadog guide which has just arrived and is already selling like hot cakes on a cold morning.
The new guide follows on from the well received Llanberis and Ogwen books and continues the trend in CC guides towards a fresher and more modern design. This really is a world away from the previous edition, which famously rejected the popular star rating system and consequently painted a rather dour picture of what are some of the best crags in Snowdonia (although to be fair it did have some excellent action shots).
This time we not only get the stars back, but lots of lovely, full colour topos and enticing action shots. Funky little graphic symbols and a ‘talking head’ history section add further colour, functionality and interest. There is also much attention given to the peripheral crags, such as Moel y Gest which even has a rash of new sport routes (partially covered here because development is still ongoing), and the delightful Nantmor crags.
Grab yourself a copy and go get some of that exquisite dolerite action!
V12 now a specialist outlet for The North Face Summit series
The North Face Men's Point Five Jacket £248.99 - a superb technical shell from the Summit series
V12 has been chosen to be a specialist outlet for North Face Summit series. This is an exclusive club, with only 20 other retailers in the UK involved.
This comes as part of a move by The North Face to reconnect with the technical aspect of their brand, something which we at V12 applaud.
The new winter range is now in stock – come and check it out, or have a look at our range on line.
DMM Cosmetic seconds – new batch has arrived
DMM Eclipse Wiregate Quickdraw 12cm Cosmetic 2nd - only £9.99!
Bargain hunter alert! We’ve got a new batch of DMM cosmetic seconds up online now. These tend to sell through very quickly, so if you see something you want don’t hang about as we may not have them for very long.
Black Diamond Impact mat – only £79.99!
Black Diamond Impact mat - only £79.99!
The temperatures are dropping, the friction is improving: yes folks, autumn is here and its time to hit the boulders! How about a new bouldering pad?
We’ve got the last batch of the Black Diamond Impact mats in the shop now – down from £140 to only £79.99 and postage free.
This is your last chance to get your mits on this super deal, so don’t delay.
Bank Holiday Mega Sale
Bargain hunt alert! It’s that time of the year again when we need to clear out the summer stock to make room for the autumn ranges.
In the Llanberis shop we will be running a Mega Sale starting on Monday 23rd August and running through the following Bank Holiday weekend to finish on Monday 30th August.
The key brands in the sale will be Mammut, The North Face, Prana, Westcomb and Outdoor Research.
Sounds like the perfect excuse to make another visit to North Wales…the bird bans are also off the sea cliffs too! Yes folks, the ‘glorious 1st’ (i.e. the first day of August when the main bird bans come off the South Stack cliffs) has passed and it’s now Red Wall/Mousetrap time!
Guidebooks galore!
front cover shot showing Steve McClure on the frighteningly difficult Mutation F9a, Raven Tor Photo: Keith Sharples
Here at V12 we do like a good guidebook, so we were pleased to see a trio of hot new titles landing in the shop this month.
The BMC continue to produce top quality productions under Grimer’s watchful eye. The latest in the Peak grit range of guidebooks is Froggatt and Black Rocks. A monster book with over 2200 routes and 1100 boulder problems, plus all the usual interesting historical tit bits. Yours for a snip at £24.
Next up is Swiss Bloc 1, a bumper fun guide to the 12 best bouldering areas in northern Switzerland, including the high profile venue, Magic Wood. The guide is trilingual (English, German and French) and has a pleasing modern feel to its design. If you haven’t been yet, make sure you check this out – it really is a special part of the world.
And last, but not least is a supplement to Peak limestone. Recent Developments on Peak Limestone comes from the Ground Up stable and is authored by Peak guru, Mark ‘Zippy’ Pretty. All you need to know about what has been happening on the steep white stuff in one nifty booklet.
Star product: Crux RK30 climbing pack
Crux RK30 - top class rucsac design!
Every now and then a truly excellent design turns up in the range of new products. Standards are really high these days so it takes something quite special to stand out.
The Crux RK30 is more than just a well thought out climbing pack. Tough, functional and intelligently designed – this is a genuine star product!
Make sure you check it out.
