Pete Whillance 83Lounds's free ascents <strong>of</strong> Black Widow <strong>and</strong> The Groan that year representedclimb<strong>in</strong>g at the upper limit <strong>of</strong> the E2 grade.Many <strong>of</strong> the hardest routes pioneered dur<strong>in</strong>g this period, however, employeddirect aid <strong>and</strong> the level <strong>of</strong> difficulty achieved is now far harder to assess.On Scafell, for <strong>in</strong>stance, some notable completely free ascents were still be<strong>in</strong>gmade: M<strong>in</strong>otaur by Syd Clark, Gold Rush by Ge<strong>of</strong>f Cram <strong>and</strong> Bill Young, GiltEdge Elim<strong>in</strong>ate by Col<strong>in</strong> Read <strong>and</strong> most important <strong>of</strong> all, the long-st<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>gproblem <strong>of</strong> a complete girdle traverse <strong>of</strong> the East Buttress, by the freshlyemerg<strong>in</strong>g team <strong>of</strong> John Adams <strong>and</strong> Col<strong>in</strong> Read. This marathon girdle providedserious <strong>and</strong> susta<strong>in</strong>ed climb<strong>in</strong>g for 1,200 feet <strong>and</strong> took some 19V2 hours over atwo day period to complete. (See 'Lord <strong>of</strong> the R<strong>in</strong>gs' by C. Read, <strong>in</strong> CarlisleMounta<strong>in</strong>eer<strong>in</strong>g Club Journal 1971) Lord <strong>of</strong> the R<strong>in</strong>gs was a magnificentaccomplishment, provid<strong>in</strong>g one <strong>of</strong> the best expeditions to be had on Lakel<strong>and</strong>rock. It was to be six years before it received a second ascent.At the time, other routes were be<strong>in</strong>g ascended by the same pioneers us<strong>in</strong>gsubstantial amounts <strong>of</strong> aid, e.g. Chimera by Cram <strong>and</strong> Young <strong>and</strong> Dyad by KenJackson <strong>and</strong> Read. Unlike many <strong>of</strong> the partially-aided routes <strong>of</strong> the mid-sixties<strong>in</strong> Borrowdale <strong>and</strong> elsewhere, however, those <strong>of</strong> the late sixties tackled futuristicl<strong>in</strong>es which were to become the E3 <strong>and</strong> E4 climbs <strong>of</strong> the seventies. Further signs<strong>of</strong> ris<strong>in</strong>g st<strong>and</strong>ards were also evident <strong>in</strong> the number <strong>of</strong> hard routes be<strong>in</strong>gaccomplished <strong>in</strong> a s<strong>in</strong>gle day. On Scafell dur<strong>in</strong>g 1969, Lounds managed Nazgul,Ichabod, Holy Ghost <strong>and</strong> Leverage whilst Richard McHardy <strong>and</strong> PaulBraithwaite paid a rare visit from N. Wales to record an even better day. Theyclimbed Leverage, Ichabod, Hell's Groove <strong>and</strong> another before solo<strong>in</strong>gMickledore Grooves, Tr<strong>in</strong>ity, Chartreuse <strong>and</strong> Overhang<strong>in</strong>g Wall — all on sight.The same weekend, this team successfully ascended one <strong>of</strong> the districts 'lastgreat problems'; the vicious overhang<strong>in</strong>g crack on Tophet Wall, Great Gable.McHardy's lead <strong>of</strong> The Vik<strong>in</strong>g (1969) gave the Lakes its first route <strong>of</strong> anunequivocal E3 grad<strong>in</strong>g.Elsewhere <strong>in</strong> the Lakes, Col<strong>in</strong> Read <strong>and</strong> John Adams made significantcontributions. They gave Dow Crag's 'A' Buttress yet another impressiveclimb, Silence, <strong>and</strong> their route Great End Pillar opened up a new crag <strong>in</strong>Borrowdale. More controversial were their ascents <strong>of</strong> Peccadillo on Deer BieldCrag <strong>and</strong> Athanor on Goat Crag. Both these very f<strong>in</strong>e l<strong>in</strong>es utilized a number <strong>of</strong>pegs for aid — four <strong>and</strong> six respectively — to give routes which were to becomehard free climbs by the mid-seventies. This trend <strong>of</strong> employ<strong>in</strong>g a limitednumber <strong>of</strong> aid po<strong>in</strong>ts to tackle some <strong>of</strong> the more improbable-look<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>in</strong>es thatrema<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>in</strong> the area was adopted by a number <strong>of</strong> lead<strong>in</strong>g figures <strong>and</strong> cont<strong>in</strong>ued<strong>in</strong>to the early seventies. It was, I believe, symptomatic <strong>of</strong> the transition tak<strong>in</strong>gplace. Most <strong>of</strong> the good l<strong>in</strong>es <strong>of</strong> an E2 st<strong>and</strong>ard had been climbed over theprevious decade. St<strong>and</strong>ards were beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g to rise aga<strong>in</strong> <strong>and</strong> a new breed <strong>of</strong>climber was emerg<strong>in</strong>g with the will to take on more improbable-look<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>in</strong>es.The level <strong>of</strong> technical ability needed to free climb these l<strong>in</strong>es <strong>of</strong> potential E3 <strong>and</strong>253
A SHORT HISTORY OF LAKELAND CLIMBING - PART I11E4 difficulty was still just beyond their grasp.Thus, the sixties came to an end <strong>in</strong> a state <strong>of</strong> transition which held out greathopes for the future. The follow<strong>in</strong>g decade more than lived up to expectationsas a new regime <strong>of</strong> pioneers with better equipment, more ref<strong>in</strong>ed techniques,pr<strong>of</strong>essional methods <strong>and</strong> a whole new outlook began an <strong>in</strong>tense period <strong>of</strong>development <strong>of</strong> the Lakel<strong>and</strong> crags. It was to be an era <strong>in</strong> which climb<strong>in</strong>gst<strong>and</strong>ards rose dramatically, controversies flared regularly, <strong>and</strong> ethical debate<strong>in</strong>tensified as many diverse factions competed for the best l<strong>in</strong>es <strong>of</strong> the day.
Change language